Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra
Apr
19
9:00 am09:00

Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra

Tickets HERE

A fusion of poetry, embodiment, and self-exploration to deepen self-connection, creative expression, and sensual awareness.

Join us on a transformative 8-part journey. Each session, we’ll explore a new aspect of sensuality, emotional openness, and expressive freedom - rooted in spoken word and tantric-inspired embodiment practices. We’ll journey through the chakras (from Root to Crown and beyond), learning to embrace and refine our unique voices. By the end, you’ll have cultivated a meaningful piece of poetic performance to showcase, celebrating your unfolding authenticity.

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Sunday Vinyasa Yoga with Liv
Apr
20
1:30 pm13:30

Sunday Vinyasa Yoga with Liv

Tickets HERE

Sunday Yoga at Hyde Park Book Club

Monthly Sunday yoga, spend your afternoon on the mat with me & stick around for coffee & treats at Hyde Park Book Club. a stunning Sunday!

open level vinyasa yoga class, everyone welcome :) from complete beginners to experienced yogis.

mats can be provided, however feel free to bring your own.
Liv X

Instagram @liv__moves 

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Hyde Park Stitch Club
Apr
23
7:00 pm19:00

Hyde Park Stitch Club

Get your FREE ticket HERE

Join us for the very first ‘Hyde Park Stitch Club’ social! ✨

Come together with fellow crafters for a cozy evening of knitting, crocheting, sewing and embroidery etc.
Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting out, all are welcome! 🌸🧶

Wednesday 23rd April
7PM - 9PM

Art Soace/Bar Area
Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds, LS6 1BL

Just bring your current project and meet us there — no experience required!

This is a free, friendly space for creativity and community. 🙌
Hosted by: @knittedbykee & @laurablackwell

See you there! 💕✨

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SLSEFundraiser - Clothing Sale
Apr
27
10:00 am10:00

SLSEFundraiser - Clothing Sale

SLSEFundraiser is a group aiming to raise £1.8k to go towards raising money for scholarships, so secondary students and young adults in Sierra Leone are able to afford to go to university. Many poorer working class Sierra Leoneans currently struggle to gather the Leones (Currency of Sierra Leone) needed to go to university, which means many students may be unable to properly complete a full childhood of education and have access to significant opportunities.

To try and solve this, SLSEFundraiser is holding a clothing sale to raise money for our project. From 10am - 4pm we will be selling a wide variety of different garments, Mens and Womens Clothing, preloved clothing, Trainers and Stickers all for great affordable prices! All profits made during this sale will go directly towards contributing to the current scholarship pot or towards ensuring more future sales can happen. More information can be found on our Instagram @Slsefundraiser and we hope to see you on the 27th of April!

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Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra
May
3
9:00 am09:00

Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra

Tickets HERE

A fusion of poetry, embodiment, and self-exploration to deepen self-connection, creative expression, and sensual awareness.

Join us on a transformative 8-part journey. Each session, we’ll explore a new aspect of sensuality, emotional openness, and expressive freedom - rooted in spoken word and tantric-inspired embodiment practices. We’ll journey through the chakras (from Root to Crown and beyond), learning to embrace and refine our unique voices. By the end, you’ll have cultivated a meaningful piece of poetic performance to showcase, celebrating your unfolding authenticity.

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"What does art mean to you?"
May
5
10:00 am10:00

"What does art mean to you?"

Tickets FREE, JUST TURN UP

"What does art mean to you?" Art means something different to everyone, and this workshop is all about expressing what it means to you. You will have the chance to use a wooden type inspired by the history of Hyde Park Book Club, once a petrol station and later a fancy dress shop, to create unique type posters. It’s a chance to get creative, experiment with typography, and have fun bringing to life what art means to you. workshop is on the 5th of May in the basement from 10 a.m. to 3 pm. 

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Festival de Tinnes: Excess
May
5
7:00 pm19:00

Festival de Tinnes: Excess

OTD only

World-renowned Festival de Tinnes is once again graciously making space on its hard drives for your 2-minute works of wonder. This time we are seeking "films" inspired by the theme of.... EXCESS!!!!!!!!!! As always, adherence to the theme is entirely optional, and submissions will close 24 hours before doors."

