Skip to content

The Longest Johns to headline harbour festival

Dawn Limbu
BBC News, Bristol
Plaster Communications Three men stand on a mountain in front of a waterfall. The man on the right is wearing a yellow t-shirt and black jeans and is standing with his arms folded. The man in the middle is wearing a blue denim shirt and black jeans with his hands in the front pocket. The man on the right wears a black-t-shirt with black jeans and has his hands by his sides.Plaster Communications
The Longest Johns will headline the Made in Bristol showcase on Sunday 20 July

Folk band The Longest Johns will be the main act at their home city's biggest festival this summer.

The band, who became famous for their viral video of 'Wellerman', a 150 year-old sea shanty, during the "Shanty Tok" craze of 2021, will headline the Bristol Harbour Festival.

The festival, which will run from Friday 18 to Sunday 20 July and is one of the country's largest free cultural events.

The Longest Johns will headline the Harbour View stage on the Sunday night after returning from a tour of North America and Europe.

Plaster Communications Three band members of the Longest Johns performing on stage. All three of them can be seen playing guitars. The stage is lit up with green and blue lighting.Plaster Communications
The Longest Johns are well-known for being part of a revival of sea shanties in the UK

The free festival, founded more than 50 years ago, will also feature a large food market and multiple stages where many performers from the city will play live or stage theatre shows.

Bristol City Council leader Tony Dyer said: "The Bristol Harbour Festival is a true celebration of the city - its creativity, diversity, and rich musical talent.

"It's fantastic to see Bristol artists like The Longest Johns making a global impact and then bringing that success back home to share with festival audiences."

Follow BBC Bristol on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to us on email or via WhatsApp on 0800 313 4630.

More on this story
Related internet links