The Charlbury Riverside Festival is a regular open-air music festival held in the Cotswold town of Charlbury, Oxfordshire, on an area of watermeadow which forms an 'island' in the river Evenlode. First held in 1996 it is the largest free festival of its type in Oxfordshire. 

The festival that started as a modest affair with just one portaloo and two barrels of beer to share between the music lovers, has become a major event in Oxfordshire’s music calendar, with two stages,  a smorgasbord  of food stalls, and 45 portaloos!

Despite the work involved and the cost of putting on an event of this size, the festival is still run entirely by volunteers and still free for all to enter. It’s a truly family-friendly festival, with a dedicated kid’s area kitted out with a bouncy castle and activities.

As well as live music there are stands selling a variety of merchandise, and a beer tent.

How to get there
Entrance to the Festival site is down Mill Lane,  virtually opposite Charlbury railway station. The station is on the London Paddington to Hereford and Worcester line, 15 minutes from Oxford. On the Saturday there are buses from Oxford, Woodstock, Witney, Chipping Norton and Banbury to the centre of Charlbury, five minutes walk from the Festival.