Tinnes Festival is a friendly and relaxed short-film showcase presenting the work of local, student/hobbyist filmmakers. The aim of the event is to lower the barrier of entry for screening amateur films, and to provide a space for filmmakers to connect.

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Leeds Cineforum presents a screening of Libertad Gills — 1922 (2023) and Por un Cine Cachinero (2024)
May
6
6:30 pm18:30

Leeds Cineforum presents a screening of Libertad Gills — 1922 (2023) and Por un Cine Cachinero (2024)

FREE ENTRY
Workers of Leeds, unite! Join us for our next film screening and party as part of International Workers’ Week.

 We’ve got it all this time: films, a chat with the filmmaker, and a reggaeton DJ set.

We’re screening two short films by Libertad Gills — 1922 (2023) and Por un Cine Cachinero (2024) — including an introduction and Q&A with the filmmaker.  Using pre-existing footage, Gills invites us to reflect on cinema today — in Ecuador and beyond.
Scroll on for the synopses

The night keeps going with Mami Chula’s reggaeton DJ set.

When & Where:
Tuesday, May 6 — from 6:30 PM onwards at HPBC

1922 (2023):
What do you do when there’s no film archive of a major historical event?
1922 looks at Ecuador’s workers’ strike and massacre on November 15, 1922 — for which no known  archival moving images exist.
By reworking another film from that year (Fiestas del Centenario) and mixing in international footage, Libertad Gills builds an imagined archive, exploring what cinema was in 1922 — and how it might serve class struggle today.

Por un Cine Cachinero (2024):
A video essay based on the 2023 manifesto by Guayaquil Analógico, published in Guayaquil en ruinas: Cartografía fílmica de una ciudad.
The film calls for a "Cine Cachinero" — a cinema of reuse and reappropriation, built from discarded materials.

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UNWIND Festival Wear Pop-Up
May
11
6:00 pm18:00

UNWIND Festival Wear Pop-Up

Tickets HERE

UNWIND is an upcoming streetwear brand known for its bold, screen printed graphic tees. It is levelling up with its first-ever festival range, featuring one-off sustainable pieces with the brand’s signature design. Based in the snug of Hyde Park Book Club, this one-day-only pop-up shop is an opportunity to get your hands on this limited range and some of Unwind’s distinct tees, whilst having a boogie alongside a live DJ. The first 20 attendees will also receive free and exclusive Unwind merchandise on arrival.

Follow our socials for updates + access to future drops and event sneak peaks:

Depop: @unwindtees
Instagram: @unwindtees
TikTok: @unwindtees

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Katharina Volckmer in Conversation
May
12
7:00 pm19:00

Katharina Volckmer in Conversation

Tickets HERE

Join us on Monday 12th May, 7.30pm, when novelist Katharina Volckmer will be talking about her second book, Calls May be Recorded for Training and Monitoring Purposes.

Katharina will be reading from the book, before being in conversation with Liam Bishop, answering questions from the audience and signing copies of her novels.

Next Chapter Books will be selling books.

About Calls May be Recorded for Training and Monitoring Purposes:

‘This book is filled with brilliant dialogue, unexpected turns, some very dirty talk with sudden bursts of hilarity, and then fierce sadness. It exudes dark energy. It is highly original. It gives pleasure on every page.‘ — Colm Tóibín, author of Brooklyn and Long Island

‘Raucous, incisive and wholly original, the world of Volckmer’s novel lays bare modern life’s gross indignations, mordant desires and naked ambitions with wit and clarity.’
— Eley Williams, author of Moderate to Poor, Occasionally Good

In a London call centre, Jimmie helps holiday makers with myriad problems, but he is hardly a model employee. He doesn’t simply provide customer service to his clients and advice to his colleagues, he gets involved in their fantasies and frustrations, and now he’s about to be hauled up in front of the boss.

