Highbury Fields parkrun runs on Christmas Day and New Year's Day. Finsbury and Hackney Marshes run 25 December only; Pymmes and Gladstone run both days.
Highbury Fields parkrun is on for Christmas Day, Friday 25 December 2026, and for New Year’s Day, Friday 1 January 2027. Its volunteer team has declared both days on parkrun’s own special events table, which we read on 3 November. Finsbury parkrun, the nearest other event, runs on Christmas Day only.
The quick answer
- Highbury Fields parkrun: on Christmas Day and on New Year’s Day. Free, 5k, lower field near Highbury Place, N5 1QP.
- Start time for both days: not yet published. The normal Saturday start is 9am.
- Finsbury parkrun: Christmas Day yes, New Year’s Day no.
- Only one result counts on each of those days, so you cannot run two events on New Year’s morning and get both times (parkrun).
Highbury Fields is on both days
parkrun’s table marks each event with a tick (on), a cross (off) or a blank (the team has not decided yet). Highbury Fields has a tick in both columns.
From the event’s own pages:
- Where it starts: the lower field of Highbury Fields, close to Highbury Place (N5 1QP), the children’s playground, the drinking fountain and Highbury Pool and Fitness Centre.
- The course: five laps, then a left turn at the corner of the lower field onto Queen’s Walk for the finish.
- Toilets: one near Highbury Pool and Fitness Centre, which needs a 20p coin.
- What you need: registration, done once, and a scannable barcode. parkrun runs a “No barcode, No result” policy (Highbury Fields parkrun).
- Getting there: the team asks people to walk, jog, cycle or use public transport, and warns that parking may be limited. Highbury and Islington station is at Highbury Corner, at the south end of the Fields.
Neither day has a start time on the event’s news page yet. Christmas Day and New Year’s Day both fall on a Friday this year, and teams sometimes move the start for these extra days, so check the Highbury Fields news page in December before you set an alarm. This page will be updated when the time is posted.
On New Year’s Day the usual Saturday parkrun still runs the next morning, Saturday 2 January, at 9am.
The other parkruns near Islington
Highbury Fields parkrun lists its ten nearest events. This is how each one stood in parkrun’s table on 3 November:
| Event | Distance from Highbury Fields | Christmas Day | New Year's Day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Highbury Fields | - | On | On |
| Finsbury Park | 1.6 miles | On | Off |
| Hampstead Heath | 2.9 miles | Not yet declared | Not yet declared |
| Lordship Recreation Ground | 3.3 miles | Not yet declared | Not yet declared |
| Hackney Marshes | 3.4 miles | On | Off |
| Ally Pally | 3.5 miles | Not yet declared | Not yet declared |
| Mile End | 3.6 miles | Not yet declared | Not yet declared |
| Southwark | 4.2 miles | Off | Off |
| Burgess | 4.4 miles | Not yet declared | Not yet declared |
| Wanstead Flats | 5.2 miles | Not yet declared | Not yet declared |
| Pymmes | 5.2 miles | On | On |
Distances are the ones Highbury Fields parkrun prints on its home page. Further out, Gladstone parkrun in Dollis Hill has also declared both days.
Finsbury parkrun starts on the carriageway near the cafe in Finsbury Park, at the back of the zebra crossing from the Oxford Road entrance, and runs almost two anticlockwise laps, including a steep uphill path (Finsbury parkrun). It is the closest alternative on Christmas morning if you want a change from five laps of the Fields.
Junior parkrun
Highbury Fields junior parkrun and Caledonian junior parkrun, the Sunday 2k events for 4 to 14 year olds, had not declared either day by 3 November. Christmas Day and New Year’s Day are Fridays this year, so check the table nearer the time.
Getting there on Christmas Day
TfL publishes its Christmas service plan in early December: check it before relying on a train or bus on Christmas morning. Our tube and train times page and Christmas travel page have the details as they are published, and parking in Islington covers the streets around the Fields. Our roadworks and travel page lists any closures nearby.
For everything else on over the holiday, see what’s on in Islington this month.
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