Big Red Bash on hold for 2025, to resume in 2026
Organisers of the world’s most remote music festival in far western Queensland have dropped a bombshell about next year’s event.
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Organisers of the world’s most remote music festival in far western Queensland have dropped a bombshell about next year’s event.
The world’s most remote music festival, the Big Red Bash near Birdsville in far western Queensland, is taking next year off, organisers confirmed on Wednesday night.
Held since 2013, it has become one of the great Australian music festivals, with this year’s event attracting more than 7000 people to a line-up including Tina Arena and Jon Stevens.
But festival-goers will be forced to leave the boots and Akubras at home for 2025, as organisers make the tough call to take a break before returning in early July 2026.
“We’ve been thinking about it on and off for the last few years,” festival director Greg Donovan told The Australian.
“It’s a good time to give the event a bit of time to breathe and rest, and to work on our business rather than working on the event.”
Mr Donovan revealed that the strain of staging an event in such an isolated location had become overwhelming.
“The spectacular desert location means we have no infrastructure on site, not even the basics of running water or electricity, so every year we effectively build and remove a mini city from scratch and spend six days looking after thousands of people,” he said.
“It’s a huge task, and one of the most logistically demanding events in the world to stage.”
While other major Australian music festivals like Splendour in the Grass and Groovin’ The Moo were cancelled earlier this year due to low ticket sales, Donovan insists that Big Red Bash isn’t going the same way.
“We’ll try and have an easier year, and come back strong in 2026,” Mr Donovan told the Australian.
“That’s what we’re aiming to do; it’s nothing more than that. People might read into it ‘Oh, here’s another festival that’s fallen by the wayside’ but it’s certainly not that. We’re not playing silly buggers; we’re not packing up for good.”
Sister event the Mundi Mundi Bash will be held again next year. “It will be business as usual for the Mundi Mundi Bash sister event in August next year, and the Big Red Bash will be back on from July 7 to July 9, 2026.”
This announcement comes just two months after popular music festival Byron Bay Bluesfest announced it will end for good next April after 35 years.
The 2023 event unfolded amid a storm of controversy, with headline acts like King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and Sampa The Great pulling out. Organisers also made the contentious decision to axe controversial Sydney band Sticky Fingers from the lineup.
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