Rewind South is back at Temple Island Meadows in Henley-on-Thames from Friday 21 to Sunday 23 August 2026, with a bill that runs from The Human League and Soul II Soul to The Proclaimers and Tony Hadley. Here is the practical guide to the weekend.
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Rewind Festival South 2026 dates and location
The festival runs 21-23 August 2026 at Temple Island Meadows, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. It is the southern leg of the Rewind series, and the riverside setting is a large part of the appeal — the arena sits on open meadow with the Thames on one side.
Tickets
Weekend, day and camping tickets have been on sale since last year, alongside car park passes that are sold separately. If you are driving, buy the parking pass in advance — it is cheaper and it stops you circling Henley on a Friday afternoon.
Check Rewind South 2026 ticket availability
The 2026 line-up
Saturday
Sunday
Friday is traditionally an earlier, lighter opening night for camping ticket holders rather than a full main-stage day — check the official line-up page for the final Friday programme.
Stage times
Rewind publishes stage times in the week of the festival, usually alongside the site map, and pushes any changes through its app and social channels. Sets are short and run tight — this is a festival of 40-minute greatest-hits slots, not hour-long deep dives, so clashes matter more than you would expect.
Camping
Camping runs from Friday through Monday morning, with standard, boutique and campervan options. The walk from the campsites to the arena is manageable, but the ground is river meadow: if the week has been wet, bring boots regardless of the forecast.
Getting there and parking
Henley-on-Thames station connects via Twyford on the Great Western line, with a shuttle running to the site on festival days. Drivers need a pre-booked car park pass; Henley itself has very limited parking and heavy local restrictions during the festival.
What to bring
Fancy dress — genuinely. Rewind crowds commit, and turning up in normal clothes feels like an oversight by Saturday afternoon.
Waterproofs and wellies for a riverside site.
Sun cream and a hat; the arena has little shade.
A refillable bottle for the free water points.
Weather
Late August in the Thames Valley usually means high teens to mid-twenties, with evenings that cool off fast once the sun drops behind the trees. Pack a layer for the headline set even if the afternoon is hot.
Worth the weekend?
Rewind knows exactly what it is: a nostalgia festival run with real professionalism, on one of the prettiest sites in the south. The 2026 bill is stronger than usual at the top — The Human League and Soul II Soul on the same day is a proper Saturday — and The Proclaimers closing Sunday gives it a singalong finish.
If you are still filling in your late-summer calendar, our guides to Victorious Festival 2026 and Lindisfarne Festival 2026 cover the two weekends that follow.