Home Page

News MP Calls For Boycott Of Carlsberg

After confirmation that the Tetley Brewery will close down in 2011, local Liberal Democrat MP Greg Mulholland calls for the people of Leeds to boycott Carlsberg

At midday on Friday 5^th March, Greg Mulholland MP poured a can of Carlsberg lager down a drain outside the Tetley’s brewery. Prior to this, he had approached the gates of the Carlsberg-owned Tetley’s Brewery in Leeds with a strongly worded letter addressed from himself and John Rowe, the Chair of Leeds Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA).

The letter written on behalf of the Leeds CAMRA group and the people of Leeds says that they “wish to communicate our anger and disgust over the confirmation that Carlsberg UK will close Tetley’s Leeds brewery”.

The boycott, and the pouring away of…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

News High Speed Rail Link

Leeds looking likely to get a fast rail link to London - but work won’t start for another seven years

A whitepaper was published today recommending plans for a rail link that could see journey times between Leeds, Sheffield and London reduced to 75 minutes. The transport secretary Lord Adonis gave Labour’s backing to the £30bn project and corroborated Network Rail’s comment that the link would cause economic growth and boost employment, saying the project was likely to bring in £2 of profit for every £1 spent and could create 50,000 jobs in Yorkshire.

Reports say the link would increase national economic output by £17bn and £29bn by 2040, with the greatest economic impacts in the north. Chief executive at…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

Feature Alan Bennett joins debate over Royal Park School

The famous Leeds playwright gets behind boycotting of plans for student flats

For 6 years now, Royal Park School in Hyde Park has stood empty and dilapidated. It’s yet another eyesore for Leeds, a city subject to constant lobbying for the regeneration of countless sites. Like so many of these blots on Leeds’ landscape, the building has the potential to be so much more.

It sits at the bottom of Royal Park Road, the main road which leads immediately to the heart of Hyde Park from Leeds University and the city centre. Visible from the former school, and less than a 2 minute walk away on the adjoining Queens   Road, are…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

Preview 'Antiques Roadshow' comes to Saltaire

Fiona Bruce and the gang will be spending a day at Salt's Mill, and you can be with them!

Fiona Bruce and the team will be filming an episode of the popular Sunday night antiques show at the historic Victoria Mill, Saltaire, on Thursday April 29th 2010. Series editor Simon Shaw says that “the team are all looking forward to visiting such an interesting venue as Saltaire. It’s always exciting to see what will come to light on the day”.

Now in its 33nd series, the show has never been more popular. Fiona Bruce joined as the presenter in 2008. “Exploring the human story behind every object is what makes ‘Antiques Roadshow’ so fascinating,” says Bruce. “And everyone loves…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

Preview The Courteeners

Manchester's current biggest musical exports come to the Academy

The Courteeners are back on the road after ducking off the radar for a while, following quick and plentiful commercial attention subsequent to their 2008 debut. Knowing when to take a break from popping up regularly on T4 and concentrate on producing some fresh material spared them overkill just in the nick of time.

It appears that the music industry just can’t help being bringing our attention to the Manchester foursome though. Since returning, they appeared on the cover of NME last month, have confirmed appearances at 2010 festivals Isle of Wight, Benicassim, T in the Park and V, and…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

News Majestic

Leeds wants to resurrect the eyesore of City Square

Leeds is full of impressive architecture, exhibiting both ornate Victorian and thoroughly contemporary design. Some buildings have their potential maximised, like the Henry Moore Institute, the Victoria Quarter and newly renovated Corn Exchange. Others, however, are disappointingly and frustratingly ignored, standing neglected in their empty beauty and just begging to be appreciated. City Square’s Majestic building is one such example.

The splendour of the Grade 11 listed building cannot be denied, and is especially evident with such a prime position in the heart of our city. Those passing through Leeds City Station in their droves on a daily basis…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

Feature Carrying the Torch

A Leeds charity launches final funds bid before relocation

Sunday 21st February saw Leeds charity The Candlelighters Trust launch their final £500,000 funding bid to aid their re-location to Leeds General Infirmary from St. James Hospital, anticipated in May 2010.

In a spectacular event at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, 150 volunteers made up of current and past patients and their families stood together to create a stop motion animation of the trust’s new logo. The launch of this bid also sees the re-launch of the trust and a new website that will publicise their work, provide a platform for support and information as well as a facility for…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

News Future Plans For Tetley

The Leeds brewery will definitely close and production will be split between Yorkshire and Wolverhampton

As we reported in October 2009, Carlsberg UK, the owners of Tetley’s are closing down the iconic Tetley’s brewery in Leeds and moving the production of the beers to new sites.

Tetley’s, which has a history in Leeds dating back to 1822, will see its production split between two breweries. The cask ale will be taken away from Yorkshire and brewed by Marston’s, a major national brewer based in Wolverhampton with a number of other sites across the county.

However, the Tetley’s Smooth Flow kegged beer will continue to be brewed in Yorkshire, but its production will move out to…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

Getaway Skipton

Your Gateway to the Dales comes in the fitting form of 'Sheep Town'. Ewe will not be disappointed

Skipton resides just outside the periphery of Yorkshire Dales National Park, in the river Aire gap which divides the dales to the north, the moors to the south, and the Ribble valley to the west. For this reason it is known as the ‘Gateway to the Dales’. The market town takes its name from the Saxon word ‘skip’, meaning ‘sheep’, so its literal translation is ‘sheep town’. It was founded by sheep farmers purportedly in the 7th century, before the de Romille family were granted the settlement in 1066. They then built the fortress castle that attracts so much tourism…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page

Getaway Ilkley

Darwin; a literature festival; Roman baths; a symphony orchestra. This modest town has little to be modest about

Nestling at the Yorkshire Dales’ southern edge, in Lower Wharfedale, is the picturesque town of Ilkley. Surrounded for miles by breathtaking untouched scenery, in the vicinity are Ilkley Moor and the renowned Cow and Calf rocks, a spot popular with ramblers for its particularly stunning views.

White Wells Spa Cottage, an attractive and rather Mediterranean-looking whitewashed building, also sits on Ilkley Moor. People have been ‘plunging’ in its bath to the rear of the building since 1703, believing it to be capable of curing an assortment of ailments. It is especially popular on New Year’s Day, when plungers presumably wish…

Read more... | See all articles in Home Page