The Great Escape Reveals Full Lineup for First Fifty Preview Night in East London
UK new-music festival The Great Escape has announced the full lineup for First Fifty, its preview event ahead of the 2027 edition. On Thursday, November 12, 2026, seven venues around Hackney in East London will host a single night of shows spanning 20 emerging acts across indie, alternative, punk, pop and electronic music. Tickets start at £7.50 and are on sale now.
Show details
- Date: Thursday, November 12, 2026, all venues same night
- Location: seven venues around Hackney, East London — Oslo, Moth Club, The Shacklewell Arms, Sebright Arms, Folklore, Paper Dress Vintage, The Victoria
- Price: from £7.50 per show
- Tickets/details: NME report
Full First Fifty lineup by venue/curator
Each of the seven nights is curated by a different media outlet or organization, each presenting three or four acts.
Ticketmaster New Music present (at Oslo)
- Esmeralda Road (Belfast indie fusion)
- Xanadu (London five-piece)
- Pack of Animals (psych rock)
- Jordan Joy (Irish singer-songwriter)
DIY Neu Nights present (at Moth Club)
- Compost Compost Compost (electronic sound trio)
- Dumbhead (Melbourne trip hop trio)
- Die Twice (alt rock)
So Young present (at The Shacklewell Arms)
- State of Grace (Irish indie)
- Spanish Horses (indie rock)
- Angelface (Scottish folk/dream pop)
Dork present (at Sebright Arms)
- Bathing Suits (electronic noise)
- chest. (NME 100 selection)
- Shrink (London singer-songwriter)
Clash present (at Folklore)
- Half Star (alt rock trio)
- Tesni (Welsh singer)
- Casual Smart (Cardiff five-piece)
BBC Introducing present (at Paper Dress Vintage)
- simon a. (Walthamstow rapper)
- J Casa (rapper)
- Chiderah (Nigerian singer-songwriter)
Ones to Watch present (at The Victoria)
- Aubory Bugg (Nashville singer-songwriter)
- Gianna (alt pop singer-songwriter)
- Abbie Gordon (Scottish singer-songwriter)
Bathing Suits and the Steve Strange Award
Bathing Suits won the Steve Strange Award at The Great Escape 2026. Named after the late manager and longtime champion of new artists and live music, the award is voted on annually by festival delegates for the year's standout performer, with the winner receiving £5,000 to support their development. Past winners include Zetra, AGGRASOPPAR and Audio Books. NME also named the Leeds band among the best live acts of 2026, alongside Angine de Poitrine and Gurriers.
The 2027 Brighton main event
The Great Escape returns to Brighton for its main 2027 edition from May 12 to 15, planning more than 450 emerging and buzz acts across 35-plus walkable venues, alongside the industry-focused TGE conference held at the same time. The 2026 edition ran May 13-16 and drew more than 20,000 attendees.