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What's On · Hertfordshire

What's On in Watford

Live music in Watford over the next four weeks — 5 Aug – 2 Sept. 2 gigs listed in Watford over the next 28 days across 1 venue. In total we track 21 grassroots venues and 9 regular open mics here.

Two pubs a day are closing, and last year 78 grassroots venues stopped putting on live music. Get Watford gigs in your inbox — and go to one.

Help keep grassroots venues open in Watford

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 Watford. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy.

Updated daily · 2 gigs in Watford over the next four weeks

Last updated: 5 August 2026

Support grassroots music in Watford

Grassroots venues are where every act you have ever paid to see started out. Watford still has 21 of them.

Live music in Watford runs on a dense circuit — the Colosseum, Pryzm, Premier League corporate bookings and a packed pub scene, one of the busiest live music towns outside London.

Two pubs a day closed across the UK in the first quarter of 2026, and over the year to July 2025 78 grassroots music venues stopped putting on live music — 30 of them shut for good. Those are the rooms where new acts learn to hold an audience, where a first support slot happens, and where a Tuesday night can still turn into something.

This page exists to make them easy to find. It lists 2 gigs across Watford over the next four weeks, pulled from the venues themselves and updated daily — alongside the 21 grassroots venues and 9 regular open mic nights we track in the city. No algorithm decides what you see: it is simply everything we know is on.

The single most useful thing anyone can do is turn up. Buy a ticket, buy a drink at the bar, and go to a night you have not been to before. If you would rather be told than remember, the sign-up above sends Watford listings straight to your inbox. If you run a venue here, claim your page so people can find you.

Venues in Watford

Where live music actually happens in Watford.

50
Photo: Google
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Blackwells Chipperfield
Kings Langley Chipperfield, Kings Langley★★★★★ (—)
Bistro cafe with live rock nights.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon09:00–20:00
  • Tue09:00–20:00
  • Wed09:00–20:00
  • Thu09:00–20:00
  • Fri09:00–20:00
  • Sat09:00–20:00
  • Sun09:00–18:00
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Photo: Google
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Chandos Arms
London Colindale★★★★★ (—)
Colindale community pub for acoustic, folk, blues and Americana
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon16:00–22:30
  • Tue16:00–22:30
  • Wed16:00–23:00
  • Thu16:00–23:00
  • Fri12:00–00:00
  • Sat12:00–00:00
  • Sun12:00–22:30
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Photo: Google
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Cocos Stanmore
Stanmore★★★★★ (—)
Stanmore venue with garage and club nights.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
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Photo: Google
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Glenn Social & Sports Club
Watford★★★★★ (—)
North Watford members' club with Saturday bands and Friday open mic
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon11:00–23:00
  • Tue11:00–23:00
  • Wed11:00–23:00
  • Thu11:00–23:00
  • Fri11:00–23:00
  • Sat11:00–23:00
  • Sun11:00–23:00
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90
Photo: Google
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Horse And Chains
Bushey★★★★★ (—)
Grade II listed Bushey pub with free live music and comedy nights
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon16:00–22:00
  • Tue16:00–22:00
  • Wed16:00–22:00
  • Thu12:00–23:00
  • Fri12:00–23:00
  • Sat12:00–23:00
  • Sun12:00–22:00
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Photo: Google
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Johnny's Bar
Watford★★★★★ (—)
First-Sunday-of-the-month open mic at Johnny's — intimate Queens Road room.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
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Photo: Google
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Mad Squirrel
St Albans★★★★★ (—)
Free live music and open mic overlooking the Abbey
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • 2 vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
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Photo: Google
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The Boxmoor Playhouse
Hemel Hempstead Boxmoor★★★★★ (—)
200-seat community playhouse and concert venue in Boxmoor
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • MonClosed
  • TueClosed
  • WedClosed
  • Thu20:00–22:30
  • FriClosed
  • SatClosed
  • SunClosed
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Photo: Google
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The Crown
St Albans★★★★★ (—)
A grassroots music venue in St Albans.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • 2 vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
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Photo: Google
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The Crown & Anchor
Watford★★★★★ (—)
Watford pub with live entertainment.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
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Photo: Google
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The Essex Arms
Watford Brentwood★★★★★ (—)
Brentwood character pub and grassroots live music venue - bands, blues jams and open mics in the SX/Seaxe bar
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon11:00–00:00
  • Tue11:00–00:00
  • Wed11:00–00:00
  • Thu11:00–00:00
  • Fri11:00–01:00
  • Sat11:00–01:00
  • Sun12:00–00:00
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200
Photo: Google
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The Horn
St Albans★★★★★ (—)
Hertfordshire's premier live music venue, six nights a week
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon12:00–00:00
  • Tue12:00–00:00
  • Wed12:00–00:00
  • Thu12:00–00:00
  • Fri12:00–02:00
  • Sat12:00–02:00
  • Sun12:00–21:00
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200
Photo: Google
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The Horn
St Albans★★★★★ (—)
Hertfordshire's premier live-music venue, est.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon12:00–00:00
  • Tue12:00–00:00
  • Wed12:00–00:00
  • Thu12:00–00:00
  • Fri12:00–02:00
  • Sat12:00–02:00
  • Sun12:00–21:00
View venue
Photo: Google
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The Horns
Watford★★★★★ (—)
Occasional open mic at The Horns — Watford's legendary Hempstead Road rock pub.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
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100
Photo: Google
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The Hub on Verulam
St Albans★★★★★ (—)
Community music and events space on Verulam Road.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon10:00–18:00
  • Tue10:00–18:00
  • Wed10:00–22:00
  • Thu10:00–22:00
  • Fri10:00–00:00
  • Sat10:00–00:00
  • Sun10:00–18:00
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400
Photo: Google
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The Pioneer Club
St Albans Heathlands Drive★★★★★ (—)
St Albans youth centre with world music.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • MonClosed
  • TueClosed
  • Wed19:00–22:00
  • Thu09:30–20:30
  • Fri09:30–21:30
  • Sat10:00–14:00
  • Sun10:00–16:00
View venue
Photo: Google
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The Pump House
Watford★★★★★ (—)
Tuesday-night open mic at The Pump House — Watford's grassroots heart for 12+ years.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
View venue
Photo: Google
Claim this venue
The Radlett Centre
Radlett★★★★★ (—)
Radlett theatre, comedy and music centre.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon10:00–17:00
  • Tue10:00–17:00
  • Wed10:00–17:00
  • Thu10:00–17:00
  • Fri10:00–17:00
  • Sat10:00–17:00
  • SunClosed
View venue
Photo: Google
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The Speckled Hen
St Albans★★★★★ (—)
Family-friendly local with weekly open mic and live bands
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon11:30–23:00
  • Tue11:30–23:00
  • Wed11:30–23:00
  • Thu11:30–23:00
  • Fri11:30–23:00
  • Sat11:30–23:00
  • Sun11:30–22:30
View venue
Photo: Google
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The Tudor Arms
Watford North Watford★★★★★ (—)
Free live music and open mic at this Greene King local in North Watford
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon11:00–23:00
  • Tue11:00–23:00
  • Wed11:00–23:00
  • Thu11:00–23:00
  • Fri11:00–23:30
  • Sat11:00–23:30
  • Sun11:00–22:30
View venue
Photo: Google
Claim this venue
Watford Colosseum
Watford★★★★★ (—)
Watford's main concert and events venue.
  • PA system
  • Drum kit
  • Guitar amp
  • Bass amp
  • Keys / keyboard
  • Vocal mics
  • In-house engineer
  • Mon
  • Tue
  • Wed
  • Thu
  • Fri
  • Sat
  • Sun
View venue

