FESTIVAL FAQs

  • Tickets

    TICKETS NOW OFF SALE ONLINE

    Weekend and Day tickets were on sale in advance via DICE.

    Please bring your email confirmation and ID to collect your wristband from the box office.

    Please note they will be more expensive on the door as tickets are now Tier 3 On The Day price.

    ON THE DAY PRICES

    FRIDAY £45

    SATURDAY £55

    WEEKEND £85

  • Wristbands / Box Office

    Wristbands need to be collected from the festival box office at Ancient House. The ticket purchaser will need to bring their ticket QR codes ready for scanning (printed out or on a mobile device), as well as some ID, to pick up their wristbands. Download the DICE app to your device to have your tickets ready to scan. The box office will be open on Friday 13th 10am-9pm and Saturday 14th 10am-9pm.

    Please be aware your wristband does not guarantee entry due to small capacities at some venues, which may reach capacity for some performances. Please be aware there may be queues so make sure to get to a venue early to avoid disappointment!

    Box Office & Wristband Collection
    - The Ancient House, 30 Buttermarket, Ipswich IP1 1BT

    - what3words: /// loops.magic.renew

    If you have bought tickets via DICE and have bought tickets for other people, you have until 9AM on Friday 13th to assign them their tickets.

  • Age Restrictions

    Ticket holders must be 14+ and 14-15s accompanied by an adult in indoor venues. at all times. Please note the venues that we use for Brighten The Corners Festival have different licensing restrictions. Due to licensing we have a no entry policy to 14-17s year olds in venues past midnight.

    The Cornhill stage has no age restrictions.

    Please be aware of strong language and adult themes at all the stages including The Cornhill.

  • About Us

    Brighten The Corners is run by Sounds East CIC, a not for profit organisation set up by the team at Out Loud Music CIC. Brighten the Corners promotes gigs, operates venues and is the name of the annual town centre festival in Ipswich, Suffolk. BTC also runs training projects for young people wishing to gain event production experience and has over 80 active volunteers.

    The Brighten The Corners team is made up of a small group of passionate people who love live music. We all share the same determination when it comes to making Ipswich a viable touring destination and rejuvenating the music scene in our town.

    The journey all started with The Smokehouse opening in 2016, the community-loved 70-cap venue that boasts an intimate atmosphere and versatile space. Then came The Baths a few years later, the 300-cap fan-favourite venue. Now, we are opening our third venue - the beautiful St Stephen’s Church. We were granted funding to transform the historical church into a fully-equipped music venue which also houses a cafe/bar and Hex Record Shop.

  • Venues

    The festival is across 7 venues: Live music at The Smokehouse, The Baths, St Stephen’s Church, the Corn Exchange, the outdoor free stage on the Cornhill; Talks programme at King Street Cinema; DJs and mixtape library at Ancient House.

    Corn Exchange: 850 cap
    - King St, Ipswich IP1 1DH
    - what3words: ///hill.note.bolt

    The Baths: 300 cap
    - 2 Civic Dr, Ipswich IP1 2QA
    - what3words: ///grace.drums.grow

    St. Stephen's Church: 200 cap
    - St Stephens Ln, Ipswich IP1 1DP
    - what3words: ///hush.rather.result

    The Smokehouse: 70 cap
    - South Street Studios, 6 South St, Ipswich IP1 3NU
    - what3words: ///alive.clap.flops

    Cornhill: outdoor stage
    - Ipswich IP1 1DH
    - what3words: ///jelly.soil.lungs

    King Street Cinema: 200 cap seated
    - King St, Ipswich IP1 1DH
    - what3words: ///hill.note.bolt

    Ancient House
    - The Ancient House, 30 Buttermarket, Ipswich IP1 1BT
    - what3words: /// loops.magic.renew

  • Food & Drink

    We’re thrilled to be in partnership with Adnams, offering a great selection of beers including our BTC lager! Once again Adnams will have a beer truck situated on the Cornhill where you can grab a drink in the sunshine. Ancient House will have its own can bar throughout the festival.

    There will be food vendors across the festival.

    Cornhill: Just A Burger, Rambling Roots, Otis Breading, Brewvan

    The Smokehouse: The Little Pizza Oven

    St Stephen’s Church: The Latin Table

    We’ve partnered with some of our favourite local independent cafes/restaurants who will be offering discounts to wristband holders on Friday and Saturday. All you need to do is show your wristband.

    MOTO PIZZA - 20% off

    Three Wise Monkeys - TWM Combo meal + 2 drinks for £30, 2 for £12 cocktails 

    Honey + Harvey - 10% off

    Good Inside - 10% off

    Harvest Moon - 15% off

    Mylo’s Pizza (at Thomas Wolsey pub) - £10 small pizza and drink deal

    VQ - 20% off

  • Accessibility

    All of our venues are wheelchair accessible. Please note The Smokehouse is a smaller venue so please let us know if you will be attending this venue so we can try to make your experience as easy as possible. If you require a companion ticket, you can either do this via DICE or get in touch with us via info@brightenthecorners.co.uk

    For wheelchair access to the Grand Hall at The Corn Exchange, there is lift access for public use through the Customer Service Centre entrance on Princes Street.

    St. Stephen's Church has step free access from the front entrance. The Baths has ramp access at the entrance.

    If you have any concerns please get in touch so we can aim to make your visit as easy as possible: info@brightenthecorners.co.uk

  • Stage Times

    Stage times are online via the festival clashfinder, and a physical copy will be available to pick up at the box office.

    Due to the nature of how festivals run, there may be some last minute time changes. Please check our social media for any changes during the event.

    Instagram & Facebook - @brightenthecornersips

  • Photography

    Professional camera equipment is not allowed in any of the venues, unless you have a press pass or have signed up to be a volunteer doing photography or videography across the weekend.

  • Merch

    Festival bags and tshirts will be available to purchase at Ancient House over the festival.

  • Cash / Card

    We are a cashless festival.

  • Cloakroom

    We have no attended cloakrooms in our venues.