Watford · 12 open mic nights · 5 nights a week

Open Mic Nights in Watford

All of Watford's open mics - when each runs, how to sign up, what kit is there.

92% of them list no entry fee; 0 have a full backline. Re-checked on a rolling cycle.

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Tonight List your night

Updated 12 November 2026

At a glance

Watford

Open mic
nights

listed in Watford

In detail

7 days from Fri 13 Nov	at least 4
Nights of the week	5 of 7
No fee listed	92% of nights
Full backline	0 nights
Open-Mic Score	52 /100

01 — Find a night

12 nights

Pick your night

When

Day

Has

Type

City

Sort

MONTHFri Kick-off21:00 Glenn Social & Sports ClubNorth Watford, Victoria Road · WatfordNo feeMonthly

Johnny's BarQueens Road · WatfordNo fee1st Sun of the month 14:00Sun

The HornVictoria Street, AL1 3TE · St AlbansNo feeHouse PA 15:00Sun

Mad SquirrelCity Centre · St AlbansNo feeHouse PAFortnightly 19:00Tue

The Oddfellows ArmsApsley · Hemel HempsteadNo feeFortnightly 19:30Tue

The Pump HouseWatfordPaidHouse PA 20:00Tue

The Saint & SinnerSt AlbansNo feeDates vary 19:30Wed

The CrownCity Centre · St AlbansNo feeHouse PA 20:00Wed

The Speckled HenHatfield Road · St AlbansNo fee 20:00Wed

The Farmer's BoySt AlbansNo feeFortnightly 20:30Wed

02 — The scene

Open-Mic Score

Out of
100

Solid — healthy affordability, building on walk-in. Good circuit for working artists.

Ranked against UK cities (0-100)

Choice	39
Schedule fixed scale	71
Coverage	21
Affordability fixed scale	92
Backline	23
Walk-in fixed scale	75

03 — By night

Nights listed

Watford's week

01	Wednesday	4 nights
02	Tuesday	3 nights
03	Sunday	2 nights
04	Thursday	1 night
05	Friday Tonight	1 night

04 — More of Watford

Beyond the list

Featured open micJohnny's BarQueens Road · Sun nights
Popular nightsThe Horn
Mad Squirrel
The Oddfellows Arms
The Pump House

This month

Added	2
Removed	0
Verified	2
Re-verified	0

Also in Watford

Watford gigsBooked slots, by date
What's on this weekEvery gig over the next seven days
Watford venuesThe rooms behind the nights
Watford music sceneVenues, rates, guides and gigs

05 — Other cities

90 cities

Nights elsewhere

London Manchester Brighton

All cities, A–ZNights

Aberdeen18 Aberystwyth7 Accrington8 Aldershot14

Basildon12 Bath13 Bedford10 Belfast18 Billericay4 Birmingham18 Blackburn5 Blackpool22 Boston9 Bournemouth16 Bradford19 Brighton45 Bristol35 Broxbourne8

Cambridge17 Cardiff34 Carlisle9 Chelmsford8 Cheltenham19 Cirencester7 Coventry19 Crawley13

Derby16 Derry6 Doncaster12 Dublin1 Dundee20 Durham10

Edinburgh34 Egham11 Epsom10 Exeter24

Farnborough4

Glasgow44 Gloucester13 Grimsby8

Hastings15 Hereford21 High Wycombe12 Horley3 Hull18

Inverness11 Ipswich16

Leeds34 Leicester18 Lincoln14 Liverpool27 London70 Luton7

Maidstone9 Manchester59 Margate16 Middlesbrough11 Milton Keynes10

Newcastle25 Newquay10 Newry5 Northampton14 Norwich20 Nottingham32

Oxford23

Peterborough12 Plymouth14 Portsmouth17 Preston17

Rawtenstall12 Reading17

Scarborough11 Sheffield38 Southampton28 Stockton-on-Tees8 Stoke-on-Trent19 Sunderland13 Sutton12 Swansea22 Swindon12

Telford15 Tunbridge Wells9

Waterlooville11 Welshpool2 Weymouth12 Woking14 Wolverhampton23 Worthing1 Wrexham18

York27

Live music on stage: a band under the lights

Watford Open Mics

Open Mic Nights in Watford

12 open mic nights across Queens Road, Victoria Street, AL1 3TE, City Centre, Apsley + more — part of the wider UK open mic directory. Re-verified on a rolling cycle.

