The Golden Lion

Directions

The Golden Lion Live Music & Events 7 days a week. Please email [email protected] for booking enquiries.
(505)

THE GOLDEN LION – BRISTOL’S HOME OF LIVE MUSIC
Gloucester Road · BS7 8NZ

The Golden Lion is one of Bristol’s leading live music venues, hosting performances every Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sundays. Our stage showcases talent from across the UK, ranging from emerging local acts to established touring artists. Weekly Programme

Every Wednesday – Open Mic Night (all performers welcome)
Last Thursday of the Month → Open Blues Jam

Supporting Live Music

Most of our live shows are **free entry**. We invite guests to contribute generously to the “Hat” so our musicians can continue doing what they do best...

The Golden Lion remains dedicated to keeping live music thriving in Bristol. To stay up to date with our programme, subscribe to our event listings. We look forward to welcoming you soon.

**The Golden Lion Team**

🎤 OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY 🎤There’s something pretty special happening on Wednesday nights at The Golden Lion. 💛Nearly n...
12/10/2026

🎤 OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY 🎤

There’s something pretty special happening on Wednesday nights at The Golden Lion. 💛

Nearly nine years into hosting this thing, and somehow we’re still finding new faces, new voices, new songs and new ways to cram an increasingly ridiculous number of people into that little room. 😂

What started as a weekly night of people getting up and sharing a few songs has grown into a proper little community.

People come to perform. People come to listen. People come to meet friends, make new ones, have a few b**rs and enjoy whatever weird and wonderful stuff gets thrown into the Open Mic soup.

And the best bit?

People genuinely support each other.

Whether you’re a seasoned performer trying out something new, a nervous first timer taking that terrifying first step, or someone who just wants to sit back and enjoy the music, there’s a place for you here.

No cliques. No egos. Just a room full of people who want whoever’s standing at that microphone to do well. 💛

And we’re still on our mission to make open mics a little less bloke heavy! 😂💜

WOMEN AND FEMME-PRESENTING PERFORMERS OF BRISTOL… WE WANT YOU HERE! Singers, songwriters, musicians, poets, comedians… whatever you’ve got to share, come and share it with us. The more different voices and perspectives we have, the better the night becomes.

And a quick heads up to anyone wanting to perform…

GET THERE EARLY!

We’ve been absolutely rammed recently and the list fills up FAST. It’s first come, first served, so don’t leave it until the last minute!

Come and perform. Come and listen. Come and support.

Every Wednesday, always a vibe ✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm, first come first served
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤Another absolutely cracking night at The Golden Lion! 💛What a turnout! Once again the room was ...
08/10/2026

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤

Another absolutely cracking night at The Golden Lion! 💛

What a turnout! Once again the room was buzzing, the performances were fantastic, and somehow we managed to squeeze even MORE acts onto the list than usual! 😂

A MASSIVE shout out to the people who were prepared to share their slots so we could get more performers up on stage.

That, for me, is exactly what this Open Mic is about.

People supporting each other. Making space for each other. Making sure as many voices as possible get the chance to be heard. 💛

And on that note, I’ve been thinking…

Next month will mark NINE YEARS since I started hosting this Open Mic.

NINE BLOODY YEARS!? 😂

And I can genuinely say it’s still an absolute honour to host it.

To see so many people continuing to turn up, week after week, bringing their songs, stories, ideas, talents and enthusiasm… and to see the night still thriving after all this time, is something I never take for granted.

Whether you’ve been coming for years, you’ve only just discovered us, or you simply come along to listen and support, you’re all part of what makes it special. 💛

It was lovely to see a few more female voices taking the stage last night! As we know, Open Mics can be a bit bloke heavy, and we’re determined to keep changing that.

So women and femme-presenting singers, songwriters, musicians, poets and performers of Bristol… KEEP COMING! AND BRING YOUR FRIENDS! 😂💜

The more different voices, perspectives and people we have up there, the richer the night becomes.

A huge thank you to everyone who performed, listened, shared their slot and helped make another Wednesday night something special.

Every Wednesday, always a vibe ✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm, first come first served
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

🍂OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY🍂The sun’s sitting a little lower in the sky, the evenings are drawing in and autumn is definit...
05/10/2026

🍂OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY🍂

The sun’s sitting a little lower in the sky, the evenings are drawing in and autumn is definitely starting to make itself known…

Which means we’re entering PRIME Golden Lion Open Mic territory.

Dark outside, cosy candle lit room inside. Good b**r, good music, good people… GREAT VIBES. 💛

Every Wednesday we fill the room with singers, songwriters, musicians, poets, comedians and whatever else gets thrown into the Open Mic soup.

