Bedford · grassroots venue · Verified open
Bedford's Castle Quay inn — open mic Mondays, folk and weekend live music.
Capacity to be confirmed, live music 3 nights a week, house PA. Folk, Acoustic, Irish.
Nearby venuesUpdated 12 November 2026
Here is The Castle in 17 Newnham St, Bedford at a glance. It has live music 3 nights a week. It books folk, acoustic and irish acts.
capacity
| Live music | 3 nights a week |
| TodayClosed | 12:00–00:00Opens in 4h 21m 11s |
| Backline | PA provided |
| Books | Folk · Acoustic · Irish |
4 photos show the inside of The Castle. It books folk, acoustic and irish acts. Tap any photo to open it at full size. Venue owners can claim this page and add their own photos.
Everything about The Castle that matters before you book is set out below. It has live music 3 nights a week. It books folk, acoustic and irish acts.
| Capacity | – |
| Live nights | Mon, Sat, Sun |
| Curfew | – |
| Sound limiter | – |
| Genres | FolkAcousticIrish |
| Website | castlebedford.co.uk |
| Status | Verified open |
| Last checked | 4 Jun 2026 |
You will find The Castle at The Castle, 17 Newnham St, Bedford, MK40 3JR. The map below opens step-by-step directions in Google Maps. It is one of 14 rooms in our Bedford venue directory.
Bedford MK40 3JR
The nearest station is Bedford St Johns (rail station), about 15 minutes' walk away.
The Castle for artists: The Castle has not joined GigXchange yet, so acts vote here to bring it on - to hire the venue for a private event, choose Private hire.
| Booking email and phone | Locked |
| Fee range per act | Locked |
| How far ahead to book | Locked |
| Payment terms | Locked |
| Rate calculatorWhat should you charge here?Live UK rates by role, city and venue size. |
The Castle publishes its opening times for 7 of the 7 days. These are the venue's own opening hours, not the gig start times. Check the venue's own website before travelling on a bank holiday.
| Mon | 15:00–23:00 |
| Tue | 15:00–23:00 |
| Wed | 15:00–23:00 |
| Thu | 15:00–00:00 |
| FriToday | 12:00–00:00 |
| Sat | 12:00–00:00 |
| Sun | 12:00–22:00 |
The Castle has an in-house PA for visiting acts. The list below shows the PA, drums, amps and mics we know about. Played here and the kit was different? Tell us and we will update it.
| PA system | Provided |
| Drum kit | TBC |
| Guitar amp | TBC |
| Bass amp | TBC |
| Keys / keyboard | TBC |
| Vocal mics | TBC |
| In-house engineer | TBC |
Here is the story of The Castle in 17 Newnham St, Bedford so far. It books folk, acoustic and irish acts. It has live music 3 nights a week.
The Castle is a grassroots music venue in 17 Newnham St, Bedford. It books Folk, Acoustic, Irish.
Listing notesThe Castle is a 19th-century, family-run traditional inn at 17 Newnham Street in the Castle Quay quarter of Bedford (MK40 3JR), close to the River Ouse and the Cecil Higgins Museum. It runs an open-mic night every Monday, monthly Irish folk sessions and live music most weekends, alongside home-cooked food, traditional Sunday roasts and six regularly changing cask ales. There's an enclosed courtyard for summer and five en-suite guest rooms named after British castles. A welcoming PA-equipped pub stage for Bedford's folk, acoustic and covers performers.
It keeps this page true for the next act through the door.
The regular night at The Castle on GigXchange is its open mic. It has live music 3 nights a week. Venues often post their next nights on their own website first.
Open mic, every Monday - 19:30 · Free entry. More nights out in the wider Bedford gig directory.
