Guide to Southport’s Big Top Festival this May Bank Holiday

Southport will host a free family circus festival over the early May Bank Holiday weekend. The Big Top Festival runs Saturday and Sunday, May 2-3, with performances from 11am to 6pm each day.

Event overview

This guide to Southport’s Big Top Festival covers locations, headline acts, and workshops. Entry to the entire event is free. Shows include contemporary circus, clowning, street theatre and participatory sessions.

Where it takes place

Performances and activities are spread across five festival zones. The sites are Town Hall Gardens, Nevill Street, Market Street, London Square, and the Extravaganza Room in Southport Market. Expect simultaneous shows and roaming performers.

Town Hall Gardens

Two stages sit at the heart of the town centre. The programme mixes international and local talent for family audiences.

• Cirque Du Kaka (EggPeople) – comic ensemble that engages the crowd.
• Wolf (Circa) – a compact, high-energy acrobatic set.
• Wild Laughter: Fun on the Prom – a collaboration honouring 19th-century clowning.
• Don’t Feed The Explorers (Birdcage Stage) – slapstick family adventure.
• The Black Eagles – African acrobatics blended with contemporary performance.
• Smashed2 and YOU TOO CAN TUTU (Gandini Juggling) – physical theatre with juggling spectacle.
• AcroRats (Seeing Doobla) – playful duo with audience games and tumbling.

Nevill Street

Nevill Street hosts roaming acts and scheduled sets. Look out for giant puppets and fast-paced circus comedy.

• AcroRats – family-friendly acrobatics and slapstick.
• The Flamingos (Artemis Productions) – oversized flamingo puppets with a ringmaster.
• The Great Eve & Baldini – boisterous circus absurdity.

Market Street

Market Street features repeat performances and high-energy showcases. Acts here are suitable for all ages.

• The Great Eve & Baldini – comic circus routines.
• The Black Eagles – dynamic acrobatic ensemble.
• AcroRats and Gandini Juggling pieces – family favourites.
• Cirque Du Kaka – interactive clowning.

London Square

London Square concentrates on small-scale and visually striking pieces. Workshops and participatory sessions are also based here.

• Ripple (TeaTime Company) – a spiral installation that fuses circus and dance.
• Pirate Taxi (Pirates of the Carabina) – a compact aerial and musical adventure around a vintage cab.
• Beyond (Circumstances) – ladder walking, acrodance, acrobike and pole work.
• Harry & Steve’s Circus Show (Fools Rush In) – rapid-fire juggling, diabolos and unicycles.
• Circus skills and clowning workshops – drop-in sessions for all ages.
• The Flamingos Masterclass – a chance to try giant puppet handling and peg stilts.

Workshops and family activities

Hands-on sessions run across both days. Circus skills workshops teach juggling, plate spinning and balance. Clowning sessions introduce play and performance for younger participants.

Practical information

The festival is free to attend. Shows run between 11am and 6pm on both days. Multiple performances repeat across the weekend, so plan to move between zones.

For full schedules and updates, visit Filmogaz.com. For broader listings across the North, check Filmogaz.com for more guides and recommendations.