Witney Feast 2026 ran 13 to 15 September on the Leys. The council lists the next one for September 2027; past dates point to Sunday 12 to Tuesday 14 Sept.

Witney Feast 2026 has been and gone: it ran on the Leys from Sunday 13 to Tuesday 15 September. The next one is September 2027, which is how Witney Town Council now lists it. The council has not given days yet; on the dates the fair has used before, expect Sunday 12 to Tuesday 14 September 2027.

Entry to the fair has always been free. You pay for rides. If you want a funfair sooner, the council lists Hatwell’s Funfair on the Leys in May 2027.

Last checked 11 October 2026.

When is Witney Feast 2027?

Listed: September 2027. Expected: Sunday 12, Monday 13 and Tuesday 14 September. The month comes from Witney Town Council’s what’s on page, which on 11 October 2026 listed the Feast under September 2027 as “a yearly funfair held on the Leys”. The exact days are our projection, not an announcement.

The projection rests on the dates the fair has actually used. Its Monday and Tuesday have fallen straight after the second Sunday in September in every year we can source first-hand:

Year Sunday Monday and Tuesday Source
2023 10 September (Gallopers service) 11 and 12 September OX Magazine listing
2025 14 September (extra fair day) 15 and 16 September Council events report, 15 Sept 2025
2026 13 September (extra fair day) 14 and 15 September Council events report, 21 Sept 2026
2027 12 September 13 and 14 September Projection; council lists “September 2027”

The second Sunday of September 2027 is the 12th. The Sunday itself is the less certain part. The council describes the Sunday opening as an “additional day” on top of the “historic Monday and Tuesday openings”, so a family afternoon on the Sunday of 2027 depends on the showmen repeating it. The Golden Gallopers service is the older fixture.

The days are most likely to be confirmed in a third-party events report to the council’s Stronger Communities Committee. Its next meetings are 16 November 2026 and 25 January 2027; in 2026 the dates first appeared in the March report. We will replace the projection as soon as they are published.

Witney Feast 2026 dates

Day Date
Sunday 13 September 2026 (Golden Gallopers service 1pm, then a family afternoon)
Monday 14 September 2026
Tuesday 15 September 2026

The council first published these dates in a third-party events report to its Stronger Communities Committee on 23 March 2026, marked “dates TBC”, and later listed them without that caveat on its what’s on page.

How the 2026 Feast went

Witney Town Council’s Venue and Events Officer reported on it to the Stronger Communities Committee meeting of Monday 21 September 2026. The report was written while the rides were still up (“At the time of writing this report, Witney Feast are still operating onsite”) and records that:

  • The extra Sunday happened again. “As per last year, Witney Feast operated an additional day on Sunday 13th September, on top of their historic Monday and Tuesday openings.”
  • The Golden Gallopers service was at 1pm, followed by a “family funday” opening of the fair, the same shape as 2025.

The same report explains a knock-on from the Leys. Because football has been reintroduced on the events field this season, Circus Ginnett could not come on its usual October dates and squeezed in from 2 to 6 September instead, which the officer says “caused some operational challenges”. The Feast was the last big event on that field for 2026.

Opening times

No organiser or council page published opening times for 2026, and the council’s post-event report does not give them either. What is on the record:

  • Sunday: the Golden Gallopers service at 1pm, blessing the fair, then the fair opened for a family afternoon. In 2025 the council’s events report described that afternoon as street entertainers including jugglers, music, food, drink, rides and games.
  • Monday and Tuesday: lunchtime to 10pm, according to The Oxford Magazine’s listing. That is a listings site rather than the organiser, and its entry recycled 2025 copy about the rides, so treat it as a guide for 2027 and not a timetable.
  • Witney Town Band played on the Leys from 6pm to 7pm on the Sunday, according to its own events page.

Where it is, roads and parking

The Feast fills the events field on the Leys, the recreation ground off Station Lane in the centre of town.

The Leys recreation ground in Witney, a wide mown field edged with trees under a cloudy sky
The Leys recreation ground, the field the Feast fills each September. Photo: Steve Daniels (CC BY-SA 2.0), via Wikimedia

No roads close for it. Oxfordshire County Council’s register of large public events listed twelve special event orders for autumn 2026, including the Chipping Norton Mop Fair, Abingdon Michaelmas Fair, Woodstock Street Fair and St Giles Fair in Oxford. Witney Feast was not among them, and a check of the Public Notice Portal for Witney postcodes on 5 September 2026 returned nothing either. The fair sits entirely on council-owned open space, so unlike Chipping Norton’s it does not need the highway.

Parking is the real constraint. Every West Oxfordshire District Council car park is free, but each has a maximum stay, and that is what generates penalty notices. Our parking in Witney page has the limits car park by car park. The residential streets around the Leys fill early on the Monday and Tuesday evenings, when the fair is busiest. For current road and High Street restrictions, see Witney roadworks and travel.

Other fairs and funfairs near Witney

  • Hatwell’s Funfair, the Leys, May 2027. Witney Town Council lists it as “an annually returning funfair at The Leys”; no days yet.
  • Chipping Norton Mop Fair, a street fair the week after the Feast. Our Chipping Norton Mop Fair page has the 2026 road closure and the likely 2027 dates.

For what is on in town this autumn, including bonfire night and the Christmas lights switch-on, see what’s on in Witney this month and things to do in Witney.

What the Feast actually is

The fair marks the rededication of St Mary’s Church, and the blessing at the Golden Gallopers carousel keeps that link alive: the council’s own report calls it a service that blesses the fair. It is a green fair rather than a street fair, which is why it can take the big rides that will not fit into a market place.

Frequently asked questions

When is Witney Feast 2027? Witney Town Council lists it for September 2027 without days. On the dates the fair used in 2023, 2025 and 2026, expect Sunday 12 to Tuesday 14 September 2027.

When was Witney Feast 2026? Sunday 13 to Tuesday 15 September 2026, on the Leys, with the Golden Gallopers service at 1pm on the Sunday.

Is Witney Feast on a Sunday? Only as an extra. The Monday and Tuesday are the fair’s historic days; the Sunday family afternoon was added in 2025 and repeated in 2026.

What time does Witney Feast open? No official times are published. The Sunday starts with the 1pm Golden Gallopers service; a listings site gave lunchtime to 10pm for the Monday and Tuesday.

How much does it cost to get in? Nothing. Entry to the Feast has always been free, and you pay only for rides, stalls and food.

Are any roads closed for the Feast? No. There is no special event traffic order for Witney Feast, because the fair sits on council-owned open space at the Leys rather than on the highway.

When is the next funfair in Witney? Hatwell’s Funfair, on the Leys in May 2027, according to Witney Town Council’s events list.

Sources