St Patrick's Day celebrations, an ABBA club night, mouthwatering foodie specials and the long awaited Leeds Holi Festival - here's what you can get up to this week.
This week is truly jam-packed with exciting events, festivals and club nights for you to get involved in.
Although the sun is sticking around for longer we are definitely still feeling the chill, so why not celebrate British Pie Week and get all warm and toasty in one of our top picks (not that we need an excuse to eat a pie).
If you're looking put your dancing shoes on then there's an ABBA club night happening this week as well as Leeds Holi Festival 2023, the St Patrick's Day Parade and Tom Grennan who will all be providing the tunes and giving us a reason to dance.
So get your diary out and keep reading.
British Pie Week
Monday 6 - Sunday 12 March 2023 | Across Leeds
Image: The Hoot Leeds
It’s British Pie Week, not that we need much of an excuse to celebrate that flaky, buttery, melt-in-your-mouth pastry, but we’re taking all the excuses we can this week to embrace all things pie related.
We’ve rounded up all our favourite spots to grab a pie in country pubs, as a lunchtime snack or on the go in the city centre- so take your pick, whatever the occasion.
The Bundobust Indo-Chinese specials are back and trust us, they are absolutely delicious. Returning this week for a 6-week run only, those looking to get their Gobi Toast and Salt & Pepper Okra Fries fix need to head down to Mill Hill ASAP.
Inspired by Kolkota’s legendary Chinatown dishes, each dish has been specially crafted as a homage to this great meeting of flavours, and sealed with a signature Bundo twist.
ABBA Night
Friday 10 March 2023, 11am-4pm | The Wardrobe, Quarry Hill
Image: The Wardrobe
We all love a bit of ABBA don’t we? As soon as Dancing Queen comes on you can’t help but get up on your feet to bust out some pretty questionable moves. The Wardrobe is hosting a non-stop ABBA night and it’s going to be the perfect opportunity to let your hair down and dance all night long. Five hours of non-stop classics? Count us in!
Thursday 9 March 2023 | Inside Meanwood Tavern, Meanwood
Image: The Hoot Leeds
Offering a carefully-selected menu of delicious Detroit-style pizzas, the popular pizza joint has everything you’d possibly want from a lunchtime snack or dinner time treat.
The popularity for the sellout pizzas speaks volumes for itself, but there’s never been a better time to head down to Meanwood Tavern and give these slices a taste-test with the return of the Slice Safari – which gives you access to any of the pizzas as a XXXL slice for a fiver.
Saturday 11 March 2023 | Beaverworks, Whitehouse St, Hunslet
Image: Leeds Holi Festival
Holi Festival, known as the Festival of Colours, is a joyous celebration of peace, love, happiness and equality through live music and bright colours.
Leeds Holi Festival 2022 was a triumphant success and saw 1,200 Holi Lovers making it the biggest Colour Festival in Yorkshire. This year Holi Festival are kicking it up a notch and are bringing 2,500 people together to celebrate, making it the biggest open air colour festival in the UK.
Saturday 11 March 2023 | The Wardrobe, St Peter’s Square, Leeds
Image: King No One, Facebook
Leeds own alt four piece band is back for a homecoming gig at The Wardrobe, and given this is the final day of the Dead Hotel UK tour, it’s going to be a biggun. There’s just 30 tickets left for the gig itself but the boys will be DJ’ing afterwards at Oporto, “the greatest bar on the planet“, according to the band.
Tickets are selling out fast, but you can still grab the last few from See Tickets for £13.20 each here.
Six Nations Games continue
Saturday 11 March | Around Leeds
Image: Beck & Call
There’s two weeks of rugby left, and the competition is really heating up now. Whether you’re secretly rooting for France to keep hold of the title or ready to cheer on England this year, we’ve found all the best places to go and pull up a seat in Leeds.
Sunday 12 March 2023 at 12pm and 2pm | Cheesy Living Co, Corn Exchange
Image: The Hoot Leeds
£20 per person gets you a fondue for two (or more) filled in the classic Swiss style with melted cheese, then your table is filled with roast dinner staples like rosemary potatoes dusted in paprika, half roasted garlic and of course, Yorkshire puddings.
Then you can build on your roast selection as you see fit to make up the ultimate roast dinner, adding a board of Lishman’s cold cut roast ham and beef; honey roasted carrots and parsnips; stuffing balls or even a DIY cauliflower cheese offering to dip into the Alpine-style fondue pot and cover in as much cheese as possible.
