Sun 15 Mar 2026 • Polly Shute
5 years of Out & Wild Festival
SHARE THIS POST
Creating a fun, safe and supportive space for the queer female and non-binary community
This year Out & Wild celebrates our fifth birthday. In that time we have welcomed thousands of attendees from 22 countries across the world. We have grown from 30 people at a pilot event to just under 1000 at last year's Festival.
We are also proud to have provided a platform to hundreds of acts, artists, comedians, authors and wellness and workshop leads. From Heather Peace to Joelle Taylor.
And we have expanded to run events across the UK, with more Weekenders and CampOUTs and day events planned for 2026 and 2027.
Back in 2021, as we were coming out of lockdown, I sensed there was a need for a new space for queer women and non-binary people, one that had holistic wellbeing at it's heart. Where you could still drink and have fun, but also try out new experiences in a safe and supportive space.
I was told everyone was tired of dating and friendship apps, and they craved real life connections.
I found a great space in Wales, took 30 people for a weekend and asked a simple question 'If I build a festival here would you come?', The answer was a resounding 'Hell yes'. And that's where it began.
Our aim and focus has always been about 'connecting through shared experiences'. That's what makes Out & Wild different to so many other festivals and events companies. Through our 5 years we are proud to have supported so many new friendships, a fair few relationships and even our first wedding last year!
Unlike most festivals, that tend to focus on just music in the evening, we have packed our programme to ensure you have lots of opportunities to try new experiences AND make new connections with like minded others.
Our focus has always been on 5 key zones; Music & Comedy, Wellness & Workouts, Spoken Word, Workshops and Sports & Hikes. And it's this mixture that provides experiences to suit everyone. Or of course, you can just enjoy being in a space with 1000 queer women and non-binary peeps, and spend the weekend on the grass chilling out.
A new open stage
For 2026 we are excited to have an open stage for music, as we literally were bursting out of the marquee last year. And we will be having a fun Queer Country Night on Friday (with optional Line Dancing lessons) to kick of the fest music. Yee-ha!
We will be bringing back DJ nights on Friday and Saturday in an onsite cafe/bar.
And of course, you can end the evening with our infamous Silent DJ sets EVERY night.
If you want to just relax, you can chill out in our marquee bar and visit our nightly campfire chats.
Many of you told us you LOVED the Comedy last year, and we all know how therapeutic laughter can be, so expect another great line up for 2026.
Wellness & Workouts
Core to Out & Wild has been the focus on Wellness, and consistently it's one of our most popular areas. So for 2026 we have created a Wellness Village. This will be situated just off from the main stage, so it's a quieter space. There will be two main spaces for experiences, and we will also be hosting an expanded Treatment Village here, with massages, reiki and more.
We will also have some great and accessible workout and dance sessions.
We know it's been a tough year for the community, and the Wellness Village will provide great opportunities to take time out and focus on you.
Workshops, Crafts and Meeting Circles
Our carefully curated workshops are always popular. Last year we introduced a Craft area, with pottery, wood whittling and jewellery making - and you LOVED it. This will be back for 2026, with the addition of a Flower Bar, where you can make your own garlands.
We are also having a space set aside for Meeting Circles throughout the weekend. These will be facilitated talks including, neurodiversity, late bloomers, non-binary and trans and global majority. Great spaces to find your tribe.
Spoken Word and Sports & Hikes
Our ever popular Spoken Word Tent will be back, and supplemented with creative workshops for those of you that are budding writer and poets. We are stoked that Award Winning Joelle Taylor is coming back, along side some other great award winning poets and authors.
And of course there will be the chance to perform in front of a crowd, at our Open Mic sessions.
We want to make the most of being just 10 minutes drive from the sea. So we will be having trips to Westward Ho to go Surfing and Swimming (they have a great rockpool). As well as daily walks with our expert guides. And there are even a bunch of runners that will be doing the Bideford 5k park run!
You can check out our latest act and experiences leads HERE and we will be announcing our programme in late April, so you have plenty of time to plan your long weekend.
And remember, if you are coming from afar you can stay on at our great campsite beyond the festival and enjoy beautiful Devon! More deets HERE.
Its been a rollercoaster of 5 years, but the core team and I love what we do. We are excited to continue to grow and expand.
For more details and tickets visit www.outandwild.co.uk
