FOCUS Wales 2026 is set to turn Wrexham city centre into one big gig circuit.
From Thursday to Saturday (May 7-9), more than 250 artists, a BAFTA-qualifying film festival, and a major music industry conference arrive on local streets and in familiar bars.
For three days, the city’s pubs, venues and arts spaces become showcase stages, with organisers promising that some of tomorrow’s headliners will be performing in Wrexham this spring.
From Bank Street Social to Grove Park Theatre, FOCUS Wales 2026 will see over 300 live performances across 20 Wrexham venues from 7–9 May, with big-name guests and emerging Welsh talent sharing the bill, here’s what local gig-goers need to know.
What is FOCUS Wales – and when is it?
FOCUS Wales is the country’s annual international showcase for new music, putting Welsh artists centre stage alongside acts and delegates from across the world.
The 16th edition runs from Thursday 7 to Saturday 9 May 2026, with daytime conference panels and film screenings rolling into evening and late-night live music across Wrexham city centre.
With a festival pass, people can venue-hop between all participating stages, and most people will realistically be able to catch four to six acts a night if they plan their routes.
Exact set times are listed in a downloadable 2026 timetable on the festival website, which is kept updated right up to the event.
Headliners and who to watch
Rather than building around a single main stage, FOCUS Wales spreads its big names across the weekend, with headline-level sets in the prime-time evening slots each day.
External festival listings for 2026 highlight acts including Idlewild, shame, Fat Dog, Deerhoof, Lime Garden, Gwenno, YARD, The Bug Club, Bill Ryder-Jones, The Moonlandingz and more across the three days.
Organisers also flag names such as Moonchild Sanelly, Cerys Hafana, Tristwch Y Fenywod and Ben Ellis among the draw-acts on the bill, alongside a long list of emerging Welsh artists.
Headline-calibre shows sit in the roughly 8pm–11pm window each evening in venues around the city centre, but readers are advised to check the official timetable or festival app for exact stage times and any last-minute changes.
Venues:
More than 20 venues are in use this year, turning familiar local spots into official festival stages.
The FOCUS Wales venues list confirms spaces including Bank Street Social, CREU, Grove Park Theatre, Old No.7 Bar, Penny Black Room 2, The Drunk Monk, The Fat Boar, The Magic Dragon Brewery Tap and both rooms at The Rockin’ Chair.
All are within walking distance, and the official venues map shows how long it takes to move between them – useful for anyone trying to squeeze in back-to-back gigs.
Some venues are all-ages while others are 14+ or 18+, so readers planning family visits are urged to check individual venue information in advance.
Tickets:
Festival passes are on sale now via the FOCUS Wales tickets page, with several options depending on how much you want to do.
A standard festival pass is priced at £85 plus booking fee and covers access to all live music, conference and film events, subject to venue capacity.
A fast-track festival pass, at £110 plus booking fee, offers the same access but with priority entry lanes at certain venues.
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