Hellfest Announce Full Line-Up For 2026 Edition - Tales From The Pit
It is one of Europe’s biggest festivals and each year the team at Hellfest pull off one mammoth line-up showcasing a wide mix of bands for every taste. 2026 marks 20 years since the very first edition of the festival that is held in the iconic Hellfest Camp grounds in the stunning town of Clisson in France. Minus the stages and of course the people, the festival site remains open all year round for revellers to visit some of the iconic attractions like Morrigan the steel raven and Sleipnir the Viking trestle ark as well as the huge Limmy Kilmister statue over looking the grounds.
To the line-up and with over 180 acts announced, there is certainly plenty to get your teeth stuck into. Having two main stages for me is the perfect way to have upcoming headliners reach the top of a stage on their way to headlining the festival as a whole and the fact both stages run along side each other with no clashes is a great way to tick off the full day without missing anyone you want. This years Main Stage 1 & 2 headliners are as diverse as you could wish for - Sheffield legends Bring Me The Horizon will close off the festival on the Thursday night with Deep Purple rounding off proceedings on Main Stage 2 with Sabaton, Volbeat and Bad Omens all taking the rest of the weekends slot. Main Stage 1 will see festivals veterans Iron Maiden bring their Run For Your Lives tour to France before Limp Bizkit and The Offspring round off the Saturday & Sunday in style.
Across the weekend there are some seriously strong names flying the flag for the UK with Architects continuing their take over with a sub headline slot on Sunday. Else were the new ‘secret’ band President will make their Hellfest debut and metal legends Megadeath will take to the main stage on the Saturday. In 2025 UK hardcore was well represented and next year is no different - fresh off their biggest UK headline shows, Sheffield’s Malevolence will bring their high energy to the Warzone stage along side rising stars False Reality who will not only play their first Hellfest but also open the Warzone Stage on the Saturday. There is also the added bonus of Liverpool kings Loathe making the trip over the water to bring some serious heaviness.
Big names are spread far and wide all over this bill and some of the stand outs certainly tick all the right boxes with the likes of Papa Roach, The Pretty Reckless and Black Veil Brides all bringing a different vibes across the main stage. Texans Kublai Khan TX will bring their sheer power to the Warzone stage the same day we have the likes of Cancer Bats and Hatebreed bringing the energy. Further down the bill the stand out names like Napalm Death, Sylosis and Behemoth who will add their own twist to the weekend. Finally how can we forget two iconic legends in the form of Tom Morello and Alice Cooper taking to the main stage to bring in some big singalongs.
There really is no place like Hell and the countdown is fully on to another huge year. Tickets have already sold out but fear not, keep your eyes peeled for any re-sales through the festivals official site to grab any rouge tickets that may appear.
