Entertainment, Movies and Music
Entertainment & Evening Events at Battles Through History 2026
Alongside the living history displays, battles, vehicles, and traders, Battles Through History 2026 will also feature a fantastic line-up of entertainment across the weekend to keep the atmosphere going long after the arena displays finish.
Begin with our Friday Night Films, where you can find out more about the movies being shown as part of the weekend opening entertainment, then explore our Saturday Night Entertainment section featuring the quiz, live music performances, singers, and entertainment from The Captain’s Beard.
Whether you are camping on-site, visiting for the day, or making a full weekend of it, our entertainment programme is designed to add even more atmosphere, fun, and memorable experiences to the show, with even more entertainment still to be announced for 2026.
Friday Night Films
Friday night is film night at the show but only for weekend campers and exhibitors on site!
We are showing 2 films. A Knights Tale and Kellys Heros.
A Knight’s Tale:
When their noble master dies mid-joust due to “bowel problems,” squires William (Heath Ledger), Roland (Mark Addy) and Wat (Alan Tudyk), find themselves jobless and starving. Rather than retire, William decides to put on the dead man’s helmet, fake a title, and joust his way to a paycheck.
The Bottom Line: It’s a 14th-century sports movie powered by classic rock, questionable accents, and the realization that you don’t need a fancy name to knock a jerk off a horse.
Kelly's Heroes
It’s 1944, and the war is a grind, until Kelly (Clint Eastwood) captures a German officer and discovers a secret: there’s a bank behind enemy lines holding $16 million in Nazi gold. Naturally, instead of reporting it, Kelly decides to stage a private robbery. To pull off a heist in the middle of a World War, you can’t exactly call the MPs. Kelly recruits a gallery of glorious eccentrics.
Think Ocean’s Eleven meets Saving Private Ryan, but with more sarcasm and better hair. It’s a cynical, hilarious look at war where the heroes aren’t fighting for “The Cause”, they’re fighting for a payday that will let them never see a uniform again.
The Bottom Line: Why win the war for free when you can get rich doing it? It’s a reminder that even in the darkest days of history, there’s always room for a side hustle.
The cast of Kelly’s Heroes is basically a “Who’s Who” of 1970s legends. It’s the kind of lineup where even the supporting actors are icons.
Clint Eastwood (Kelly): The man, the myth, the squint. He’s the brains of the operation, cooler than the underside of a pillow and twice as dangerous.
Telly Savalas (Big Joe): Before he was Kojak, he was the exhausted sergeant trying to keep this circus from catching fire.
Don Rickles (Crapgame): The legendary roast comic plays the ultimate “I know a guy” supply sergeant. He spends the movie looking for a profit and a way out.
Donald Sutherland (Oddball): The absolute MVP. He plays a tank commander who is about 20 years ahead of his time on the “hippie” movement. He’s all about those “positive waves, man.”
Carroll O’Connor (Major General Colt): The man who would become Archie Bunker plays the blustering General who thinks Kelly’s greed is actually “inspired leadership.”
It also features early appearances from heavy hitters like Harry Dean Stanton and Gavin MacLeod. It’s less of a cast and more of a heavyweight championship of personality.
Saturday Night Entertainment
The party doesn’t stop when the sun goes down! We’re inviting everyone, including our day visitors, to stick around and dive into a legendary Saturday night in the bar. We’re going full Pirate Theme this year, so break out the eye patches, hoist the colors, and get dressed up! Let’s make some waves!
We kick it off with:
Parvs Big Quiz
A super pub-style quiz with rounds themed to the show, with a cash prize to the winning team!
Followed by:
Fiona Harrison "Voice in a Million"
Doing a set of songs from the 1940s to the 1970s!
And our Headline act:
The Captains Beard
The Captain’s Beard are a folk-rock pirate band from Brighton. Their music ranges from traditional folk and sea shanties, to upbeat originals and downright silly songs about Cockney Mermaids, English Monarchs, and rubbish vans.
Since their inception, they have released 3 albums and have toured extensively across the UK and Europe, making a name for themselves through their high-energy stage shows and intimate, impromptu offstage performances.
The Captain’s Beard play over 100 shows a year, ranging from pubs, music venues, festivals, and exclusive gigs for their fondest fans.