Whitby 2026: The Festival of Jekyll and Hyde

It was another unmatched success for Tomorrow’s Ghosts Festival this Halloween – the tentpole event holding court at Whitby Pavilion drew another sellout crowd to see The Mission, supported by heavyweight acts like the March Violets and Lol Tolhurst. DJs played alternative hits new and old into the small hours, and the long tradition of a music festival was renewed again after more than three decades of goths congregating in Whitby. Both TGF and Whitby Goth Weekend, the originators of this unique festival, will return in 2027 for another Halloween instalment where they’ll host events that draw in legions of black-clad fans of post-punk music.

The gigs however rarely get a look-in anywhere else – local media prefer to focus on the link-friendly photogenic attendees who roam the narrow streets in a variety of outfits that do more justice to a Comicon than a Goth Festival, a point I’ve made before – and you only have to scroll through Facebook to see the same comments appearing en masse…

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Autumnal Adventures

The night’s drawing in like a great dark thing, so my thoughts inevitably turn towards the exciting opportunities coming down the Goth Calendar! In particular I want to spotlight those I am lucky enough to be involved in and are doing great things for the subcultural community.

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The Rapper and the Content Creator, the Gooners and the Goths

The month of August is hallowed to the goth community. From the celebration of Yorkshire Day on the 1st, acknowledging Goths’ Own County, through debut single releases from bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees to Bauhaus, whose anthemic Bela Lugosi’s Dead has become a goth music touchstone for generations. Love Will Tear Us Apart by Joy Division was released as a 12” on 15 August, Lovesong by The Cure on 21 August, and we lost icons like Tony Wilson of Factory Records, Sophie Lancaster and Olli Wisdom of the Batcave and Specimen. 

But all of these key dates were eclipsed by the avalanche into my inbox of articles breathlessly reporting on a goth content creator who won an online dating show, after being picked ahead of 20 competitors by one of the world’s best-selling rappers. 

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“Paradigm” – new single from Gary Marx (ex-Ghost Dance, Sisters)

Two years ago, we reported the release of “Green Ginger Jive”, a glam-rock release by Gary Marx – former guitarist with Ghost Dance and co-founder of The Sisters of Mercy. A year later, it was the release of “Sad Songs for Anthony”, a postpunk album closer to his postpunk roots in 2025. The well of creativity continues to provide, and today Marx has released a new single “Paradigm” ahead of a brand new double album, “Red Planet Blue: Sighs of an Elephant” which will be released in September of this year on CD and vinyl!

You can hear the single below, and read on for a chat with Mr Marx himself about “Red Planet Blue” as well as an update on new ways to enjoy “Sad Songs for Anthony”!

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“Dressed In Black — Goth Divas From The Dark Side” – REVIEW

Welcome! Firstly, my thanks to the inestimable Cathi Unsworth and the good folks at ACE Records for my review copy of “Dressed In Black – Goth Divas From The Dark Side”. I was lucky enough to host an entire Q&A session with Unsworth when her authoritative text, “Season Of The Witch: The Book of Goth” was released in 2023 – and this is the soundtrack to accompany it!

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