A month filled with festivities, food and plenty of exciting new openings.
Can you quite believe that it's already November? Because we certainly can't.
This month we are stepping into the festive spirit with the return of the Christmas markets, pantomimes and cosy tipis in and around the city centre. It may be early to declare
Keep reading to find out what you can get up to this month.
Leeds International Film Festival
Friday 3 November - Sunday 19 November 2023 | Various locations
Image: Leeds International Film Festival
The longest ever LIFF is taking place this month and after three years of missing out, Hyde Park Picture House is returning as a key venue for 2023. There's a huge selection of indie movies to check out this year, with around 200 different films being shown across the seventeen-day festival.
Friday 3 November 2023 | The Hunslet Club, Hunslet
Image- Sam Mathews, Unsplash
This completely free event is kicking off the festivities with neon face painting, a BBQ and of course a fantastic display of fireworks. Gates open from 6pm.
This is far from all the Bonfire Night events in the city, find our full guide on where to celebrate the night here.
Santa lands at White Rose
From Saturday 11 November 2023, 10am – 6pm | White Rose Shopping Centre
Images: White Rose Shopping Centre
Santa’s Grotto is landing at White Rose Shopping Centre again this year and staying right up until Christmas. You’ll find both Santa and his elves located at the main shopping centre and we’ve even had a tip off that he’s bringing presents for anyone who pays him a visit too.
From Friday 17 November 2023 | Victoria Gardens, outside Leeds Art Gallery
Image: THOR’S Tipi Leeds
Where: Victoria Gardens, Millennium Square, Leeds City Centre, LS2 3AD
When: From Friday 17 November – Sunday 31 December 2023, open 12pm-11pm Monday – Saturday and 12pm-8pm Sundays, with last orders called 30 minutes before
Thor’s Tipi is something that’s become a real Christmas staple in Leeds. Serving up 170,000 pints, 125,000 cups of mulled wine and 55,000 hot chocolates each season, Thor’s is seasoned in the festive drinks game, so take a seat by the fire and cosy up with your favourite festive tipple.
Popular Leeds brewery Northern Monk has announced it will be taking over the former Assembly Underground site, and set to open in just a few weeks time.
‘The Northern Market’ – a brand new city centre venture from the famous brewery will feature a bustling food market, beer hall and of course a fully stocked bar pouring the freshest Northern Monk beers from 10 tap lines and on-site beer tanks.
Food vendors so far include Falafel Guys, Big Buns and Six Slice Pizza with more set to be announced over the next few weeks.
Boar Lane, Leeds City Centre | Opening Monday 6 October 2023
The London-born pizzeria is expanding, and Leeds is lucky enough to be its next stop. Think fluffy ‘bready’ bases, slightly charred for that authentic Neapolitan taste, dusted off with fresh tomato marinara sauce and mozzarella – each paired with a different combination of toppings.
Whilst there’s no opening date announced just yet, Pizza Pilgrims has confirmed it will be opening on Boar Lane in Leeds City Centre, with signs going up earlier this week inside the former Beer Hawk site, advertising free pizzas ‘and other goodies’.
Fluffy Fluffy is opening in Leeds – and if you’ve spotted the cloud-like pancake stacks online, you’ll know exactly how excited we are for this.
They’re at least twice the size of your classic pancakes, light and airy for that soufle-style texture. Apparently the secret behind each pancake is egg whites whipped to soft peaks before being cooked at a low temperature – and soon we’ll be able to get a taste for ourselves.
Japanese and retro interior meets coffee store, there’s a new interior concept from Olivia Fayne is set to open in the coming weeks, stocking interior items, one-off pieces and even Olivia’s own paintings.
OWT is officially on the move. The much-loved brunch spot has officially grown out of its Corn Exchange home. Relocating from the city centre into LS3, OWT plans to take over the old Corner Cafe site on Burley Road.
Announcing the news yesterday, OWT said: “Bye LS1, hello LS3! After 5 years spent working hard in Leeds city centre, we are moving into bigger premises. Read all about it here https://owtleeds.com/story We love you, we thank you!”
Roundhay Road, Oakwood | Opening late November 2023
Leeds’ favourite ‘modern kind of deli’ is growing yet again.
Taking over the former The Pantry site on Roundhay Road in Oakwood, The Cheesy Living Co. is going to be bringing a new multi-storey store to the suburbs, and it’s set to bring everything we love about the flagship Corn Exchange store, and plenty more besides.
Think cheesemongers meets ‘posh off licence’, with fresh coffee in the daytime, fondue in the afternoon and cosy nights with a bottle of sustainable wine.
The Leeds Deli has certainly been providing the city with more than just a kid-friendly hangout spot. The popular deli hosts monthly Mum Club with different themes each week for little ones and grown ups to socialise with likeminded individuals with plenty of soft play and treats involved.
Not only this but they ensure that family-friendly activities are at the forefront of everything they do. But now the owners are taking one step further in supplying the city with child-friendly spaces and will be opening a brand new space called Little Leeds.
“This isn’t your ordinary soft play” we’ve been told… “It’s going to be a modern and chic cafe with a beautiful, design led and purpose built space for grown ups to enjoy whilst little ones play.”
Lisa Angel has just opened inside the Victoria Gate and it’s an Aladdin’s Cave full of jewellery, prints, gifts and everything in between.
The best part? It’s a female-founded brand that has chosen our wonderful city for their first Yorkshire site. We absolutely don't blame them.
