Five Valleys Fireworks on 26 October, the Stroud Half the day before, the Book Festival from 4 November, plus Sub Rooms gigs and the Saturday market.

Stroud’s autumn diary peaks in half term. The Stroud Half Marathon starts on Cainscross Road at 9am on Sunday 25 October, and the next evening the Rotary’s Five Valleys Fireworks fill the Marling School field in the same spot. Aston Down has its airborne display on the Saturday. Then the Stroud Book Festival takes over the town centre from 4 to 8 November, with Matt Haig, Mark Haddon and Jacqueline Wilson all at the Sub Rooms.

Before that there is a full run of gigs at the Sub Rooms, a new play or film most weeks at the Cotswold Playhouse, and the Museum in the Park marking ten years of its walled garden. Every listing below comes from the organiser’s own page, read on 29 September 2026, and links back to it. For places that are open whatever the date, see our guide to things to do in Stroud.

This week

  • Jam’s Jam, Wednesday 30 September, from 7pm, the Sub Rooms, George Street. Free. The monthly open mic and jam: low-key jamming from 7pm, open mic from 8pm, then jamming until late. All equipment provided (The Sub Rooms).
  • Le Vent du Nord, Thursday 1 October, 8pm (doors 7pm), the Sub Rooms. £32.50. The Quebec folk band, seated (The Sub Rooms).
  • Ferocious Dog, Friday 2 October, 7.30pm, the Sub Rooms. £30. The Celtic folk-punk band’s final autumn tour, standing, age 14 and over (The Sub Rooms).
  • Across the Square, Friday 2 October, 7.30pm, Cotswold Playhouse, Parliament Street. £16. Alex Pearson Productions imagine a 1917 meeting between Lady Ottoline Morrell and Millicent Fawcett (Cotswold Playhouse).

Next week

  • Poetry Evening, Wednesday 7 October, 8pm, Museum in the Park. Free, everyone welcome (Museum in the Park).
  • Mary Coughlan, Thursday 8 October, 8pm, the Sub Rooms. £32.50. The Irish jazz and blues singer, seated, with special guest Jamie Lawson (The Sub Rooms).
  • The Specials Ltd, Friday 9 October, 7.30pm, the Sub Rooms. £21.50 in advance, £23.50 on the door. A nine-piece Specials tribute band, standing, age 16 and over (The Sub Rooms).
  • Maggie O’Farrell, Saturday 10 October, 11am to 12pm, the Sub Rooms. An early Stroud Book Festival event, and already sold out (The Sub Rooms).
  • Watson: The Final Problem, Saturday 10 October, 3.30pm, Cotswold Playhouse. £15. Tim Marriott plays Dr Watson in Play on Stroud’s one-man Sherlock Holmes story, directed by Bert Coules (Cotswold Playhouse).
  • Nubiyan Twist, Saturday 10 October, 8pm, the Sub Rooms. £30 in advance, £35 on the door. The nine-piece jazz and afrobeat collective, age 18 and over (The Sub Rooms).
  • Six of the Best, Sunday 11 October, 2pm, Cotswold Playhouse. £5. Six short plays by local writers (Cotswold Playhouse).
  • Seth Lakeman, Sunday 11 October, 8pm, the Sub Rooms. £32. The album Freedom Fields, 20 years on, seated (The Sub Rooms).

