Right . . . I thought the first weekend of October might give us a fairly quiet UK BBQ news roundup. Apparently not.
Britain’s chicken-wing scene is getting big enough for the Financial Times to start digging into it, a new investigation has raised some uncomfortable questions about how UK wildfire causes are recorded, Embers Fire Festival has opened its 2027 general sale, and there is a decent amount of live-fire food happening this weekend.
Here is the useful stuff I could verify from the seven days ending 2 October 2026.
Half a million wings . . . and Britain still wants more
The Financial Times published a feature this week looking at how chicken wings have moved from cheap fast food into something chefs, restaurants and street-food traders are taking very seriously indeed.
The numbers around Wing Fest are a pretty good illustration of what has happened. The festival began in an east London pub car park in 2014 with seven traders and about 300 visitors. The FT reports that this year’s London event attracted roughly 25,000 people, with around 500,000 wings served over three days. Wing Fest’s own London page also lists 500,000 wings for its 2026 edition.
What interests me more than the raw number is what people are actually doing with them. The FT highlights everything from brown-butter gochujang BBQ with blueberry and miso to doner-inspired wings and much more elaborate chef-led versions using things such as bone marrow and blue cheese.
There is a wider point here for UK BBQ. Wings are relatively simple, familiar and affordable, but they give cooks a ridiculous amount of room to play with smoke, texture, sauce, fermentation, sweetness and heat. You can keep them brutally simple or spend two days making a sauce that three mates will demolish in four minutes.
And Wing Fest is not done for 2026. Its next event is Wingtoberfest at OUT in Nottingham on 23 and 24 October, with the organisers expecting 10,000 steins and 30,000 bratwurst and chicken wings.
Are wings one of the most interesting bits of the UK BBQ and street-food scene right now . . . or are we slowly inventing fine dining that you eat with your hands?
Read the Financial Times feature
Do we actually know what starts UK wildfires?
A Guardian investigation published on 27 September has raised a question that matters well beyond BBQ: how confident are we about the recorded causes of UK wildfires?
Fire crews routinely record a probable cause after vegetation fires, but a 2023 Forestry Commission report warned that those assessments are generally made by personnel with limited or no specialist training in wildfire-origin investigation. Structural fire investigation and tracing the origin of a fire through burned vegetation are not the same discipline.
Disposable BBQs are specifically discussed. Wildfire specialist Andy Elliott does not dispute that they can start fires. The issue is that, according to the report, the current data cannot reliably tell us how often portable BBQs are actually responsible or what other causes may be missed.
That needs handling carefully. It does not mean disposable BBQs are safe wherever you fancy lighting one, and it certainly does not override council restrictions, landowner rules or common sense during dry conditions. If BBQs are prohibited somewhere, that is the end of the argument.
What it does mean is that better evidence could lead to better prevention. If one ignition source is genuinely responsible for a large share of fires, policy can focus on it. If it is not, then resources may be better spent somewhere else too.
The Forestry Commission is planning training on preserving wildfire-scene evidence and investigating origins and causes, although the Guardian reports that both courses are still awaiting funding.
I think this is one of those areas where the sensible position is fairly boring: use fire responsibly, obey restrictions, and also demand decent evidence before deciding what the main problem actually is.
Read the Guardian wildfire investigation
Smokehouse and live-fire news
Embers Fire Festival returns to Ironbridge in 2027
Telford & Wrekin Council confirmed on 28 September that Embers Fire Festival will return to Dale End Park in Ironbridge on Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 May 2027.
The inaugural event in May 2026 attracted more than 5,000 visitors across the two days, bringing nationally recognised live-fire chefs, street-food traders, music and family entertainment into the Ironbridge Gorge.
The full 2027 chef, trader and music line-up is still to come, but general sale opened on Friday 2 October. Adult tickets are currently listed at £27 for one day or £50 for the weekend. Junior tickets are £12 for a day or £19 for the weekend, while under-twos do not require a ticket.
