Beacon Arts Centre announces Winter/Spring Programme for January – June 2026

Beacon Arts Centre is delighted to unveil its Winter/Spring 2026 programme - a vibrant season filled with music, drama, comedy, dance and visual art, offering something for audiences of all ages and interests.

What's On at Beacon Arts Centre, Greenock in 2026

The season opens in style with the Royal Scottish National Orchestra’s much-loved Viennese Gala (Sat 17 Jan), setting the tone for a diverse and exciting six months of performances.

Theatre Highlights

Theatre takes centre stage this season, including two productions presented in association with The Beacon: Scots: The Musical (Wed 4 Mar) with Raw Material, and Sailmaker (Wed 4 - Sat 7 Mar) with Ayr Gaiety.

The National Theatre of Scotland brings Stand and Deliver: The Lee Jeans Sit-in (Tue 9 - Wed 10 Jun), telling the powerful and inspiring story of the gallus women who took on the closure of the Lee Jeans factory in the early 1980s.

Following critical acclaim, Bard in the Botanics tours its celebrated production of Medea (Thu 19 Mar), arriving at the Beacon in March.

Famous Faces & Special Events

Audiences can look forward to appearances from some of the best-known names in music, comedy and entertainment:

• Craig Revel Horwood, star of Strictly Come Dancing (Wed 29 Apr)

  
  

• Punk icon Toyah Willcox, performing hits and sharing stories from her remarkable 50-year career (Thursday 11 Jun)

  
  

• An Evening with Gregor Fisher, promising laughter and insight from one of Scotland’s most-loved performers (Fri 27 Jan)

  
  

• Jack Docherty (aka The Chief), returning with an evening of wit, wisdom and sharp humour (Thu 2 Apr)

  
  

• Orwell Prize-winning author and BAFTA-winning filmmaker Darren McGarvey, with a multimedia exploration of trauma, class and modern culture (Sun 12 Apr)

Music & Local Talent

Legendary 70s band Lindisfarne (Sat 18 Apr), featuring founder member Rod Clements and Alan Hull’s son-in-law Dave Hull-Denholm, return to the touring circuit; while Irish folk icons The Fureys (Mon 23 Mar) visit the Beacon as part of their Farewell Tour.

Indie Inverclyde continues to champion local artists, with performances from Gourock band Slix (30 January), Greenock band Sovirez (27 March), and Glasgow’s Wojtek the Bear (4 April).

Our partnership with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland also continues, offering a series of intimate Sunday afternoon concerts between January and May.

Beacon Jazz welcomes the Jack Pearce Quintet, one of the UK’s most exciting emerging jazz ensembles, on Sat 31 Jan. The Scottish National Jazz Orchestra returns on Sat 16 May with Big Band Jazz in the Afternoon.

Exhibitions

The visual arts programme includes:

• Daisy Richardson - We Were Made in Burning Stars (17 Jan – 14 Feb)

  
  

• Joan McKeeman - Colourist Light (22 Feb – 25 Apr)

  
  

• Joanie Jack - Beyond Belief (2 May – 27 Jun)

Inverclyde’s First Book Festival | Books at the Beacon

February sees the launch of Inverclyde’s first-ever Book Festival, Books at the Beacon (Fri 20 - Sun 22 Feb, welcoming a stellar line-up including Damian Barr, Ross Collins, The Hebridean Baker, Peter MacQueen, Denise Mina, Louise Welsh, Kirsty Logan, Christopher Brookmyre, The Bookshop Band, local writers Anne Pettigrew and Ken MacLeod and more…

Family, Talks & Tributes

The Beacon Kids programme brings back favourites such as The MacDougalls (Sat 2 May), The Ultimate Bubble Show (Sun 18 Jan), and David Walliams’ There’s a Snake in My School (Wed 15 Apr). After popular demand, You Choose (Sun 10 May) returns, letting the audience decide what happens next.

Mountaineer Simon Yates (Sun 1 Feb) shares extraordinary tales from some of the world’s highest peaks, while Old Firm fans can enjoy appearances from Celtic and Rangers legends.

Audiences can also enjoy a wide variety of tribute acts celebrating Cher, Take That, Michael Jackson, Fleetwood Mac, Billy Joel, Pink, Celine Dion, Buddy Holly, Johnny Cash, and Doris Day.

Singer-songwriter Boo Hewerdine, writer of Eddi Reader’s hit Patience of Angels, joins Yvonne Lyon for Things Found in Books - an album inspired by items discovered in a second-hand bookshop at Culzean Castle (Sun 24 May).

Tickets and the full programme are available at beaconartscentre.co.uk or by calling 01475 723 723