What's on near Cobalt Studios
The guided tour offers a behind-the-scenes look at the brewhouse and state-of-the-art packaging plant, giving visitors a full sense of what “real Yorkshire beer” means today.
From £15.00
Musical brutalism is having a moment – and Mandy, Indiana are right in it, bringing URGH’s raw force to Brudenell.
From £15.00
The UK’s most important visual art prize is back for its 2025 edition, with four new artist nominations in Bradford’s Cartwright Hall Art Gallery.
Free entry
Northern Monk, one of Leeds’ best breweries, is kicking off the weekend with a brewery tour to kick start your Saturday afternoon.
From £20.00
A bold, joyful punk-musical one-person show about making a queer family on your own terms.
From £16.50
Leeds is a city best explored on foot. With a local guide leading the way, this 90-minute walking tour offers an engaging introduction to a city.
From £12.00
‘Plant Dreaming’ gathers the work of seven contemporary artists and their thoughts on plant knowledge and ecopolitics, at Leeds Art Gallery.
Free entry
Journey from the sun-drenched shores of Jamaica to the cold, grey streets of 1940s London in Small Island.
From £16.50Where to go near Cobalt Studios
A converted Victorian warehouse, with over 250 collections of work on display at any given time, as well as The Factory Kitchen Café.
One of Newcastle’s most well loved gig venues, Little Buildings is open 7 days a week and remains a local favourite.
Seven Stories is the National Children’s Library which brings together all of children’s literature into a single building. Based in the creative area of the Ouseburn valley, Seven Stories is built inside of a building with seven stories, but its name has a double meaning as all the stories we tell fall within seven plots: Quest; Overcoming the Monster; Rags to Riches; Voyage and Return; Tragedy; Rebirth and Comedy!
The Laing Art Gallery’s collection of classic and historical art highlights many of the successful artists who have come from the North East over the years.
The Live Theatre has a fantastic reputation for developing, writing and producing new plays and shows every year. The Live Theatre started in 1973. It was at first a traveling theatre company, which started by telling stories that were relatable to daily life in the North East of England and presented these plays to local people – which it has continued to do to this day.
Newcastle’s O2 venue, showcasing regular live music and touring shows.
Found in the east end of Newcastle, Heaton Park offers fantastic opportunities to explore with woods, beautifully maintained flowerbeds, and wooded areas all in the same park. It is fantastically connected to both Armstrong Park and Jesmond Dene, for those looking to extend their walk around the other parks locally.
Following the closure of Stack, a hugely popular food, drink and entertainment pop up in Newcastle’s Stephenson Quarter, plans are full steam ahead for a permanent location at Worswick Chambers.
In the city centre of Newcastle you can find the Tyneside Cinema. The Tyneside is one of the most loved cinemas in the North East of England, from its iconic Art Deco interior (best shown off in the Classic Screen) through to the wonderful range of world films and amazing community.
North East District Guides
Culture Guides
Manchester’s starting the new year with a run of gigs from some of the country’s best underground exports.
Hear ye, hear ye. Take some eating-out tips from our wintertime guide to food and drink in Manchester and the North.
Theatre across the North West splits between festive escape and sharp, urgent work exploring politics, power and resistance.
Step away from the usual. Tours and activities that spark curiosity, inspire creativity and offer something refreshingly different.
This season, exhibitions across the North West feel attuned to the world beneath the world – the forces and stories shaping how we see, feel and imagine.
Whether you’re after storybook theatre, museum wanderings or illusion-bending play spaces, there’s plenty to keep curiosity ticking through winter and beyond.
There's no shortage of great films out at the moment, whether you're looking for the latest blockbuster, that hot arthouse flick fresh from Cannes or a cosy classic.