Some have been performing for years. Some are getting up in front of people for the very first time. Some just want to sit back with a pint and enjoy the night.

ALL are welcome.

And whichever camp you fall into, you’ll find a room full of people who want whoever is standing at that microphone to do well. No cliques. No egos. Just our Wednesday night community. 💛

And speaking of community…

WOMEN AND FEMME PRESENTING PEOPLE OF BRISTOL… COME JOIN US! 😂💜

We’re still on our mission to make the Open Mic stage a little less bloke heavy.

If you’ve been hovering around the idea of performing but haven’t quite plucked up the courage yet, this is your invitation. Come down, meet some lovely people and give it a go.

And performers, remember it’s been BUSY recently, so GET THERE EARLY! Slots are first come, first served.

Every Wednesday, always a vibe

✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

Oops one missed off the listing poster this is Happening Sunday! No rest for the wicked!
02/10/2026

Oops one missed off the listing poster this is Happening Sunday! No rest for the wicked!

STACKED OCTOBER AT THE LION!
02/10/2026

STACKED OCTOBER AT THE LION!

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤WHAT. A. NIGHT 💛I’m still slightly processing that one…Last night was absolutely HEAVING. I gen...
01/10/2026

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤

WHAT. A. NIGHT 💛

I’m still slightly processing that one…

Last night was absolutely HEAVING. I genuinely think that might be a record for the number of human beings we’ve managed to cram into that little room. 😂

Extra tables came out. Extra chairs came out. We had people sitting down at the front, people squeezed in by the stage… somehow we found space for everyone.

And the vibe was incredible. The audience was completely locked in from beginning to end and every single performer brought something to the night.

We had originals, covers, poetry, stand up comedy, a ca****la singalong moments… basically the full spectrum of Open Mic madness. 😂

But I want to give a particular shout out to the people who were kind enough to share their slots so we could squeeze a few more performers onto an already packed list.

That, for me, is exactly what this night is supposed to be about.** People supporting each other. People wanting other people to have their moment too.**

That community spirit means a lot 💛

Now…

After ALL those people crammed into the room…

TWO female performers!?

COME ON LADIES!!

Women and femme presenting singers, songwriters, musicians, poets, comedians… WE KNOW YOU’RE OUT THERE!

Whether you’re a seasoned performer or you’ve been thinking about getting up for the first time, come and join us. We want you here, and judging by last night, there’ll be a bloody big audience cheering you on. 😂

Thank you to everyone who performed, everyone who listened, everyone who shared their slot and everyone who somehow found a square foot of floor to exist on.

What a night!! 💛

**Every Wednesday, always a vibe **

✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm, first come first served
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

💛 OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY 💛One of the things I love most about Open Mic is that I genuinely have NO IDEA what kind of n...
30/09/2026

💛 OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY 💛

One of the things I love most about Open Mic is that I genuinely have NO IDEA what kind of night we’re going to have until people start walking through the door. 😂

Original songs, covers, poetry, comedy, ridiculous singalongs, something beautiful that shuts the whole room up… occasionally something so completely unexpected that I’m not even sure what category it belongs in.

That’s the joy of it.

But whatever gets thrown into the musical soup, the important bit stays the same…

People listen. People support each other. People want whoever is standing at that microphone to do well. 💛

No cliques. No egos.

Just a quirky little candle lit room full of people sharing stuff they’ve created, trying something new, meeting people and becoming part of our ever-growing Wednesday night community.

Never performed before? COME HAVE A GO.

Got a new song you want to try out? COME HAVE A GO.

Just fancy a pint and an evening listening to some live music? COME AND HANG OUT.

And once again… WOMEN AND FEMME PRESENTING PEOPLE OF BRISTOL! 😂💜

We are STILL trying to drag this thing towards our mythical 50/50 split. Open mics can be ridiculously bloke heavy and we want to change that.

Singers, songwriters, musicians, poets, comedians… experienced performers or nervous first timers, WE WANT YOU HERE!

Come and perform.
Come and listen.
Come and support.

Every Wednesday, always a vibe ✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm, first come first served
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤WHAT A NIGHT. 💛Last night we really did have a bit of everything…Original songs. Stand up comed...
24/09/2026

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤

WHAT A NIGHT. 💛

Last night we really did have a bit of everything…

Original songs. Stand up comedy. Poetry. Singalong moments. Funny moments. Thoughtful moments. Quiet moments… and all the other weird and wonderful stuff that gets thrown into the Open Mic soup. 😂

But the thing that tied all of it together was the room. Whatever was happening on that stage, people were listening.

