Welcome to Yorkshire
Inspiration • September 13th, 2025
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As summer fades into autumn, Yorkshire is alive with festivals, comedy, heritage, and big-name music. From Harrogate’s Stray transforming into a 6,000-strong dancefloor for Love to be… Festival, to Halifax celebrating its history with a packed Heritage Festival, and Bradford Cathedral hosting a thought-provoking evening on global peace, there’s no shortage of inspiration for your next day out. Add in Oktoberfest celebrations across more than 40 pubs, theatre and dance premieres, and some exciting gigs from Tom Grennan to Rosie Jones, and it’s clear this season is full of reasons to get out and explore.
Harrogate’s The Stray was transformed into a 6,000-strong party paradise on 6 September 2025, as the Love to be… Festival brought legends like Armand Van Helden, Ultra Nate, and Marshall Jefferson for the brand’s biggest event in its 30-year history – with a return already confirmed for 6 September 2026.
Comedian Jon Richardson has become a shareholder in Fadmoor’s historic Plough pub, joining the local community to restore the 1782 building after 14 years of closure, with the journey filmed for a new More4 series A Yorkshire Pub with Jon Richardson.
Scampston Hall has a packed September programme, from new Upstairs Downstairs history tours and children’s Nature Scamps sessions to creative workshops in the Conservatory.
Dean Clough is at the heart of this year’s Halifax Heritage Festival with heritage bus tours (13 Sept), a daily children’s trail (12–28 Sept), and an evening of vintage film nostalgia (16 Sept), alongside a packed autumn programme of exhibitions, concerts, artisan markets, theatre, and festive events running right through to Christmas.
Fashion students from Leeds Beckett have transformed unwearable clothes into unique designer pieces for Oxfam’s Textile Upcycle Lab, with the final collection unveiled at Batley on 11 Sept before going on sale via the Oxfam Online Shop from 1 Oct.
Rosie Jones is back on tour in 2025 with her brand-new stand-up show I Can’t Tell What She’s Saying—covering everything from single life to gravy—coming to Yorkshire with dates in Bradford (11 Sept) and Leeds (25 Sept).
Marston’s is bringing Oktoberfest to Yorkshire from 12 September to 5 October 2025, with more than 40 pubs across the region—from York to Sheffield, Hull to Halifax—offering authentic German beer, food, music and themed events.
The Yorkshire Holiday Home Show 2025 takes place from 12–14 September at the Holiday Home Centre near Beverley, where visitors can explore everything from affordable caravans to luxury lodges, meet industry experts, and even preview 2026 models—all with free entry and a dog-friendly welcome.
Huddersfield BID’s Urban Artist Competition Charity Auction takes place at the Lawrence Batley Theatre on 18 September 2025.
The Stanley & Audrey Burton Theatre in Leeds has a packed autumn dance line-up, including Meet the Hatter (19 Sept), Northern Ballet’s Little Red Riding Hood (11 & 28 Oct–1 Nov), Ballet Cymru’s double bill NPT – MADE IN NEWPORT (4 Nov), and Yorke Dance Project’s Modern Milestones (15 Nov).
Wakefield Council is digitally recreating Pontefract’s historic hermitage and dispensary, with locals invited to share memories at a drop-in event on 20 September.
Book lovers can join The Big Read Tour 2025 from 22–24 September, with free copies of Paula Sutton’s cosy whodunnit The Potting Shed Murder handed out at libraries in Sheffield, Wath (South Yorkshire), Knaresborough, Harrogate, Acomb and beyond, as part of Harrogate International Festivals’ travelling crime fiction book club.
Bradford Cathedral hosts Re:Imagine Global Peace on Friday 26 September, a unique evening of shared food, stories, and conversation led by peacebuilding expert David Porter and Canon Ned Lunn, exploring how communities can re-imagine peace locally and globally.
TikTok star Amy Hodkin will DJ alongside Northern Soul band The Signatures at Sheffield’s Octagon Centre on 27 September 2025, in a special night featuring Steve Ellis and the last ever UK performance from soul legend Sidney Barnes.
Red Ladder Local brings affordable, community theatre to Yorkshire this autumn with new shows including Kailey in Leeds, Belle Isle and Horbury, Monument in Castleford, family favourite Story Forge in Armley, and dark comedy Mutton in Leeds and Barnsley.
