Join us for a chance to meet the team behind Dreamers, a new Channel 4 drama about the Chapeltown Collective, an eclectic troupe of dancers made by Leeds-based Duck Soup.

This is your chance to hear about the unique way in which Dreamers was made. Find out how the show auditioned over 1000 young people. Hear from the trainees who worked behind the camera and with the support of Screenskills. And talk to the writers and producers about why Dreamers couldn’t be made anywhere but Leeds.

part of Otley Baroque May Festival (3rd to 5th May)

Join us for an illuminating hour-long lecture with musicologist Dr. Bryan White (University of Leeds), as he delves into lives and legacies of female musicians in the Baroque era.

Discover the extraordinary stories and compositions of Barbara Strozzi and Isabella Leonarda, two trailblazers who defied societal norms to pursue their art.

This insightful talk serves as the perfect prelude to our main concert on Sunday, celebrating these exceptional women and their contributions to the world of Baroque music.

A seated history stroll from Bank House to Troy Horsforth.  

Starting at 10.30am until 11.30am with a chat after with a cuppa.

Maybe, take a chance to start your family research with our volunteers, just ask for advice.

During this hour long talk, the intriguing history of luxury textiles and fashion will be revealed through the geography of the winding streets and wide boulevards of Paris.

Travelling from Opéra to Le Sentier, we'll meet kings, politicians, spies cloth merchants, milliners, glove-makers, feather-workers, embroiderers and the fiercely independent Midinettes.

About Rebecca Devaney

Experience an evening with the artists featured in our latest exhibition, Loops.

During this 2 hour Meet & Make session, Netherlands-based artists Gea van Eck, Monika Loster, Hanneke van Broekhoven and Yorkshire-based artists Andi Walker, Hannah Robson & Jane Claire Wilson will come together to share the journey behind their collaborative project.

They'll discuss the process of designing and making the centrepiece of the Loops exhibition - an installation created across many months and hundred of miles.

The Quilt Collection from The Quilters’ Guild contains over 1000 items of patchwork and quilting, that charts the heritage and development of those crafts from the early 18th century to the present day. Each one tells an important and unique story that represents the people that made them and the time in which they were made.

When we first pick up a camera, our main aim is usually to master the settings and learn how to compose a photograph. Once these techniques have been mastered, many will settle into a comfort zone, following the same processes over and over again, but then, they may find themselves becoming frustrated and end up in a creative rut.

There is so much more to discover about photography and this talk is a window into how we can tap into it.

Join Carolyn Mendelsohn as she shares the story of her journey into photography; exploring what drives her to tell peoples stories through portraits, and talks through the commissions and projects that she has become known for. From Being inbetween, and the story behind it, through to the contemporary art commission Hardy and Free, and much more. Carolyn will talk though her process, her motivations and share insights she has gained on the way, and is happy to answer any questions about developing your project .

We’re proud to unveil the Leeds International African Arts Festival 2025 — a dynamic celebration of identity, heritage, and creativity rooted in the African diaspora.

We ask the questions that shape us — through music, art, fashion, and storytelling. Join us for the answers!

With special guests. Expect powerful performances and an exclusive preview of our 2025 programme.

RSVP by reserving your free ticket, see Tickets below.

A panel debate to coincide with Mental Health Awareness Week.

In response to the number of working-age adults unable to work due to poor mental health, health secretary Wes Streeting told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg that mental-health conditions are being ‘overdiagnosed’ - a claim backed up by more than four in five GPs who believe that the ups and downs of normal life are being wrongly redefined as mental disorders.