Womad festival review – ​hugely welcome return of joyous planet-spanning music fest

Neston Park, Wiltshire ​In a new home after a year off, there’s a thread of fierce political anger running alongside the spirited musical performances – including standout sets from Barrington Levy and Daniela Mercury At Womad, opening at new home Neston Park after a year off in 2025, the boundary between spectator and performer dissolves entirely: you bump into headliners in the loo queue, spot them wandering the site with their kids, or sit in on an intimate panel discussion with them hours after their main-stage set.

Phone signal is practically nonexistent at the new site, forcing a crowd reliant on group chats into analogue meet-ups; the new arboretum layout holds a cosier, village-like setup than before, complete with a mercifully shorter trek from all camping areas.

You can start the morning at your own speed: pounding through a west African djembe workshop, joining “laughing yoga”, or relaxing in a wood-fired tub while distant basslines echo through the trees. Musical highlights often happen when artists go off-script.

Reggae legend Barrington Levy provides Friday’s standout moment by rejecting strict act times, turning to the side of the stage to deliver a blunt ultimatum:

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  Womad festival review – ​hugely welcome return of joyous planet-spanning music fest