52/ 100

Watford Open-Mic Score

SolidHealthy affordability, building on walk-in. Good circuit for working artists.

Choice39

Schedule71

Coverage21

Affordability92

Backline23

Walk-in75

What's on tonight? Filter the Watford listings by night

12 open mic nights across Queens Road, Victoria Street, AL1 3TE, City Centre, Apsley + more
5 nights a week have at least one
92% list no entry fee
0 with full backline
Venue, sign-up time, slot length and fee per card
Re-verified on a rolling cycle

Find out more Join free

Ready for a booked slot? Watford's upcoming gigs, sorted by date

One-off gigs at indie venues and community stages
Sorted by date, refreshed continuously
Free and ticketed shows
Every gig links its venue

Find out more Join free

Capacity, backline and booking contacts for Watford venues

Grassroots venues, pubs and stages
Backline and tech specs where known
Re-verified on a rolling cycle
Claim your venue to keep it current

Find out more Join free

Everything the Watford scene has beyond the open mics

City guide: venues, promoters and bookers
Local rate benchmarks before you quote
How to get gigs in the city
Members near you on GigXchange

Find out more Join free

Reach Watford musicians, comedians and poets looking for stage time

2-minute submission — no account needed
Reviewed before it goes live
Free — no listing fee
Corrections and closure reports welcome

Find out more

92% of Watford open mics list no entry fee — check the night, sign up, play

Last updated: 12 November 2026

12 Open Mic Nights Across Watford

At least 4 open mic nights are on in and around Watford in the 7 days from Fri 13 Nov; the other 8 run less often or on dates that vary, so check their listing. 12 open mic nights (9 verified) are running in and around Watford, from venues like Johnny's Bar, though none lists a full backline yet. Wednesday and Tuesday are the busiest. Every listing shows when we last checked it. Open mics are one layer of the Watford circuit — see what’s on in Watford over the next four weeks for the ticketed bills at the same venues.

open mic nights listed in Watford

9 of 12 take walk-in sign-up on the night · 1 list an entry fee
0 venues offer full backline (drum kit, guitar amp, bass amp, mics)
Spread across 5 different nights of the week
Music + comedy + poetry — filter by type below

12
Open mic nights: 5
Nights a week: 92%
No fee listed: 0
Full backline: 12 Nov
Last updated

What’s on in Watford this week — or see what’s on across the UK.

By Day of the Week

12 open mic nights are listed in Watford, across 5 nights of the week. Pick a night to see what's on. Each card lists the venue, sign-up time, slot length, fee and backline.

Showing 1–12 of 12

Next Sun 6 DecStarts 14:00

Sign-up—
Slots10 min
EntryNo fee listed
PA—
Backline—
Open toMusicians, Poets

Victoria Street, AL1 3TE

Next Sun 15 NovStarts 15:00

Sign-up—
Slots—
EntryNo fee listed
PAProvided
Backline—
Open toMusicians

Starts 19:00

Sign-up19:30
Slots12 min
EntryNo fee listed
PAProvided
Backline—
Open toMusicians

Starts 19:30

Sign-up—
Slots—
EntryNo fee listed
PA—
Backline—
Open toMusicians, Poets, Comedians

Next Tue 17 NovStarts 20:00

Sign-up19:30
Slots15 min
Entry£3.00
PAProvided
Backline—
Open toMusicians, All performers

Starts 19:30

Sign-up19:00
Slots—
EntryNo fee listed
PA—
Backline—
Open toPoets

Next Wed 18 NovStarts 20:00

Sign-up19:30
Slots12 min
EntryNo fee listed
PAProvided
Backline—
Open toMusicians

Next Wed 18 NovStarts 20:00

Sign-up—
Slots—
EntryNo fee listed
PA—
Backline—
Open toMusicians

Starts 20:30

Sign-up—
Slots—
EntryNo fee listed
PA—
Backline—
Open toMusicians

Starts 20:00

Sign-up19:30
Slots5 min
EntryNo fee listed
PAProvided
Backline—
Open toComedians

View details›

MONTH

Fri

Glenn Social & Sports Club

North Watford, Victoria Road

Starts 21:00

Sign-up—
Slots—
EntryNo fee listed
PA—
Backline—
Open toMusicians

Sign-up—
Slots—
EntryNo fee listed
PA—
Backline—
Open toMusicians, All performers

View details›

Venues in Watford

24 grassroots music venues are listed in Watford, including rooms that host these open mics and the places to play once you are ready for a gig. Each card opens the venue's own page with its capacity, kit and what is on.

