One of the best festivals in the city, Hockley Hustle, is celebrating 20 years of hustling this year.
We speak to festival director Tommy Farmyard, musician Nina Smith and photographer Nigel King to delve into its history, find out what makes it so special, and discover why you should visit this year of all years.
If you’re looking for October events in Nottingham, Hockley Hustle (October 25, from £20pp, hockleyhustle.co.uk) is not only a highlight of the month, but a highlight of 2026. For more features like this, subscribe to receive our articles in your inbox for free.
Hockley Hustle is celebrating 20 years of championing Nottingham’s music scene
By Eve Smallman
Nottingham is full of creativity. From talented artists to bustling venues, it’s a wonderful place to be if you’re someone with passion. One area that particularly shines is Hockley, with its Rainbow Quarter, vintage shops and tucked-away stages. But it’s in October that it’s at its very best – and that’s because of Hockley Hustle.
The festival champions Nottingham’s music scene, bringing emerging artists to a host of locations, from cosy bars to gorgeous churches. In 2026, it’s celebrating 20 years of doing just that on October 25.
‘I’m feeling excited – it’s been quite a journey getting to 20 years, with all sorts of adventures along the way,’ says Tommy Farmyard, festival director of Hockley Hustle. ‘It hasn’t really sunk in – there’s a bit of separation from some of it because you’re so entrenched, you don’t really get to absorb it all quite as much.’
It’s hard to take a step back from something you’ve built. ‘It normally happens at about nine or 10 o’clock on the day of the event, when the evening is in full swing and everything that could have gone wrong hasn’t, and everything that’s gone right has. That’s the time when everyone’s smiling and you go, “This is amazing,”’ Tommy laughs.
This year’s 20th anniversary is happening at a particularly wonderful time, with there never being a better time to get to know Nottingham’s music scene. ‘I’m always telling (younger) people now that we are living in a golden age for music in Nottingham – it’s never been better, and it keeps getting better,’ explains Nigel King, a prominent music photographer in Nottingham. ‘We have to cherish and support it as much as we can to keep it going – what drives the scene is the diversity, and it is our strength.’
The idea for Hockley Hustle began in 2006, when Adam Pickering (who is now co-director of Green Hustle) approached Tommy, who was organising events at the time. ‘He was at one of my events and he came up to me and said, “Hello, I’m Adam. I’d like to do this.” And I said, “Goodness me, you’re going to need lots of help,”’ Tommy explains. ‘That’s how it started – teenager Adam pottering up to me with his big green eyes and charming me.’
The first event was such a success that they quickly got on with organising the next one. From there, it evolved naturally. Tommy says: ‘We’ve been conscious of keeping it relatively within the Hockley area – we do spread out a little bit these days into Sneinton and a little bit beyond sometimes, but geographically we’ve done as much as we can.’
In 2017, the team started Young Hustlers, which they wanted to create for children because there wasn’t really anything like it in the city centre at the time. ‘We were the first kids’ city-centre festival of that type during that era – that was a big change when we kind of started welcoming the families and the young people into the Hustle world,’ Tommy explains. The team also expanded over the 20 years. ‘Ben Welch started 10–15 years ago, and it has just been a slow accumulation of brilliant team members – none of whom have left, which is nice.’
Hockley Hustle also began receiving Arts Council funding around 2017, which has made a difference to what it can offer as an organisation, including Industry Day and Future Hustlers. ‘It’s just given us the opportunity to expand the festival massively, which has been really good, because for the first 10-plus years it was beg, steal and borrow,’ Tommy says.
Despite all this, the ethos has stayed the same. ‘We want to do really good things, and that’s been the ethos since the start – and I’m quite glad we’ve stuck to that, and we won’t change that,’ says Tommy. ‘We’ve said no to so many things that would have taken us off that path – we’re not guns for hire, and we don’t accept horrible sponsors.’
Other creatives in the area agree. ‘Hockley Hustle is the one event each year that gives the most people the chance to take part in and engage with such a wide range of cultural activities,’ says Nigel. ‘Local artists support each other’s gigs – and this is particularly true at Hockley Hustle. There are so many playing throughout the day, everyone is in town at the same time, so it’s a social event, too.’
Hockley Hustle’s community spirit is also special to its performers. ‘It feels like everybody’s sharing instruments, sharing musicians, just to put on a really good show and a good performance for music fans,’ says Nina Smith, a Nottingham singer-songwriter who has been performing for nearly two decades. ‘I think it’s important for musicians in Nottingham because it does provide a platform for new music – there are a lot of festivals and other events that rely on more commercially active artists, whereas this is all Nottingham acts and it’s all new talent.’
The last 20 years have seen a range of highlights. ‘Working with the UFO Orchestra for the first time was stunning and a really special moment for us,’ says Tommy. ‘The first silent disco was also really, really fun – it’s just nice to see people having a good time, and that’s always a highlight. You remember one smiling face at the end of the day that you just glimpse in a moment, and the positivity that it spreads is the overall highlight.’
