Bracknell House in full swing

Bracknell lies 40 miles west of London and has a reputation as being a commuter town existing in the shadows of the vast metropolitan spread. Yet, Bracknell has been host to colourful musical and creative arts festivals since the 1970s when the South Hill Park arts centre was established. The well-respected Bracknell Jazz Festival took place annually on the lawns of the arts centre and grew into a major musical event attracting a loyal and increasingly international following.

In 1990 Bracknell Festival came into existence incorporating all the musical events which had, until then, been organised on an individual basis. Nowadays the bias is still on funk and jazz but the line-up reflects the increasingly diverse musical tastes of its audience.

While festival organisers are having to survive in an increasingly hostile economic environment with increasing operational costs they maintain that the "buzz of people enjoying themselves" in combination with an "incredible concentration of creativity" is what keeps them going.