MAD//North 2026 brought northern swagger, big ideas, and open conversations. It's the industry festival we’ve all been waiting for, writes our man in the North, Andy Garner.

MAD//North 2026 felt like exactly what our industry needs more of: a proper northern festival of ideas, people and possibility, without the stiff corporate edges.

From the moment you walked into the Factory International Manchester campus, the tone was set. It was cool, relaxed and open – the sort of environment where you want to talk to people (I really do want to talk to people), not just lurk at the back of a dark hall checking your email.

The “Northern Soul” thread wasn’t just a theme on a slide, it came through in the people, the humour, the music and the attitude. It felt proudly northern in the best way: straight-talking, welcoming, and quietly ambitious. I think ‘we’ might have actually swaggered!

Credit where it’s due: the organisation was spot on. Registration was painless, the wayfinding between stages worked, and the programme had enough breathing space that you didn’t feel like you were sprinting a marathon just to catch the content you wanted. The busyness was “just right” – a really nice buzz in the corridors, plenty of casual chats over coffee and at the bar, but you could still move, think and have a conversation without shouting.

If anything, there’s an opportunity for 2027 to push harder on getting even more people into the halls and around the tables and displays. The calibre of the brands and partners on show deserved a few extra bodies leaning in.

Content-wise, it was a strong two days. Some genuinely impressive speakers took to the stages. Big brands, smart operators and a good mix of experience and fresh thinking. I was especially chuffed to see our very own Joe Procter from Open Partners up there flying the flag, talking mid‑funnel and making it both practical and properly entertaining. That’s exactly the kind of voice MAD//North should be platforming: commercially sharp, creative, and grounded in real work.

The only real downside for me? I can’t believe I missed the welcome from Dan and Ian. Of all the sessions to slip past me, it had to be the one with my name drop. Typical. But joking aside, those two have set a tone with MAD//Fest and MAD//North that I really buy into. It’s irreverent without being flippant, commercial without being dry, and ambitious without losing the human piece. You feel it in the way the stages are programmed, in the food and drink choices especially, if you have your own branded lager it’s pretty cool right, in the music (was that really dance music), and in the way the whole thing is produced. It’s a show built by people who actually like this industry and the people in it.

What I loved most though, was the overall vibe. People were open. Doors were open. Conversations were open. Whether you were at a main‑stage session, perched at a high table in the networking area, or standing by a partner display, it felt easy to strike up a chat. There was far less of that “heads down, rush to the next thing” energy you get at some events, and far more genuine curiosity. For someone like me who cares about helping people, making connections and seeing others grow, that atmosphere really matters.

I’m genuinely passionate and supportive of MAD//North, not just as a show but as a statement about what the northern marketing and media community can be. It gives brands, agencies, tech partners and independents a platform that feels like ours, rooted up here, but very much playing on a national and international level. I also really enjoy working with the MAD//Fest team; they’re good people who listen, experiment and are clearly up for making things better each year.

So where does that leave us? For me, 2026 was a strong chapter – well run, creatively put together, and full of the right kind of noise. But it also felt like a springboard. There’s plenty of room to dial up the attendance in the rooms, push the interactivity on the floors, and create even more reasons for people to stick around the tables and displays. If we get that right, the 2027 version can be even bigger, brighter and more fun – still with that relaxed, northern soul at the centre, but with an extra gear of energy and engagement.

And I, for one, can’t wait to be part of that. Mad//North Brand Ambassador – Andy Garner