The independent Leeds promoter is celebrating over 175,000 outdoor concert-goers in 2026.
Award-winning, independent Leeds-based promoters Futuresound Group are celebrating their most ambitious summer yet, with over 175k music and comedy fans attending the group’s outdoor concert series and festivals.
Awarded Regional Promoter of the Year at the 2025 LIVE Awards, Futuresound bring a landmark summer to a close following the establishment of a new outdoor concert series in Wakefield at Tileyard North, a greenlit expansion of their Live at York Museum Gardens events for 2027, an exclusive deal with Ludlow Castle that secures the future and growth of Live at Ludlow Castle until 2033 and record ticket sales across all of their live events portfolio.
Futuresound’s summer started with Get Together in Sheffield, a one day music and arts festival based in the City’s cultural and creative heart, Kelham Island. This year’s Get Together was headlined by infamous electro-punks Fat Dog, gothic garage icons The Horrors and legendary DJ and producer Eron Alkan with an eclectic range of performances from the likes of Gwenno, Alexis Taylor, Lynks and current BBC 6Music mainstays Lauren Auder and SILVERWINGKILLER.
Live at York Museum Gardens took place across 9 – 11 July and saw headliners Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark, Self Esteem and Super Furry Animals take to the stage within the grounds of the City’s beloved botanical gardens. The third iteration of the series, this summer also saw the return of sister event York Comedy Festival on 12 July with stand up stars Russel Howard, Ross Noble and Joanne McNally topping the bill.
Following another successful year of collaboration with York Museums Trust, Futuresound have been granted the license to present Live at York Museum Gardens across two weekends from 2027.
The following week saw the sell-out series Live at Ludlow Castle take place within the Shropshire landmark. Established in 2023 by Futuresound and the Ludlow Castle team as a long-held ambition of the promoter’s Ludlow-born and raised founder Colin Oliver, this year’s fourth edition was bigger than ever and continued the series’ unprecedented sell-out run with 50,000 fans entering the castle grounds across two weekends of world-class live music.
Headliners Snow Patrol, Paul Weller, The Human League, Tom Grennan, The Streets, Rick Astley, Richard Ashcroft and Scissor Sisters were joined by the likes of Corinne Bailey Rae, Miles Kane, Marc Almond, The Lightning Seeds, Heather Small, CAST as well as up and coming regional acts including Ellur, The Florentinas, Versaints and more.
Having grown in scale, ambition and success year on year; Futuresound, The Ludlow Castle Team and the trustees of Powis Estates have signed an exclusive new deal that secures the future of Live at Ludlow Castle until 2033.
Closer to home, Futuresound revived Live at Kirkstall Abbey this year which welcomed 30,000 attendees to five events across two weekends following its inaugural weekend in 2024. This summer saw The Streets, The Maccabees and local heroes The Sunshine Underground headline the 12th century Cistercian monastery whilst Loyle Carner curated the Above All Else Festival and the likes of Jason Manford, Dara Ó Briain, Lucy Beaumont and Sara Pascoe helped celebrate the welcome return of the Kirkstall Abbey Comedy Festival.
The end of August saw the debut of Futuresound’s latest event, Live at Tileyard North, in Wakefield with headliners Sophie Ellis Bextor, The Fratellis, Ocean Colour Scene and The Vaccines performing inside a venue steeped in industrial history and cultural importance. Futuresound worked closely with the Tileyard North team to produce Wakefield’s first outdoor concert series and look forward to growing it further for years to come. For more information on the series, please visit: https://www.liveatludlowcastle.co.uk/
Kirkstall Abbey 2026. Photograph by Jazz Jennings for Leeds Living.
Andy Smith – Director, Futuresound Group: “I’m hugely proud of the team for what they have delivered across the country this summer. From bookings to ticket sales, marketing and production, this summer felt like a real step up across the board. We’re very grateful also to our venue partners for their support and openness as collaborators – working within communities to build long-lasting and meaningful events and festivals is what we do and I think our renewed commitment to Ludlow Castle & York Museum Gardens, alongside our new relationship with Tileyard North are a testament to that.”
https://www.futuresoundgroup.com/
Main image: The Maccabees at Kirkstall Abbey 2026. Photograph by Bria Stell for Leeds Living
