A weekend of music and light to welcome in the festive period

1st December 2022

A weekend of fantastic festive events raising money for local charities will be filling Forbury Gardens with music and light this December.  Starting on the night of Friday 9 December, Gig in the Gardens features three of Reading’s finest bands plus Blue Collar food, drink, firepits and a silent disco afterparty. On Saturday 10 December, younger dancers will don headsets to party on down at the Festive Family Rave. The weekend concludes on Saturday evening with the culmination of the Reading Lantern Parade: Dance of the Fireflies, a magical winter lantern procession for everybody in the community.

Gig in the Gardens – 9 December

An evening of fabulous live music from local bands including The Magical Mystery Four, Kill Committee and Tim Kay Band. Expect festive lighting, firepits, street food from Reading’s BlueCollar Food and a bar selling a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. Once the bands have wrapped up, stay on for the after-party and have your own pick of the music with our very own silent disco rave! Gates open at 5pm with bands from 5:45pm. Entry costs £12, which includes booking fee and a £2 donation to Reading Refugee Support Group, an award-winning local charity which has been helping refugees to rebuild their lives here in Berkshire since 1994.

Festive Family Rave – 10 December

Bring the family along to a child-friendly silent disco rave session on Saturday 10 December with three headset channels to choose from including Disney, pop and disco Christmas favourites. Suitable for children aged 5 and above. The three silent disco sessions will run at 10am, 12pm, 2pm. Entry costs £5 per ticket (young or old welcome!), with a donation from each sale going to Parenting Special Children, providing specialist support for Berkshire families who have children and young people with special needs.

Reading Lantern Parade – 10 December

Following weeks of lantern-making workshops across Reading, the magical lantern procession will set off at 5:30pm and make its way along Broad Street, through Market Place to Forbury Gardens for a musical finale. Walk together in lantern light and follow the glowing fireflies as they dance their way to Forbury Gardens. This will be a heart-warming celebration of the festive season filled with lights, music and community spirit.  In the run up to the event, lantern-making workshops are being held across Reading so that everybody has the opportunity to come along and make their own beautiful willow and paper lantern for the procession.

All these Christmas events are brought to you by Reading’s Business Improvement District (BID). Reading BID is made up of Reading’s 900 town centre businesses and works to deliver events and activities that make Reading a better place to live, work and visit. Find out more about Reading BID.

Alexa Volker, BID Manager, said: “We have worked hard to put on a series of events that will appeal to the whole community and a wide range of ages, from a family rave for primary school age children to live local bands for Reading’s gig-going audience and a magical lantern procession for all ages. However you Christmas, we look forward to seeing you in Reading town centre in December.” 

More information and booking details at visit-reading.com/Christmas