The Bedford league ranks live music venues by the gigs listed over the next 30 days. It refreshes every night, so a busy month moves a room up.
live rooms
| 01 | Esquires Bedford | 10 gigs |
| 02 | Bedford Corn Exchange | 2 gigs |
| 03 | Bedford Park | 0 gigs |
| 04 | Brewpoint Taproom & Brewery | 0 gigs |
| 05 | St John's Arms up1 | 0 gigs |
| 06 | The Bedford Arms up1 | 0 gigs |
| 07 | The Castle This venue up1 | 0 gigs |
| 08 | The Cellar Bar up1 | 0 gigs |
| 09 | The Eagle Bookshop up1 | 0 gigs |
| 10 | The Flower Pot New | 0 gigs |
Not seeing your venue? This ranking counts gigs listed in the next 30 days. Create a page free or add your gigs - it ranks on the next nightly refresh.
| 01 | Edit your profile and photos |
| 02 | Set your fee range |
| 03 | Receive artist enquiries |
| 04 | Update backline and capacity |
The Castle
Bedford's Castle Quay inn — open mic Mondays, folk and weekend live music.
- –
- Capacity
- 3 nights
- Live music
- 12:00
- Open today
- PA
- Backline
- Folk
- Books
- Verified
- Directory status
Last updated: 12 November 2026
The Castle — Quick Facts
Bedford's Castle Quay inn — open mic Mondays, folk and weekend live music. Here are the key facts on The Castle at a glance. It has live music 3 nights a week.
Know how many it holds?
The Castle this week
The Castle for artists: The Castle has not joined GigXchange yet, so acts vote here to bring it on - to hire the venue for a private event, choose Private hire.
The Castle hasn’t claimed its page yet, so nobody from the venue is on GigXchange to message. Vote to bring it on - free account, no card, 30 seconds.
Claim your listing to update details, respond to artists, and manage bookings.
Closed, changed capacity, different backline? Let us know. We review corrections within 7 days.
What’s on in Bedford this week — or see what’s on across the UK.
Inside The Castle
The Castle has an in-house PA for visiting acts. It has live music 3 nights a week. Below: the PA, drums, amps and mics we know about, what we know about the room, and its regular live nights.
The Castle is a grassroots music venue in 17 Newnham St, Bedford. The Castle provides a PA system — check the rest with the venue.
The Castle books Folk, Acoustic, Irish acts. This listing is part of the Bedford venue directory.
The Castle is a 19th-century, family-run traditional inn at 17 Newnham Street in the Castle Quay quarter of Bedford (MK40 3JR), close to the River Ouse and the Cecil Higgins Museum. It runs an open-mic night every Monday, monthly Irish folk sessions and live music most weekends, alongside home-cooked food, traditional Sunday roasts and six regularly changing cask ales. There's an enclosed courtyard for summer and five en-suite guest rooms named after British castles. A welcoming PA-equipped pub stage for Bedford's folk, acoustic and covers performers.
Nights The Castle usually has live music
The Castle usually has live music on Mon, Sat, Sun. Folk is the first genre on its list. A PA is listed; check what else is on stage before you load in. The Castle isn't on GigXchange yet - vote to bring it on, and have a short EPK and a live clip ready, since that is what most venues ask for first.
Find The Castle
You will find The Castle at The Castle, 17 Newnham St, Bedford, MK40 3JR. The map below opens step-by-step directions in Google Maps. It is one of 14 rooms in our Bedford venue directory.
The nearest station is Bedford St Johns (rail station), about 15 minutes' walk away. The Castle is in 17 Newnham St, Bedford — use MK40 3JR for sat-nav, taxis and ride apps. Before you travel, check the night’s start time and what’s on in Bedford this week; if you book acts, see who’s available in Bedford this weekend.
The Cellar Bar, The Eagle Bookshop, The Flower Pot and The Rufus Centre
Station data: NaPTAN, Department for Transport (Open Government Licence).
What's On at The Castle
The regular night at The Castle on GigXchange is its open mic. It has live music 3 nights a week. Venues often post their next nights on their own website first. Or browse the wider Bedford venue directory.
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
- Sign-up19:30
- Slots12 min
- EntryNo fee listed
- PAProvided
- Backline—
- Open toMusicians
The Bedford League
The Castle is #7 of 14 Bedford venues for live music — ranked by gigs on the calendar over the next 30 days, refreshed nightly. Only gigs in the GigXchange directory count.