From perfecting his roles as an undertaker and as a clown to performing duties above and beyond his employment contract, he debates the importance of the optimum shade for lipstick and bathroom walls, the pros and cons of nudist versus textile, as well as the psychological impacts of an Italian mother and an emotional support animal.

This is the second, ribald, scatological novel from the brilliant author of The Appointment. Jimmie’s sly, sharp, melancholy insights into the indignities of a world which aims to eliminate the human will make you laugh, weep and never look the same way at an electric carving knife again.

 

About Katharina Volckmer:

Katharina Volckmer was born in Germany in 1987. She now lives in London where she works for a literary agency. Her first novel The Appointment has been translated into over 15 languages and has been adapted for the stage and radio in several countries.

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Festival Sunglasses Workshop by Leeds Indie  Market
May
17
9:20 am09:20

Festival Sunglasses Workshop by Leeds Indie Market

Tickets HERE

Are you Summer ready? Got some festivals, parties or gigs coming up through the sunny months? Join Little Crafty Crafts by Leeds Indie Market for their first instalment of the ‘summer ready’ series of workshops they’re hosting this summer!

Make 2 pairs of festival sunnies! Whether you want to coordinate two of your planned outfits or make matchy pairs for you and the bestie, we’ll be providing everything you need to craft your perfect summer accessories!

Choose from glasses in different styles and colours and go nuts with their HUGE collection of gorgeous embellishments, rhinestones, beads and more. Everything you need will be provided to make your new sunnies a work of art!

Still level: Easy Peasy, you just need a steady hand!
Suitable for; Someone looking to craft their own summer accessories. People who like to stand out in the crowd. Besties looking for a morning crafty date.

Tickets are available now via Eventbrite.

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Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra
May
24
9:00 am09:00

Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra

Tickets HERE

A fusion of poetry, embodiment, and self-exploration to deepen self-connection, creative expression, and sensual awareness.

Join us on a transformative 8-part journey. Each session, we’ll explore a new aspect of sensuality, emotional openness, and expressive freedom - rooted in spoken word and tantric-inspired embodiment practices. We’ll journey through the chakras (from Root to Crown and beyond), learning to embrace and refine our unique voices. By the end, you’ll have cultivated a meaningful piece of poetic performance to showcase, celebrating your unfolding authenticity.

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Bards Do Brunch
Jun
14
10:30 am10:30

Bards Do Brunch

Tickets HERE

We’re kicking off the summer with poetry at everyone’s favourite brunch spot in Hyde Park. Join LPF at Leeds Lit Fest for ‘Bards do Brunch’ for a chance to share your poetry over breakfast, coffee or pastry in the Snug at Hyde Park Book Club.

This is a ticketed event with a sign-up for anyone who wants to read some of their latest work in the comfort of fellow poets. Bring a notebook for the breaks, get advice from others, and share your thoughts on the poems you hear.

Brunch is not included in the ticket price.

Brunch is not included in the ticket price.

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2025 Quiz hosted by Gary Wigglesworth
Jun
15
7:30 pm19:30

2025 Quiz hosted by Gary Wigglesworth

Tickets HERE

It’s back for a fifth year—bigger, better, and brainier than ever! Join us for this year’s Book Quiz, hosted by the fantastic Gary Wigglesworth!

Whether you’re a book lover, a quiz fanatic, or a literary trivia master, this night is packed with wit, challenge, and nonstop fun!

Our brilliant quizmaster, Gary Wigglesworth, author of The Book Lover’s Quiz Book: Novel Conundrums, and The Book Lover's Quiz Book 2: More Quizzes for Book Whizzes has been delighting quiz fans for years at the legendary Betsey Trotwood in central London. And as a true Yorkshireman, he’s more than ready for the challenge!

Don’t miss out on an evening of clever questions, great company, and bookish brilliance

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Dirty LAUndry
Jun
16
5:00 pm17:00

Dirty LAUndry

Tickets HERE

Writers from the Leeds Arts University creative writing course will be sharing their work across poetry, prose and script. Hear from the next generation of Leeds writers. Our writers are already award-winning, have work published in literary magazines and national press, such as The Guardian. A wealth of new ideas and voices.

