Festival News: End Of The Road announce Pulp, CMAT and Mac De Marco for 20th Edition
End Of The Road organisers have announced a standout group of headliners ahead of their 20th edition in 2026.
The go-to festival to wrap up your summer has announced three large names, Pulp, CMAT and Mac DeMarco, along with a surprise headliner, to top next year’s celebratory bill. End Of The Road is known for pushing boundaries, bringing all of the weird and wonderful together, and its 20th edition is set to be no different, potentially even the best one yet.
Sheffield legends, Pulp, are set to lead one big sing-along at The Woods stage as part of the celebrations. Jarvis Crocker has a long history of attending End Of The Road as a punter, as well as a dazzling solo performance in 2019 on The Garden Stage. Now the band have chosen End Of The Road as their only UK festival of 2026, which means it will undoubtedly be a performance that no one wants to miss. Is there anything better than singing “Common People” with a group of strangers in a field, pint in hand?.. I guess we’ll find out.
Meanwhile, Mac DeMarco returns to Larmer Tree Gardens almost a decade after his last headline appearance in 2017. The Canadian singer-songwriter also played a pivotal role in the Festival's 10th edition, delivering the celebratory birthday cake to co-founders Simon Taffe and Sofia Genders on stage during his headline Garden set - before throwing it into the crowd! He’s venturing back to End Of The Road after the release of his sixth album, Guitar, and his first non-instrumental album since 2019. It’s stripped back compared to DeMarco’s previous works, more laid-bare, heart on the sleeve, but his live set will be guaranteed to include favourites from his earlier work too. DeMarco’s last performance at EOTR saw him crowd surfing all the way from the Woods Stage to the Big Top to join Pond onstage, so who knows what chaos he will bring to 2026.
Finally, Irish Queen CMAT has made possibly the fastest and most well-deserved descent to a headliner slot. Long-time EOTR goers will have known and loved her from her performances in 2021 and 2024, where she treated the crowd to a stunning cover of Kate Bush’s Wuthering Heights in the blazing sun. CMAT being announced as one of the headliners just goes to show the festival’s commitment to supporting tomorrow’s stars and also having the keenest, sharpest eye for spotting those destined for big things. CMAT has taken over the country pop world, with her third album, Mercury-nominated Euro Country, dominating the charts. Pack your cowboy boots, as CMAT and her very sexy CMAT band will have the whole of Larmer Tree Gardens doing the “Dunboyne Co. Meath Two-Step”, that’s for sure.
As it is a festival that ALWAYS keeps you guessing, End Of The Road organisers have also teased a surprise headline act for Thursday night, and you probably won’t discover who it is until you’re standing in that field with a pint in hand.
With these glittering headliners announced, End Of The Road have well and truly kicked off the excitement for 2026 already. With many more acts and surprises yet to be released, it’s going to be an agonising nine months waiting for the best festival in the UK to roll around.
Words by Angela English