Major Nottingham artists such as Sleaford Mods, Jake Bugg, ALT BLK ERA, Natalie Duncan and Myles Smith have performed at the festival during the early stages of their careers. ‘Seeing Natalie Duncan with the string quartet was special,’ says Tommy.
The festival provides exceptional opportunities for local artists. ‘My first time performing was in 2009 at a bar called Shaws for BBC Introducing,’ says Nina. ‘I remember it being my first band experience, and the room was packed, which I couldn’t believe – I knew that Hockley Hustle was a good thing to play at, but I was very surprised at how many people attended.’ Another gig that was special to Nina was performing with the UFO Orchestra at Nottingham Contemporary and Metronome.
‘Back in 2018, there was an incredible show at Metronome with the Ultimate Flyby Orchestra, featuring guest vocalists Nina Smith, Chris Macdonald, Natalie Duncan and Rob Green. The orchestra filled the stage and some of the floor in front of it,’ says Nigel.
‘The following year, in 2019, there were some exceptional solo performances, in particular from the late Micki Warriner-Woods (as Wilted Flower) outside on Stoney Street – the stage there for Hockley Hustle is now rightly named after them,’ he continues. ‘Also that year, Jerub made his first appearance at Suede Bar on Heathcote Street – I knew from the first few bars that this was a huge talent. Also in 2019, Felix and Tiger, now of Divorce, played to a jam-packed Broadway bar as Megatrain.’
Other highlights for Nigel include 2022, which was memorable for the first appearance of ALT BLK ERA at Rough Trade (‘I think they were still at school then – the energy and the atmosphere in the room was just electric’), the return of the Ultimate Flyby Orchestra in 2023, and, in 2024, a special performance by Catmilk, backed by the Rob Rosa string quartet at Antenna (‘It was really special to hear Alex’s wonderful voice and lyrics accompanied by the strings’).
‘Last year, I particularly recall JayaHadADream and Zoutr ending the festival upstairs at Mimm Studio, with the crowd packed in like sardines, everyone hanging on every word of the set – I’m hoping to last until the end again this year to see Jaya at the Bodega!’ Nigel says. ‘I think JayaHadADream coming back to play this year is an example of the cohesion of the wider scene – Jaya has had such a busy year, with UK, European and Canadian festival appearances, but still has a connection to the Nottingham music scene.’
JayaHadADream is headlining at The Bodega, and Tommy is also excited to see her play. ‘She’s had such a good few years, and it’s just always nice that she comes back and plays for us and supports us, and we support her – it’s a really nice kind of ecosystem Nottingham has, with how people support each other. It’s nice when people get bigger as artists and they still want to support us.’
Tommy is also looking forward to the silent disco and the string quartet, which are both taking place at ARC Space. ‘As well as these, I’m really looking forward to our Dolly Parton hour – that hasn’t gone out yet, but we’ve got a wicked band to learn a load of Dolly Parton songs, and we’ve picked about eight or nine of our favourite Nottingham vocalists to sing Dolly Parton songs with this band,’ he continues. ‘Plus, the UFO Orchestra at St Mary’s will be amazing – we’ve got a few more vocalists this time, so it’s going to be our biggest orchestra show to date.’
The main thing Tommy wants is for it to be joyful. ‘We want it to be proud, and we’ve got such a strong line-up of Nottingham artists – some of whom played the first edition of the Hustle,’ he says. ‘We just really wanted to be loud and proud about Nottingham, and represent this culture and city as best we can.’
Nigel adds: ‘There’s every genre and style of music coming from Nottingham now, and it’s all high quality. We’re in a cycle now where success is encouraging more people to start bands and start performing – and, at the same time, we have a diverse and growing range of venues. The more opportunities there are to play, the more bands form and get better – the more bands and artists we have, the more venues open.’
Ticket funds also go towards local charities, with this year’s six being Impacd CIC, Al-Hurraya, Emmanuel House, Young Carers Notts, Shifting Your Mindset and The Harley Jae Trust. ‘Support the charities and check them out – even if you don’t come to the festival. If you’ve got a spare few quid, chuck it their way,’ Tommy says.
If you haven’t been before, don’t overthink it. ‘Don’t go in with too much – maybe check out a few bands in advance and see if there’s anything that you really like the sound of. But if you just turn up and have a good day, you’re going to be surrounded by some of the best creative energy in the city and probably the country,’ says Tommy. ‘Just come and absorb yourself in it and see where it takes you… It’ll take you on a magical journey.’
Nigel agrees: ‘I would urge everyone to go and enjoy Nottingham’s biggest party. Forget about streaming services, international billionaire megastars, major record labels and TikTok, and immerse yourself in Nottingham’s music, poetry and art scene for a day. We are as good as anywhere else in the world.’
Hockley Hustle is taking place across various venues across Hockley and Sneinton on October 25 (from £20pp, hockleyhustle.co.uk).
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