Later in October

  • Elles Bailey, Thursday 15 October, 7.30pm, the Sub Rooms. £30 in advance, £35 on the door. The Bristol blues and Americana singer, with Demi Marriner in support (The Sub Rooms).
  • The Three Musketeers, Thursday 15 October, 7.30pm, Cotswold Playhouse. £16. Our Star Theatre Company’s family farce about a troupe whose show goes wrong, with audience participation (Cotswold Playhouse).
  • A Matter of Life and Death, Friday 16 October, 7.30pm, Cotswold Playhouse. £8, £5 for under 18s. Powell and Pressburger’s 1946 film in a restored 4K print (Cotswold Playhouse).
  • Howard Donald DJ set, Saturday 17 October, 7pm, the Sub Rooms. £29 in advance, £34 on the door. A house party with Lisa Unique and Neon Pumps, age 18 and over (The Sub Rooms).
  • The Story of Stroud’s Secret Garden, Sunday 18 October, 2pm, Museum in the Park. £7, £6 concessions, £5 for museum members. An afternoon talk and tea on the walled garden (Museum in the Park).
  • Celebrating 10 Years of the Walled Garden, Tuesday 20 to Friday 23 October, drop in 2pm to 4pm, Museum in the Park. Free. Artwork by the garden’s volunteers, a slideshow of how it grew, and cake (Museum in the Park).
  • Vonda Shepard, Wednesday 21 October, 8pm, the Sub Rooms. £37.50 to £42.50. The Ally McBeal singer plays her hits, seated (The Sub Rooms).
  • Tales of Drake, Friday 23 October, 7.30pm, Cotswold Playhouse. £15, £12 for under 25s. Nick Wilkes plays a former sailor telling tales of Sir Francis Drake (Cotswold Playhouse).
  • Nerina Pallot, Friday 23 October, 8pm, the Sub Rooms. £27.50 to £32.50. The singer-songwriter, seated (The Sub Rooms).
  • Aston Down Fireworks and Bonfire Night, Saturday 24 October, gates 2.30pm, Aston Down Airfield near Minchinhampton. £39 a car for up to five people, £47 for more. Airborne and ground fireworks and a bonfire, advance tickets only (Aston Down Events).
  • Ballet Cymru: Sleeping Beauty, Saturday 24 October, 7.30pm, Cotswold Playhouse. £20, £5 for under 18s. The company’s 40th anniversary production, to Tchaikovsky’s score (Cotswold Playhouse).
  • Peatbog Faeries, Saturday 24 October, 8pm, the Sub Rooms. £27 in advance, £32 on the door. Celtic dance music from the Isle of Skye, standing (The Sub Rooms).
  • Stroud Half Marathon, Sunday 25 October, 9am, starting beside the Marling School field on Cainscross Road. There is no parking at the start. The clocks go back that morning (Stroud Half Marathon). Our Stroud Half Marathon page has the 10k, entry fees and the bus to the start.
  • Five Valleys Fireworks, Monday 26 October, gates 6pm, display 8pm, Marling School Playing Field, Cainscross Road. £11 in advance, £15 on the gate; primary-age children £6 and £8. Run by the Rotary Clubs of Stroud, Stonehouse and Nailsworth (Five Valleys Fireworks). Our Stroud fireworks page explains why there is no parking.
  • Garden Stories, Tuesday 27 to Thursday 29 October, 10.30am to 3.30pm, Museum in the Park. Free. Drawing, writing and making for all ages over half term (Museum in the Park).
  • Mr. Scruff Halloween Party, Saturday 31 October, 7pm, the Sub Rooms. £26 in advance, £31 on the door. An all-night DJ set with MC Kwasi, age 18 and over (The Sub Rooms).

The half-term week has its own page: October half term in Stroud.

November

  • Stroud Book Festival, Wednesday 4 to Sunday 8 November, at the Sub Rooms, Lansdown Hall, the Museum in the Park, St Laurence Church and other town venues. Tickets are sold through the Sub Rooms box office (Stroud Book Festival). Three of the biggest names:
  • Matt Haig, Saturday 7 November, 2pm, the Sub Rooms. £14. On his novel The Midnight Train (The Sub Rooms).
  • Mark Haddon, Saturday 7 November, 8pm, the Sub Rooms. £14. On his illustrated memoir, Leaving Home (The Sub Rooms).
  • Jacqueline Wilson, Sunday 8 November, 10.30am, the Sub Rooms. £9. On Esme Pepper, for ages 8 and over (The Sub Rooms).
  • The Great Escape, Friday 6 November, 7.30pm, Cotswold Playhouse. £8, £5 for under 18s. The 1963 film, with no ads and no trailers (Cotswold Playhouse).
  • Miserden Fireworks, Saturday 7 November, gates 4.30pm, display 7pm, Miserden Estate, GL6 7JA. A bonfire and fireworks raising money for Miserden School, with free parking in the field (Miserden Estate).
  • Eco Homes Show, Tuesday 10 November, 10am to 4pm, the Sub Rooms. Free. More than 20 local businesses and support services advising on solar panels, heat pumps, insulation, EV chargers and more (The Sub Rooms).

Remembrance Sunday is 8 November; our Remembrance page will carry the 2026 times once the organisers publish them.

Regular events

  • Stroud Farmers’ Market, every Saturday, 9am to 2pm, Cornhill Market Place and the surrounding streets, GL5 2HH. One of the biggest farmers’ markets in the country, run by Fresh-n-Local (Fresh-n-Local).
  • Threadneedle Flea Market, every Saturday, 9am to 2pm, alongside the farmers’ market. Vintage, handmade and fair trade stalls, different every week (Fresh-n-Local).
  • Stratford Park parkrun, every Saturday, 9am, Stratford Park, GL5 4AF. A free, timed 5k; register once with parkrun before your first run (parkrun).

Getting there

The Sub Rooms, the Cotswold Playhouse and the Cornhill are all within a five minute walk of each other in the town centre. The Museum in the Park and the parkrun are in Stratford Park, a short walk west along Stratford Road, and Marling School is on Cainscross Road beyond it. Our page on parking in Stroud has the car park tariffs, and the roadworks and travel page has current closures.

Send us your event

Running something in Stroud or the Five Valleys? Email hello@stroudtoday.co.uk with the date, time, venue, price and a photo. Listings are free. We add them to this page and to the diary on our What’s On hub.

Sources