Connect Music Festival 2022: First look at site before Chemical Brothers, Mogwai and The National perform at Edinburgh’s Royal Highland Centre

The Connect Music Festival takes place on the outskirts of Edinburgh this weekend – and we’ve been given a first look at the new fesitval site.

Connect is being held at the Royal Highland Centre showgrounds from Friday, August 26 to Sunday, August 28.

The festival gates open at midday across the weekend and close at 10.30pm.

Connect has a star-studded line-up, with a host of acts playing such as Idles, The Twilight Sad, Self Esteem, Little Simz, The Chemical Brothers as well as Idlewild, Ride, Bombay Bicycle Club, The National, Admiral Fallow and Mogwai.

The Connect Music Festival will be held on the outskirts of Edinburgh this weekend – and we’ve been given a first look at the new fesitval site.

Katt Lingard, festival manager, says she is “really excited about bringing Connect to life”.

She continued: “It’s a very unique site and it gives us a fantastic opportunity to create a truly sustainable approach to the festival experience.

“What's really key about Connect is that it's about so much more than just the music.

The music is exceptional – I haven't seen a line-up like this all summer. But it's the other experiences that we wrap around it and try to really bring to the forefront as well.

Katt Lingard, festival manager, says: “It’s a very unique site and it gives us a fantastic opportunity to create a truly sustainable approach to the festival experience.

“Like comedy, spoken word, debates and conversations. We're working with some really interesting local charities as well that are music-orientated and environmentally-oriented.

“We also are working on some extra special spaces and experiences that you can take part in. Like the chef's table, working with Barry Bryson who is a hometown hero in Edinburgh in terms of the food events that he puts on.

“And really it's a chance to think about connecting with like-minded people.

“After a couple of years of people feeling separated and not getting to see their favourite bands and their favourite people and now you can have all of that in one place.”

Katt Lingard, festival manager, said the company was “really excited about bringing Connect to life”.

There have been two Connect festivals before, in 2007 and 2008 at Inveraray Castle in Argyll, but organisers blamed high running costs and fans struggling during tough economic times for its cancellation in 2009.

Speaking about the festival’s revival, Geoff Ellis, chief executive of DF Concerts and Events, said: “The Royal Highland Centre provides a purpose-built event site that is readily accessible by public transport for each of the three days.

“This not only makes it easy for festivalgoers to attend but hugely supports our ambition to deliver a more sustainable festival now and into the future.”

The full line-up and stage info is available here.