First Light Festival

There’s nowhere more appropriate to mark the start of summer, and festival season, than First Light Festival. Taking place on Lowestoft’s South Beach – the most easterly point in the UK - on 20-21 June, the multi arts festival will mark being the first place in the UK to see the sunrise and mark the summer solstice with a celebration of music, culture and arts.

The only free* multi arts beach festival in the UK, First Light has become known for its Dawn Celebration, which this year takes place on the actual Solstice.  The Solstice programme starts on Sunday (21 June) around 3.30am with yoga on the beach and a live performance of improvised Indian classical music from sound artist, nature beatboxer, composer and DJ Jason Singh. A fish feast is then served for all to enjoy; a striking moment for festival-goers to share the sunrise and look ahead to the rest of summer followed by the debut of a new co-commission between Aldeburgh Festival, Britten Pears Arts and First Light Festival. Turkish-born singer-songwriter, composer, and interdisciplinary artist Tendertwin will perform a new work inspired by Benjamin Britten in this, the 50th anniversary year of his death

During the two-day event (20 & 21 June), 24 stages and venues directly on and next to South Beach host an eclectic mix of artists, including:

Sunlight Stage – the main festival stage on the beach welcomes international artists with music from across the globe to Lowestoft, including:

• Jamz Supernova - BBC 6 Music radio host, DJ and podcaster
• Dutch disco / boogie / 70s funk from Another Taste
• UK Powerhouse Soul & Funk Artist Ashton Jones
• Neo Soul and R&B singer songwriter and producer Lizzie Berchie
• Folk singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Seth Lakeman
• ShunTA! with their original, lovingly-crafted arrangements of music from the Balkans
• Modern interpretations of traditional West African Mandingue songs and rhythms from N’famady Kouyaté

First Word Stage - spoken word and comedy, including:

• Poet Luke Wright with a one-off work-in-progress show, tackling masculinity and the way politics seeps into everyday life.

• Bradley Taylor (‘A wry observer of the first quarter of the twenty first century ‘– Craig Charles)
• Poet and Playwright Inua Ellams (Barber Shop Chronicles)
• Elf Lyons (Winner - Best Comedy - Sky Arts Awards 2025)
• Self-proclaimed ‘working-class word witch’ – Louise Exactly
• A greatest hits compilation - with some new stuff - from 'comedy's poet laureate'  (The Independent)John Hegley

Talks and Interstellar Ideas tent, including hearing from:

• Patrick Grant (The Great British Sewing Bee)
• Universe of Music with the Sky at Night’s Chris Lintotto and musician Steve Pretty
• Author Ashley Hickson-Lovence (The 392, Your Show and Wild East)
• George McKay (The Oxford Handbook of Punk Rock)
• Julian Barnwell – discovering the HMS Gloucester shipwreck

Tickets are now on sale for events taking place at Festival venues after the sun goes down on Saturday (20 June):

• Keep dancing with Jamz Supernova at the First Light After Party at The Venue on Claremont Pier

• Intimate soul and jazz with vocalist and songwriter Polly Gibbons at The Royal Norfolk & Suffolk Yacht Club
• Acoustic and classical Moonlit Soundscapes featuring virtuoso violinist Harriet McKenzie and Bosch – featuring Stevie Wishart in a quartet of the UK’s most eclectic and innovate improvisers playing instruments never combined before… all at St Peter & St John Church
• East Point Pavillion brings late-night glamour with cabaret performances – a first-time feature of the Festival.
• Intergalactic Get Down – First Light’s ever popular Silent Disco

First Light Festival is known for its visual arts programming, which this year includes The Long Wait  by renowned sculptor Laurence Edwards, whose bronze forms have become a much-loved feature in the festival landscape. The sculpture will be installed for the Festival but remains on the beach throughout the summer.Elsewhere visitors will find the Kittiwake Hotel Project, a sculptural response to nesting sites out at sea built for the kittiwake bird population and the New to Moon installation of contemporary art and Easterly Artists showcase in Kensington Gardens.

The whole family can get moving at workshops in the MoonDance and Cosmic Pirates tents, including:

• Joyous social dancing from Charleston and Lindy Hop to Funk Social Dances and Hip Hop from Grounded Movement (London 2012 Olympics Opening Ceremony choreographers Temujin and Sunanda)
• shed-ache - a seriously silly dance theatre show for the whole family from aKa Dance Theatre
• Marina Monkeys Moon Party for the under 11s
• Wellbeing with Soul Space on the sand
• Vertical Space (a new zone for young people offering drop-in creativity with DJ sessions, gaming, Make your own Merch and Mussel Beach sports)

Booking is now open for First Light’s wild beach camping and cliff top campervans, offering festival goers the unique opportunity of camping on Lowestoft’s beautiful South Beach.  For the first time, First Light audiences can pre-book a fully kitted out VW campervan.

*First Light is free and unticketed with the exception of certain events on Saturday night once the free beach programme finishes at 21:30hrs.