It’s time to dust off your shamrocks, whack on your best green clobber and grab a Guinness because St Patrick’s Day is here.
St Patrick’s Day observes the death of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. The holiday has evolved into a joyous celebration of Irish Culture, taking place on the 17 March each year. Think Guinness, leprechauns and an abundance of green attire.
So whether you’re Irish or not, raid your wardrobe for all things green and head out in search of some good fortune.
With help from us at the Hoot, and the luck of the Irish, here are the best places in and around Leeds to celebrate St Patrick’s Day this year.
Bottomless Guinness Brunch
Saturday 16 March 2024 | Revolution Electric Press, Cookridge Street
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Have you got plans for St Patrick’s Day yet? Well if you haven’t, then you’ll want to head down to Revolution Electric Press for their ultimate St Paddy’s Day Bottomless Guiness Brunch.
This Saturday, Revs are really feeling the craic and will be transporting you to the streets of Dublin with live Irish bands, dancers and obviously loads of Guinness. For just £35 per person you can enjoy their Bottomless Brunch which gives you two full hours of unlimited drinks and a delicious brunch dish of your choice.
So what are you waiting for? Get your mates together and book your table here.
St Patrick's Day Parade
Sunday 17 March 2023 | City Centre
Image: Tom Blackwell, Flickr
It’s the 25th year of St Patrick’s Day Parade celebrations in Leeds City Centre.
And as a city we sure know. how to celebrate.
This year, the beloved St Patrick’s Day parade will take place on Sunday 17 March 2024, but throughout the day there will also be rides, refreshments and plenty of Irish dancing and music over at Millennium Square.
This Australian themed sports bar know how to host a proper party and this St Paddy’s day is no exception. Grab yourself a double Jameson, ginger and lime for just £6 or a Jameson’s barrel back shot for just £3.50 when you buy a pint of Guinness. There’ll be live music on all night so make sure to practice your Irish jig in anticipation!
Of course it only feels right to celebrate St Patrick’s Day at an Irish bar, right? And O’Neills on Boar Lane definitely know how to throw a good party. We’re talking a whole host of exclusive drink offers, Irish music and loads of live sport.
Myrtle Tavern
All week | Parkside Road, Meanwood
This cosy pub in Meanwood are really bringing the craic this St Patrick’s Day. On Thursday they are hosting an Irish Rock & Roll Bingo, on Friday a Westlife and Boyzone tribute night and over the weekend even more live music from Irish bands.
So whatever event takes you fancy, head to the Myrtle Tavern this weekend for a pint of Guinness or two. You can read their full event list here.
Featured image - The Hoot Leeds
Leeds
No Greek Tragedy, just indie bangers – The Wombats set Leeds’ First Direct Arena alight
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.
Get Baked’s viral ‘Bertha’ cake has a sister on the way – and she sounds just as cheeky
Danny Jones
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 -
12th March 2024 