See all 24 Watford venues

Watford Open Mic Scene in Numbers

Counted from the 12 Watford open mic nights listed: 92% have no entry fee listed, 0% have full backline and Wednesday is the busiest night. The chart shows how the week's nights split, day by day.

12
Nights listed: 5
Nights a week: 92%
No fee listed: 0%
Full backline: 42%
PA provided: Wed
Busiest night: 12 min
Typical slot: 20:00
Typical start

Open mics by night · share of the week

0%Mon

27%Tue

36%Wed

9%Thu

9%Fri

0%Sat

18%Sun

Watford Open Mic FAQs

6 answers about open mics in Watford, from the best nights for new performers and what is on tonight to whether they are free, which have full backline and how to get a regular slot.

What's the best open mic in Watford for new performers?

Johnny's Bar is one of the most-recommended starter mics — check the cards above for full backline + walk-in sign-up venues, which tend to be most welcoming for first-timers. For broader context, browse the UK open mic directory.

Where can I find an open mic in Watford tonight?

Watford has 5 different open-mic nights running across the week. Use the day filter above to see what's on tonight.

What else is on in Watford besides open mics?

Open mics are the regular, low-key layer of the scene. For the ticketed and one-off bills, what’s on in Watford over the next four weeks lists every grassroots gig we hold for the city — often at the same venues that host these mics. The full evergreen listing is the Watford gig directory.

Are Watford open mics free?

11 of the 12 open mics we list in Watford list no entry fee and 1 do; most open mics are free, but check with the venue. Filter the main directory by "Free entry" for the wider list.

Which Watford open mics provide a full backline?

None of the listed Watford mics provide a full backline yet — bring your own gear.

How do I get a regular slot at a Watford open mic?

Show up to the same mic 4-6 weeks in a row — hosts run on consistency. Once you're known, ask the host about a featured or paid support slot. We've written a longer guide on how to get paid gigs as a UK artist.

07 — Keep up with Watford

One email a week. Gigs near you.

Keep up with Watford

One free email a week with upcoming grass-roots gigs and nights in Watford. All it takes is your email address and town, you can unsubscribe at any time, and every reader who turns up helps keep Watford's small venues open.

Help keep grassroots venues open in Watford

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See what’s on in Watford over the next four weeks →

How the nights run. Of the 12 running nights, 4 are weekly and 8 run less often - check the date before you go. Most start between 19:00 and 20:00. Where a slot length is listed, it is usually 12 minutes. Where a sign-up time is listed, the list usually opens around 19:30.

Who plays. Besides music, 3 take poetry and 2 take comedy. 5 list a PA, so a singer-songwriter can turn up with just an instrument.

After the open mic. Ready for a paid set? The Watford venue directory lists the rooms that book live music, and the GX Index shows what they pay. Want to run one? How to start an open mic night.

More Cities

Switch to another UK city for the same format with its own local nights, start times and sign-up details, or go back to the UK open mic finder to search every listing at once.

Run a Watford open mic? List it free.

Listing an open mic is free, takes about 2 minutes and is reviewed before it goes live. It appears beside the 12 Watford nights already listed, where musicians, comedians and poets look for stage time.

For Artists For Venues For Agents For Promoters For Organisers For Fans

ForArtistsGet booked. Get paid. ForVenuesFill the calendar. ForAgentsRun your roster. ForPromotersBuild the bill. ForOrganisersBook acts for your event. ForFansFind tonight’s gigs.

Run a Watford open mic?

Listing is free. Performers find you by night and kit - we review it before it goes live.

Claim your venue List my night

Where these figures come from: UK open mic statistics and every UK open mic - all from the same directory.