Guides

10 of the best graduation deals in Leeds this celebration season

Here's to the class of 2026.

Clementine Hall Clementine Hall - 8th July 2026

You’ve spent over three years studying and now it’s time to say celebrate so we’ve rounded up some of the best places in Leeds for you to do so.

Those all-nighters in the library are now a distant memory.

It’s time to celebrate all the hard work you’ve put in over the years and what better way to spend it than eating delicious food and raising a toast to yourself. 

Whether you’re celebrating with family, friends or a loved one. We’ve sorted you some of the best deals on offer, from free glasses of beer Prosecco, to 2 for 1 cocktails and discounted set menus. 

Tattu

29 E Parade, LS1 5PS

Images: The Manc Group

The ‘Power of Wisdom’ set menus are available for £37.50 for lunch and £45.50 for dinner, with graduates receiving an ‘Elixir of Life cocktail’, or a complimentary glass of Prosecco.

Find out more here.

The Cut and Craft

23 King Edward St, LS1 6AX

Images: The Hoot Leeds

Enjoy three courses with a glass of Prosecco on arrival for £55; you can even upgrade to the proper stuff and pay an extra tenner for Moët & Chandon Champagne for each person.

Book your table here.

Riva Blu

11-12 Park Row, LS1 5HD

Images: The Manc Group

Fancy Italian? Freshly crowned graduates dining from the special set menu can enjoy a bonus Bellini to toast their success.

Flight Club

1-2 S Parade, LS1 5QL

Image: The Hoot Leeds

As a congratulations to the city’s graduating students, Flight Club has lined up a treat for the class of 2026. Any guest with a valid student ID or graduation certificate can raise a toast to the celebrations with a complimentary bottle of prosecco for the group when they book a game of Social Darts.

CrowdedHouse

Level 5 & 6, Trinity Centre, 70 Boar Ln, LS1 6HW

Images: The Hoot Leeds

Enjoy your celebrations whilst taking in jaw dropping panoramic views of the city at Leeds' newest rooftop hangout. Their set menu offering two courses for £26 or three courses for £30 is not one to be missed.

Ox Club

19a The Headrow, LS1 6PU

Book a table at one of Leeds' most celebrated restaurants and enjoy a free glass of prosecco as a cheers to you. Available until Sunday 16 July and you must mention graduation when booking.

Uyare

Victoria Gate 3rd Floor, Rooftop, George St, LS2 7AU

Image: The Hoot Leeds

As a graduate, you can enjoy 15% off your bill when you book with the code 'GRADUATESOF26'. Plus, you'll receive a complimentary glass of prosecco to toast the occasion.

Banksia

2 Lower Briggate, LS1 4AE

Images: The Hoot Leeds

At this Mediterranean-inspired restaurant, graduates will eat for free - now that is an offer. Enjoy the special graduate set menu priced at £39 for three courses, with graduates eating for free with two paying customers.

Find out more about the offer here.

Blackhouse

31-33 E Parade, LS1 5PS

Images: The Hoot Leeds

Enjoy Blackhouse Gastrobar's fabulous steaks and seasonal dishes with a free glass of prosecco for every graduate, plus if you're a table of six you'll get an entire bottle on the house. We'll cheers to that.

Read more: 10 of the best beer gardens, rooftops and terraces in Leeds

Featured images - The Hoot Leeds

  

Guides

The Maccabees at Kirkstall Abbey, Leeds – stage times, lineup, setlist and tickets

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

It's finally time - indie heroes The Maccabees will be performing a huge headline gig at Kirkstall Abbey this week, with a lineup of fellow indie heavyweights.

The renowned quintet reunited for a comeback tour last year, and have spent this summer performing at some of the UK's finest open-air venues.

Now, it's Leeds' turn, as The Maccabees take to the Kirkstall Abbey stage on Friday 31 July, along with Maxïmo Park, Everything Everything, Mystery Jets, and Fiona Lee.

The Maccabees guitarist Felix White said at the time they announced their summer gigs: "The year we’ve just had was so special to all of us, and so unexpected, that it has put some momentum in everyone collectively …. and who wouldn’t want to do all that again?"

