Latest news with #BradfordCulture
BBC News
06-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Bradford City of Culture year hits half-way mark
The start of July has marked the half-way point of Bradford's year as 2025 UK City of far, the city has been treated to a whole series of special events, including a live performance from hometown magician Stephen Frayne, art exhibitions across the district and a para-orchestra marching through the organisers have promised there is still much more to come in the second half of the year, including more live music, a food festival and the prestigious Turner Prize are just some of the highlights due to take place in Bradford over the coming months: The Railway Children A stage adaptation of E. Nesbit's classic novel The Railway Children will be performed at the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway from 15 July until 7 heritage line runs steam and diesel trains through the countryside and became famous when it appeared in the 1970 film version of The Railway will take place twice a day between Wednesdays and Sundays, with tickets costing from £15. BBC Proms Five-time Grammy winner Angélique Kidjo will present a special concert in Bradford as part of BBC Beninese-French singer-songwriter will perform at St George's Hall on 7 September, with standing tickets costing from £8 and those for the stalls costing from £18. World Curry Festival The UK's curry capital is hosting the World Curry Festival between 15 and 30 and and line-up will be announced soon, according to the City of Culture team. Turner Prize The Turner Prize, an annual award for contemporary visual art, is awarded to a British artist, or one working primarily in Britain, for an outstanding exhibition or other presentation of their work in the preceding by the shortlisted artists – Nnena Kalu, Rene Matić, Mohammed Sami and Zadie Xa – will feature at Cartwright Hall Art Gallery from 27 September. The winner will then be announced in Bradford on 9 December. The CBeebies Panto The CBeebies annual panto be recorded at the Alhambra Theatre in Bradford on 11 and 12 October. Most tickets are sold out for the production of Cinderella, but there a few seats left for the 16:30 BST show on 11 October. Other highlights Loaded Laughs have two stand-up comedy events coming up at The Beacon in July and Loading Bay in AugustBD: Festival returns for a two-day takeover in the city centre on 25 and 26 JulyShadmanny, a festival celebrating South Asian wedding culture, takes place on 10 AugustFilms such as Everybody Talks About Jamie and Sexy Beast will be at the open-air cinema at Ilkley LidoNumerous performances, including those by the likes of Bill Bailey, Rob Brydon and Jo Whiley, will take place at the new Bradford Live venue Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
Yahoo
06-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Bradford City of Culture year hits half-way mark - with more to come
The start of July has marked the half-way point of Bradford's year as 2025 UK City of Culture. So far, the city has been treated to a whole series of special events, including a live performance from hometown magician Stephen Frayne, art exhibitions across the district and a para-orchestra marching through the city. However, organisers have promised there is still much more to come in the second half of the year, including more live music, a food festival and the prestigious Turner Prize exhibition. These are just some of the highlights due to take place in Bradford over the coming months: A stage adaptation of E. Nesbit's classic novel The Railway Children will be performed at the Keighley & Worth Valley Railway from 15 July until 7 September. The heritage line runs steam and diesel trains through the countryside and became famous when it appeared in the 1970 film version of The Railway Children. Performances will take place twice a day between Wednesdays and Sundays, with tickets costing from £15. Five-time Grammy winner Angélique Kidjo will present a special concert in Bradford as part of BBC Proms. The Beninese-French singer-songwriter will perform at St George's Hall on 7 September, with standing tickets costing from £8 and those for the stalls costing from £18. The UK's curry capital is hosting the World Curry Festival between 15 and 30 September. Venues and and line-up will be announced soon, according to the City of Culture team. The Turner Prize, an annual award for contemporary visual art, is awarded to a British artist, or one working primarily in Britain, for an outstanding exhibition or other presentation of their work in the preceding year. Artwork by the shortlisted artists – Nnena Kalu, Rene Matić, Mohammed Sami and Zadie Xa – will feature at Cartwright Hall Art Gallery from 27 September. The winner will then be announced in Bradford on 9 December. The CBeebies annual panto be recorded at the Alhambra Theatre in Bradford on 11 and 12 October. Most tickets are sold out for the production of Cinderella, but there a few seats left for the 16:30 BST show on 11 October. Loaded Laughs have two stand-up comedy events coming up at The Beacon in July and Loading Bay in August BD: Festival returns for a two-day takeover in the city centre on 25 and 26 July Shadmanny, a festival celebrating South Asian wedding culture, takes place on 10 August Films such as Everybody Talks About Jamie and Sexy Beast will be at the open-air cinema at Ilkley Lido Numerous performances, including those by the likes of Bill Bailey, Rob Brydon and Jo Whiley, will take place at the new Bradford Live venue Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North. 'I'm visiting Bradford for City of Culture and I'm blown away' Line-up announced for BD: Festival 2025 Statues come to life in City of Culture parade 'Landmark' tower unveiling for Bradford sculptor City of Culture unveils projects to improve health Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture
BBC News
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Bradford theatre audiences surge in City of Culture year
Bradford's two main theatres have seen a surge in visitors during the UK City of Culture 2025 celebrations, according to the Alhambra Theatre and St George's Hall, both managed by the authority, had each seen a rise in the number of people attending performances, a Bradford Council spokesperson 340,000 visitors headed to the Alhambra in 2024-25, up from 248,000 in 2023-24, while numbers at St George's Hall were up from 84,000 to 86,000 in the same Ferriby, portfolio holder for healthy people and places, said: "We are delighted to see so many people enjoying Bradford's incredible cultural offer." "The spotlight is on the city and district during this special year, and we are exceeding expectations," she added. The latest figures also revealed that the four museums and galleries managed by Bradford Council saw a 12% increase in visits during the first six months of this total, there were 97,368 visits to Bradford Industrial Museum, Bolling Hall Museum, Cartwright Hall Art Gallery and Cliffe Castle Museum and Park between January and June this year, compared to 86,992 in the same period last to the Cartwright Hall Art Gallery were up by more than a third, from 23,603 to 31,447 during the same period, according to the said: "The impressive growth is testament to the diverse and vibrant cultural offering during Bradford's year as the designated UK City of Culture."Bradford being chosen for the prestigious title had played a "pivotal role" in attracting both local and international visitors to the city who were "eager to explore the rich heritage and diverse exhibitions", she said."Bradford's theatres, museums and galleries will all be building on this momentum with more impressive listings designed to engage and inspire audiences, and we are committed to continuing our efforts to make culture accessible to all." Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
Yahoo
14-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Statues come to life in City of Culture parade
Statues including a bronze stag and an alpaca called Salt and Pepper have come to life as part of a parade celebrating Bradford's City of Culture year. The statues from Bowling Park and Lister Park have inspired Statuesque – a walkabout arts act featuring living statues and toured around Bradford, starting in Bowling Park earlier. The creations have been brought to life by artists Naomi Parker and Rachel Hyde – director of stilt walking company Chicks on Sticks. Ms Parker, who led the parade dressed as a squirrel, said: "The bear is inspired by the three bear statues in the playground of Bowling Park, and the stag is inspired by the bronze statue of a stag in Lister Park." The parade will also appear at Cliffe Castle Park in August and Lister Park in September. The stag and bear were joined by two other local characters – Bracewell the Dragon inspired by Cliffe Castle and Salt and Pepper the Alpaca, based on Saltaire's history. Statuesque took place at the Beacon, a pop-up arts venue created for Bradford's City of Culture Year, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service. The venue is currently in Bowling Park, and Saturday's event also invited visitors to create their own artwork at a family-friendly crafts workshop. Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North. Giant red ball rolls into City of Culture Cinema inside lorry tours City of Culture Local Democracy Reporting Service Bradford 2025 UK City of Culture
