The Green Festival began in 1995 as an offshoot from Newcastle University’s Green Society and has slowly morphed over the years into the event we know today.

1995 saw the first Green ‘Fair’ take place in Leazes Park. To demonstrate how popular and great the park is, Friends of Leazes Park invited the Students' Union to host a festival. Our first event had a music stage, held direct action workshops, and hosted stalls and craft workshops. Within a year, the range had greatly expanded to include three stages, a bar and many more green activities for all the family.

By 1998, it was decided to make the festival a two-day event. The number of volunteers wanting to run activities had grown massively and since we had to bring the kit on site on the Friday, we figured: why not make use of the whole weekend? Thus, the Sunday remained the same festival event with a great party feel and the Saturday ‘family’ day was born – a much more restrained, alcohol free day.

Over the course of its history, the festival has grown into a flagship environmental event and is now dubbed the North’s ‘mini Glastonbury’. We intend to build on that reputation; raising awareness of environmental issues and giving the community a great weekend of entertainment in one of Newcastle’s most beautiful parks.