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.
We're basically half way through the year, so let's see what else we've got to look forward to...spoiler alert, it's a lot.
So far we've had everything from ice bath cafes to listening bars open up in Leeds, and it seems like 2026 is the gift that keeps on giving.
Allow us to get you excited about what's coming to the city...
Dishoom
68–78 Vicar Lane, LS1 7JH
Images: The Hoot Leeds
This one is a biggun' as the ever so popular Indian restaurant is set to open on Friday 14 August in a beautiful Grade-II listed building on Vicar Lane which was formerly Flannels.
First opening in London, Dishoom now has restaurants dotted all over the UK including a huge site in Manchester. The group is famed for its lavish and grand interiors, as well as its home-style curries, grills and breakfasts including its legendary bacon naans.
Acai and the Tribe
88 Vicar Lane
Image: The Manc Group
Acai and the Tribe first opened four years ago in Manchester, and ever since then it's only gone from strength to strength opening up three other locations across the country.
Next stop? Leeds. And we couldn't be happier about it.
So, what can we expect from this aesthetically-pleasing and ultra trendy female-owned business? Well, loaded acai bowls that look almost too good to eat, superfood smoothies, coffees, matcha and savoury options like avocado toast.
This Japanese restaurant serves a menu full of sushi as well as grilled meats on sticks, sharing sides and build-your-own hand rolls. All of this is wrapped up in the most gorgeous interior, which you can see from their jaw dropping new Manchester site.
Occupying the Grade II-listed space on Vicar Lane, the three-storey building will include a 220-cover dining room, 30-cover terrace and an upstairs bar.
Introducing Moods - a new all-day cafe, bar and events venue that will open to the public at First White Cloth Hall on Kirkgate on Friday 31 July.
Created by husband-and-wife founders Will and Hayley Moody, the team behind Buzz Club Tattoo, Moods will occupy the ground floor of the Grade II* listed building.
Alfonso's
Horsforth
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Famed for it’s toasted Cuban sandwiches, stacked subs and loaded breakfast bagels - Alfonsos Deli has made a name for itself for serving some of the best sandwiches around the city.
Such a good reputation in fact, that they’ve just announced a second location over in the leafy suburb of Horsforth. Get in.
Leeds rallies around independent wine bar after thieves smash windows to steal… an empty bottle
Clementine Hall
An independent wine bar in Leeds city centre was broken into over the weekend.
And do you know what the sneaky thief stole? An empty bottle.
Latitude Wine Bar on The Calls issued a statement about the break in over the weekend, they said: "Some unscrupulous ______________ (insert expletives in the comments) decided to smash our window last night to grab a magnum of chartreuse out of our window.
"Obviously it was a dummy bottle, so more fool them, but it also makes this criminal damage more pointless. DON'T THEY KNOW HOW MUCH GLASS COSTS!?
"Well, this puts a real dampener on the month so if any one feels like popping in to buy a bottle in the shop or a glass in the bar or heading online to place an order this weekend it would really help to support an independent wine merchant and bar.
Images: Latitude Wine Bar
"Thank you to one of our customers who found the abandoned dummy bottle and returned it to us today. Legend! Santé and happy Friyay!"
So not only did the thief smash the window to steal an empty bottle, but they didn't even take it home with them.
In classic Leeds fashion, fellow indies flocked to the comments to support Latitude with many promising to pop in over the weekend for a glass or two.
One comment read: "Do you need a sign in your window saying “this is a dummy bottle you dummy”" whilst another said "Damned spit buckets! I’m sure we’ll be in soon, keep your chins up fam."
So if you've been meaning to pop in for a glass of the good stuff, there's no better time than the present.
Clementine Hall -
3rd June 2026 
