Crowd surfing has new meaning at Electric Picnic 

CROWD surfing took on a whole new meaning at Electric Picnic 2026, as torrential downpours submerged parts of the site in a sea of water.

The festival was only in its first day when the Coca-Cola tent had to evacuated, after a huge volume of rainwater cascaded through the roof.

It would have been almost unsurprising had surfable waves appeared at one of the wettest Stradbally festivals on record. Yet it was all plain sailing for seasoned wellie-clad fans, determined to plunge into an unforgettable weekend.

Countless highlights at the 21st Picnic included CMAT’s powerful tribute to Dolly Parton, the All-Ireland-winning Mayo football team appearing with the Timahoe Male Choir and a stunning fireworks display after a cracking set from Lewis Capaldi on Friday night.

Crowds roared as CMAT declared on Saturday: “This is probably as good as it’s ever going to get for me, so give me a minute to soak it all in!” 

Gorillaz, Amble, Fontaines DC and Zara Larsson also gave fantastic performances on the main stage, sending soaked but stoked fans wading to their tents on a high.

Unfortunately, the event was marred by an alleged serious assault in the early hours of Saturday morning, when a fan suffered a suspected broken jaw and a severe cut to the eye.

A man in his late teens, who is understood to be a member of festival staff, was arrested and charged with assault causing harm following the incident.

He was brought before a special sitting of Tullamore District Court on Saturday night, where he was remanded on bail to appear at a further court sitting in coming weeks.

About 4,000 people are booked to work in a range of roles during the three-day festival.

As fans made their weary but buoyed journey home, tractors and 4x4s were busy pulling vehicles out of deep mud around the car parks on Monday, where conditions were still mucky despite regular spreading of bark and wood chip.

With tickets for 2027 going on sale this week, Festival Director Melvin Benn confirmed that there will be no change in ticket prices and no change in capacity, which currently stands at 80,000.

Partner pre-sale tickets opened on Tuesday 4 September, with loyalty and general sale tickets opening on Friday.

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