Leeds International Festival of Ideas today reveals the full line-up for its sixth edition.
Louis Theroux, Elizabeth Day, Chris Packham CBE, Roman Kemp, Vicky Pattison, James O’Brien, Dame Evelyn Glennie and Megan McKenna are among the amazing names heading to Leeds Playhouse in October for a five-day, ten-event programme.
Louis Theroux, one of the most distinctive broadcasters of our time, will open the festival on Tuesday 6 October with an intimate fireside chat at Leeds Playhouse’s Quarry stage.
The chat will cover four decades of social commentary, from far-right militias to Scientologists, porn stars to convicted criminals, the rich, the broken, and the misunderstood in one night, in Leeds,
Images: Supplied
Tim Minchin will then close proceedings on Saturday 10 October with a career-spanning conversation taking in Matilda the Musical, three decades of songwriting, and Minchin’s refreshingly clear-eyed views on living a creative life.
Across the week, hosts Samira Ahmed, Chris Packham, Miranda Sawyer, Joe Tidy, Laura Hamilton, Amy Irons, Harriet Rose, Jamil Qureshi, Dr Hannah French and Larry Budd will lead a programme of panel discussions tackling the questions defining the moment: the future of the planet, belonging in modern Britain, the legacy of the 90s, the future of parenthood, suicide and masculinity, social media, failure, and what it means to live a creative life.
Martin Dickson, Festival Director, said: "Getting Louis Theroux to Leeds is a real moment for this festival and this city. He's one of the defining broadcasters of his generation, and the kind of name LIFI has been building towards for four years.
"But this is a programme with serious depth beyond the headline — Tim Minchin, Elizabeth Day, Chris Packham, Samira Ahmed, Miranda Sawyer, five days of conversation you genuinely cannot get anywhere else in the country. LIFI has always been about bringing the brightest minds to Leeds and giving the city a stage that punches above its weight. LIFI26 does exactly that."
Tickets go on sale to priority subscribers on Thursday 4 June, with general sale opening next Wednesday 10 June. Sign up to be a priority subscriber here.
Hop City, the UK’s first hop-led beer festival from Leeds-based brewery Northern Monk, is returning next year for a landmark 10th birthday celebration.
And this time it's going to be bigger and better than ever before, take place across two sessions on Saturday 15 May 2027 and held at Project House for the first time.
Hop City 10 will be the brewery’s biggest festival yet with over 300 beers from 50 producers, up from this year’s 35, coming to Leeds from across the US, Europe and the UK.
The first guest announcement includes Vermont-based The Alchemist, regarded as one of the pioneers of the Hazy beer synonymous with the festival, joining Northern Monk for the first time since the inaugural Hop City; and Delaware’s Dogfish Head, another highly respected US brewer who last poured for Hop City in 2023.
There will also be many more no/low choices and more non-beer options, including Manchester’s Stiff Tea Brewing Company and their signature Hard Kombucha.
Tickets to Hop City include entry and access to the festival throughout your chosen session, all of the entertainment on offer, an exclusive Hop City 10 glass and all of your sample pours throughout your session. Sounds like a pretty good deal if you ask us.
Russell Bisset, Founder of Northern Monk: “It’s hard to believe that we’re celebrating a decade of Hop City.
“We’re pulling out all the stops for its 10th anniversary, taking everything people already love about the festival to the next level whilst bringing in new experiences, collaborations and features that we’ve never had the space to deliver before.
“We’re also excited to be welcoming some of our brewing heroes to Leeds, including the founders of US breweries Alchemist, Dogfish Head and Other Half, who will all be flying over to Leeds. These are people and breweries that we’ve admired for years, so to have them join us to celebrate 10 years of Hop City is really special.
“Whether you’ve been with us since year one or are joining us for the first time, this will be our biggest and most exciting Hop City yet. We can’t wait to celebrate with everyone at Project House next year”
A Parisian-inspired bistro serving steak and bottomless fries has just opened in Leeds
Clementine Hall
There's only one thing better than fries, and that's bottomless fries.
There's a new date spot in town, and it's called Jasper's.
Tucked away in the beautiful Grand Arcade, this new bistro and bar is focusing on one thing and doing it well...steak and chips.
We honestly can't think of a better combo, and the best part? The chips are bottomless.
You may have seen this sort of concept over in Paris, where guests are served two servings of steak and chips all for a very reasonable price.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Well this is basically the same, except you get one steak each and endless fries that are perfect for mopping up all the juices.
You can choose from a rump steak and chips for just £19.50 or you can pay a little bit extra for a 28 day aged ribeye, if you're feeling that little bit fancy.
Then once your food arrives, you'll have 90 minutes to get through as many fries as possible. Challenge accepted.
They've got loads of sauces for dipping and dunking as well, from your classic peppercorn to a zingy chimichurri.
Image: The Hoot Leeds
If steak isn't your thing then the menu also features plenty of other options like tiger prawns, fried oysters and grilled scallops.
The cocktail list is absolutely huge, with over 100 whiskeys on offer for you to make your way through.
The interior is moody, dark and ultra romantic - perfect for date night if you ask us.
Jasper's steak house and bar is open now in Leeds city centre and you can find more about it here.
Clementine Hall -
3rd June 2026 
