This week is your last chance to apply for a street road closure for the Platinum Jubilee weekend in Leeds.
Leeds City Council is inviting local communities to host street parties for the occasion, but your last chance to apply is Friday 15 April- so make sure if you're looking to clsoe your road for a Jubilee-themed street party over the June bank holiday, you get it in quickly.
With Queen Elizabeth II set to mark her Platinum Jubilee from Thursday 2 June to Sunday 5 June 2022, making her the first ever British monarch to reach this milestone, and with the UK to get an extra bank holiday to celebrate, Leeds City Council is offering anyone the chance to host a street party.
The Platinum Jubilee celebrates the Queen's Elizabeth’s 70 years on the throne, and a remarkable seven decades of service to the British people.
On a national scale, a number of events are planned for the celebratory four-day weekend - including Trooping the Colour, lighting of Platinum Jubilee Beacons, a thanksgiving service at St Paul’s Cathedral, and of course, an extra bank holiday.
If that's not enough to keep you entertained, there will be performance in London to tell the story of the Queen’s reign through a pageant that will include a ‘River of Hope’, a section that will see over 200 silk flags flow through The Mall to replicate a moving river.
But a little closer to home, you can now submit a request to close your street off for the day and host a good, old-fashioned street party.
Officially, Saturday 4 June, is the day of the Big Jubilee Lunch. Street parties in their masses are already being planned across the UK and neighbours are expected to come together to mark the occasion, so this is likely to be the most popular date to close off your street and celebrate with neighbours.
This said, Leeds City Council has stated that residents of Leeds are encouraged to apply to close their street and celebrate the Queen's Platinum Jubilee bank holiday weekend, with the expected dates of Thursday 2 June - Sunday 5 June 2022 in mind for road closures.
Leeds residents can now request to close their road for a street party this summer / Credit: Tim Ellis (via Flickr)
The Queen's Platinum Jubilee bank holiday weekend will also see the royal announcement of the winner of the Platinum Pudding Competition. Back in January, it was announced this morning that Buckingham Palace is searching for the perfect pudding to celebrate the platinum celebration.
Entries are due to be judged by the likes of culinary legend and national treasure, Dame Mary Berry, and the dish will follow in the footsteps of the British staple dish, coronation chicken, a dish created by Le Cordon Bleu to celebrate the Queen’s coronation banquet in 1953.
If you can't wait until June to celebrate, the Platinum Jubilee Celebration will kick off Thursday 12 May - Sunday 15 May 2022 with smaller scale events celebrating the monarch. In London, over 1,000 performers and an additional 500 horses will take part in a 90-minute show in honour of Her Majesty. The performance will take the audience through the Queen’s reign as well as looking back on year’s gone by- right from Elizabeth I to the present day.
The deadline to apply to close a road is Friday 15 April, and you can find out more information and submit an application via the Leeds City Council website.
New regulations are set to be put into place as part of the Briggate Action Plan.
Proposals for the plan, aimed at making some of the city centre’s busiest areas safer for everyone, received a huge amount of support during a public consultation last year.
Since then, the council have been drawing up the necessary regulations and signage, with the new rules now due to officially come into place over the next few months.
Once implemented, the action plan will mean a requirement to walk bicycles and e-bikes within the city centre’s pedestrianised shopping area from 10.30am until 8pm every day.
That means no surprise bicycles will try and run you over as you're doing your shopping, hooray!
The action plan will also introduce prohibitions around certain street trading activities in targeted areas, including mobile street traders.
Extended restrictions will be put into place during major city centre events including Leeds Pride, Light Night Leeds and the Leeds Christmas Market.
Anyone breaking the new rules could be given a £100 Fixed Penalty Notice.
A spokesperson for Leeds City Council, said: “The city centre welcomes hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, and our aim is for every one of them to have the best and safest possible experience of Leeds.
“Through this action plan, we’ve taken important and meaningful steps to address issues which the public have consistently told us were impacting their enjoyment of the city centre whilst also creating potential safety issues for shoppers and pedestrians.
“With these new regulations in place, our hope is that both day-to-day visits and major events will now be even more enjoyable, successful and welcoming.”
The new restrictions on pedlars are expected to be in place from Thursday 1 October, with restrictions on bikes in pedestrianised areas due to be in place by the end of the year.
Huge new two-storey late-night venue with beer hall and games is coming to Leeds city centre
Clementine Hall
A new late-night venue is set to open in Leeds city centre.
And luckily for us, we don't have long to wait.
Introducing Klubhaus, a new venue by The Bierkeller brand that will open its doors on Friday 30 October on Merrion Street in Leeds city centre.
Combining a whole host of things, Klubhaus will feature drinks, games, and its very own beer hall on the top floor.
'The Bier Hall' will offer your classic Bierkeller-style benches alongside a huge stage and vast dance floor, perfect for events and live DJs.
Elsewhere in the two-storey venue, there will be two bars and plenty of games including dart boards, pool tables, and Bierkeller's popular ‘Spin the Wheel’ game where customers are given the chance to spin a large wheel behind each bar to unlock discounts and offers.
Dave Howarth, Brand Manager of The Bierkeller said: “Klubhaus is an exciting Bierkeller concept, and Leeds is the perfect city for a more drinks-led, late-night version of the brand.
“With two floors, two bars and The Bier Hall, we've built a venue on Merrion Street designed for the perfect night out.”
Considering the location, we've got a feeling this will do very well for those who prefer to party at the top of town on Merrion Street.
And with the prospect of bagging yourself a free drink from the mysterious wheel...who could resist?
You can have a look at what to expect via the Klubhaus by Bierkeller website here.
Sophie Smith -
14th April 2022 
