Greenbelt Festival '11

An all-age inclusive friendly arts festival with its roots in the Christian faith which offers a host of world music, international and home-grown acts from big names to new artists. The dates for 2011 will be the bank holiday weekend from Friday 26th to Monday 29th August 2011.

Greenbelt is a place to learn, to experience, to be. As well as music the festival hosts a selection of varied talks, workshop and debates; exploring contemporary issues, faith, social justice, politics ­and more. Greenbelt 11's theme has been announced as 'Dreams Of Home'.

Line-up

The first acts confirmed are Get Cape Wear Cape Fly, Billy Bragg, Idlewild, and Mavis Staples as headliners, with Don Leets, Kate Rusby, The Unthanks, Grace Petrie, Gentleman's Dub Club, Extra Curricular, Listener, Ahab, LZ7, The Rising, Hope & Social, Arun Ghosh, Soweto Kinch, Gordon Gano, The Ryan Brothers, and many more including an aerial theatre show from Ockham's Razor. There are many more still to be announced. For the line-up details as available please click here.

Comedy from Mark Thomas, Jo Enright, Jenny Lockyer, Folk On return at Last Orders and around the site, plus Get Up Stand Up and Last Orders.

As well as music and performing arts, the festival hosts a wide range of talks with the likes of Barbara Glasso, Mark Vernon, Peter Rollins, Revd Dr Joanna Collicutt, Dr Pete War, Richard Wilkinson, Baroness Elizabeth Berridge, Ata Jaber and Salim Shawamreh, Rob Bell, Paula Gooder, Margaret Sentamu, Sheila Cassidy, Kate Coleman, Dave Batstone & Erik Lammerding, John Bell, Shane Claiborne, Yonatan Shapira, Inderjit Bhogal, Dr John Bryant, Karen Ward, Oliver James, Lutheran pastor Nadia Bolz-Weber, Dr Ruth Bancewicz, Paul Brannen, Bob Holman, Dr Luke Bretherton, Suad Younan, Pete Ward, Rosalee Velloso Ewell, Lia Dong Shimada, Margaret Silf, and Barbara Glasson.

There's an array of novelists speaking about their work including Stella Duffy, Adrian Plass, Padraig O Tuama, Richard Beard, Mia Gallagher, Amy Sackville, Jari Moate, Nancy Matson, and RS Downie. There are also sessions from poets Kenneth C Steven, Andrew Philip, and European Poetry Slam champion Harry Baker. Plus Deborah Fielding, Andrew Tate, Francis Khoo, Richard North Patterson, and Nicky Getgood.

Programmes

Greenbelt also has a visual and performing arts programme, as well as exploring a variety of alternative worship styles, and runs a daily Children's Festival, plus literature, classical, film, and youth programmes.

Tickets

Early bird tickets are no longer on sale. Ticket prices are as follows Adult - £120; Concessions £75; Under 18s Ticket (5-17) £65; family ticket (2 kids/2 adults) £310; and Single Parent Family Ticket (1 Adult, 2 Under 18s) £200. Infants aged 0-4 years can attend for free but still need a ticket. There are also day ticket options available.

To buy tickets, click here.

All weekend tickets cover free camping, so bring a tent or call the Cheltenham Accommodation Information line on 01242 517110 for details of B+Bs and hotels in the area.

Children's programme for 2011

Greenbelt are developing their Children's programme for 2011 by significantly increasing the amount of family-friendly programming at next year's event. The plan is to bring children to the heart of the festival; providing exciting new venues where families will be able to enjoy great music, film and performing arts together. The fresh approach – which replaces the existing provision of three, two-and-a-half hour child-only sessions – will see a new dedicated family film venue, craft area and a space for child-friendly performance alongside existing favourites Messy Space and the all-age Arena.

More information

For more information please see the Greenbelt website.