Hull Guildhall will host the North Green Skills Conference on 24 September 2025, bringing together business leaders, academics and policymakers to shape the region’s role in creating the green jobs of the future.
Huddersfield Literature Festival is hosting two special fundraisers this October—a quiz night on 2 October and an afternoon with Amanda Owen, the Yorkshire Shepherdess, on 12 October—to help support its 20th anniversary celebrations in 2026.
Yorkshire is full of Halloween-ready escapes, from a restored Gothic Revival chapel near Skipton with Skipton Castle’s ghost stories on the doorstep, to stays in Whitby by the Abbey, Burythorpe House near the deserted Wharram Percy, and famously haunted hotels in York and Rainton.
Go Ape’s Dalby Forest and Temple Newsam sites are the perfect spots for an autumn adventure in Yorkshire, with treetop challenges, family-friendly fun, seasonal deals and even after-dark Sundown Adventures running from 17 October to 9 November 2025.
Enjoy a spooky family day out at Cedarbarn near Pickering this Halloween, with ghost train rides, pumpkin carving and a brand-new twilight pumpkin picking session running from 25–31 October 2025.
Market Weighton’s Alex Packer is walking 500 miles around Scotland this autumn to honour his mum and raise funds for brain injury charity Headway UK.
Harewood House will sparkle this festive season with A Glittering Invitation: Harewood’s Grand Christmas Ball, where designer Siobhan Murphy and volunteers are creating 10,000 upcycled decorations for a bold, Regency-inspired celebration running 8 Nov 2025 – 4 Jan 2026.
Dizzee Rascal brings his We Want Bass UK Tour to Sheffield’s Octagon on 27 November 2025, promising a career-spanning, bass-heavy live show packed with energy and anthems.
Classic Ibiza comes indoors for the first time at Sheffield Utilita Arena on 28 November 2025, with a 32-piece orchestra, gospel choir, DJ Goldierocks and a closing set from house music legend David Morales.
Scottish comedian Connor Burns, fresh from sell-out Edinburgh Fringe runs and global gigs from Sydney to New York, brings his razor-sharp Gallus tour to UK stages in 2025–26, with Yorkshire stops in Hull (22 Oct 2025) and Leeds (11 Feb 2026).
Comedian Paul McCaffrey brings his new tour What a Time to Be Alive to Yorkshire in 2026, with a stop at Leeds’ Hyde Park Book Club on 18 March.
A bold new film adaptation of Wuthering Heights, starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi and directed by Emerald Fennell, will hit cinemas on Valentine’s Day 2026 – bringing Yorkshire’s most famous love story back to the big screen.
Scottish comedy star Susie McCabe brings her heartfelt and hilarious Best Behaviour tour to the UK and Ireland in spring 2026, with Yorkshire fans able to catch her at Leeds Glee Club on Thursday 23 April.
Def Leppard return to their hometown in 2026 with a huge headline show at Sheffield’s Utilita Arena on 30 June, their biggest Yorkshire date of the tour.
Lucy Porter brings her brand-new comedy show Let Yourself Go to Yorkshire in autumn 2026, with dates at Leeds (27 Sept), Selby (16 Oct), Otley (17 Oct) and Sheffield (18 Oct).
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What's on in Yorkshire this week?
Yorkshire is buzzing with an exciting line-up of events to suit all tastes. Whether you’re looking for live music, comedy, sports nostalgia, or family-friendly entertainment, there’s something for everyone. Here’s what’s coming up in the next week:
- Jimmy Carr: Laughs Funny at Middlesbrough Town Hall on September 13th, 2025 9:30pm
- Bluesbury Blues Festival in Dewsbury on September 12th, 2025 4:00pm to September 14th, 2025
- Afternoon Flat Horse Racing at Thirsk Racecourse – Monday 15 September 2025
- The New Eves at Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds on September 16th, 2025 7:30pm
- Babatunde Aleshe – High Expectations at Leadmill, Sheffield on September 17th, 2025 8:00pm
- Tom Grennan at Leeds First Direct Bank Arena, Leeds on September 18th, 2025 6:00pm
- In the Night Garden Live at Lawrence Batley Theatre, Huddersfield on September 19th, 2025 12:00pm
- Yorkshire Coast 1779 – 246th Anniversary Festival in Filey on September 20th, 2025 11:00am to September 21st, 2025
- Whitby 60s Spectacular at Whitby Pavilion Northern Lights Suite on September 21st, 2025 12:30pm
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