Great British Beer Festival
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The Great British Beer Festival (sometimes abbreviated as GBBF) is an annual
cask ales, and the Champion Beer of Britain awards, and is held in August of each year. GBBF's sister festival, the Great British Beer Festival Winter, is held in February each year.[1]
Description
Great British Beer Festival is styled as the "biggest pub in the world"[2] and offers around 900 different beverages, at least 450 of which are beers from British breweries, as well as around 200 foreign beers from countries including Belgium, Germany and the USA, as well traditional British cider and perry.[2][3] The festival is staffed by unpaid volunteers, around 1,000 of whom work at the festival.[2]
The festival is usually held during the first full week in August and runs from Tuesday to Saturday.Olympia and remains massively popular.
As well as the beer, the festival offers entertainment such as live music and traditional
pub games, as well as a variety of food stands.[5]
Event history
CAMRA held their first large
COVID-19 pandemic respectively.[2] CAMRA announced that no festival will take place in 2024 due to renovations at Olympia and the lack of a suitable alternative venue.[7]
| Year | Location | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1977–1980 | Alexandra Palace, London | Held in tents in 1980 after the Palace burnt down. | [8] |
| 1981–1982 | Queens Hall, Leeds | Festival held outside London for the first time. | [9] |
| 1983 | Bingley Hall, Birmingham | [10] | |
| 1984 | – | No event held. | |
| 1985–1987 | Metropole, Brighton | ||
| 1988–1989 | Queens Hall, Leeds | ||
| 1990 | Metropole, Brighton | ||
| 1991 | Docklands Arena, London | ||
| 1992–2005 | Olympia, London | [11][12] | |
| 2006–2011 | Earls Court, London | 2007 event celebrated as the 30th anniversary of the festival. 66,900 people attended in 2010. 62,446 people attended in 2011. |
[13][14] |
| 2012–2023 | Olympia, London | 2020 and 2021 events cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic .
|
[15][16][17] |
| 2024 | – | Cancelled due to venue selection difficulties / availability. | [7] |
References
- ^ "Great British Beer Festival brewery bars revealed - Beer Today". beertoday.co.uk. 25 June 2023.
- ^ ISBN 9780195367133.
- ^ Atherton, Sophie (11 August 2016). "The Great British Beer Festival: what to drink (and how to survive)". The Daily Telegraph.
- ^ Marc Holmes, festival organiser, speech in the Volunteer's Arms, Great British Beer Festival, 5 August 2006
- ^ Weaver, Matthew (2 August 2022). "'I'm stunned': 16% stout named Great British Beer Festival's best home brew". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
- ^ "CAMRA 2012: A Strategic Campaigning Framework Milestones in CAMRA's History" (pdf). Retrieved 1 November 2011.[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b "CAMRA flagship festival postponed". Retrieved 11 December 2023.
- ^ Protz, Roger (18 February 2020). "Letter: Terry Jones' love affair with beer". The Guardian. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
- ^ "Key Events in CAMRA's History". CAMRA. 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
- ^ Fair, Thomas (11 March 2022). "The rise and fall of Bingley Hall in pictures". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
- ^ "For the best in British beer .. try Calais!". BBC News. 1 May 1998. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
- ^ "In pictures: Great British Beer Festival". BBC News. 8 August 2003. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
- ^ "Cask ale seeks to beat beer hangover". BBC News. 7 August 2008. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
- ^ "St Austell Brewery's Proper Job beer wins gold medal". BBC News. 6 August 2011. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
- ^ Great British Beer Festival 2012, CAMRA's Great British Beer Festival, Facebook page, 3 February 2011, retrieved 26 April 2011
- ^ "Olympia Events". Archived from the original on 6 September 2013. Retrieved 10 September 2013.
- ^ "Smile for the Camra: 'Hat day' at the British Beer Festival". BBC News. London. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Great British Beer Festival.