Another iconic Australian music festival has bitten the dust for 2026 after its outback site was inundated by heavy rain and flooding earlier this month.

The Birdsville Big Red Bash attracts around 10,000 campers annually to the edge of the Simpson Desert in Queensland for a three-day concert, with organisers saying that this year’s event was already more than 90 per cent sold out.

The line-up for the July 7-9 festival was to have included acts such as Missy Higgins, the Hoodoo Gurus,  The Living End, Birds of Tokyo, Jessica Mauboy, Shannon Noll, Kate Ceberano, The Whitlams, Tim Finn and Troy Cassar-Daley.

But on Friday morning, the pin was pulled.

“It is with great sadness and disappointment that we advise we have made the difficult but necessary decision to cancel the 2026 Birdsville Big Red Bash,” fans were informed in a message on the event’s website and social media pages.

“Following the unprecedented rainfall and flooding across the region earlier this month, we learned that the festival could not proceed at the Big Red site this year, since water levels at the festival site will not dry in time for the festival.”

The cancellation is a further blow for live music fans, coming just two weeks after Byron Bay’s Bluesfest was axed. In that case, organisers blamed poor ticket sales and rising production costs, but it is Mother Nature that has hit the Big Red Bash – which will return again in 2027.

 

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Birdsville recorded more than its annual rainfall in just a few days in early March, with some places north of the outback township reportedly receiving more than four times their annual rainfall.

Although the Big Red Bash team considered relocating the festival for 2026, event founder Greg Donovan said that after surveying fans they ultimately decided this wasn’t feasible.

“The decision to cancel this year’s event, whilst difficult, is based on what we believe is in the best interest of the event and patrons,” he said.

“Mother Nature is the highest authority; this year she has spoken and we have heard the message.”

Ticket holders have been given the option of requesting a refund, or transferring their tickets to either the 2027 Birdsville Big Red Bash or the 2026 Mundi Mundi Bash at Broken Hill – which will be held from August 20-22 with acts such as John Butler, Boy & Bear and Baby Animals.

Within an hour of Big Red Bash cancellation being announced, a Facebook post had received more than 200 comments, the vast majority of which empathised with the organisers’ decision. Some noted that soaring fuel prices could also have affected those planning to attend.

The Big Red site is described as a ‘special and spiritual place’. Source: Big Red Bash / Facebook

Oztix co-founder Stuart Field said the festival organisers had been forced to make “an incredibly tough call”, and promised ticket refunds would be “processed efficiently”.

“Its significance on the Australian events calendar is unmatched – as one of the most unique and remote festivals in the world,” he said of the Big Red Bash.

Donovan described the festival’s location as “a very special and spiritual place”, and acknowledged the disappointment fans would feel over its cancellation.

He also thanked the artists who had shown their support during a challenging time, adding: “Their commitment to returning to Big Red on the edge of the Simpson desert n 2027 means a great deal to us and to the future of the Bash.”

The Baby Animals played at the 2024 festival. Photo: Matt Williams / Big Red Bash

Meanwhile, Donovan urged people not to abandon plans to visit outback Queensland.

“After the recent rains, the greenery and wildflowers will be stunning.

“It will be a fantastic year to get out there…  for those still planning to travel to the outback, your support of local businesses will hopefully offset some of the $20 million spending boost the Big Red Bash normally delivers to Outback Queensland each year.”