Free showcase of three North East musicians aged 12 to 18 who take over The Grove, work with venue staff and sound engineers and play live, part of the 2026 Mercury Prize Fringe.
Mini Mercury x First Gigs is at The Grove on Sunday 18 October, starting at 12:00 pm. It's a showcase of three North East musicians, all aged between 12 and 18, playing live in front of an audience. The session is part of the 2026 Mercury Prize Fringe, which runs from 15 to 22 October across the city.
What makes this one a bit different from your usual gig is what happens before the music starts. The day is built around the musicians themselves: they take over a professional venue and work alongside the staff and sound engineers on the preparation, the technical advancing and the soundcheck, before they actually step up and play. It's as much about the work that goes into a show as it is about the performance.
That's just one part of the wider Fringe, which brings more than 30 events to nearly 30 venues as the Mercury Prize returns to the North East for a second year running. It's presented and funded by Newcastle City Council and led by Generator, the region's music development agency. The Fringe builds on the first edition in 2025, with live showcases, lyric and album-producing masterclasses with music legends, workshops, listening parties and in-conversations, most of them free of charge, in the lead-up to the main Mercury Prize event at Utilita Arena on 22 October.
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The Grove is at 1 Saint Michael's Road, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE6 2AW. The session starts at 12:00 pm and entry is free.