If you're going along to The Maccabees at Kirkstall Abbey, we've rounded up everything you need to know.

Are there still tickets for The Maccabees in Leeds?

At the time of writing, there are still tickets available to see The Maccabees at Kirkstall Abbey.

General admission tickets are priced at £64.45, with premium admission standing priced at £97.45.

You can see the latest availability and grab your tickets HERE.

Who else is on the lineup?

The Maccabees perform at Kirkstall Abbey in Leeds this week
The Maccabees perform at Kirkstall Abbey in Leeds this week. Credit: Supplied

The main support act for The Maccabees in Leeds will be the brilliant Maxïmo Park, a Newcastle group who absolutely dominated the indie-alternative scene in the 2000s with their breakthrough debut album, A Certain Trigger.

But there's a lot more to this stacked lineup than that - The Maccabees have pulled together an almighty night of legendary indie bands to support them at Kirkstall Abbey.

Also performing will be Salford's finest art rock export, Everything Everything, who'll be performing their earworm hits like No Reptiles, Distant Past, and Cough Cough.

Before that, it will be Mystery Jets on the Kirkstall Abbey stage, who return with new album A Hole To See The Sky Through next month.

And opening the stage for the night is East Yorkshire lass Fiona Lee, who release EP Every Woman earlier this year.

Stage times for The Maccabees

  • Gates - 4pm
  • Fiona Lee - 4.45pm - 5.15pm
  • Mystery Jets - 5.45pm - 6.15pm
  • Everything Everything - 6.45pm - 7.30pm
  • Maxïmo Park - 8pm - 8.45pm
  • The Maccabees - 9.15pm - 10.30pm

Last entry will be 8.30pm.

The Maccabees expected setlist

The Maccabees have had a busy summer on the festival circuit, but based on their headline gig at The Eden Project earlier this month, this is likely to be their setlist:

  • Love You Better
  • Latchmere
  • Lego
  • Feel to Follow
  • Kamakura
  • Wall of Arms
  • First Love
  • Precious Time
  • Can You Give It
  • Spit It Out
  • Toothpaste Kisses
  • X-Ray
  • Marks to Prove It
  • Ballad Of So Long
  • Something Like Happiness
  • Encore:
  • Something Like Happiness
  • No Kind Words
  • Pelican

What does a Premium ticket get you?

If you're thinking of making your night a little fancier, there's a Premium area in Kirkstall Abbey that includes all of this:

  • Premium Entrance (please note this opens at the same time as all gates)
  • Premium Hang Out Area located in the Historic Abbey’s Cloister with Private bar and toilets.

Live at Kirkstall Abbey map

Getting to Kirkstall Abbey

You can pre-book parking, which will open at 3.30pm for The Maccabees. g.

Entry to Kirkstall Abbey Car park is located next to Abbey House Museum on Abbey Walk in Kirkstall (LS5 3EJ).

But fans are urged to use public transport or travel on foot wherever possible.

Kirkstall Abbey has two local train stations nearby; Kirkstall Forge is located approximately 1.3 miles from Kirkstall Abbey and Headingley Station is approximately 0.7 miles.

There are several bus stops near Kirkstall Abbey too, for more information visit here.

Read more: DMA’S announce VERY intimate Leeds gig ahead of major tour

Featured image: Supplied

Guides

Kings of Leon at First Direct Arena, Leeds – tickets, times, setlist and more for UK tour

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia

American rock band Kings of Leon are making their way to Leeds for a visit to First Direct Arena as part of their current EU/UK tour.

Formed in 1999 by brothers Caleb, Nathan, Jared, plus their cousin Matthew Followill, the rock band has gone on to achieve nine top 40 singles and six UK number one albums.

The rockers have two singles in Spotify’s Billions Club, including their standout hit ‘Sex on Fire’, which has amassed over 2 billion streams and ‘Use Somebody’ with 1.2 billion – two tracks that helped skyrocket them from cult favourites here in Britain to global superstars.

