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From matches, to charities and forthcoming events and festivals - and hearing from up and coming local artists - we want you to hear the very best of what it going on in our amazing town.
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A world of music is on offer in Wrexham
FOCUS
Wales
We’ve known the team behind FOCUS Wales for a good many years now and have long supported their much loved festival. Called FOCUS Wales it takes place every May, and grows year upon year and is showing no sign of slowing down. Like a good wine, the performances continues to improve over time, and the annual event is now maturing into a must go to destination for up and coming bands from all over the world.
FOCUS Wales was created to highlight the vibrant new music scene within the Welsh music industry. At its core, the organisation delivers an international, multi-venue festival held annually in Wrexham, shining a spotlight on emerging Welsh talent and showcasing some of the world’s most exciting new acts. FOCUS Wales 2026 will celebrate the festival’s 16th year, welcoming over 25,000 attendees to Wrexham, following a record-breaking 2025 event.
The festival features 350+ performances across 20+ stages, alongside interactive industry sessions, arts events, and film screenings. In addition to the main festival, FOCUS Wales also organises several international events throughout the year under the #WelshMusicAbroad initiative.
In between the annual festival in Wrexham, the team are usually heading off to festivals themselves all over world, carrying their famous FOCUS Wales flags and banners, and accompanied by local bands. In doing they are exporting the very best of Welsh talent and music around the globe. And in turn the team are doing their best to recruit bands and their hosts to reciprocate in kind and get them to experience a welcome to Wrexham for themselves. It’s a very effective formula, and something that Neal as one of the founders and Sarah as one of the directors gave us an insight into how it works perfectly, year upon year.
FOCUS Wales is unlike other festivals as it provides a professional conference format during the day, allowing performers, sponsors and industry types valuable networking opportunities over lunches. Then things loosen up a bit for their popular early evening mixers and usually from around 7pm it’s a high-octane, high-paced, well-choregraphed evening of exactly timed gigs all taking place within a few minutes’ walk of each other across the heart of Wrexham.
With a good wind, and plenty of sleep each night - and perhaps not too much Wrexham Lager -you can average 8 to 10 gigs per day or as many as 30 over the whole weekend. That means tickets for the whole weekend represent superb value for money in an ongoing cost of living crisis and where ticket prices for famous bands nowadays can easily fetch hundreds of pounds.
It also means that with 350+ gigs taking place, even the most hardy are barely able to scratch the surface of just how much content and music is available over the weekend. Pound for pound, it’s the UK champion of festivals.
In recent years the FOCUS Wales Film festival has launched and runs simultaneously alongside the music festival, which is led by fellow member of the FOCUS Wales team, Rob Corcoran, also based here in the Foundry. Rob’s content invites film makers from all over the world to bring creative film and animation pieces for a wide range of audiences. This means with film, music and other creative media you really can call it a cultural melting pot for the whole weekend, the leading fringe for Wales if you like.
We are blessed that Wrexham isn’t a capital city, as the intimacy of hosting such an important event transforms the very nature of the whole town for the weekend – something that it wouldn’t be able to do if it were hosted in a major city.
The future of the festival looks assured with more names and bands than ever wishing to play and the only challenge is Wrexham can’t host them all every year.
With some past major headliners, next years’ acts will surely set the bar even higher again for Wrexham. We look forward to sharing news on confirmed acts as soon as they are announced and covering the festival in person throughout the whole weekend for Visit Wrexham.
Bands can democratically apply to play via their site link Apply to Play, and for those who aren’t brave enough to perform they can still apply to volunteer and help the team deliver another magical weekend for everyone here in Wrexham.
Hospice in Wrexham Celebrates 30 Years of Care and Community Support
Nightingale
House
Hospice
Wrexham’s local hospice was warmly welcomed as a beacon of care and community spirit to the whole of Wrexham when it first opened its doors some 30 years ago.
Visit Wrexham were invited in March to get an understanding of what they do and offer today, along with raising awareness about their latest fund-raising events taking place this summer. We had a lovely greeting upon our arrival by Helen Paddock and the friendly reception team. The site exudes warmth, with a well-stocked on-site shop offering locally crafted gifts—helping to raise vital funds—and a popular café serving affordable, home-cooked meals to visitors, staff, and patients alike. Pets are made most welcome, adding to the relaxed and inclusive atmosphere.
