We live in West Sussex, just down the road from the site of the Big Church Festival (BCF) – an annual Christian music festival in the UK. Groups from our church have attended it each year since it started in 2009 as the Big Church Day Out. My wife and I arrived at BCF mid-morning on day one.
We headed to the Tea Garden Stage at the far end of the site. On the way, we remarked on the improved layout and signage that made the site easier to navigate.
Proceedings kicked off with the gentle folk-rock tones of West Country band fieldlily, which set the tone for what is a positive and wholesome environment.
In the intervals between the performances, the Tea Garden Stage hosts introduced people with stories to tell about lives changed by Jesus. One lady, who was a nurse, had been at this venue at last year’s event, where she heard about the medical ministry of Mercy Ships. As a result, she volunteered to serve with Mercy Ships on their visit to Madagascar. These little snapshots of God at work today are some of the most encouraging things about BCF.
It was a mainly sunny day and there was an air of joyful anticipation among the festival-goers. This sense of anticipation was amplified through a video message from the founder of BCF, Tim Jupp, who spoke of hitting a new record of 40,000 attendees.
'Major incident'
There was no reason to think that we were not going to enjoy three days of music, spoken word and fellowship. This was until three songs into the fourth act, when the Tea Garden Stage hosts interrupted the performance to say that the show had been paused because of a major incident on site. Those who were camping were told to return to their tents, and day visitors were told to go to the area around the Main Stage.
There was almost something eerie about how quiet the site became. Suddenly the multi-faceted potential of this event ebbed away like a giant bubble being burst.
On our way back to the Main Stage, we noticed that there were many ambulances, a strong police presence, and eventually an air ambulance. At this point, it was not clear exactly what had happened.
It was only later when we had returned home that the full story began to emerge. A large sign had collapsed and hurt a group of people. A 41-year-old man from Eastbourne died and at least six others were seriously injured.
An email received later in the evening from the BCF organisers said:
"Following today’s incident, we have made the decision to bring Big Church Festival 2026 to a close."
It continued: "Big Church Festival is about bringing people together. Tonight, that community is grieving. Right now, our focus is on those directly affected by what happened today.
"We are heartbroken."
This is a tragedy at so many levels. What is required is a thoughtful and prayerful response that seeks consolation and hope to emerge from this sad loss.
John Woods is en Reviews Editor and Training Director, School of Preachers (www.schoolofpreachers.org) where he blogs weekly.
