DOWNLOAD Festival 2026 will be headlined by Limp Bizkit, Guns N’ Roses and Linkin Park.

The event, which runs from June 10 to 14 at Donnington Park, has unveiled a raft of top names as part of the first line-up announcement for next year.

As well as those topping the bill, the likes of Halestorm, Mastodon, Story of the Year and Bad Omens will also take to the stage.

However, that’s not why this ageing metalhead is excited, oh no.

If you delve a little further down the list of performers, you hit what I would describe as a utopia of unheralded nu-metal/metal/hard rock LEGENDS.

From the light-hearted rock of Bush, Ash and Feeder, to the harder edges of Corrosion of Conformity and Snot to the outright brutality of Spineshank and Cavalera (featuring the iconic Sepultura duo, Max and Igor), this is a line-up filled with joy for us rockers of a certain age.

From Spineshank’s criminally-underrated Height of Callousness (one of the best metal albums of the last 30 years or so), to the grungey nostalgia of Bush’s Sixteen Stone (the UK’s take on grunge) and classic Cavalera-catapulted stomper Chaos AD, some purveyors of the finest rock and metal anthems to emerge from the 80s, 90s and noughties can be found on this bill.

The only rival bill I can think of, was that of Sonisphere in 2010. Held at the lovely Knebworth, the bill for that festival included metal giants Rammstein, Iron Maiden, Slayer, Fear Factory and Soulfly, as well as the likes of legends Alice in Chains, Therapy? and lord knows, a lot more.

But, on face value, Download 2026 rivals that bill.

So, if you hail from a slightly more recent era, do yourself a favour and search the names above – and get a ticket to Download 2026 – you will not regret it.

You can find out more – and buy tickets – for Download Festival 2026 online at downloadfestival.co.uk.

READ MORE: Festival news from your Somerset Leveller

The line-up so far for Download Festival 2026