- #1 – Esquires Bedford 10 gigs
- #2 – Bedford Corn Exchange 2 gigs
- #3 – Bedford Park 0 gigs
- #4 – Brewpoint Taproom & Brewery 0 gigs
- #5 ▲1 St John's Arms 0 gigs
- #6 ▲1 The Bedford Arms 0 gigs
- #7 ▲1 The Castle This venue 0 gigs
- #8 ▲1 The Cellar Bar 0 gigs
- #9 ▲1 The Eagle Bookshop 0 gigs
- #10 NEW The Flower Pot 0 gigs
Run this room? This page, and this ranking, is yours to take over.
Claim This VenueNot seeing your venue? This ranking counts gigs listed in the next 30 days. If your room has no page here yet, create one free and it joins the directory. If it is already listed, add your gigs and it will rank on the next nightly refresh.
Rankings like this run across GigXchange: the national Hardest Working Rooms table tracks the UK's busiest grassroots stages week on week, the Pint Index prices a gig ticket in pints city by city, and UK market statistics covers what live music pays. All of it is built from the same directory this page lives in.
Common Questions
These are the 9 questions people ask most about booking and visiting The Castle. Each answer uses the details already shown on this page. Can't see your question? Send it to us with a correction.
These are the 9 questions people ask most about booking and visiting The Castle. Each answer uses the details already shown on this page. Can't see your question? Send it to us with a correction.
Venues Near The Castle
13 other venues are close to The Castle in Bedford. Each one has its own page with its size, kit and live nights. Use them to plan a night out or a run of local gigs.
Our free weekly email brings live music in Bedford straight to your inbox. It keeps rooms like The Castle full and costs you nothing. You can unsubscribe at any time with a single click.
Keep up with Bedford
Our free weekly email brings live music in Bedford straight to your inbox. It keeps rooms like The Castle full and costs you nothing. You can unsubscribe at any time with a single click.
Help keep grassroots venues open in Bedford
—A UK venue stops hosting live music every 5 days — and turning up is what keeps a room open. Get a free weekly email of gigs in Bedford. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy.
See what’s on in Bedford over the next four weeks →
The Castle in brief. Set in 17 Newnham St, Bedford, The Castle is a live music room that books folk, acoustic and irish. Live music is most often on Mondays, Saturdays and Sundays. It also hosts an open mic (every Monday). Other rooms nearby: The Cellar Bar, The Eagle Bookshop and The Flower Pot, or browse the Bedford venue directory.
Booking or playing in Bedford? The GX Index publishes what UK gigs actually pay, by city, band size and venue type, and the GX Index reports set out the methodology and the sample behind every figure. Both are free to read and free to cite.
Keep exploring: the UK gig directory for what's coming up, the venue directory for rooms that book live music, the open mic finder for recurring stage time, and what's on across the UK this week. The blog covers pricing, contracts and getting booked, and about GigXchange explains who runs it and why. Something not right on this page? Tell us — or start on the home page.
We list 14 grassroots music venues in Bedford. Or search the full UK directory by town, size or genre. Every listing shows capacity, kit and live nights where we have them.
More rooms near The Castle: The Three Cups, The Wellington Arms, Bedford Corn Exchange, Bedford Park, Brewpoint Taproom & Brewery, Esquires Bedford, St John's Arms and The Bedford Arms.
Bedford has 14 rooms in the UK grassroots venue directory - why we built it, and what the data shows.
Rankings like this run across GigXchange: the national Hardest Working Rooms table, the Pint Index and UK market statistics - all built from the same directory.
Free to join. No subscription. 5% only if you want the deposit protected.
How GigXchange works for artists, venues, agents, promoters and event organisers.
More Bedford venues
We list 14 grassroots music venues in Bedford. Or search the full UK directory by town, size or genre. Every listing shows capacity, kit and live nights where we have them.