Celebrating 69 years of local culture

Now in its 69th year, the Henry Lawson Festival is one of the longest-running country festivals in NSW. The festival is renowned for introducing Lawson’s work to generations while promoting local arts, heritage and tourism. The event brings the community together for a vibrant program of entertainment and creative competition. Popular competitions in art, photography, short story, verse and busking attract entrants from afar with prize money of up to $1000 on offer. The 2026 theme, Larrikins and Legends, is inspired by the enduring characters found in Lawson’s writing, the 2026 festival theme is Larrikins and Legends. The theme will shape the Short Story and Verse competitions, inviting writers to explore the figures we admire, the cheeky rule-breakers who challenge us, and the everyday legends who endure. Lawson’s work is rich with quiet heroes, mischievous troublemakers, battlers and bush philosophers - characters who meet hardship with humour, resilience and sharp insight. Larrikins and Legends celebrates these figures on the page, and the people who continue to carry their spirit today.