Major Welsh music festival announces big change following local wildfires

Nation.Cymru Staff

A long-standing Green Man Festival tradition will not go ahead this year due to the high risk of fire caused by extremely dry conditions.

Wales’ largest independent music festival shared the news as they posted a ‘Weather Update’ to Facebook in preparation for the festival’s opening on Thursday 20 August 2026.

They advised festivalgoers that, as the ground is “extremely dry this year”, the festival will be working closely with fire services and Powys safety teams to minimise the risk of fires.

Disposable BBQs and campfires, as well as charcoal BBQs and stoves placed directly on the ground, will be banned, alongside smoking and vaping in tents and bars.

“Cook with extreme diligence using gas camping stoves and gas BBQs that are on tables or fitted with legs/stands to keep the heat source clear off the ground,” organisers said.

The festival will be providing Butt Boxes throughout the site through Keep Wales Tidy, and advised that cigarette butts should be kept in pouches and not thrown directly onto the ground.

Extra water points will be provided, marked by flags, as well as more covered areas for shade. Organisers also reminded festivalgoers to pack clothing for “hot weather and dust, as well as possible rain and colder temps at night.”

The biggest change as a result of the recent heatwaves is that the festival’s traditional closing ceremony, the burning of the Green Man, will not go ahead on the Sunday evening.

The wooden effigy is synonymous with the festival, and each year attendees write down wishes and hopes which are placed inside the structure before it is set alight.

Organisers have said that they will be hosting “an alternative GM26 goodbye on Sunday by the Green Man statue”, and will still be collecting wishes for “a special send off”.

Several wildfires have broken out in the areas around Bannau Brycheiniog and across Wales this summer, including the Llangynidr Reservoir wildfire in Ebbw Vale, an ongoing blaze in Blaenavon, and the Rhandirmwyn pine forest fire.

“I would suggest folk bring something to cover their face,” a commenter on the festival’s social media wrote. “I drove past the site two days ago and it was totally smoked out by the fire up on Llangynidr Moor.”

Others suggested that organisers instate a festival-wide ban on all BBQs no matter the type, as well as fireworks and glass bottles/containers, while some said Green Man should be cancelled altogether.

The precautions come just days before the festival returns to the Glanusk Estate in Bannau Brycheiniog National Park from Thursday 20 to Sunday 23 August.

The sold-out festival will be headlined by Mogwai, Four Tet, Wilco and Wolf Alice, with Charlotte Church, Cate Le Bon, Cat Power and The Beta Band also among the artists appearing across the weekend.

Away from the music, Green Man will host comedy, science, live interviews, circus and cinema across 16 stages, alongside activities for children and teenagers and its Welsh Beer and Cider Festival.

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