Olivia Beckett, Events and Communications Director—known as Liv—and pictured above - welcomed and guided us on a tour of the modern, thoughtfully designed facilities. The layout prioritises wellbeing, creating a calm and healing environment for all who come through its doors.
The hospice, which officially marked its 30th anniversary last year, relies heavily on fundraising, with only 20% of its £5.6 million running costs coming from the Welsh Government. The remainder is self-funded through donations, events, and community support and this means huge efforts each year are required to ensure high standards are maintained year after year.
A key highlight of the hospice’s calendar is its growing events programme. This year’s schedule is their busiest yet, with live music events being hosted in the main fields under a big top behind the nearby Wrexham Council Headquarters, located some 150m south of the Hospice.
This year, their events calendar features major acts like Ocean Colour Scene, whose upcoming concert scheduled in early May has already sold two-thirds of its tickets. The Snuts, another billed act taking place on the same week have also sold over 500 tickets despite being slightly less well-known.
Organised in conjunction with the team behind Focus Wales, the big tent music experience is becoming a mainstay in the calendar of popular events that Liv and the team plan and organise. All profits from these events will benefit the Hospice directly.
EVENTS FOR YOUR DIARY Nightingale 10k & 5K (Alyn Waters) 18th April
Focus Wales (Llwyn Isaf)
2nd & 4th May
Ellesmere Art Exhibition
27-30 May
Kids Festival (Llwyn Isaf)
1st August
Liv, a Wrexham local who lives in nearby Penley, emphasised that raising awareness of what they do is just as crucial as raising funds. “We support hundreds of individuals and families across Wrexham, Flintshire, and into Shropshire,” she said, underscoring the hospice’s wide catchment area.
The facility offers comprehensive on-site care, including rehabilitation, treatment rooms, and diagnostic tests—minimising the need for patients to travel between NHS sites. A dedicated wellbeing centre runs tailored 12-week programmes, supporting up to 15 patients at a time with weekly sessions combining therapy-based sessions with informal activities like crafts, art, and music.
Additional support includes respite care for both patients and their carers, onsite physiotherapy, a gym, and social events such as pub quizzes and bingo.
The hospice employs 140 staff and is supported by 450 volunteers, with further funding from organisations like Children in Need.
Adrian Bellwood, Medical Director, reaffirmed the hospice’s mission: “Despite challenging situations, our mission is to help people live their lives as best as they can.”
With Visit Wrexham helping to support and promote their busy schedule of events beyond the summer season, Liv concluded our meeting by highlighting in addition to the events and fundraising efforts, the hospice continues to work at a national level for a fairer funding framework for all UK hospices.
This means by doing so, the organisation can continue to expand its services and reach, benefiting all those in Wrexham who may need them —rooted in compassion, community, and care.
We look forward to sharing further news and updates later in the year.
Look behind you – it’s
Wrexham
& District Pantomime Company
Offering community-based theatre and best known for its annual pantomime performances staged every year at William Aston Hall, combining popular shows and family entertainment with essential fundraising for local charities.
A story of how one man changed the world.
Terry Fox
Foundation
Back in October, we arrived early for the Miners Project annual meeting, just in time ahead of a storm that was also arriving in Wrexham, and was getting some lunch in at their bustling and popular cafeteria.
We sat down and met with Fred Fox who was kind enough to share his table with us over his lunch.
We got talking and got an understanding of exactly why he was here and how we might be able to help him and support the Terry Fox Foundation.
Fred was at the Miners because he was speaking at the Wrexham Miners Project AGM taking place that day, and Wendy and Michael Hett as board trustees had welcomed and escorted Fred to visit two local schools in Wrexham, and hosted him at the Wrexham vs Birmingham game the night before.
Fred Fox lives in Vancouver, Canada and was also visiting Wrexham ahead of the annual Terry Fox Run that was taking place at Belle Vue Park in Wrexham.
The Wrexham Terry Fox Run was organised by the Wrexham committee for the second year running. If any locals would like to get involved in future runs, they can contact either the Wrexham or UK Terry Fox team directly. The charity supported is The Institute of Cancer Research.
Fred’s went on to tell us he is the slightly older brother to Terry Fox. Terry Fox’s life story is one of the most famous stories worldwide of what any one person can achieve in the face of adversity.
We were humbled to have had the chance meeting together and connect whilst Fred was touring the UK, who was still actively fundraising and running himself all these years later.
