The Regent's Park Bandstand: Free Summer Concerts and Its Story

Have you ever walked past a band playing in a London park and stayed for the whole afternoon?

On summer Sundays that is what happens around the bandstand in Regent's Park. Striped deckchairs in a ring on the grass, picnics on blankets, a band under the green roof, and nobody pays a penny. I went on a summer weekend in 2021.

The concerts are the Regent's Park Music Festival. The bandstand itself has a harder history than the music suggests.

Where Is the Bandstand in Regent's Park?

The Regent's Park bandstand stands on Holme Green, in the south-west of the park, between the boating lake and the Inner Circle. The nearest entrance is Clarence Gate, and Baker Street is the nearest station.

There is a second bandstand on the Broad Walk, on the east side of the park. That one has jazz on Saturdays.

What Is the Regent's Park Music Festival?

A free summer season of concerts at the park's bandstands, run by volunteers as a charity. Its founder and chairman is Mark Elliott, and the Friends of Regent's Park and Primrose Hill help to organise it. The festival gives its founding year as 2016.

It has grown fast. More than 25,000 people came in 2025, and the 2026 season had 45 bands.

When Are the Free Concerts at the Regent's Park Bandstand?

From late June to late September. In 2026 the season ran from 21 June to 20 September.

Concerts are on Sundays and bank holidays at the Holme Green bandstand, with Saturday jazz at the Broad Walk bandstand. The programme is published on the festival's website and Instagram.

The bandstand concerts are free. The one ticketed part is the Secret Garden weekend at St John's Lodge, which cost £15 in 2026.

What Kind of Music Plays at the Regent's Park Bandstand?

Brass bands, big bands, choirs, jazz and swing. In 2021 the season closed with a mariachi afternoon from Mariachi Loco and a set from the Duke Street Big Band. The 2026 season had five Swing Sundays.

Where Did the Regent's Park Bandstand Come From?

It was moved here from Richmond Park in the 1970s. For years its concerts were only occasional, until the festival brought regular music back.

What Happened at the Regent's Park Bandstand in 1982?

On 20 July 1982 the IRA set off a bomb hidden under the bandstand during a lunchtime concert. The band of the 1st Battalion, Royal Green Jackets, was playing music from Oliver!

Six bandsmen died at the scene and a seventh on 1 August. Twenty-four bandsmen and eight members of the public were injured. Earlier the same day, a bomb in Hyde Park killed four soldiers of the Blues and Royals and seven horses.

A plaque on the base of the bandstand remembers the seven bandsmen. Survivors and families hold a service every year, on a Sunday close to 20 July.

What Was the Regent's Park Skating Disaster?

On 15 January 1867, around 500 people were skating on the frozen boating lake, with about 2,000 watching. The ice broke and nearly half of the skaters went into the water. Forty people died.

Afterwards the lake was drained, levelled and lined with concrete. By June 1868 it was only about four feet deep, and it still is.

What Else Is Near the Regent's Park Bandstand?

Queen Mary's Gardens, the rose garden inside the Inner Circle, is a few minutes' walk. Baker Street is at the park's south-west corner, so the bandstand pairs well with Marylebone.

Rudolf Steiner House on Park Road has one of London's strangest staircases. The Wallace Collection is free, and Daunt Books on Marylebone High Street is the prettiest bookshop around.

Visiting the Regent's Park Bandstand: Practical Notes

📍 Where: The bandstand on Holme Green, Regent's Park, between the boating lake and the Inner Circle, near Clarence Gate.

📅 Open days: Sundays and bank holidays from late June to late September; in 2026, 21 June to 20 September. Saturday jazz is at the Broad Walk bandstand.

⏰ Opening: The park's pedestrian gates open at 5am. Concert times vary, so check the festival's programme.

🎫 Admission: Free.

🚇 Getting there: Baker Street station (Bakerloo, Circle, Hammersmith & City, Jubilee and Metropolitan lines). Regent's Park station is closer to the Broad Walk bandstand.

☕ Food: The Waterside Café on the boating lake is the nearest. Or bring a picnic.

⏳ How long: An afternoon.

📷 Best time: A warm Sunday afternoon in July or August.

🗺️ Nearby: The boating lake, Queen Mary's Gardens and Marylebone.

Deckchairs: Parkdeck Chairs hire them from a point at the bandstand, from March to October. In 2026 an hour cost £4 and a whole day £14.

Have you spent a Sunday afternoon at the Regent's Park bandstand? Which band would you go back for?

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