This four-piece’s latest LP, Can We Please Have Fun, dropped mid-2024 and knowing how energetic Northern crowds can be, it’s safe to say we’ve got this covered.

Last time they travelled over the pond, they let the Manchester crowd know the England score in real-time (read our full review).

Gig guide – Kings of Leon at First Direct Arena, Leeds

Kings of Leon UK tour dates

  • Fri 3 July – Glasgow, UK – Bellahouston Park
  • Sat 4 July – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
  • Mon 6 July – Leeds, UK – First Direct Bank Arena

Are there any tickets left for Kings of Leon at First Direct Arena?

If you’re wondering where you’ll ‘Find Me’ on Monday 6 July, it is probably watching these four relatives play their two decades’ worth of hits at First Direct Arena.

Don’t ‘Waste a Moment’ as there’s only a limited number of tickets left if you’re after catching a glimpse of Kings of Leon live – get yours HERE.

Tickets are on sale for Kings of Leon who are performing at Co-op Live on Saturday 4 July in Manchester.
Kings of Leon are gearing up for their Leeds gig at First Direct this July (Credit: Press shot)

Kings of Leon setlist for 2026 UK tour

These American rockers have been performing all across Europe, switching up a couple of songs at each show; however, the hits below have featured at most of their appearances.

  • Slow Night, So Long
  • Waste a Moment
  • Find Me
  • On Call
  • Radioactive
  • The Bucket
  • Revelry
  • Manhattan
  • Use Somebody
  • Wait For M
  • Split Screen
  • Closer
  • Molly’s Chambers
  • Razz
  • MyParty
  • Supersoaker
  • Fans
  • Back Down South
  • Seen
  • Pyro
  • Black Thumbnail
  • To Space
  • Knocked Up
  • Sex on Fire

What are the stage times for Kings of Leon in Leeds?

Doors for Kings of Leon at First Direct Arena in Leeds are set to open at 6pm with a kick-off time of 7.30pm from a huge indie rock band.

Supporting the US rockers is a band who have received comparisons to Kings of Leon, the loud-and-proud Scottish stars The Snuts, known for their tracks like ‘Glasgow’, ‘Elephants’ and ‘Maybe California'.

How to get to First Direct Arena

Bus Station

Located on Dyer Street next to Leeds City Bus Station and approx. 15min walk from first direct arena and is wheelchair friendly.

Support and help for any persons with a disability is available as the station is a registered ‘Safe place’ to come into and ask for assistance.

Nearest Bus Stops

  • Clay Pit Lane
  • Wade Lane/Lovell Park Road
  • Woodhouse Lane

Nearest Train Station

Leeds City Station on New Station Street is around a 15min walk from first direct arena and a major hub on the national, regional and local rail network providing connections to a wide variety of destinations.

Parking

There are over 7,500 car parking spaces within a 15-minute walk of the arena. The arena doesn’t have it’s own car park however there are lots of options nearby. To receive 5% off Q Park when attending a show at first direct arena click here

The nearest Car Park with EV charging is located on Albion Street click here.

None of the above car parks are operated by the arena so for questions, queries or comments we ask that you contact the companies directly.

Hiring Bikes in Leeds 

If you’re looking to hire a bike in Leeds, here are some of the best options you can try:

  • Beryl bikes – you’ll find the ‘Leeds City Bikes’ from Beryl stationed throughout the city. These are all e-bikes, and they’re available to hire on a pay-as-you-go basis. It costs £1 to unlock the bikes, and then 16p per minute to use them. We’d say these are great for zipping around the city and getting from A to B.
  • Talio – for a wider selection of electric bikes to choose from, Talio based at Buslinthorpe Green is a great option. From this company, you can hire cruiser bikes, mountain bikes, and cargo bikes. Prices start from £20 per day for rental, but if you’re hiring for a month or longer you’ll get a good discount.

Read more: Grassroots Leeds music venue secures long-term future as part of community ownership scheme

Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied)/Raph_PH (Flickr/WikiCommons)/Audio North

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