Humphrey Ker, Patron of Wrexham Miners Project, meeting with The Terry Fox Foundation team guests at the AGM.
Saying why he was chosen as a guest speaker at the Miners Project in Wrexham, Fred went on to say;
"I have come to a place I was meant to be. I feel very much a part of this community and belong here. My brother Terry would’ve felt exactly the same, we were both hard-working Canadians and feel part of this.
Terry ran 143 marathons in a row having had cancer and going through everything, but was still making a difference. He ran from mid-April through to September 1st in hope, and to give others hope. We all know someone who has been affected by cancer, and the Terry Fox Foundation is all about volunteering and giving sacrifices to those to make a better world. The event runs here in Wrexham and in 34 other countries worldwide, helping others all over the world make a massive difference.”
Terry Fox’s story is legendary. Numerous films and documentaries have been made over the years and decades celebrating the amazing achievement of such a strong and determined young man.
This short clip is supporting a new film in production called Run Terry Run that is scheduled for release in 2026, and we’d encourage you to watch it now.
If you’d like to support the Terry Fox Foundation directly, you can make a donation directly through their website Support Cancer Research - Terry Fox Foundation and if local, do get in touch with either the Wrexham or UK Terry Fox team directly.
Creating a fitting tribute for a Wrexham Legend
Paul
Curtis
Artwork
Paul Curtis is a Liverpool artist specialising in street art and large murals. He came to public attention with his very first piece of street art, "For All Liverpool's Liver Birds" (aka The Liver Bird Wings), which became a massive hit with locals, tourists and many famous faces too. Since 2017, Paul has created more than 250 public pieces, across the UK, with most of his work found around Merseyside and Wirral. His work is well-known and sells all over the world.
We caught up with him as he was developing something iconic for Wrexham, a new mural on the exterior of the Turf, located right next door to the famous Racecourse / Cae Ras itself.
Paul was invited to create a piece commemorating the late great Joey Jones, who made over 100 appearances for the club. His nickname of Mr Wrexham reflected his deep connection to the club and town. Joey was the first Welsh player to win a European Cup with Liverpool, so it’s fitting that an artist from Liverpool has been appointed for this high-profile project.
Explaining that it is far more than just creating a good design and planning a painting, Paul said to us;
“It’s all about the process. Yes, the idea and concept do take time to develop, but it’s a gradual process. There’s a lot of waiting for things to fall into place, there’s always a last-minute spanner in the works and whilst you might not see it, there are so many moving parts – more than you can imagine that are involved just getting to this point. Thankfully everyone involved has pulled together in the same direction, and remembering that it is a tribute after all, and we must bear in mind the finished piece must be mindful and respectful.”
We felt privileged to have shared a few moments with Paul whilst he was creating this masterpiece for our town. Wrexham fans will undoubtedly see this finished work as a fitting tribute to Mr Wrexham himself, for many years to come.
Paint
Jam
IV
15-16 August
Visit Wrexham was tipped off on a Friday lunchtime to go down to the basement levels of Eagle’s Meadow car park where something special was starting. As we approached in the low-level light during the height of an August heatwave, the unmistakable aerosol paint fumes permeated the air ever so slightly, and we knew this is where something special was happening.
Over 25 artists from all over the UK had descended into town for the weekend to continue a special project of brightening up the darkest walls in one of the deepest darkest underground carparks in Wrexham.
We first met up with Kryme from Dundee who had done the redeye just that morning to get down in time for the kick-off, and despite the long journey he was fully charged and excited about the gathering and the weekend that lay ahead. The rest of the artists were also beginning to arrive around the same time as we met up with some for a brief chat about their projects. Everyone we met had amazing back stories and united in their ambition to brighten up urban places with some unique efforts and pieces, inspired by personal ideas and stories to them. Many of them regularly toured the UK working on other paint jams and we felt with no-one else around it was a privilege to share some time one-on-one with the artists. We got a sneak peek of their design process and plans that they had in mind for the weekend long installation.
Going up a level we then met Andy ‘Dime One’ Birch – a self-confessed ‘graffiti art geek’ who is based here in North Wales and this being his fourth instalment of the Wrexham Paint Jam, discovered that this is very much his passion and project and was the lead artist. Andy explained he had decades of works to his name dotted all over Wrexham and North Wales.
Andy shared with us the event wouldn’t be possible without the support of Rachel and the team who run Avant Cymru /The Lab based upstairs and the work that they do curating the content and planning the event.
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