Founded in 2004 by Lisa hand making jewellery which she sold at craft fairs local to her Norfolk home, the business has gone from strength to strength every since.
The brand is now a recognised part of the British high street landscape, boasting seven other stores across Norfolk, Suffolk, and the Midlands.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Shoppers can expect beautifully handcrafted jewellery, unique trinkets and wonderful staff who are open to have a natter.
It's the perfect shop for when you don't exactly know what to buy that someone special, just pop in here and you'll be hit with a wave of inspiration immediately.
We could've genuinely spent a good hour in there and come out with a much lighter wallet.
Lisa herself spoke about the opening: “As an independent retailer, we are thrilled to launch in a destination with such a reputation as Victoria Leeds.
"We believe retail should remain grounded in inspiration and discovery, and we look forward to bringing just that to the vibrant city of Leeds, in our first store in the north.”
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Managing Director James Moody said: “We're incredibly excited to be opening our first northern showcase store in such a prestigious location.
"Victoria Leeds represents exactly the kind of vibrant retail destination where we can bring the full Lisa Angel experience to new customers. This is a significant milestone for us as we continue to grow our retail presence."
World Book Day: The coolest independent book shops to visit in Leeds
Clementine Hall
Today marks 29 years of World Book Day- so why not celebrate with a brand new book from one of Leeds' independent book shops?
A day dedicated to all things literature that's remained at the heart of the UK's Primary School agenda for over a quarter of a century now.
The number of indie book shops is finally increasing across the UK once more, meaning there are more spots than ever to pick up a book or spend your World Book Day token.
It's not just the crease of corners and the smell of mass produced paper that your online book can't quite replicate, it's the recommendations, the exciting new covers and the warm coffee that matches the mood in most book stores. They're welcoming places, full of like-minded people, and they're certainly worth a visit, even if you haven't turned a page in years.
In Leeds, we're fortunate to have our pick of independent bookshops, granted they're hidden between the odd Waterstones and W H Smiths, but we still have plenty to offer.
Here are our favourite places to grab a new book from an independent seller...
Hold Fast Bookshop
Leeds Dock | Open Thursday - Sunday
Images: The Hoot Leeds
HoldFast is a book and plant store that champions independent artists, local authors all onboard an old coal boat called Marjorie R. Owners Chris and Victoria Bonner actually lived on the boat for a good few years before deciding to protect the future of the 76 year old boat by turning it into a business.
This is the perfect place to grab a new read. There’s a real community feel about the place, with talks from local authors and Chris and Victoria welcome anyone in to spend hours pouring over their hand picked selection of new and preloved books.
Colours May Vary
Leeds Corn Exchange
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Located inside the Corn Exchange in a sun-drenched top floor store, Colours May Vary is a celebration of independently published zines, unusual books and wholesome gifts that suit birthdays, parties, get well soons and congrats for all ages.
If you're on the hunt for a magazine that's more art than 'trash' content, this is the place to browse. There's a beautiful selection of limited edition prints, as well as some more popular independent magazines and books to choose from.
Dedicated to children's books, including some rather incredible novels on young activism and social justice, The Little Bookshop is a one-of-a-kind bookshop that's worth the trek over to suburb Chapel Allerton. The quaint little store is full of enough books to allow a child's imagination to run wild and the selection is varied enough to be challenging and bring up different topics of discussion. There's an adults section too, just through the back of the store- so there's something for all ages to find.
On International Women's Day, Wednesday 9 March, the bookshop will be joined by special guest, Kate Pankhurst, a British author and illustrator and the woman behind the phenomenon 'Fantastically Great Women That Changed The World'.
The Bookish Type
Great George Street
Images: The Hoot Leeds
The Bookish Type is an indie queer bookshop with a lot to offer. Run by Nicola Hargrave and Ray Larman, this place champions the voices and stories of the LGBT+ community with its range of memoirs, novels, plays and children's books.
There's also a fantastic selection of zines available covering everything from mental health to the history of the trans communities.
Village
Thorton's Arcade, Lands Lane
Self-published books and zines can be found inside Village, one of Leeds few independent booksellers in the city centre. The bookshop can be found within Thornton's Arcade and is locally known for its extensive copies of art-themed books and curated fashion and design selection.
Special edition hardbacks and paperbacks can be found amongst the gallery space used to showcase up-and-coming talent, and there's a decent selection of good old fashioned novels too.
Home of pre-loved books that are still in good condition, Oxfam Books is where books find a new home and all the proceeds go to charity. It's the recycling eco-friendly bookstore that actually has a decent selection of new and old favourites- so yeah, it's not an independent, but it's all for a good cause.
The selection here is far from your average charity shop shelf, there's aisle upon aisle of fiction, including vintage Penguin classics, as well as shelves of University-level textbooks, cookery books and niche topics like politics, history and languages piled high.
Since 2017, Leeds Little Free Libraries have been popping up all over the city, with a mission to encourage random acts of kindness by leaving books for others to read.
The little libraries can be found using an interactive online map to help guide users to their nearest library, where they can pick up and drop off literature of any kind. The Little Free Library continues to surprise locals with its locations ranging from Bradford and Pudsey to Wakefield, Ossett, as well as covering the majority of villages close to the city centre like Headingley, Chapel Allerton, Armley and there’s even a little lending library down by Leeds Docks too.
Sophie Smith -
1st November 2023 
