Mercury Prize winner English Teacher set to headline The Great Escape music fest 2025: All you need to know

The Great Escape, the UK’s premier festival for new music, has announced an addition to its 2025 lineup: the Mercury Prize-winning indie-rock band English Teacher.

The Leeds-based quartet will headline the newly launched Billboard UK Live Stage at the festival, which will take place in Brighton from May 14 to 17, 2025. The festival will feature more than 450 new artists across over 35 venues.

This announcement comes as the festival unveils 100+ new artists. They span multiple genres, from indie and rock to electronic, hip-hop, and pop. Single-day and two-day tickets are now available for sale on the official festival website.

The Great Escape 2025 promises to be an essential event for music enthusiasts eager to see a variety of emerging artists.

In an official press release, the festival authorities announced:

"The Great Escape is thrilled to unveil a host of exciting new artists set to join the 2025 festival line-up, alongside the announcement of a brand-new stage in collaboration with Billboard UK. Taking place in Brighton from 14-17 May 2025, The Great Escape will showcase over 450 emerging artists across 35+ venues, solidifying its status as the ultimate festival for new music discovery."

It continued:

"For the first time ever, The Great Escape is partnering with Billboard UK to present the Billboard UK Live Stage, a brand-new platform dedicated to spotlighting rising talent. Headlining this debut stage is Mercury Prize-winning indie-rock four-piece English Teacher, with more incredible acts to be revealed soon."

Shedding some light on the performer lineup for The Great Escape 2025, the press release mentioned:

"In addition to the Billboard UK Live Stage, we’re excited to reveal over 100 new names joining the 2025 line-up. Spanning a wide array of genres, these artists represent the very best in up-and-coming talent from around the world. Highlights include:

Indie & Alternative: Welly, The Bug Club, She’s In Parties, Tough Cookie, Home Counties, Greg Freeman, Adult DVD, Gardens

Electronic & Dance: Debby Friday, Mike Lindsay, Polite Bureaux, KABEAUSHÉ, Ava Rasti

Hip-Hop & R&B: Tay Jordan, Nadeem Din-Gabisi, Joshua Idehen, CHAII

Pop: Miso Extra, Lucy Dreams, Nxdia, JON POPPII, Joya Marleen

Rock, Punk & Metal: BEX, Post Profit, Karen Dio, Mouth Culture, Lowen, Zetra

With even more names to come, this year’s festival is shaping up to be one of the most diverse and exciting yet!"

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English Teacher won the Mercury Prize in 2024

The four-piece band consists of Lily Fontaine (vocals, guitar), Lewis Whiting (guitar), Nicholas Eden (bass), and Douglas Frost (drums).

Their debut album for 2024, 'This Could Be Texas', received the Mercury Prize, one of the UK's most esteemed music awards. Released through Island Records, it garnered acclaim from fans for its innovative approach to the classic guitar-band format.

The win established them as the first non-London act to receive the Mercury Prize since Young Fathers in 2014.