What is the Festival of Hounds?
The Festival of Hounds is an annual event which takes place at the East of England Showground in Peterborough. It used to be called the Festival of Hunting but in 2024 the organisers of the festival tried to sanitise the event by changing its name to the Festival of Hounds.
A lame PR exercise, you can’t rebrand cruelty.
Who attends the Festival of Hounds?
Hunts from all over the country attend with their hounds to take part in the festival. This includes fox hunting and hare hunting packs.
In 2026, the British Hound Sports Association (BHSA) took over the running of the Festival of Hounds from Peterborough Agricultural Society. The BHSA are the governing body for all hound sports associations.
The BHSA are promoting that the 2026 Festival of Hounds is “The Future of Hunting Festival of Hounds”. This is due to the government’s announcement that they want to ban so-called trail hunting. In the BHSA’s own words “At a time when the Government is proposing to ban trail hunting, this is our opportunity to come together and celebrate the hounds, hunts, people and countryside communities that mean so much to us”.
We know that trail hunting is a smokescreen for illegal, old-fashioned hunting and that hounds are still killing wildlife. Our 2025-2026 fox hunting report proves this. The BHSA don’t want their cruel and wicked pastime to end.
In June 2026, leaked minutes of a BHSA Board meeting were reported on by the Times where hunting officials appear to be trying to hoodwink the government to buy themselves time and avoid a ban on trail hunting. Emma Slawinski, CEO League Against Cruel Sports, responded saying “This letter appears to reveal plans to hoodwink the government into thinking it will switch to drag hunting in order to delay or get around any new legislation”.
The BHSA can’t be trusted. Hunts have been trying to deceive the public and law makers by claiming that trail hunting is legitimate, but the facts show that hunts are hunting as they used to before the hunting ban.
What does the Festival of Hounds mean for fox hunting?
The Festival of Hounds give hunts a platform, the opportunity to meet up, network and show their hounds. Ripping apart foxes with hounds is nothing to celebrate.
With the government’s hunting consultation now closed, it is important we continue to share the truth, that trail hunting isn’t real, it’s a smokescreen for old fashioned illegal hunting. The Hunting Act 2004 needs to be strengthened to really end hunting for good.
Why does the League campaign against the festival?
The League Against Cruel Sports wants the Festival of Hounds to be banned. Renaming the festival from the Festival of Hunting to the Festival of Hounds was a lame PR exercise and doesn’t fool anyone. Hunts are continuing to kill wildlife.
Hunting with hounds was banned in 2005 so there is no reason to continue to celebrate this barbaric pastime.
What has the League been doing to protest the Festival?
The League has campaigned online and in person in Peterborough for years. Thank you to all of you that have helped us so far.
We have:
- Asked local people to call on the local council to oppose the festival.
- Held a discussion in Peterborough about the festival, raising awareness of what this festival is really about.
- Taken an advertising van around Peterborough and outside the showground calling for the festival to end.
- Handed out thousands of leaflets against hunting.
- Asked the public to take part in the government’s hunting consultation.
- Paraded a fake bloodied hunter in the city centre calling for the Hunting Act to be strengthened to stop hunts killing wildlife for once and for all.
- Taken the League fox into the city centre to let the public know what trail hunting really is, a smokescreen for illegal hunting.
- Appeared in local media spreading the messages that trail hunting is a smokescreen for illegal hunting.
What can you do to help us?
Our end of season fox hunting report shows the evidence of widespread illegal hunting across the country and what we know is likely only the tip of the iceberg. It’s so important we get the government to act quickly, fulfil their commitment to ban trail hunting and to go further by closing the loopholes.
Please send a copy of the report to your MP. It only takes a moment.