Whitby Goth Weekend itinerary for May 2026 festival

Against the backdrop of the Abbey and famous clifftops, streets will be filled with black-clad revellers as the biannual event returns next weekend.

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The event kickstarts on the evening of Thursday (April 30) at the Royal Hotel for a pre-festival gig with DJ Jason, starting at 7.30pm.

A scheduled list of events have been released for the May weekend (Image: Supplied)

The following day will include a Bazaar and Alternative Markets at Whitby Leisure Centre, which will run from 10am till 5pm on Friday and Saturday and 10am till 4pm on Sunday.

Meet and greets, an art exhibit and a mini moshers craft club will be held at The Royal Hotel, West Cliff on Friday, along with a glam rock and metal gig from 7.30pm till 1am.

Saturday will include a horror quiz followed by four live bands at the Revenant Lounge at the Royal Hotel and an intimate spoken word performance at Eighteen 91.

Visitors of all sub genres are expected (Image: Supplied)

Visitors can enjoy the Kooky Bingo at the Royal Hotel, along with the Bazaar and extra live music on the final day.

The annual event has been entertaining lovers of gothic and alternative culture since 1994, when founder Jo Hampshire placed an ad in NME calling for a meet-up of like-minded people.

A small group of pen pals quickly became 200 for the first Whitby Goth Weekend and has since evolved into a bi-annual rendezvous coveted by thousands of traditional goths, Victorian goths SteamPunks and cyber goths to name just a few.

For more information about this year’s event, please visit here.