Four bands play the first Lord Mayor of Canterbury's charity gig at Westgate Hall on 30 October. Tickets are £25, all raised goes to Kent Neuro Therapy Centre.

Four bands will play the first Lord Mayor of Canterbury’s Charity Music Gig at Westgate Hall on Friday 30 October. Every pound raised goes to Kent Neuro Therapy Centre, a Canterbury charity for people living with neurological conditions.

The night has been put together by the Lord Mayor, Cllr Alister Brady. Canterbury City Council announced it on 1 October.

The essentials

  • When: Friday 30 October 2026, doors 6.30pm, finishing at 11pm
  • Where: Westgate Hall, Westgate Hall Road, Canterbury CT1 2BT
  • Tickets: £25, on Eventbrite
  • Age: 16 and over; 16 and 17-year-olds must come with an adult
  • Also on: merchandise stands, food stalls and fundraising activities

Tickets were still on general sale at £25 when we checked Eventbrite on Saturday 3 October.

Who is playing

The council’s announcement lists four acts:

  • Polo Lounge, a four-piece indie and alternative rock band from Canterbury
  • Suncharmer, a rock quartet from the south east with what the council calls “a dark indie/glam sound”
  • Crysometimes, a British indie rock band working in alt pop and pop-rock
  • Gypskazz, a six-piece from Kent mixing ska, reggae and gypsy jazz

Cllr Brady put the line-up together with BBC Introducing, the BBC’s strand for new and unsigned music. The council says the gig will be recorded for airing through BBC Introducing.

Who is giving their time

The council says four organisations are providing their services free of charge:

  • Sunshine Ocean Records: event management, production and artist co-ordination
  • Rase Production Ltd: sound, stage and lighting
  • Akon: security
  • Westgate Hall: the venue

That matters for the charity. With the venue, sound and security donated, the ticket money is not being eaten by costs before it reaches the cause.

Where the money goes

Kent Neuro Therapy Centre is Cllr Brady’s chosen charity for his year as Lord Mayor. It is based at Bradbury House on Merton Lane North, on the southern edge of the city, according to its own website.

The centre describes its work as “empowering those living with MS, Parkinson’s and stroke”. Its therapies include:

  • physiotherapy
  • hydrotherapy
  • a gym and exercise classes
  • oxygen therapy
  • complementary and wellbeing therapies

People can refer themselves, and the centre runs on memberships and session charges alongside fundraising.

“This is going to be one of the flagship events of my fundraising year,” the Lord Mayor said in the council’s announcement. He called it “a truly incredible charity that does amazing work in our community making a real difference to the lives of people with neurological conditions.”

He added: “We have selected some of the best bands from Canterbury and elsewhere in the southeast to come and play for us, and that’s particularly exciting because we have such a thriving live music scene locally and across the region.”

What it means for you

If you want to go, book on Eventbrite. This is the first time the gig has been held, so there is no record of how fast it sells. If you cannot make it, the Eventbrite listing links to an online donation page for Kent Neuro Therapy Centre set up for the Lord Mayor’s appeal.

Nominations for this year’s Lord Mayor’s Awards, which recognise unsung local volunteers, close on 30 October, the day of the gig. For more nights out this month, see what’s on in Canterbury.