So long, Summer Ball
A two-week-long “Summer Series” will replace the traditional end-of-year night.
Summer Ball 2026 will be replaced with a two-week long series of smaller events, dubbed the “Summer Series.”
Summer Ball is traditionally ICU’s biggest event, with 2,500 tickets purchased in just three hours for last year’s edition. Imperial College Union has cited unavoidable site capacity restrictions, including immovable university activity, closure of the Great Hall and other rooms, and “operational restrictions” on campus as reasons for the change.
ICU initially considered moving Summer Ball off-campus, and explored sixteen locations including Hyde Park, local football grounds, and music venues, but concluded these were not viable as delivering the event off-campus would have seen the ticket prices rise as much as 45% by their calculations.
The Summer Series will last from 9th to 21st June and comprise twelve events, three of which will be taking place in popular London clubs such as Infernos. Activities on the South Kensington campus will range from an outdoor cinema on Queen’s Lawn to a petting zoo and a house party hosted in the Union building. Other highlights include a black-tie supper club at the newly renovated Queen’s Tower, and the final headline event at the Union, “Summer Send-off”.
An additional “Secret Event” in the “DJ” category is advertised on the ticketing website, with disco ball, queen, tower, and crocodile emojis possibly hinting at an IC Radio Modulate session.
It is not yet clear whether the usual Summer Ball celebration will return next summer. ICU said work for the 2027 event has started, as they continue to explore “all options to make sure that [they] create the best possible end of year celebration”.
Tickets for the Summer Series will be released on Wednesday 29th April at midday. The majority of events are free, while paid events range from £7.59 to £39.66.