The singer of 'Little Bit Of Love' and 'Lionheart' is embarking on his first ever UK headline tour, and on Sunday he will be at the Leeds First Direct Arena.
Speaking about the tour, Tom says: “I've called my new album What Ifs & Maybes. It's about going with your gut, not your head, because you never know what's going to happen. I'm so buzzing for these shows, my biggest gigs to date. I can't wait to get out and play these new songs to everyone."
Tickets are still available too. Grab yours from £30 for second tier seated tickets or £41 for standing and first tier seated, available via See Tickets here.
St Patrick’s Day Parade
Sunday 12 March 2023, 11am-4pm | Around Leeds city centre
Image: Tom Blackwell, Flickr
St Patrick’s Day isn’t until the 17th, but the annual parade is due to take place on Sunday 12 March this year from 11am.
The parade will bring together floats, bands, walking displays, and representatives from Irish organisations, schools, clubs and societies from across Leeds- making it a great family day out. You can join in with the parade and head through Leeds city centre before reaching the party on Millennium Square from 11am until 4pm where there will be a full afternoon of music and dance from Leeds musicians, dancers and invited guests. Guinness isn’t mandatory but widely encouraged.
Aaron Dinning is an indie-pop act whose songs span the highs and lows of relationships, and now he’s Audio North’s latest Artist of the Month.
Born in County Durham, studied in Leeds, and now the curator of a live music events organisation based in Manchester, Dinning sure knows a thing about northern music.
With hits to his name already like ’24’, ‘Look Who’s Holding The Gun Now!’, this queer musician is gearing up to release a deluxe edition of his sophomore EP Boys Become Men.
If his name feels familiar to you, that’s because it probably is, as Aaron Dinning has performed at a multitude of venues across the north – including Feel Good Club, Popup Bikes, and The Proud Place.
Now, Dinning chats to Audio North about his upbringing and music journey, as he accepts the title of Artist of the Month for June.
An interview with Aaron Dinning – Audio North’s Artist of the Month | June 2026
Aaron Dinning is making his mark in the Manchester music scene with his indie-pop tracks / Credit: Press Shots via Emily Atherton (Supplied)
You were born in County Durham and now live in Manchester. How have those two places shaped you as an artist?
I think there’s such a contrast in the environment of those two places. Durham was so formative for me growing up, back then I didn’t have the autonomy to vocalise it but now I see Chester-Le-Street specifically as such a ‘small town mindset’ kind of place.
If I stayed at home, I would never be the artist I am today. That’s not to say that growing up somewhere like that isn’t just as important as the place which makes you feel accepted. You can’t have such a strong desire for one without a disdain for the other.
What does being a northern musician mean to you?
I think being northern, to me, just means breaking the mould and showing that if I can do it, anybody can. It means building my career on my own terms, it’s taught me to unapologetically be myself, on and off stage.
I always say that I want to write the songs I needed when I grew up because there was nobody like me from the North. Sometimes it still feels like I’m the only one too.
To me, if I can write a song, or put on a performance that resonates with a 15-year-old kid who’s still figuring out who they are or who they love, that’s the most fulfilling thing that can come from sharing my art.
This Northern talent is from Country Durham, studied in Leeds and is now based in Manchester / Credit: Press Shots via Jack Garrod (Supplied)
The music industry can feel very London-centric at times. Have you found being based in the North to be an advantage or a challenge?
It’s a bit of both really. Yes, London is where the majority of the big names in music are, but in my mind, I always compare it to that scene in Baby Reindeer when the guy says ‘You find yourself a background artist in a cast of millions’ (niche).
I like that the industry isn’t as saturated as London up here, but I can see that changing in years to come. The North has always been where it’s at and truly where all these major labels should be looking for who’s up next because you might just find a gem like me waiting to be found.
Is there a northern artist who made you think, “If they can do it, so can I”?
Definitely Sam Fender. I know it’s a bit of a cliche nowadays, but I absolutely love him and he’s what I think of when it comes to a classic northern success story.
I’ve seen him six times and the last time at St James’ Park was a completely different calibre of show to when I saw him at Boiler Room in 2019 and paid fifteen quid for the ticket.
Me and him are completely different, but I imagine we had a similar sort of upbringing in the terms of characters we knew growing up in rougher areas. I feel like he cracked the mainstream so well with his first album and he’s only gotten better since. I’d want my first album to have the same kind of critical acclaim as his.
