Diaries at the ready because summer is here and Leeds is overflowing with exciting things to get up to.
Are you sitting comfortably? Because you're in for an exciting read.
It seems this week's theme is: festivals. We've got Tramlines over in Sheffield, the Yorkshire Dales food festival in Skipton and a Youth music festival happening in the city centre.
And if that's not enough we've got fun foodie openings, unmissable live music events and so much more. Keep reading to find out what's going on in and around the best city on earth...
Leeds Bear Hunt
Begins Saturday 1 July 2023 | Various locations around Leeds
Image: Leeds Bear Hunt
Leeds Bear Hunt is an exciting new trail popping up around Leeds city centre all summer long. Raising money for Leeds Hospital Charity, there will be 35 different giant beat sculptures to find hidden in plain sight, and taking inspiration from the Michael Rosen classic children’s book, you can go on a bear hunt to find them all.
To find out the locations and collect rewards for your bear hunt efforts, you need to download the app on your phone.
If you’ve been down to The Cheesy Living Co. before, you’ll know just how well these guys know their cheeses.
Now taking their foodie options to a whole new level, The Cheesy Living Co. has announced it will be taking on a new street food venture at Trinity Kitchen. Named The Cheesy Chip Shop, we reckon this is going to be far from your average hangover cure.
The clue is in the name really, expect cheesy chips but on a whole other level.
We've been absolutely loving the Sounds of the City series over at Millennium Square. We've seen Mcfly, Bastille, Blossoms so far and it's not over yet. The absolute legend that is Nile Rodgers will be taking to the stage and it's going to be a fantastic night.
The Youth Music Festival is in its seconds year, and brings together over 500 children and young people in a celebration of musical talent. Featuring over 50 different school’s work, the Youth Music concert kicks off the festival with “36 concerts in 36 days”.
Friday 21 July – Sunday 23 July 2023 | Funkirk Farm, Skipton
Yorkshire Dales Food and Drink Festival is a county-wide celebration of cookery classes, tastings, workshops and bars, live music- and there will even be Gino D’Acampo, Si King and Dave Myers from The Hairy Bikers and Yorkshire’s own James Martin in attendance too. An ideal day trip from Leeds if you’re looking for a way to taste some of the county’s finest and still have plenty of time to head back into the city centre for the evening.
Friday 21 July – Saturday 23 July 2023 | Hillsborough Park, Sheffield
Sam Fender headlined in 2022. / Image: The Sheff
Fine, this isn’t in Leeds – but it is well worth a trip to Sheffield for! After a sellout year, Tramlines is set to return for 2023. There’s little information about headliners at present, but there’s a good reason those tickets are flying off the shelves, so keep an eye out for any updates or read about Tramlines 2022 here.
Saturday 22 – Sunday 23 July 2023 | Castle Howard, York
Image: Castle Howard
If you’re looking for a day trip from Leeds for the whole family, Castle Howard has a whole host of activities all summer long.
‘Swim through Castle Howard’s Great Lake, cycle through the Howardian Hills, run through the undulating countryside of the estate before a sprint finish tops everything off in style right in front of the main doors of the house. Throughout the weekend, athletes and spectators will be able to enjoy a fun-packed festival village featuring live music, shopping, food and drink, children’s entertainment, yoga and more.’
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 -
14th July 2023 
