Gloworm Festival returned to Thoresby Park and after four days on site, we can safely say it belongs on every young family’s bucket list.
The Nottinghamshire festival bills itself as being made by families for families, and that really shows everywhere you look. The acts are brilliant, but what surprised us the most was the sheer amount of things to do, and how every age and stage is catered for.
In just one weekend we did so much, including painting, cooking, biscuit decorating, character meet and greets with Bluey, Zog and loads more, splashing in the stream, unlimited fairground rides (free on Saturday and Sunday until 5pm), Playmobil play, little car rides, building blocks, seeing farm animals and playing on the pretend beach. The list goes on and on, and that’s before we had even seen any acts.
Friday is exclusive to campers, with doors opening at 12pm and the stage coming alive from 5pm. Jo O’Meara headlined an S Club party that had grown ups reliving their childhood, alongside Kevin and Perry Go Large and a K-Pop Hunters Party for the older kids. Food vendors and a fully stocked bar kept everyone fuelled, and with a Monster Movie Quiz, Boombox Boyz and the fairground running into the evening, it set the tone for the whole weekend.
The campsite sits close to both the car park and the main festival site, so there’s no trekking huge distances with your gear. That made it easy to bring proper cooking and camping kit rather than travelling light, and our child made friends with several other families camped nearby, which turned out to be one of the highlights of the whole trip.
Saturday’s stage brought the Vengaboyz Experience, Black Lace legend Dene Michael (featuring a whole-crowd hokey cokey), and a Swift and Styles tribute show, alongside firm family favourite Nick Cope.
Between sets there was a Playmobil Rave featuring Sparky, a Paw Patrol Pup Pup Boogie, and appearances from Nathan Hadley and Nigel Clarke. Over in the Big Top, acts ran from a Pirate Pandemonium to a Mad Hatters Tea Party, while the CBeebies tent hosted bedtime stories with Evie and Dodge.
We booked into the VIP area on Sunday, which included a Cook Stars session where the kids made dirty fries and decorated their own cookies, a brilliant hands on activity that adults enjoyed just as much as the children. Sunday’s main stage lineup featured Pat Sharp, Maddie Moate, the Funhouse Twins, and Twist and Pulse, who ran a dance class earlier in the day before returning to read a CBeebies bedtime story alongside Zog. There was also a Spiceworld tribute, a Clubland Reborn set, and a Straight Out of Oz show to close out the weekend.
Sunday’s fancy dress parade was one of the standout moments of the festival. This year’s theme, marking Gloworm’s 10th anniversary, was The Gloworm Premiere, with families dressing up as their favourite film characters or going full red carpet glamour. The effort on show was brilliant, with costumes ranging from classic movie icons to full on Hollywood outfits, all vying for prizes during the Playmobil Rave on the Main Stage. We also made the most of the free fairground rides again, before heading over to White Post Farm’s Little Farmers Club to meet the animals.
Beyond the main stages, Gloworm’s zones kept us busy all weekend. We stumbled across painting sessions in the Goodies tent, spent time on the SpongeBob-themed beach with its giant sand pit and mermaid shows, and tried everything from axe throwing in the Adventure Zone to immersive play in the Playmobil Zone. With no hidden costs and everything included in the ticket price, it’s easy to fill four full days without spending a penny extra – especially if you take your camping gear for cooking.
Gloworm Festival strikes a rare balance between big stage entertainment and smaller, more intimate activities, with something new to discover around every corner. From Friday’s opening party atmosphere through to Sunday’s fancy dress finale, it’s an unmissable weekend for young families.
It will absolutely be the first thing on our list for next summer!
