Fantasy Forest's Story
How the amazing fantasy festival came to life
A magical venue
Located in the grounds of Sudeley Castle in view of the rolling Cotswold Hills, it’s a fairytale setting perfect for fantasy frolics.
Often referred to as one of the most idyllic wedding venues in the UK, this is a truly unique venue with a history that spans over 1,200 years.
And while you are at the festival, don’t forget to visit the tomb of Queen Katherine Parr, last wife of King Henry VIII, who lived and died in this castle. The chapel, tomb and award-winning gardens are open to festival visitors on Saturday and Sunday after 5PM.
Dream with your eyes open
Fantasy Forest is the brainchild of a group of seasoned festival veterans whose dream it was to introduce a different kind of festival to the UK.
A festival that brings fans from all genres of fantasy together for the weekend, providing a feast of entertainment and spectacle. Whether you’re into sci-fi & fantasy films, books and TV, fantasy arts, comics, anime, cosplay, LARP, steampunk or historic re-enactment, all are welcome. A gathering place to meet like-minded people. Get together with old friends and make new ones!
Dream with your eyes open
Fantasy Forest is the brainchild of a group of seasoned festival veterans whose dream it was to introduce a different kind of festival to the UK.
A festival that brings fans from all genres of fantasy together for the weekend, providing a feast of entertainment and spectacle. Whether you’re into sci-fi & fantasy films, books and TV, fantasy arts, comics, anime, cosplay, LARP, steampunk or historic re-enactment, all are welcome. A gathering place to meet like-minded people. Get together with old friends and make new ones!
A magical venue
Located in the grounds of Sudeley Castle in view of the rolling Cotswold Hills, it’s a fairytale setting perfect for fantasy frolics.
Often referred to as one of the most idyllic wedding venues in the UK, this is a truly unique venue with a history that spans over 1,200 years.
And while you are at the festival, don’t forget to visit the tomb of Queen Katherine Parr, last wife of King Henry VIII, who lived and died in this castle. The chapel, tomb and award-winning gardens are open to festival visitors on Saturday and Sunday after 5PM.
The history of Fantasy Forest
2023
Year of the Bear
The first ever completely sold out edition! After an amazing start, camping tickets sold out within the first 40 hours (compared to 4 months the year before!). Soon after, Saturday and Weekend tickets followed and sold out 2 whole months before the festival. Sunday tickets would follow.
12.000 people were meant to walk through the gates of Fantasy Forest on the 3rd weekend of July.
Unfortunately, severe weather struck the country and like many other festivals, Fantasy Forest was affected by this. But despite all odds, Fantasy Forest managed to eventually open up to the public on Saturday evening and Sunday, bringing in a full house!
Brand new to this edition, was the Dragon Stage. With the same dimensions as the Dream Stage, it hosted an impressive line up with bands such as PerKelt, Ye Banished Privateers and Harmony Glen.
2022
Year of the Wolf
Fantasy Forest kept on growing in every single aspect. Despite increasing the number of camping tickets, people would quickly find themselves without one as they sold out within 4 months. These were the first signs of the great success 2022 would become. The pack grew as many new visitors joined the experience, pushing ticket sales well beyond what was expected.
Extending the terrain by nearly 30% with the new Steam Nation, the addition of a 65-piece orchestra and bands such as Sunfire, Pyrolysis and The Royal Spuds guaranteed a fun weekend.
2021
Year of the Phoenix
Twice the time to prepare = twice as good.
After a difficult start in 2019, Fantasy Forest went all out and improved in every way. With result. The camping tickets sold out 2 months before the festival started and Fantasy Forest saw over 300% growth compared to 2019 and saw the first edition of Stoked launched, the official Anne Stokes fan event.
Despite covid measures and an insane +30 degrees in the sun, thousands of people were able to enjoy bands such as Perkelt and The Dolmen. The future of Fantasy Forest was as bright as the sun
2020
The Dark Age
The world is in lockdown and the Guardian Tree could not risk exposing the magical creatures of Fantasy Forest.
For the first time, Fantasy Forest enters the digital world. 16.000 people world wide get a glimpse of what Fantasy Forest is all about through a 4-hour long livestream. A grand success, which led to annual livestreams in a quality rarely seen within the fantasy scene.
The livestream saw multiple bands from across Europe perform live, live Q&A’s and much more!
2019
Year of the Dragon
There is a first time for everything. After years of preparation, festival veterans launched their own event at Sudeley Castle: Fantasy Forest Festival.
Fantasy Forest 2019 can be considered a success, despite it’s lack of visitors. With bands such as The Dolmen, Greenrose Faire and Harmony Glen, combined with the experience from it’s team and the overall scale, the first festival was up there with established festivals