Henley Festival – back for five magical summer nights
An unmissable event taking place on the banks of the iconic River Thames this July, Henley Festival was back with a sensational line-up for 2024, featuring five magical summer nights packed full of world-class music, comedy, dining and dancing. The UK’s only black-tie festival is renowned for championing the best in performance and visual art, all set against the beautiful backdrop of picturesque Henley-on-Thames.
More than 27,000 black-tie festival-goers (including The LC) attended the sun-soaked celebrations. Although we were a little jealous of the revellers who thought to attend in one of the 200 boats that pulled up to the banks of the Thames – surely the perfect way to arrive in style!
We were only too pleased to accept an invitation to attend Henley, to experience all the fun of the Festival. The sun shone down as we joined the throng of revellers all in black tie, ready to enjoy the incredible atmosphere. Each year, the Festival boasts an interesting and eclectic line-up of musical, comedic, theatrical and artistic talent, which means experiencing everything from the sensation of the some of the world’s biggest pop stars, to legends of the international comedy circuit, to some truly fabulous artworks, and even to performers striding around the event on stilts!
Founded as a charity more than 40 years ago, the mission of Henley Festival is to stage an unforgettable music and arts festival for the local community, while helping to support the next generation of talent by providing a platform for young musicians, comedians and visual artists. To further support this mission, in 2022 Henley Festival launched their charitable initiative, RISE, nurturing the next generation of talent taking their first steps into the wonderful world of performance, both in front of the spotlight and behind the scenes. And these emerging talents had quite the roster against which they were showcasing their skills this year!
Headliners who took to the Festival’s famous Floating Stage this year included Nicole Scherzinger, Gladys Knight and Sam Ryder, while the comedy came courtesy of some of the UK’s best-known acts – including Dara Ó Briain, Angela Barnes, Sara Pascoe, Mark Watson, and Flo & Joan.
International icon and singer Nicole Scherzinger opened the Festival on Wednesday 10th July, fresh from her triumphant residency at The Savoy Theatre starring as lead role Norma Desmond in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical Sunset Boulevard. The Olivier-nominated singer has sold more than 60 million records, both solo and as part of The Pussycat Dolls, and brought the energy and vibrancy for which she is renowned to the Henley stage. This included two costume changes, and even a nod to the England men’s football team. On hearing the news that they had beaten the Netherlands in the Euros whilst she was performing, the singer proceeded to launch into a rousing rendition of Queen’s We Are The Champions – much to our absolute delight.
The Festival also welcomed the Empress of Soul herself – the legendary Gladys Knight. The seven-time Grammy Award winner and Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame inductee made the occasion extra special, as it marked the last show of her UK Farewell Tour. This was a performance that had every member of the Henley Festival audience dancing on the banks of the Thames.
Rounding out the festival was none other than Sam Ryder, who took to the Floating Stage in a rather fetching pair of Sonic The Hedgehog trousers. Since uploading his now infamous covers during lockdown in 2020, Sam has rocketed into the musical stratosphere and with his hit single Space Man, gave the United Kingdom its best Eurovision result since 1998 and the highest-charting UK Eurovision entry in over a quarter of a century. His debut album, entitled There’s Nothing But Space, Man!, soared to number 1 and – as well as notably performing at the Queen’s Jubilee – he also received a Breakthrough Act BRIT Award nomination. His performance at Henley was electrifying, and he had every member of the audience up on their feet.
Each evening at Henley Festival was brought to a jaw-dropping conclusion with spectacular firework displays exclusively designed by the pyrotechnic professionals at Titanium Fireworks, and they really did put on quite the show. The team are behind some of the UK’s biggest firework shows in the last decade, from The Mayor of London New Year’s Eve celebrations, Edinburgh’s Hogmanay, the England 2015 Rugby World Cup, and the London 2012 Olympic Games. Henley is the only music festival working with Titanium, and their extraordinary brand of sparkle proved to be the perfect partner for the magical and unforgettable memories that we made by the Henley-on-Thames riverside.
Henley Festival will return from 9th – 13th July 2025. For more information, go to: www.henley-festival.co.uk
