[1] The festival was restored in 1960 after initial attempts to create the annual occasion were followed by 28 years without it.
At that time the annual meeting consisted of a single day and the joint performance by the three choirs of a choral evensong.
In 1960, the festival was re-established by John Birch (Chichester), Reginald Alwyn Surplice (Winchester) and Christopher Dearnley (Salisbury), with the title changed to the Southern Cathedrals Festival, and the length increased to two days, with two joint evensong services and the addition of a concert.
[2] The festival is now three days long, consisting of three concerts, a choral masterclass, an organ recital, a Festival Eucharist, buffet lunches, three evensong services sung separately by each choir and a "Fringe" event.
It consists of solos sung by lay clerks, comedy acts by organists and vicars, and so on.