One of Yorkshire's most legendary gig venues, The Leadmill, is facing closure after being served with an eviction notice.
The Sheffield gig space has been widely considered one of the world's best live music venues since it opened in 1980.
But now this live music institution says it is being 'forced to close' after its landlord served it with an eviction notice.
The landlord has today insisted that the building will remain a 'special music venue' but the 'management may change'.
The Leadmill in Sheffield is facing closure. Credit: The Leadmill
The Leadmill has issued a heartfelt plea for support on social media, writing: "Today we have received some devastating news that in 1 year's time, our Landlord is trying to evict us, forcing us to close.
"Since 1980 The Leadmill has spent millions of pounds on what was a derelict warehouse, transforming it into one of the U.K’s most respected venues where countless acts from across the globe have performed over the years.
"Please show your support by sharing this news & sharing your best memories that we can gather to help show them reasons why #WeCantLoseLeadmill."
Since posting last night, some of the biggest names in music have thrown their weight behind the campaign.
Kaiser Chiefs wrote: "We played @Leadmill in our early days and not only do we have very fond memories, it really helped us, too. It would be a huge loss not just for Sheffield and Yorkshire, but the whole UK music scene. #WeCantLoseLeadmill."
Charlatans frontman Tim Burgess added: "Such a brilliant venue. Let’s do all we can to stop The @Leadmill from closing."
Barnsley band The Sherlocks wrote: "This venue is such a special place for so many reasons. We genuinely can’t imagine Sheffield without The @Leadmill. We as a band have so many special memories there! Get behind the venue everyone #WeCantLoseLeadmill"
And The Cribs posted: "The Leadmill is a wonderful and important venue. These are the sort of places that cities cannot afford to lose, the platform they give young musicians is invaluable. Great Leadmill memories are stagediving to Radish (@benkweller) in ‘97, hanging with the White Stripes in 2002."
Landlord Dominic Madden, from Electric Group, said this morning: "I’ll be making a statement regarding @Leadmill shortly. For avoidance of doubt, we are music people, we spend our lives running independent music venues and the Leadmill will continue to operate as a special music venue. The management may change but the song stays the same."
Featured image: The Leadmill
Sheffield
Europe’s biggest purpose-built food hall has just opened in Sheffield
Cambridge Street Collective is unlike any food hall you've seen before, and luckily for us it's just a short train ride away in Sheffield.
If you're looking to get out of the city this summer, then we have the perfect day out for you.
And that's because our wonderful nearby city of Sheffield has just become home to Europe's biggest purpose-built food hall, and it is absolutely mega.
Cambridge Street Collective is a spectacular 29,000 square foot venue that can seat a whopping 1,200 visitors, showcasing food from across the globe.
Images: The Sheff
But it's not just about the food, the masterminds behind the new opening have seriously thought of everything.
From a floating stage that hosts live music to a Japanese-themed cocktail bar with a rooftop overlooking the city, you could easily spend hours in here exploring.
But now, onto the food.
Images: The Sheff
Malaysian dosas, Ethiopian cuisine, Detroit pizzas, Mexica tacos, the list goes on - you can take your tastebuds from one corner of the globe to another all under one roof.
There's also an entire room dedicated to traditional dim sum, a kitted out cookery school and a build your own hot pot station.
Drinks wise there are four bars serving cocktails, craft ales and everything in between, three rooftop terraces and a specialist Japanese drinking den serving highballs and whiskey.
Images: The Sheff
And it still doesn't stop there, there's a Korean photo booth and even a sand pit for the kids to play in whilst you enjoy.
Not only is it a great spot to relax with friends and enjoy some food and drink, but it's also a top place to work in during the day alongside likeminded people.
Unlimited coffee for £6? You can't say no to that.
Images: The Sheff
They're open seven days a week, and we assure you it's well worth the 50 minute train over from Leeds.
Yorkshire has been named in top places to live in the UK for first time buyers
Sophie Smith
If you're looking to buy a house this year - this might be some welcoming news.
The Co-operative Bank has revealed the most affordable places to buy a house in the UK and three major Yorkshire cities have made it to the top six.
Both Sheffield and Leeds have average house prices lower than the national average (which is now £264,400 as of December 2023, according to Zoopla), and were thought to be the fifth and sixth best cities for first time buyers.
To find out the best cities for first time buyers, The Co-operative Bank made a list of the 30 most populated cities in the UK. Each city was then scored and ranked according to a range of metrics, including:
Average house price
Average conveyancing costs
Average surveying costs
Average stamp duty costs
Crime safety index score
Traffic index score
Life satisfaction score
This found that both Sheffield and Leeds had a similar crime safety index score of around 43, placing them between Plymouth and Stoke-on-Trent, but when it came to traffic, Leeds was 32 points higher than its South Yorkshire comparison.
House prices differ slightly: £222,570 is the average in Sheffield and £246,026 in Leeds, and both placed a life satisfaction score of 7.3-7.5/10.
Leeds is ranked the sixth best city. / Images: Unsplash
Sheffield is ranked the fifth top place for first time buyers.
London is unsurprisingly the most expensive city for first time buyers in the UK, with the total average spend adding up to a huge £547,560. Bristol is the second-most expensive city (£353,033), followed by Edinburgh (£346,293), Reading (£332,283) and Southend-on-Sea (£327,729).
At the other end of the scale, another Yorkshire city can be found when solely comparing house prices. Kingston upon Hull was found to be the second-most affordable spot, offering a total cost of £140,814 around £5,000 less than, Blackpool with a total average price of £135,995 (including additional costs like conveyancing).
Daisy Jackson -
1st April 2022 