This performance also marks the start of Leeds Arts University's End of Year Show, which runs 16th - 21st June.

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Zineophilia: The Zine Social Club
Jun
16
7:00 pm19:00

Zineophilia: The Zine Social Club

Tickets HERE

Join us for an evening of pressure free creativity centered around zines. Zines are small press booklets and have been around since the 1930s as a method of people to communicate their passions, discuss their lives, and find a voice.

We’ll teach you how to make zines, and give you all the materials you need to fill them. Casual self expression in an encouraging environment.

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Goth night: the darker side of books
Jun
16
7:30 pm19:30

Goth night: the darker side of books

Tickets HERE

An exclusive event from Leeds Libraries and Hyde Park Book Club with two legendary grave dwellers who’ve written extensively on goth music and subculture, including Simon’s recent Curepedia and Everything, his extraordinary biography of the Manic Street Preachers; and John Robb's landmark history of goth, Art Of Darkness, published in 2023.

The event will feature both writers in conversation with writer, poet & musician Stu H and there may be a chance to hear some classic goth tunes too. Essential for anyone who wants to hide from the sun and indulge their dark side in the company of fellow doom-mongers.

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Wild Women Writing the North
Jun
17
7:00 pm19:00

Wild Women Writing the North

Tickets HERE

In Wild Women Writing the North, author and poet Rachel Bower is in conversation with poet, academic and folklorist Professor Emily Zobel Marshall. Rachel will talk about, and read from, her debut novel It Comes from the River (Bloomsbury) as well as her new poetry collection, Bee (Hazel Press). Emily will share her insights and also read from her first poetry collection, Bath of Herbs (Peepal Tree Press).

Infused with the folklore of Northern England, It Comes from the River is an unforgettable, uncanny debut about violence, resilience and hope – and the power of women when they work together.

Bee features eighteen poems exploring the ancient and complicated relationship of help and harm between bees and humans, from Stone Age honey hunters to modern beekeepers.

Bath of Herbs explores the complexity of mixed-race, hybrid identities and relationships to the English and Welsh mountains, fells, rivers and shorelines from an ‘othered’, unmappable, positionality.

Rivers, bees, folklore and wild women. Now that's a combination you won't get anywhere else!

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What Have You In Your Heart
Jun
17
7:00 pm19:00

What Have You In Your Heart

Tickets HERE

Join Christopher R. Moore (Leeds Poetry Festival Award 2023, Frances Browne Literary Festival Award 2024) for a short lecture on sports, A. E Housman, and the surprising importance of single-syllable words in poetry.

This will be followed by a workshop, which will explore setting, voice, and poetic structure through a series of unique and collaborative prompts.

You will also have the opportunity to perform and receive feedback on the poems created in this workshop. What Have You In Your Heart is designed to help you create cleaner, braver poetry.

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Embodied Word
Jun
18
7:30 pm19:30

Embodied Word

Embodied Word fuses poetry, movement, and self-exploration, for a transformative workshop. Mary and Zac will guide you in reflective writing, somatic practices, and performance techniques for you to grow in confidence, self-awareness, and creative expression. Rooted in interdisciplinary influences – including spoken word, embodiment, Tantra, and psychology – this workshop fosters authentic connection and meaningful integration.

We encourage you to honour yourself and your comfort levels throughout, and while vulnerability is welcome you are always in control of how much you share.

Open to all experience levels, Embodied Word invites you to connect more deeply with your body, emotions, and artistic voice.

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Poetry, Yorkshire & Beyond
Jun
18
7:30 pm19:30

Poetry, Yorkshire & Beyond

Tickets HERE

Joni two highly-acclaimed Yorkshire-based writers for an evening of conversation and performance. Andrew McMillan and Maria Ferguson are known primarily as poets. However, Andrew recently published the highly-acclaimed novel 'Pity', and Maria has written and performed two award-winning one-woman theatre shows.