For a specialist event built around fire cooking, more than 5,000 people in year one is a strong start. I like seeing events like this prove that live-fire food can be the main event rather than a little corner of a generic food festival.
Read the council announcement or see the current ticket details.
ACME Fire Cult starts an October Sunday-roast residency
ACME Fire Cult is taking over Sunday roast at Rondo in The Hoxton, Holborn, for four Sundays this month, starting on 4 October.
Chef Andrew Clarke and the ACME team will be there on 4, 11, 18 and 25 October. Sittings run from noon, with the last at 4pm. The main Sunday roast platter is listed at £29 per person with a minimum of two people and brings together beef rump, pork belly, chicken leg, lamb kofte, grilled cabbage and potatoes.
There are separate starters, extras and desserts too, but the bit that matters here is seeing ACME’s live-fire approach pushed into something as familiar as a Sunday roast. Fire cooking does not have to mean brisket trays and butcher paper every single time.
See the Rondo residency and menu
Happening this weekend
InterStellar BBQ x La Barbecue at The Ned
Until Sunday 4 October | Electric Bar & Diner, The Ned, City of London
This weekend is the last chance to catch The Ned’s month-long collaboration with Austin’s InterStellar BBQ and La Barbecue. The Ned describes it as a residency led by two of the world’s Michelin-starred barbecue chefs, and the official listing runs from 3 September to 4 October.
Time Out previously reported a £150 sharing tray for two, built from signature dishes from both restaurants, with brisket available as an extra. Prices can change, so I would check the live booking information before going rather than treating an August article as the menu nailed to the wall forever.
It is still a fairly unusual opportunity for UK BBQ people to see how two Michelin-recognised Texas smokehouses present their food over here. If you meant to go all month and kept saying “maybe next weekend” . . . this is now next weekend.
See the official residency listing
Eggtoberfest at The BBQ Shop
Saturday 3 October | Old Woking, Surrey
The BBQ Shop is holding its free Eggtoberfest tomorrow. The important Friday-night update is that the official cooking-school page now lists the event as out of stock.
So if you already have a place, excellent. If you do not, this is not me sending you to Old Woking on the promise of a free space that does not exist.
Check The BBQ Shop’s current listing
Tarby’s Smokehouse weekend
Friday 2 and Saturday 3 October | Nutley, East Sussex
Tarby’s Smokehouse is serving from noon until 8pm on Fridays and Saturdays and specifically lists a 2 and 3 October menu this weekend.
Friday is tacos and burritos with smoked brisket, chorizo dauphinoise and sides. Saturday switches to the Smokehouse BBQ menu. It is based at Tarby’s Farm in Nutley and the site describes the setup as an outside covered and heated environment.
See Tarby’s current weekend details
Bolney Revival BBQ
Saturday 3 October | Bolney Wine Estate, West Sussex
Bolney Wine Estate is holding a vintage-themed Revival day tomorrow, including a separate evening BBQ from 6.30pm to 9pm.
The estate’s event information lists the BBQ at £40 per person, including a welcome glass of sparkling wine. Food includes burgers and sausages alongside salads and sides, with pescetarian and vegetarian options.
It is not a BBQ festival and it is not pretending to be one. It is a vineyard doing an evening BBQ as part of a bigger vintage event . . . which still sounds like a reasonably pleasant way of spending a Saturday night.
See the Bolney Revival details
Coming up: Wingtoberfest in Nottingham
Friday 23 and Saturday 24 October | OUT, Nottingham
Wing Fest’s autumn spin-off combines wings, bratwurst, beer and live entertainment at OUT in Nottingham.
Friday evening first-release tickets are listed at £20. Saturday afternoon and evening first-release tickets are £24, with later-release and VIP options also available. The organisers say they expect 10,000 steins and 30,000 bratwurst and chicken wings across the event.
See Wingtoberfest tickets and session times
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