GCT Beer Festival 2025
Friday 1 August, 4pm - 11pm.
Saturday 2 August, 12pm - 11pm.
Sunday 3 August, 11am - 5pm
£5 entry for over 18s - kids go free. Pay on the door.
Entry fee gets you repeat entry for the whole weekend with a wristband.
More information about your visit can be found here.
Our family-friendly, dog-friendly, community Beer Festival is back with tons of live music, street food, crafts for the kids and importantly LOADS of beer. We even have plenty of not-beer and no and low alcohol options for those just wanting to come down for the vibes (which are immaculate...)
Celebrate with us and support our work with people with learning disabilities.
Friday: Pints, party, pizza
The opening night is party night. Be the first to have the full choice of beers on the bar before they're gone and bring your mates for a hit of nostalgia from Jamagotchi, who will be playing biggest pop, dance and indie bangers from the 90s from 8pm to 10pm. Sustenance will be delivered by delicious offerings from Fire and Dough Pizza and our own kitchen.
Saturday: Family fun and soulful grooves
Saturday daytime is all about family-friendly fun, while the evening is filled with live music topped with a soul review with Soul'd Out! Join us for a day filled with creative crafts from Mini Crafters, mouth-watering offerings from Goodtimes Tacos, and our kitchen with another street food vendor to be announced. There will be live music from 4.30pm from Hels Pattison, Georgia May and Soul'd Out's 7-piece band playing the best neo-soul, funk, RnB and hip-hop to get you up on the dancefloor.
Sunday: Chill out and unwind
Wind down the festival on Sunday with food from our kitchen and a lineup of live music from local up-and-coming artists on our stage from 1pm until 5pm including Tommy Arch and two singer songwriters from We Make Culture's excellent Young Musician's Project. Plus our family craft room to keep the young ones entertained. It's the perfect way to end your weekend while savouring the last of our festival beers.
Support and celebrate with us
By attending the GCT Beer Festival, you're supporting an independent, community-focused event. All proceeds from our bars and food go directly back into our work with people with learning disabilities, once festival costs are covered. If you love the festival and want to support us further, donations are welcome throughout the weekend.
Join us for a memorable weekend!
Be a part of this incredible celebration. Whether you're here for the beer, the music, the food, or just the community spirit, there's something for everyone at the GCT Beer Festival. Mark your calendars and get ready for a weekend to remember!
Highlights
Drinks
Our festival bar will boast 20 taps of keg, 10 taps of cask beer from local and national breweries and will represent a range of styles for all tastes. Want sessionable pales? You got it! Belgian ales, saisons and sours? Yep. Something dark? Oh you bet! Classic bitters and IPAs? Don't worry about it. Plus the odd rarity and special in there.
Plus we will have a dedicated spirits and wine bar on our Theatre bar, with no and low alcohol bar option, so if beer isn't your thing you can still come down and have a great time.
Jamagotchi
Step into a neon-soaked time machine with Jamagotchi, the ultimate 90s tribute band that's ready to unleash a wave of nostalgia!
Get ready to nurture your inner 90s kid, because Jamagotchi delivers a live experience that's addictive and interactive. Not just songs; Jamagotchi ignite a full-blown party atmosphere where the energy is infectious and the good vibes are cranked to eleven. You'll be transported back to a golden era of pop, grunge, Indie, and dance anthems.
Get ready to belt out every word to your favorite sing-along songs, from Brit Pop icons such as Oasis, Pulp and Blur, as well a TV themes and Old School Rave classics. Jamagotchi doesn't just play the hits; they embody the spirit of the 90s, bringing the fashion, the attitude, and the sheer joy of a decade that gave us so much iconic music.
So dust off your trackies, dig out your glow sticks, and prepare for a night of pure, unadulterated 90s fun. Come join the Jamagotchi family – where every gig is a reunion and every song is a memory waiting to be relived.
Friday 1 August, 8pm
Soul'd Out
Soul'd Out is the North East’s definitive live Neo-soul, RnB, hip-hop, funk and urban music night. They will bring us a night of live-music and dancing with the very best House Band in town, bringing their 7-piece signature soulful groove.
They are a music collective that have a love and a passion to shine a light on genres which have been scarcely represented in the city and are all about community and enhancing the musical landscape of our beloved city.
Be prepared to head straight to the dancefloor as Soul'd Out, led by the phenomenal vocals of Gift, provide the perfect soulful soundtrack to our Saturday night.
Saturday 2 August, 7.45pm
Georgia May
Georgia May is a Neo-Soul vocalist, born and raised in Newcastle upon Tyne with Nigerian roots (self-proclaimed: Nigeordian). Her sound is defined by soothing timbres exposing contrasting emotions of lust and heartache with a poetic lyrical narrative. She’s heavily influenced by 90’s Hip Hop, RnB, Afrobeats and Neo-Soul.
Georgia’s captivating live vocals are complimented by Daps on keyboards, bringing jazzy chords with a gospel influence. The duo perform a variety of original material along with a few stylised covers.
