Spring has sprung at luxury lifestyle destination Victoria Leeds in a suitably stylish manner this month.
There's no better place to shop in Leeds than Victoria Leeds and this spring they have truly pushed the boat out to get us all feeling festive as we transition into the warmer months.
As well as the usual plethora of new season collections from premium fashion brands and cutting edge independents, there's an exciting programme of spring activity on the horizon for us to look forward to.
We all love a window display, and to celebrate spring 2023 Victoria Leeds has created an eye-catching sustainable window display that perfectly captures the season in Yorkshire.
The display features a gorgeous array of flowers being fed by naturally collected rainwater via tumbling rainbow umbrellas, a fitting nod to the rainy Yorkshire weather.
Image: Supplied
Speaking of the new display, Victoria Leeds senior general Manager, Jo Coburn said: ‘’We take environmental considerations very seriously at Victoria Leeds and we’re proud of the work our teams carry out to not only ensure we are working responsibly, but doing so in a way that engages our visitors.
"It’s fantastic that people can follow the progress of our display as we move through the seasons, and our grounds are going to look stunning with all the replanted flowers.’’
Victoria Leeds have also partnered up with Opera North to offer a truly unique and enchanting experience with 'As You Are: Soundwalk 2023'.
As You Are was written for Opera North by South African-born composer and cellist Abel Selaocoe and allows participants to go on an immersive 30-minute audio-visual trip around central Leeds.
Between Thursday 30th March and Saturday 29th April, customers can embark shoppers can collect their headphones from Victoria Leeds before embarking on a route around the city where special sensors will trigger sounds and music created to complement key Leeds landmarks.
Image: Supplied
Ahead of the Soundwalk launch, Jo Coburn said: ‘’Engaging shoppers today must go beyond offering quality products and beautiful window displays, which is why we know our discerning customers are going to fall in love with Soundwalk.
‘’Opera North is a brand that resonates with our target audience and so we were thrilled to bring back the ground-breaking vision by Abel Selaocoe to Victoria Leeds. We urge anyone with even a passing interest in opera, the arts or the city of Leeds to try. It’s incredible.’’
Premium outdoor living brand Moda Furnishings have just launched a pop-up show room in the Victoria Quarter which will be open until the end of summer for all your BBQ furniture and party needs.
Read more about Victoria Leeds' incredible spring programme here.
The Wombats aren’t just still going strong - they’re getting better. And honestly? Long may they reign.
The Wombats absolutely tore the roof off the First Direct Arena in Leeds last night, Wednesday 26 March and what a night it was.
From the second they hit the stage it wasn’t just a gig, it was a full-blown indie-pop spectacle, packed with infectious energy, nostalgia, and a whole lot of dancing.
They kicked things off with “Moving to New York,” and honestly? The crowd was in from the first note.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Matthew Murphy’s unmistakable vocals rang through the arena and suddenly, thousands of people were screaming every lyric like it was 2007 all over again. It was one of those moments where you could just feel how much this band still means to people.
Despite the massive venue, The Wombats somehow made it feel intimate. The lights? Pure chaos in the best way - vibrant, colourful, and totally in sync with the band’s wild, bouncy sound.
Murphy’s cheeky banter between songs made it feel less like a polished arena show and more like a jam session with a few thousand of your closest mates.
Setlist-wise, they nailed it. “Let’s Dance to Joy Division” and “Greek Tragedy” had the whole place losing it, while the stripped-down version of “Techno Fan” gave everyone a minute to breathe (and maybe get a little emotional).
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Those quieter moments just made the high-energy choruses hit even harder. It was a rollercoaster - in the best way possible.
Then came the encore. If you thought the crowd was loud before, “Kill the Director” took things to another level. Pure, chaotic indie bliss. The kind of moment you don’t want to end.
Here’s the thing about The Wombats: some might say their older songs hit harder than their newer stuff, but is that just nostalgia talking? Or maybe it’s a generational thing?
Either way, they proved they’re still one of the most exciting live bands out there. They’ve still got the hooks, the humour, and the ability to turn a massive arena into a sweaty, euphoric singalong.
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.”
Clementine Hall -
28th March 2023 