All 21 Watford venues →

What's on in Watford — FAQs

Common questions about live music in Watford, answered with this week's live data.

We currently list 2 gigs in Watford between 5 Aug and 2 Sept, across 1 venue. The listings above are the full set, sorted by date and refreshed daily from the venues themselves — no algorithm decides what you see. For everything beyond this window, browse the Watford gig directory or every city we cover.
None of the Watford gigs currently listed are marked free entry, though many venues do not publish a price at all. Watford open mic nights are your reliable free option — most charge nothing to watch or to play.
There is no clear busiest night in Watford at the moment — the 2 listed gigs are spread thinly across the 28-day window. Listings update daily.
Right now: The Horn. In total we track 21 grassroots venues in Watford, of which 1 have something listed in this window. Capacity, backline and opening times for each are on the Watford venue directory.
Watford has 9 regular open mic nights that we verify on a rolling cycle. Each listing carries the sign-up time, slot length, entry fee and whether a PA and backline are provided — see the Watford open mic finder, or the UK-wide finder.
Most Watford venues in our listings do not publish a ticket price in advance. Grassroots entry is typically a few pounds on the door, and many nights are free. On the other side of the transaction, the Musicians' Union publishes national gig rates as the recognised floor for live engagements, and the ISM publishes guidance for self-employed musicians. Our own UK gig rate benchmarks show what artists are actually being paid by region and act type.
Grassroots rooms are where every act you have paid to see learned to hold an audience. Two pubs a day closed across the UK in the first quarter of 2026, and over the year to July 2025 78 grassroots music venues stopped putting on live music — 30 of them for good. Watford still has 21 on our list. Music Venue Trust campaigns for them nationally; venues themselves navigate PRS licensing and local authority licensing to keep putting music on. The single most useful thing anyone can do is turn up and buy a drink at the bar.
Listing is free and takes about two minutes — submit through the Watford gig directory and it is verified within 48 hours. No account is needed and there is no listing fee. If you run a venue here, claim your venue page to keep its capacity, backline and contact details current. Promoters and venues booking acts can also post paid work or find artists directly.

Go to one this month

2 gigs listed in Watford over the next four weeks, across 21 grassroots venues and 9 open mic nights. Buy a ticket, buy a drink at the bar, and go to a night you have not been to before — it is the single most useful thing anyone can do for a room like these.

Help keep grassroots venues open in Watford

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 Watford. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy.

Naumaan
Founder & Builder

Live gigs across the UK, kept fresh. Spot something wrong or missing? Let me know and I’ll fix it.

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