The audience was engaged, receptive and willing every single person up there to do well. And THAT, for me, is what this Open Mic is really about.

You don’t have to be the best singer. You don’t need to have played a hundred gigs. You don’t even necessarily need to play music! You just need something you want to share and the courage to get up there and share it.

And you’ll have a room full of people behind you. 💛

As always, it was awesome seeing some brand new faces too. And perhaps even more awesome is watching those new faces come back… then come back again… until suddenly they’re regulars and part of our weird little Wednesday night community.

Now…

Only TWO female performers last night!?

Ladies… we are going BACKWARDS here! 😂

Women and femme presenting singers, songwriters, musicians, poets, comedians… WE KNOW YOU’RE OUT THERE AND WE WANT YOU HERE!

Whether you’re an experienced performer or you’ve never stood in front of a microphone in your life, come and give it a go. You genuinely couldn’t ask for a more supportive bunch of people to do it in front of.

The quest for the MYTHICAL 50/50 SPLIT continues… 💜

Come and perform.
Come and listen.
Come and support.

Every Wednesday, always a vibe ✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm, first come first served
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

💛 OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY 💛The world feels a bit bloody crazy at the moment. Which is why little nights like this matte...
23/09/2026

💛 OPEN MIC EVERY WEDNESDAY 💛

The world feels a bit bloody crazy at the moment. Which is why little nights like this matter.

Once a week, a bunch of people pile into a candle lit room in a pub and spend a few hours playing music for each other. People listen. People applaud. People sing along. People support complete strangers who’ve had the courage to get up and share something.

No algorithms. No doomscrolling. Just actual human beings in a room together. 💛

And over the years, it’s become a proper little community. New faces become familiar faces. Familiar faces become regulars. Regulars become friends. Some people come to perform, some come purely to listen, and both are every bit as important to what makes the night work.

No cliques. No egos. Just people wanting each other to do well.

WOMEN AND FEMME-PRESENTING MUSICIANS OF BRISTOL… WE KNOW YOU’RE OUT THERE!

Open mics can be ridiculously bloke heavy, ours included, and we REALLY want to change that. Singers, songwriters, musicians, poets… whether you’ve played hundreds of gigs or you’ve been quietly thinking about performing for the very first time, WE WANT YOU HERE.

The night is simply better when there’s a proper mix of voices and people on that stage.

Come and perform.
Come and listen.
Come and support.

Every Wednesday, always a vibe ✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤Firstly, a HUGE apology to everyone for the major technical difficulties at the start of last n...
17/09/2026

🎤 LAST NIGHT’S OPEN MIC 🎤

Firstly, a HUGE apology to everyone for the major technical difficulties at the start of last night. It was pretty stressful trying to get everything working, and unfortunately it meant everything got pushed back and the whole evening ran behind.

Thank you to everyone for being patient and sticking with me while I wrestled with the technology… WE GOT THERE IN THE END! 😅

Technical gremlins aside, it was still a cracking night.

Every single performer brought their A game, the room was supportive as ever, people listened, people cheered each other on, and somehow amongst the chaos we still ended up with a bloody lovely Open Mic. 💛

And now for our weekly gender balance report… 😂💜

We had just ONE female performer last night!

But WHAT a performance it was. The brilliant Nina absolutely smashed it, and you can catch her supporting The Dunwells at The Louisiana this Friday night. Go Nina! 👏

But seriously, women and femme-presenting musicians of Bristol… WE NEED YOU!

Singers, songwriters, musicians, poets, seasoned performers, nervous first timers… come and get involved. Open mics can be very bloke heavy and we’re determined to keep chipping away at that.

The MYTHICAL 50/50 SPLIT remains tantalisingly mythical. 😂

Come and help us fix it!

And genuinely, thank you again to everyone who stuck with us through last night’s technical carnage. Not the smoothest Open Mic I’ve ever hosted… but the people in that room still made it a good one. 💛

**Every Wednesday, always a vibe **

✌️😎

📆 Every Wednesday
✍️ Sign up from 7pm, first come first served
🎶 Music from 8pm
🍻 Free drink for every performer
📍 Golden Lion, BS7
🎸 House guitar & keys available

Address

244 Gloucester Road
Bristol
BS78NZ

Opening Hours

Monday 12pm - 12am
Tuesday 12pm - 12am
Wednesday 12pm - 12am
Thursday 12pm - 12am
Friday 12pm - 1am
Saturday 12pm - 1am
Sunday 12pm - 12am

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when The Golden Lion posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category