Lincoln Laughs is back. After two years at the refurbished venue inside the Castle walls, organisers have today confirmed that the festival will return on the weekend of 11–13 July — with a bigger headline line-up, a new free community stage, and, for the first time, a full fringe programme spilling out into the Cathedral Quarter.
The festival, which sold out every evening show in 2025, has been expanded on both ends. A Thursday-evening preview night is being added on 10 July, and a family-friendly Sunday matinee has been moved to the main stage in Lucy Tower Court.
A bigger line-up for 2026
Organisers have confirmed the first names on the bill: Nish Kumar returns for a headline set on the Saturday night, joined across the weekend by Lucy Beaumont, Ahir Shah, Rosie Jones and Lincolnshire-raised newcomer Imogen Lait. Festival director Jo Simmons said the 2026 programme has been built around a deliberate split — big names at the top of the bill, early slots reserved for touring circuit acts, and a late-night room for something rougher and more experimental.
“We want the festival to feel like it belongs to Lincolnshire, not just to visiting acts. The line-up has to earn the venue.”
Jo Simmons, festival director
Simmons, who also programmes the Lincoln-based venue The Printworks, said the 2025 edition had surprised organisers with how many locals travelled in from the wider county — with significant numbers of tickets sold to postcodes in Boston, Louth, Stamford and Grantham.
A new free stage for local talent
One of the headline changes this year is the introduction of a free Lincolnshire Laughs stage in the Castle's west grounds, running all three days. Slots have been opened up to comedians based in the county, with the programming curated by a small panel that includes Magna's own Tim Disney and organisers from the Stamford Comedy Collective.
Applications are open until the end of April via the festival site, and Simmons confirmed that at least sixty per cent of the free-stage slots will go to first-time festival acts. Travel bursaries are available for performers coming from outside Lincoln.
How to get tickets
Weekend passes go on sale on Monday 20 April at 10:00, priced at £65. Day tickets will follow later in the week from £22.
- Thursday preview (10 July) — £18 (limited tickets)
- Day tickets from £22
- Weekend pass £65
- Sunday family matinee £14, under-12s free with a paying adult
- Free Lincolnshire Laughs community stage — no booking needed
Tickets will be available from the Lincoln Laughs box office in Bailgate and online. Magna Radio will be broadcasting live from the Castle grounds across the weekend — see the schedule for set-times and presenter line-up as they're announced.
Getting to Lincoln Castle
Lincoln Castle sits in the Cathedral Quarter, a short walk up Steep Hill from the city centre. Trains from Boston, Grantham, Sleaford, Newark and Nottingham all stop at Lincoln Central; the Castle is roughly fifteen minutes on foot from the station, or a short bus up the hill.
Parking in the city centre will be busy across the weekend — the festival is working with City of Lincoln Council on additional park-and-ride capacity from the Showground. Details will be posted closer to the event.
The full programme and set-times land in early June. In the meantime, Magna will be catching up with festival organisers and acts across the station's weekday shows — tune in and keep an ear out.