After a day full of music in the North West sunshine, it was time to do it all over again!
We were back in Victoria Park in Warrington for the last day of Neighbourhood Weekender for 2026.
The wristband tanlines were already forming and they were only going to get worse, as the temperature was heating up even more!
The music was best distraction though, and what a better way to start our day off than with some 90’s nostalgia?
Melanie C (Sporty Spice) on the Main Stage of Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 in Warrington – Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
Now, I didn’t really know what to expect, because when I looked up Melanie C’s previous setlists and it was primarily her solo stuff, which is still brilliant, but of course, there was that Spice Girls itch that needed scratching.
And she didn’t disappoint!
Her solo hit “Never Be The Same Again” was fabulous, and she also did her hit she shares with Bryan Adams, “When You’re Gone”, sadly without Bryan Adams, but she still did it absolute justice – but then it was Spice Girl heaven, opening up that part of her set with “Spice Up Your Life” which united generations across Victoria Park, soon following up with “2 Become 1” which was the highlight for me, everyone had their arms around each other, singing along and swaying away.
The third instalment of Spice Girls material was “Who Do You Think You Are” which was brilliant and all, the crowd loved it and it was a brilliant way to pick up the energy.
Also, how bloody good does she look? If you weren’t there, incredible – a great experience and start of the day.
FIND OUT WHAT MEL C IS UP TO HERE
Next up was a band I’d not seen for some time, but I was looking forward to it, Wrexham’s rising stars, The Royston Club…
Ben Matthias and Tom Faithfull of The Royston Club on the Main Stage at Neighbourhood Weekender 2026
Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
To put it simple, their set was sublime.
Frontman Tom Faithfull owns that stage, interacting with the crowd wherever he went whilst belting out their tunes.
I’ve never seen a band look so relaxed, yet so into it at the same time, they just gel together beautifully, the only criticism I have is that they should have had a longer set!
They drew in a HUGE crowd, with flares, bucket hats, signs and more to be seen for what felt like miles and whilst the set was fantastic all round, the highlights were definitely when the masses belted out “52” and their big hitter “Cariad”, it was that loud, I reckon you could have heard it on the other side of Warrington – not only that, the lads faces just lit up seeing it happen in front of them, a bloody beautiful sight.
CHECK OUT WHAT THE ROYSTON CLUB ARE UP TO HERE
After the Royston Club, it was time to leg it back over to the Big Top, for Liverpool’s own Luvcat.
Luvcat on the Big Top Stage at Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 in Warrington – Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
I had only really starting listening to Luvcat more recently and I was looking forward to her set, she strutted onto the stage in this gorgeous leopard-print number, she made her presence known, Luvcat, whose actual name is Sophie, has this gorgeous alt-pop sound that was really easy to settle into.
She also has a fantastic stage presence, acknowledging the fact it was a local festival for her and telling the origins and stories inbetween her tracks, it was a brilliant set and really caught my attention!
FIND ALL THINGS LUVCAT HERE
Next up was one of the sets I was most excited for, having been wanting to see them live for ages, it was Shed Seven…
Shed Seven on the Main Stage of Neighbourhood Festival 2026 in Warrington – Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
I was so excited for this set, I’d heard ALOT of good things about Shed Seven’s live performances and my god it didn’t disappoint.
Frontman Rick Witter’s dry sense of humour was a hit inbetween music, speaking to different members of the crowd “This one came out in 1994, you probably weren’t even born” was one of the first things said and frankly the crowd lapped it up.
It was a perfect setlist for what felt like a short time on stage, some bangers from their 2024 album “A Matter Of Time” went down incredibly well, infact “Let’s Go Dancing” was a solid highlight for me.
Then of course there was the classics, the crowd were ready to belt out the lyrics to “Disco Down” and of course “Chasing Rainbows” – it didn’t disappoint, no more notes.
FIND ALL THINGS SHED SEVEN HERE
Next up was Scottish band of brothers, The Fratellis…
Frontman Jon Fratelli of The Fratellis on The Big Top Stage at Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 in Warrington.
Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
It is absolutely clear that 90’s/00’s indie-rock nostalgia will always be a big hitter when it comes to music, festivals and gigs, there is no doubt in my mind that The Fratellis should have been on the Main Stage, they were on The Big Top and it was full to the brim!
They did clash slightly with Shed Seven, but they definitely deserved a Main Stage slot even if it was a little earlier in the day.
