Madness headline Southend's Priory Park on Thursday 22 July 2027. Tickets on sale 16 October at 10am, pre-sale the day before, ahead of Lazydays Festival.

Madness will headline Priory Park in Southend on Thursday 22 July 2027, opening the weekend of Lazydays Festival with a separately ticketed concert. Tickets go on sale at 10am on Friday 16 October, with a pre-sale opening 24 hours earlier, at 10am on Thursday 15 October, for anyone who signs up at madnesspriorypark.com.

The organisers say it will be the band’s first Southend show since they played the Cliffs Pavilion, in 2009 according to Lazydays co-founder Mike Forster-Bromfield, and they expect tickets to go quickly: the release says the band’s summer 2027 dates are “selling extremely fast” and that its Rochester Castle date sold out “in just a few hours”.

What it means for you

  • Pre-sale: Thursday 15 October, 10am. You have to sign up at madnesspriorypark.com beforehand to get in.
  • General sale: Friday 16 October, 10am.
  • The show: Thursday 22 July 2027, 2pm to 10pm, Priory Park, Southend-on-Sea.
  • It is a separate ticket. The Madness concert is not part of a Lazydays weekend ticket, and Lazydays tickets do not get you into the Thursday.
  • Lazydays itself runs Friday 23 to Sunday 25 July 2027, and its tickets are on sale now at lazydaysfestival.com. Children aged five and under go free to the festival.
  • Ticket prices have not been published yet.
Key dates for Madness at Priory Park: pre-sale Thursday 15 October 2026 at 10am for those signed up at madnesspriorypark.com; general sale Friday 16 October 2026 at 10am; Madness headline the opening concert on Thursday 22 July 2027 from 2pm to 10pm across two stages; Lazydays Festival runs Friday 23 to Sunday 25 July 2027 with Dizzee Rascal on Friday and Kaiser Chiefs on Saturday.
The ticket and concert dates. Graphic by The Chelmsford Times
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A Thursday added to the Lazydays weekend

This is the first time Lazydays has added a Thursday opening concert. The festival was started in 2024 by three friends from Southend, Andy Williamson, Elliott Waters and Mike Forster-Bromfield, and 2027 will be its fourth year in Priory Park.

For the Madness night the organisers promise a supporting line-up “curated around Madness across two stages”, pyrotechnics and “full-scale concert production”, street food, and bars run with independent drinks producers. The other acts on the bill have not been named yet; they are due “in the coming weeks”, along with the festival’s Sunday headliner and the rest of the weekend line-up.

The main stage in daylight with pyrotechnics firing above it and a large crowd in front
The main stage at Lazydays Festival, with pyrotechnics firing above it. Photo: Lazydays Festival
A crowd with hands raised in front of the main stage on a sunny afternoon
An afternoon crowd at the main stage. Photo: Lazydays Festival
Festival-goers cheering and singing at the front barrier in front of a stage
The front barrier at Lazydays Festival in Priory Park. Photo: Lazydays Festival

The band’s catalogue needs little introduction: the release lists Our House, It Must Be Love, Baggy Trousers, House of Fun and One Step Beyond among their hits, and puts their tally at 17 UK Top 10 singles.

Blue confetti blasting into the sky above the main stage and crowd
Confetti cannons over the main stage. Photo: Lazydays Festival

Suggs, for Madness, said:

“It is magnificent to be coming back. A mate of mine came to a recent show and said, ‘Suggs, it’s just unbridled joy.’ And he’s right. Southend is the perfect canvas for a proper old knees-up by the water. Leave your troubles at the gate and let’s just lose ourselves for a bit. See you down the front!”

A woman on someone's shoulders with her arms raised in a crowd at night, flame jets firing beside the main stage
A crowd at the main stage after dark, with flame jets either side. Photo: Lazydays Festival

Dizzee Rascal and Kaiser Chiefs already booked

Lazydays had already named its first two festival headliners before this announcement: Dizzee Rascal on the Friday and Kaiser Chiefs on the Saturday. The Sunday headliner is still to come.

A packed crowd at the barrier inside a tent stage under green lights
The crowd at the barrier in one of the tent stages. Photo: Lazydays Festival

The organisers say more than 12,000 people came to the 2026 festival, whose line-up included Tinie Tempah, Feeder, Sister Sledge, The Feeling and Natalie Imbruglia, and that more than 5,000 people have already booked for 2027. They describe the event as music alongside DJs, comedy and family entertainment, with “a strong focus on supporting local businesses”.

A wide afternoon crowd in the park, with a big wheel in the distance
The crowd in Priory Park, with the big wheel behind. Photo: Lazydays Festival
A dense daytime crowd in front of white marquees and trees
A daytime crowd in front of the marquees. Photo: Lazydays Festival
A packed crowd facing a lit main stage at night with flame towers on either side
The main stage at night, with flame towers either side. Photo: Lazydays Festival
High view over the festival arena in Priory Park, with tents, a stage and the crowd on dry grass
The festival arena in Priory Park from above. Photo: Lazydays Festival

Elliott Waters, Lazydays’ creative director, said:

“We never could have imagined when we started, just a few years later, we’d be attracting artists of the scale of Madness to Southend.

“We started this because we wanted to create something special for Southend and Essex, our home, with personality, imagination and personal touches.

“With more than 5,000 people already set to join us at Lazydays 2027, the response has been incredible. We’re expecting huge demand for Madness, so we’d recommend signing up for tickets straight away.”

Festival-goers sitting at picnic tables and on camping chairs in the shade of large trees
Picnic tables under the trees at Lazydays Festival. Photo: Lazydays Festival
People sitting on the grass with a big wheel behind them
Festival-goers on the grass by the big wheel. Photo: Lazydays Festival
A crowd of festival-goers with a big wheel and a fairground ride behind them
The crowd by the big wheel and fairground rides. Photo: Lazydays Festival
Two performers in tall jellyfish costumes made of ribbons walking through the crowd
Performers in jellyfish costumes walking through the crowd. Photo: Lazydays Festival
Two stilt walkers in rainbow-striped jackets and top hats, one blowing giant bubbles
Stilt walkers in the festival field. Photo: Lazydays Festival

The council’s view

Southend-on-Sea City Council’s leader, Cllr Daniel Cowan, welcomed the booking:

“Lazydays has become a fantastic addition to Southend’s events calendar, bringing thousands of people together and creating a real boost for our local economy.

“To see the festival continuing to grow as it heads into its fourth year is great news for the city, and securing a band as iconic as Madness for the opening concert shows just how far the event has come.

“Events like this add to the vibrancy of Southend, bring people into our city and give residents another reason to feel proud of what’s happening here. I’m really looking forward to seeing Lazydays return next summer.”

A bartender's hand setting down a Lazydays-branded cup of beer on a bar
A pint in a Lazydays cup on one of the festival bars. Photo: Lazydays Festival
The Thirsty Moose bar at the festival, with a pub sign, barrels and people at tables
The Thirsty Moose bar at Lazydays Festival. Photo: Lazydays Festival
A band playing under lights in a tent stage hung with yellow and green bunting, the crowd in front
A band on one of the tent stages. Photo: Lazydays Festival
Red fireworks bursting over the main stage and a crowd at night
Fireworks over the main stage. Photo: Lazydays Festival

More on the Madness concert and Lazydays Festival is on the organisers’ sites. For more nights out closer to home, see what’s on in Chelmsford this month and the Christmas concerts in Chelmsford.