Alongside conversations led by acclaimed poet Matt Abbott, Andrew and Maria will treat the audience to live performances of their work. Andrew has published three award-winning collections with Jonathan Cape, most recently 'pandemonium.' Maria's second collection, 'Swell', was published by Penguin in January.

LIVEwire Poetry is a Leeds-based national organisation specialising in live events and writer development.

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Summer Solstice Book Fair
Jun
21
11:00 am11:00

Summer Solstice Book Fair

Tickets HERE

Join the Northern Fiction Alliance and Hyde Park Book Club at the Summer Solstice Book Fair!

Drop in between 11am and 3pm to browse the latest books from the North's best indie publishers. They'll be selling everything from poetry to short stories, sci-fi to literary fiction, so pop along to find your new favourite book.

From 3.45pm onwards, settle in for some author readings, followed by networking drinks with the authors and publishers. The full list of participating publishers is as follows: Stairwell Books, Comma Press, Dead Ink, Confingo, Northodox Press, Carcanet and Saraband.

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SI Leeds Literary Prize showcase
Jun
21
3:00 pm15:00

SI Leeds Literary Prize showcase

Tickets HERE

SI Leeds Literary Prize is the biennial award for unpublished fiction by Black and Asian women writers.

A national award with proud Yorkshire roots, the Prize has supported the careers of many successful writers, including Bradford's Saima Mir, Kit de Waal, Mahsuda Snaith, Amita Murray, Season Butler and Stella Oni.

This year’s event will provide an opportunity to hear the 2024 shortlisted writers reading from their fantastic submissions, spanning a wide range of genres, time periods and countries, from dystopian fiction to short stories, and to talk about the challenges and opportunities for writers today.

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Lence presents: Blur the Lines
Jun
21
7:00 pm19:00

Lence presents: Blur the Lines

Tickets HERE

Blur the Lines returns for a special event celebrating their 10th show since their very first one which took place at the inaugural Leeds Lit Fest.

Expect a night of powerful performances featuring poetry, rap and more! It’s been quite the journey, with two sold out shows at Leeds Playhouse plus an event in association with Come Play With Me, this year they’re also at Howard Assembly Room for Leeds Jazz Festival 2025.

Blur the Lines is curated and produced by the Leeds artist Lence, showcasing an array of creative talent from the city that blur genre lines and connect scenes.

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Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra
Apr
5
9:00 am09:00

Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra

Tickets HERE

A fusion of poetry, embodiment, and self-exploration to deepen self-connection, creative expression, and sensual awareness.

Join us on a transformative 8-part journey. Each session, we’ll explore a new aspect of sensuality, emotional openness, and expressive freedom - rooted in spoken word and tantric-inspired embodiment practices. We’ll journey through the chakras (from Root to Crown and beyond), learning to embrace and refine our unique voices. By the end, you’ll have cultivated a meaningful piece of poetic performance to showcase, celebrating your unfolding authenticity.

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Draft Night with Yvonne Battle-Felton
Apr
2
6:30 pm18:30

Draft Night with Yvonne Battle-Felton

Tickets HERE

Hear from ten emerging writers at a special draft night with author Yvonne Battle-Felton.

Join bestselling author Yvonne Battle-Felton for a special draft night and hear from ten emerging writers from the Northern Writers' Awards programme, who will give live readings of their works-in-progress.

The event will be held in The Snug at Hyde Park Book Club, Leeds.

Yvonne Battle-Felton is an author, academic, host, creative producer, and writer. Remembered (Dialogue Books/Blackstone Publishing) was longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction (2019) and shortlisted for the Jhalak Prize (2020). Yvonne has nonfiction children’s titles in Penguin Random House’s Ladybird series. Curdle Creek (Henry Holt/Dialogue Books) published October 2024. Yvonne is the Academic Director of Creative Writing at Cambridge University Institute of Continuing Education and a Senior Commissioning Editor at John Murray.

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For All The Winter Through Poetry Chapbook Launch
Apr
1
6:15 pm18:15

For All The Winter Through Poetry Chapbook Launch

FREE Entry

The debut launch event of Alex Callaghan's debut poetry chapbook released with Written Off Publishing, For All The Winter Through. The book is short, silly and simple, the perfect read to get you through the Winter or a particularly tough week.