I wasn’t expecting their big hitters until later in the set, but they burst straight in with “Henrietta” which got the crowd hooked in straight away, “Whistle For The Choir” was also earlier in the setlist than I expected, but I’m not going to argue, I loved it.
And of course, they had to finish with the big one… “Chelsea Dagger” – surprised the Big Top was still standing with the amount of jumping around and chaos that ensued (in the best way possible of course) – a brilliant set that recharged the batteries!
CHECK OUT WHAT THE FRATELLIS ARE UP TO HERE
We were on the home stretch for our Neighbourhood Weekender 2026, and a set I’d been looking forward to all weekend was next, all the way from Australia, it was DMA’s!
DMA’s frontman Tommy O’Dell on the Main Stage at Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 in Warrington
Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
They burst onto the stage with a real energy raring to go and to the chants from the crowd of “D-D-D-DMA’S!” only brought the mood up.
They kicked off the set with “Timeless”, which went down very well, one of my personal favourites “Lay Down” followed and there were a few new music teases too, which seemed to get a pretty good reception.
The two highlights, were their absolutely stunning cover of Cher’s “Believe” which was initially an Alt-J cover but they’ve really made it their own and I couldn’t imagine their set without it, and the crowd singing it back to them made it all the more incredible.
The other highlight for me was “Silver” – which was another one where the crowd got very involved, I didn’t want it to end, but all good things must come to an end.
If you’re yet to see DMA’s, whether that is on their own tour or at a festival – make sure you do it, you won’t regret it.
FIND ALL THINGS DMA’S HERE
The penultimate act for us was a band that are just climbing the ranks and recently released their debut album, it’s Manchester’s The Covasettes…
The Covasettes frontman Chris Buxton on the Viola Beach Stage at Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 in Warrington
Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
The Covasettes are having a killer year so far, already releasing their debut album, which not only reached the UK Top 40, but got Number One in the official Download charts, and they’ve already completed a sell-out headline tour.
They absolutely owned the stage, they started off the set with “Duvet Thief” – which was met with a lot of excitement from the crowd, followed by “Love In Polaroid” and what appeared to be fan favourite “Twit Twoo” from the reaction of the fans.
One thing though, they should have been on the Big Top stage as the minimum, they drew in a huge crowd and probably the biggest one I saw at the Viola Beach stage all weekend – so they definitely need to be back and on a bigger stage.
A brilliant set, you can see that the hard graft of The Covasettes is certainly paying off and the utter joy on their faces said it all.
CHECK OUT WHAT THE COVASETTES ARE UP TO HERE
And it was time for the finale, the temperature was cooling, our feet were starting to hurt again, but that wasn’t going to stop us seeing Stockport’s own Blossoms closing out the night and the festival.
Blossoms frontman Tom Ogden headlining the Sunday of Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 in Warrington.
Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
Fresh from the newest teases and releases of “Joke About Divorce” they stormed onto the stage, which was draped in the colours of their “Gary” era, which funnily enough, opened their set.
Plenty of Gary fans in the crowd and what ensued was a continous stream of singalongs from the crowd, dancing, cheering and just everyone closing out Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 with one big party.
Blossoms lapped it up, with frontman Tom Ogden, using the stage to his full advantage, showing off some pretty slick moves and whilst I have seen Blossoms a couple of times before, but this was easily the best I’ve seen them.
The set was full of big hitters, with “At Most A Kiss”, “Getaway” and “Honey Sweet” all making appearances, and then the live debut of “Joke About Divorce” which the crowd lapped up.
The encore was to be admired, with my personal favourite “There’s A Reason Why (I Never Returned Your Calls)” and of course big hitter “Charlemagne” and a surprising but fantastic cover of Tame Impala’s “The Less I Know The Better”.
I was expecting good, but that way exceeded my expectations, that my friends is how you close out a festival.
SEE WHAT’S GOING ON WITH BLOSSOMS HERE
One last set as Blossoms close out Neighbourhood Weekender 2026
Photo Credit: Hayley Grice
And there we have it, Neighbourhood Weekender 2026 is over already, two days of blazing sunshine, cold ciders, nearly 40,000 steps, a few thousand photos to sort through and some bloody brilliant music – it was a fantastic weekend, definitely worth a going if you get a chance and Neighbourhood Weekender are already teasing something else on their social media, so watch this space!
CHECK OUT RGM’S FESTIVAL COVERAGE HERE
FIND ALL THINGS NEIGHBOURHOOD FESTIVAL HERE
