The Fringe at Tramlines in Sheffield: What's happening where in 2019

Since its first outing in 2009, Tramlines has grown and evolved as audiences have demanded a better experience every year. When it started as a festival with free admission, scores of pubs and bars got involved as a sprawling ‘fringe’ developed around the main stage on Devonshire Green and extending far beyond.
SAPHO in The Devonshire, at The Fringe at Tramlines in 2018. Picture: Dean AtkinsSAPHO in The Devonshire, at The Fringe at Tramlines in 2018. Picture: Dean Atkins
SAPHO in The Devonshire, at The Fringe at Tramlines in 2018. Picture: Dean Atkins

But the ticketed festival now happens in Hillsborough Park, a necessary move aimed at giving attendees the quality headliners they wanted.

In 2018 Tramlines organisers, alongside the council and the city centre Business Improvement District, made sure there was still a fringe offering, addressing fears the buzz could disappear altogether from the middle of Sheffield.

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And the Fringe at Tramlines programme is back this weekend for 2019, bringing a huge array of gigs, DJ sets and more to 35 venues – and the vast majority of it is free.

Devonshire Green during The Fringe at Tramlines in 2018. Picture: Dean AtkinsDevonshire Green during The Fringe at Tramlines in 2018. Picture: Dean Atkins
Devonshire Green during The Fringe at Tramlines in 2018. Picture: Dean Atkins

The Peace Gardens, Barker’s Pool and Devonshire Green will be the main focus of the fringe on Saturday and Sunday. The stage on the green has been curated by Papa Al of the JuJu Club – originally a club night with live music from around the world – and promises the Latin-flavoured Mango Rescue Team and homegrown rapper Medley.

On Sunday, covers act Highway Child will perform familiar favourites and the One World Choir – comprised of Sheffield-based asylum seekers and refugees – will sing.

In The Peace Gardens, visitors can expect a family-friendly feel encompassing bars, food stalls, an 80s/90s disco, a helter skelter and comfortable deckchairs.

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Then, in Barker’s Pool tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday, Sheffield University is overseeing a line-up of street entertainers, featuring acts that regularly perform at Covent Garden and Glastonbury.

Meanwhile, other venues of note include the Peddler Warehouse at 92 Burton Road in Neepsend. On Saturday, BBC 6 Music DJ and world music aficionado Gilles Peterson will be playing a set, and on Sunday Horse Meat Disco are in charge of the decks.

At Glossop Road venue Nice Neighbourhood – formerly Roco – there will be DJs on the roof terrace tomorrow and Saturday, along with a barbecue and £5 cocktails.

Picture House Social, underneath the grand, Grade II-listed cinema on Abbeydale Road, is involved too – on Saturday the return of Threads, the eclectic ‘genre-less’ club night from the mid-2000s, is likely to be popular.

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Timm Cleasby, Tramlines’ head of operations, said: “It’s great to build on the progress made in 2018 with the return of The Fringe at Tramlines and I’m very glad the city centre will be buzzing as ever over the weekend. The branding really helps festivalgoers to work out what’s taking place over the weekend and how they can get involved.”

Fringe at Tramlines events can be found at:

Bal Fashion Social; Barker’s Pool; Bloo 88; Blues and Ale Stage at CADS; Bungalows & Bears; Cafe Totem; Church – Temple of Fun; City Hall; Crystal; Dorothy Pax; The Fat Cat; Firepit Rocks; The Forum; The Foundry, Sheffield University; Devonshire Green; The Frog & Parrot; Gentleman Fox; Gatsby; Green Room; Leopold Square; Maida Vale; The Mulberry; Nice Neighbourhood; OHM; The Old House; The Peace Gardens; Peddler Warehouse; Revolution; Revolución de Cuba; Shakespeares; SOYO; Tiger Works; Walkabout; The Washington; Yellow Arch Studios.

Visit http://bit.ly/TramlinesFringe19listing for more. Printed guides can be picked up at the City Hall box office, as well as other locations.

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