A live show examining what exactly makes someone a serial killer is coming to Leeds this October, bringing all those true crime documentaries you watched during lockdown to life in a live theatre experience.
Hosted by one of the UK’s most notable psychological therapists and crime commentators, Emma Kenny, the three-hour show will give guests a unique insight into the mind of a serial killer.
Kenny specialises in victimology and is known in the media for presenting a host of TV crime shows, including the likes of Britain’s Darkest Taboos, Lady Killers, and The Killer in My Family.
Throughout her career to date she has presented over seventy different crime shows, analysing some truly horrific crimes along the way that have occurred both here in the UK and across the pond in the US.
Emma Kenny specialises in victimology and has presented over seventy shows on crime during her career
In the talk, she explores what makes a killer and explains why some people can be born into a seemingly normal, trauma-free family and still end up becoming a murderer.
Whilst might want to believe that we'd know if we were to come face to face with a serial murderer, according to Kenny they are much harder to spot than you might think.
For those who have spent the majority of lockdown on their sofa watching every true-crime documentary on Netflix, this won't come as so much of a surprise.
After all, some of the world's most notorious serial killers got away with what they were doing for so long simply because they came across as so 'normal.' The sad truth is that anyone can fall foul of a serial killer - as history has shown many times.
Throughout the show, Emma Kenny will answer questions like "what creates a serial killer" and "could anything have prevented their potential from being activated, or were they simply born to kill?"
She'll also analyse some famous crimes including those of Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Jeffrey Dahmer, and John Paul Knowles - examining what led them to their actions and if anything could've been done to prevent them.
Image: Netflix
The description on the event listing reads: "Maybe you simply accept that lift home, or agree to have dinner with your internet hook up, or find yourself taking a shortcut with the clean-cut, nice guy who started chatting to you whilst you strolled home?
"Then it's game over, because rare though they may be, serial killers live amongst us, move between us, are even married to us, and only by studying their behaviour, can we adapt ours to give us a fighting chance of survival should they sliver into our lives
"We all want to believe that we would know if we came into contact with a serial killer, that somehow our natural intuition would raise our physical hackles that would alert us to the very real threat around us.
"That myth, that we could somehow sniff out the angel of death is sadly why the term ‘serial killer’ was coined.
"Their body count is so high,because we all like to imagine that finding ourselves at the hands of a tortuous murderer simply wouldn’t happen to us."
Taking place at Left Bank in Leeds on Thursday 12 October from 7.30 pm, tickets for the show are on sale now from £19 and can be purchased here.
News
Get Baked’s viral ‘Bertha’ cake has a sister on the way – and she sounds just as cheeky
She's big, she's green and she's ready to ruin your figure.
A lot of you will have seen the viral ‘Bertha’ cake by Leeds born beloved sweet treat specialists Get Baked.
They recently opened another site in Manchester's Northern Quarter, where queues literally formed round the block of hungry punters wanting to get their hands on the infamous sugary treats.
And now it's going to happen all over again, as they've recently unveiled their newest flavour which is sure to go down a storm.
We’ll give you a hint: it’s a current food and drink trend that’s about as big as Bertha herself – it’s not matcha, it’s not hot honey (duh), and it’s not Guinness…
Images: Get Baked
Yes—scratch that; HELL YES!Get Baked is set to welcome Bertha’s equally beautiful twin sister, and she’s officially a pistachio girlie.
Having started out life simply as ‘Bruce’, after taking inspiration from the iconic scene from Matilda, this thing has become a phenomenon in its own right, and who doesn’t like more flavours of a good thing?
Probably one of the biggest foodie crazes going at the minute, thanks to the popularity of pistachio cream, cookies, lattes and the similar social media sensation that is the ‘Dubai Pistachio Bar' people are rather fittingly going nuts for this particular flavour of almost absolutely anything.
With that in mind, the Leeds-born bakery and dessert shop – founded by Rich Myers over in Headingley back in 2011 – have shown no hesitation in hopping on the bandwagon and creating a new twist on their own viral menu item.
Teasing the full details in a post on their Instagram this week, they wrote: “What’s big, green, and is going to destroy your life in a couple of weeks’ time? Pistachio Bertha. Strictly limited to 5,000 slices. Coming oh so soon. GB.”
In case you were wondering just how mad those with a sweet tooth could possibly go for a slice of cake, just look at the recent queues when they finally launched in Manchester city centre:
Speaking on the grand opening here on our turf and his partner Amy’s hometown, Myers said simply: “Manchester, what a launch. Thanks for much for the warm welcome. Stay baked.”
Leeds Tattoo Expo to return to the First Direct Arena for 10th anniversary
Clementine Hall
The tenth annual Leeds Tattoo Expo will showcase some of the best in tattooing both local and internationally.
If you fancy getting yourself a fancy new bit of ink, then look no further than the iconic Leeds Tattoo Expo that will be returning to the First Direct Arena this June.
Taking place on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 June 2025, over 200 tattooists and 70 traders will be flocking to the city to show off their skills.
And not only that, but there’ll also be a whole host of market traders for you to browse as well as live music to have a boogie to.
The artists will be tattooing with options for both pre-booked appointments and walk ups available throughout the weekend.
Image: Leeds Tattoo Expo
There will also be a piercer, tooth gems and a henna artist ready to adorn your body.
Alongside getting tattooed, there’s plenty to do and to see over the whole weekend; there'll be an alternative drawing class, an illustrators market with kids’ workshops provided by Art Gecko, an art fusion event on the main stage, burlesque performances and competitions, a small vintage clothing pop-up, fire breathing and break dancing demonstrations in the square outside the arena.
The annual tattoo competitions will also be taking place each evening, where tattooists showcase their work to a panel of judges, sponsored by Killer Ink!
To celebrate Leeds Tattoo Expo's tenth anniversary, they'll be hosting a Pre-Party at Belgrave Music Hall on Thursday 5 June which is a completely free entry event complete with live music and free pizza.
You can find out more about the event and book your tickets here via the First Direct Arena's website.