News

Ancient artefacts unearthed and collected during the construction of a huge Leeds transport project have been preserved at a Leeds museum.

Spanning more than six thousand years of the city’s history, the remarkable archive includes a beautifully preserved prehistoric arrowhead, a Bronze Age axe, medieval pottery and a 300-year-old pair of nutcrackers.

The beginning of a new year is always a chance for us to reflect on the past whilst also looking ahead with excitement and anticipation to what the future may hold.

Over the coming year, that sentiment will carry more significance for Leeds than ever as the city prepares to mark a very special, and completely unique historical milestone.

Plans for a tribute to a pioneering 19^th century British locomotive driver who was laid to rest in Leeds are gathering steam following a chance discovery at a local museum.

During recent renovation work at Leeds Industrial Museum in Armley, curators happened upon the beautifully carved gravestone of Robert Morrow, more than 160 years after his death in nearby New Wortley.

An audacious bid to rescue King Charles I from imprisonment in Leeds is among the timeless tales discovered amid the pages of the city’s earliest written history.

The remarkable plot, told for what is believed to be the very first time within the centuries-old text, saw the notorious monarch offered a chance of escape from Red Hall in the city centre in 1647 by donning women’s clothes, which he politely declined.

Damage caused by a devastating Second World War air raid more than 80 years ago has been uncovered during the major redevelopment of historic Leeds Town Hall.

The true impact of the 1941 blast had been hidden behind repair work carried out in the aftermath of the bombings, before being exposed during recent work on the iconic building’s eastern wing.

Art-lovers in Leeds have the incredible opportunity to hang a work by one of the 20th century’s most influential artists over their mantelpiece this Christmas.

Henri Matisse’s eye-catching The Dancer (1949) is among the beautiful pieces available to loan as part of Leeds Art Gallery’s unique Picture Library lending scheme, the selection weekend for which runs this week until Sunday, November 30.

Stunning images of nature captured by renowned contemporary artists will shed new light on our relationship with the wonderful world of plants.

Plant Dreaming opens at Leeds Art Gallery today (Nov 14, 2025) and explores a number of imaginative, alternative perspectives on plants, fungi, and our interconnected planet.

An inseparable mum and daughter working together in local theatre for almost 30 years have given a peek behind the curtain of a beloved Leeds venue celebrating a major milestone.

Kath Harrison and her daughter Helen Shippin are integral parts of the hard-working costume and backstage team at The Carriageworks, which this year marks its 20^th anniversary at the heart of the Leeds local performing arts scene.

A captivating exhibition will shed new light on the life and work of renowned Leeds artist John Atkinson Grimshaw.

Grimshaw’s ‘moonlights’, as the artist called them, including depictions of Boar Lane and Park Row, will feature in Don’t Let’s Ask For the Moon: Nocturnes and Atkinson Grimshaw, which opens at Leeds Art Gallery this November.

Fascinating new illustrations reveal how a Saxon pendant unearthed in Leeds once looked as the ancient treasure is displayed for the first time in more than 1,200 years.

The beautiful, early medieval pectoral cross has gone on display at Leeds City Museum alongside hand drawn images showing how it could have appeared when it was possibly worn around the neck of a church official in the eighth century.

A mysterious iron cauldron sealed inside the walls of a Victorian house more than a century ago in a ritual to ward off evil spirits has been revealed in Leeds.

The fascinating find was made after reports of eerie occurrences at the house, and is now part of the Leeds Museums and Galleries collection, uncovering more about the lives, beliefs and customs of people in Leeds.

The spectacular sights and sounds of Light Night Leeds returned to captivate crowds of thousands as this year’s annual cultural extravaganza got underway.

Many of the city’s most recognisable buildings and public spaces were completely transformed by a compelling programme of illuminated artworks from around the world during the first of the event’s two nights.