Dinning fuses his sexuality throughout his music, being an openly queer pop musician / Credit: Press Shots via Tom Hargreaves (Supplied)
What made Manchester feel like the right place for the next chapter of your career?
I recorded my entire EP here whilst I was still living in Leeds with Toby Ollis Brownstone from the beginning of 2024. That year and a half which I spent travelling back and forth in Manchester made me love the city and loathe commuting.
I knew I wanted to move to Manchester when I got invited to play the Queer as F*ck open mic on Valentine’s Day in 2025. That was the first show I played accompanying myself on the guitar, I agreed to play three hours before doors and completely fumbled my way through the set.
The feeling of the room was like nothing I’d experienced before, to come to a show in another city I had never played in and feel so welcomed, at home and accepted by a room full of likeminded people, felt like a feeling I could only replicate in Manchester.
Has living in Manchester changed your songwriting at all?
Generally speaking, I’ve been playing guitar a lot more since moving here. I feel like there’s a naive fresh start that comes along with moving to new places and feeling like your life’s going to drastically change.
Becoming the Producer of SoFar Manchester helped me feel integrated and I’ve met so many cool people doing that job while spotlight my friends who are artists and bring them to the city that I fell in love with – It’s all very full circle.
I’ve brought Romy Taylor, Caitlin Doran, Sophie Green, and GRACEY over to play SoFar events and they’re all equally amazing creatives who are based in Leeds, like I once was.
The ’24’ singer has played gigs in unusual Manchester city centre locations like Popup Bikes in Ancoats / Credit: Credit: Press Shots via Emily Atherton (Supplied)
What do you think Manchester does better than anywhere else when it comes to music?
I think Manchester is such a hot pot of different styles and genres. I think the thing it does best is spotlight LGBTQ+ artists. Not just in music, but drag is somewhere I look to when I think of performance, and the queens in the village are truly a sign of resilience and individuality.
I’ve had more shows just for being queer in Manchester than anywhere else I’ve lived, there’s so many freelance creatives, charities and gig promoters who are looking out for LGBTQ+ artists to celebrate, even making entire lineups out of us.
Featured Images – The Manc Group/Press Shots (supplied)
News
A huge football fan zone with space for up to 1,000 fans has opened in Leeds
Clementine Hall
Trinity Leeds is transforming Trinity Kitchen into the ultimate space to watch all the World Cup 2026 action together.
Looking for somewhere to cheer on England in the 2026 World Cup? Don’t fret, we’ve got you covered.
Foodie hotspot Trinity Kitchen has been completely transformed into the ultimate fan zone with space for up to 1,000 cheering fans.
And they’ve made sure that nobody misses out on the action.
There are three super-sized 5x3m screens dotted around the space, so wherever you go you won’t miss out on a goal.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
There’s also a brand-new bar courtesy of local favourites Northern Monk named the ‘Northern Monk Trinity Tap’.
The tap will feature two, seven-metre bars with a whopping 20 beer taps to keep you refreshed and hydrated during the tournament, because cheering the lads on really can be thirsty work.
If you don’t fancy a beer there’s also cocktails, wine and soft drinks on offer as well - so nobody has to miss out.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Feeling peckish? Of course there’s 11 street food vendors serving match day meals and snacks to keep you fuelled through the games.
Choose from Caribbean jerk chicken from Jerk Junction, Indian street food from Rolawala and loads more.
Entry is completely free but if you’re after a reserved seat on a table, tickets cost just £10.
Images: The Hoot Leeds
Josie Towning, Food and Beverage Manager at Trinity Leeds, said: “Trinity Kitchen will operate as normal during the day, transforming into a football fan zone in the evening.
“It will be one of the biggest World Cup venues in Leeds with three huge screens showing the games live and more dotted around Trinity Kitchen. There will be live roaming brass bands and DJs turning every England fixture into a true celebration.
“Fans can turn up and grab a space for free and we will also be offering table bookings for England games for those who want to guarantee the best spots to watch the drama unfold.
“Our line-up of street food vendors will serve bold flavours from around the world, while the all-new Northern Monk Trinity Tap will pour award-winning craft beers across 20 taps, making Trinity Kitchen the ultimate place to eat, drink and experience every unforgettable World Cup moment."
It’s all kicking off on Wednesday 17 June for England v Croatia. So rally your mates together, get your England shirts on and grab your tickets here.
Clementine Hall -
6th March 2023 