Saturday 2 August, 6pm
Hels Pattison
Hels is an alt-country/indie musician hailing from Newcastle upon Tyne. Known for her ethereal vocals, she has captivated audiences and gained a grassroots following across the North East. Her debut EP ‘Just what I Do’, released January 2025, has earned support from BBC Introducing, leading to a live session on the North East show and an opening slot at the ‘BBC Introducing Live From The Glasshouse’ series in April 2025.
Drawing influences from artists like Maggie Rogers and Mary Chapin Carpenter, she has been praised by local magazines as “startlingly magnificent” with “powerful, classic songwriting”. Hels' lyrics are both relatable and steeped in traditional country storytelling, making her a unique and compelling voice in the alt-country/indie genre.
Saturday 2 August, 4.45pm
Mini Crafters
Mini Crafters is a children's craft group led by Lynn Wandsworth; they have previously run sessions at our Reopening weekend in 2023 and our Family New Year's Eve Party. They run multiple tables of crafts and colouring centred around a theme, and they always go down well!
In our studio 12pm - 3pm Saturday and Sunday.
Tommy Arch
Tommy is a true road-dog, having honed his craft through years of performing across the UK, both as a celebrated member of fiery folk-rockers Holy Moly & The Crackers and in his own right, supporting the likes of Eddy V, Damian Lewis, Beans On Toast, GA-20 & Daniel Kimbro.
With his captivating voice, raw guitar work, and deeply personal songwriting, Tommy has built a reputation for delivering unforgettable live performances. His unique sound blends the best of soul, blues, and folk influences, – infused with a mastery of songwriting, learnt from obsessively listening to the old heroes; Bob Dylan, Townes Vans Zandt, Van Morrison and delivered with a powerful freight train voice reminiscence of singers like Ray Charles and Otis Redding.
Sunday 3 August, times TBC
Ethan Stayman
Ethan Stayman is a local singer songwriter who plays piano from County Durham.
He ranges from slower, more emotional ballads, to uptempo songs in a pop leaning style, but they are tied together by honesty that reflects his own life.
In his short time doing gigs, he has played at small venues including Pop Recs and Port Independent in Sunderland, continuing to build a narrative around the music that he loves to create.
Sunday 3 August, times TBC
Goodtimes Tacos
Goodtimes are a GCT favourite. They're been slinging their famous West-Coast inspired tacos at event here since 2018 and they always go down a storm. They have vegan options alongside their must-have pressed birria or baha tacos.
Serving Saturday 2 August.
Fire and Dough
We pride ourselves on being able to produce restaurant quality, Neapolitan pizza to the masses throughout the summer months.
We've honed our craft and with a fantastic team of pizzaiolos behind us, can serve up to 400 pizzas an hour, with the same Fire & Dough quality every time.
Serving Friday.
Mini Crafters
Mini Crafters inspire and encourage children to be creative through engaging craft workshops.
They theme each event they do and have 3 to 4 stations that families can work on, making something that kids love and can take home with them, We love them and look forward to having them for the weekend this year!
12pm - 3pm Saturday and Sunday
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Is the GCT Beer Festival dog friendly?Yes! 🐶 We're a friendly home to well-behaved pooches and have a handful of water bowls on site should you need them. They can be inside and outside of the venue, but we advise taking them out of the Theatre if there is loud music and the lights are down.
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Where can I park at Gosforth Civic Theatre?We have a small, free car park, but it will be very busy and partly reserved for artists and staff. It's best to avoid planning on parking directly at the venue. Please keep this in mind if you're driving over; we detail alternative parking on our YOUR VISIT page, so check it out!
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The Beer Festival has been free entry in recent years, why do we now have to pay an entry fee?The £5 entry has been put in place this year as the cost of running the event is huge, and even previous Festivals have been successful in bringing a lot of people through the building, they always just break even once staff, stock, programming, marketing and overheads are taken into account. We really want to keep it free, and have pushed for donations in previous years but with our staffing overheads, along with every other business having increased, this year’s event will be even more expensive to run. The £5 that we have chosen to charge adults simply allows us to continue hosting the event, helps towards programming costs, and supports the organisation. You get a wristband that will grant you entry across the weekend if you wish to come back more than once. We understand rising costs have impacted everyone, and it’s more expensive than ever to socialise, attend events and travel so it’s a decision we haven’t taken lightly.
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Is Gosforth Civic Theatre wheelchair accessible?Yes, we are a fully accessible venue. All entrances are wheelchair accessible and automatic. There is an accessible toilet on the premises, and each area of the building is on one level. Please let us know if you have any questions about access or how we can assist by emailing [info@gosforthcivictheatre.co.uk](mailto:info@gosforthcivictheatre.co.uk).
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Where is Gosforth Civic Theatre located and how can I get there?Gosforth Civic Theatre is located right next to Regent Centre Metro Station and Bus Interchange, just a 2-minute walk away. This means we're accessible via major transport links including Tyne & Wear Metro, Arriva, Stagecoach, and Go North East bus services, as well as by car from Great North Road. Please visit the YOUR VISIT section of our website for directions and the best ways to arrive at GCT.