Voting opens today in the annual EAFN Festival of the Year awards which covers festivals taking place in the East of England.
Each new year brings with it a flurry of awards ceremonies across the entertainment world. Soon, audiences will be anticipating the nominations for The Oscars, The Emmys, The Grammys, and The Tonys, among others. While these are internationally renowned, the East of England has its own significant accolades: The Golden Mike Awards, which may be less known globally but hold great importance regionally.
Every January, the East Anglian Festival Network (EAFN) compiles comprehensive data from the previous year’s festivals. This information is then presented county by county, giving the public the opportunity to vote for their favourite festival in the region.
What began as a light-hearted initiative a decade ago in Cambridgeshire and Suffolk has now grown to include all the counties in the East of England: Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, and Suffolk. The awards have become a staple in the region’s festival calendar, celebrating the diversity and vibrancy of local events.
Festival organisers, whether they oversee large-scale or more intimate events, see these awards as well-deserved recognition for the immense effort involved in delivering much-loved occasions. Over the next two weeks, organisers will be encouraging fans, volunteers, suppliers, and stall holders to support them by casting their votes.
Tony Bell, a freelance photographer covering entertainment in the Eastern region on behalf of the EAFN, shares his perspective: “I know first hand what it takes to put on an event. Most are run, or at least supported, by groups of volunteers without whom few of these events would happen at all. The Annual EAFN Awards is just a small recognition of the work involved in making events happen.”
The top festival in each county is awarded the prestigious ‘Golden Mike’ trophy. Mike Wilson, founder of the EAFN, will present this accolade at EAFN26—the annual East of England trade show and conference for the festival industry — set to take place in St Ives in October.
In Suffolk Weird & Wonderful Wood have been county winners for the last three years, can they make it four in a row? In addition to county winners, an overall award for the best festival in the region is also presented. For the past two years, the ALB Festival in Colchester, Essex, has held this distinction.
The results will be announced online on Monday 9th February 2026.
