Lane Cove Festival @ Sydney Fringe returns this September, with Lane Cove Council unveiling the 2026 program under the theme Made in Lane Cove. The announcement follows a strong first year of the Sydney Fringe partnership, which drew 7,742 people to more than 66 events in 2025.
Lane Cove remains the only area in Sydney’s “northern neighbourhood” included in the Fringe program, and the festival continues to prioritise local talent, with 80% of this year’s events produced, created or performed by people from Lane Cove.
Council released the program this week and we wanted to share the highlights straight away. We’ll take a more detailed look at individual events including festival showstoppers and hidden gems in the lead up to the festival, but here’s a little of what to expect in September.
At a Glance
- Lane Cove Festival runs 1 to 30 September 2026
- 2026 theme is Made in Lane Cove, marking the festival’s 34th year
- 2025’s debut Sydney Fringe partnership drew 7,742 people to more than 66 events
- 80% of 2026 events are produced, created or performed by Lane Cove locals
- Program opens with Launch Night at The Canopy on Friday 4 September, followed by the Big Day Out on Saturday 12 September
- Full program and tickets at lanecove.nsw.gov.au/lcfest26
A local tradition, 34 years running
The Lane Cove Festival is far from a new invention (Council marks this as its 34th year), and In the Cove’s own coverage traces the festival back through its many chapters. Long before the Fringe partnership, the festival was already a month-long, 50-plus-event community fixture built around themes like Cameraygal Week, Celebrate Creativity and Celebrate Nature, with local institutions such as the Lane Cove Youth Orchestra marking milestone anniversaries as part of the program. The Lane Cove Fun Run and Screen on the Green have long been festival fixtures, and Carisbrook Historic House and the Lane Cove Art Award have highlighted Lane Cove’s rich history and art scene for years. The 2025 partnership with Sydney Fringe was just the newest chapter in that long history.
What’s on in 2026
The month opens with the free Launch Night at The Canopy on Friday 4 September (5pm to 8pm), featuring live music, cabaret, circus, dance and roving performers. This is followed a week later by the Big Day Out at The Canopy on Saturday 12 September, the festival’s community anchor day, combining performances and workshops with the Made in Lane Cove Markets, which will showcase local makers including handcrafted ceramics, origami jewellery and vintage-inspired art.
Other headline events include:
- At Your Request (Friday 11 September, Civic Centre), the audience-picks-the-setlist jazz night, performed by the band of the late Judy Bailey, the Lane Cove local and festival patron who passed away in 2025.
- Lane Cove Art Award (17 September, 3 October, Gallery Lane Cove, free), one of Sydney’s longest-running community art prizes, with an opening night on Friday 18 September.
- Rumours: Fleetwood Mac Tribute Show (Saturday 26 September, The Canopy), a family-friendly outdoor concert.
- Lane Cove Fun Run (Sunday 13 September, Kingsford Smith Oval), 2km and 5km courses through Longueville.
On the Fringe side, Pottery Lane Performance Space and the Civic Centre will host the Australian premiere of Olivier Award-winner James Graham’s one-man show The Man, the Beatles-inspired All Things Must Pass, and workplace satire Algorithm of Us. A Best of Fringe season brings back Gia Ophelia, Barnaby: A Country Musical, That’s Me in the Corner and An Augmentation of Sitar by Ravi, while families can catch the free letter-writing event Dear Stranger, a Studio Ghibli Jazz Concert, and comedy show I Couldn’t Find a Babysitter!
Beyond the ticketed program, other festival favourites from the community return too: native plant stalls, guided bushwalks, bug hunts, community garden open days, library talks, Devonshire tea at Carisbrook Historic House and a community picnic, run by dozens of local groups.
Reflecting on a landmark first year
“Made in Lane Cove says it all. This festival is created by our community, for our community. For 34 years, we have celebrated our place, and it’s wonderful to see the festival return bigger and bolder, with our local artists, makers and community groups at its heart.”
— Councillor Merri Southwood
The Sydney Fringe partnership was new territory for Lane Cove when it launched in 2025, and the response suggested it paid off. The month-long program, covered extensively on In the Cove as it unfolded, drew crowds to everything from the opening night at The Canopy, MC’d by local Simon Kennedy, to the Taylor Eras Tribute concert, which packed more than 600 people into The Canopy in its final week. The Lane Cove Fun Run alone brought around 2,000 runners to Kingsford Smith Oval, with Olympian Georgia Wincup taking out the 5km.
That first-year collaboration momentum, plus great feedback from the Lane Cove community, has clearly shaped this year’s approach: a bigger headline lineup, a stronger local-content quota, long-term local favourites sitting alongside the Fringe additions.
Details
The full program and tickets are available here. Many events are free, ticketed shows are on sale now. Follow along at #MadeInLaneCove.
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