The event will feature readings from the chapbook, as well as performances from other local poets.

Alex Callaghan is a non-binary poet from Yorkshire who performs around Leeds and runs the Bone Down open mic, and workshops with a focus on creativity divorced from capitalism, community and reclaiming public spaces.

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Writing For the World
Mar
22
1:30 pm13:30

Writing For the World

Tickets HERE

Join us to Write for the World in a Supportive and Inspiring Environment.

We warmly invite you to take part in our next Writing For the World workshop. In the lovely venue of Hyde Park Book Club, your hosts Ella and Lizzi will guide the group through writing prompt exercises before supporting you to write in what ever way is right for you as we navigate our feelings, thoughts and emotions around the climate crisis and environmental and global issues we are facing.

This workshop is for you if you:

Have strong feelings about the earth, life and your part in it

Are worried or concerned about the future

Would like to explore these topics creatively in a supportive environment

Want to connect with like-minded people

All writing materials will be provided, though please do feel free to bring your own pens and paper if you would prefer. No experience necessary.

Due to the serious nature of the session, we recommend it suitable for people aged 13+

We want to be wholly inclusive. If you have any accessibility issues, please contact us and we will do all we can to accomodate your presence. If the ticket price is a barrier, we have free spaces available. Email us at lizzi_pell@hotmail.com for all and any access support enquiries.

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Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra
Mar
22
9:00 am09:00

Embodied Word: Tabula Tantra

Tickets HERE

A fusion of poetry, embodiment, and self-exploration to deepen self-connection, creative expression, and sensual awareness.

Join us on a transformative 8-part journey. Each session, we’ll explore a new aspect of sensuality, emotional openness, and expressive freedom - rooted in spoken word and tantric-inspired embodiment practices. We’ll journey through the chakras (from Root to Crown and beyond), learning to embrace and refine our unique voices. By the end, you’ll have cultivated a meaningful piece of poetic performance to showcase, celebrating your unfolding authenticity.

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Let's Leap in to Spring - Resin Jewellery Workshop
Mar
15
9:00 am09:00

Let's Leap in to Spring - Resin Jewellery Workshop

Tickets HERE

Leap in to Spring and join Sasha Laverne for a creative and fun-filled morning at Hyde Park Book Club.

Get ready to unleash your artist and dive into the world of resin jewellery making!

Whether you're a beginner or have some experience, this workshop is perfect for anyone looking to explore their creativity and make stunning accessories.

You'll leave with your very own custom-made resin jewellery pieces, ready to show off that very same day!

During this hands-on workshop, you'll learn the exciting techniques of working with resin to create unique and vibrant pieces of jewellery. Our experienced resin jewellery Sasha Laverne will guide you through the entire process, from mixing and pouring the resin to adding colors and embellishments.

Don't miss out on this opportunity to learn a new skill and meet like-minded individuals in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere.

Grab your friends and make it a fun day out!

Fancy making your alphabet keyring as well for an extra £3? Find the ticket option when checking out.

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YAK! Reading group
Mar
8
11:30 am11:30

YAK! Reading group

FREE Tickets HERE

Join us for another installation of YAK! in response to the current show at HPAC, Julia McKinlay’s Slip Across These Planes. We will explore two texts, Flatland by Edwin Abbott Abbott, and The Poetics of Space by Gaston Bachelard, through a collective workshop, working together to investigate the relationships between space, shape and constructed realities. 

YAK! is a reimagined reading group, exploring radical histories through conversation and experimentation. Journeying through new worlds, we take inspiration from poetry, prose, letters, journals, speeches, and plays to better understand those that came before us and the world we live in today. 

This iteration of YAK! has been curated in collaboration with Wes Foster, and is hosted by Hyde Park Art Club.

Wes is a practitioner based in Leeds, UK. His image making is focused on the relationship between text and image, communities and social space and culture. His commercial practice focuses on photography and video of workshops, the arts, space and happenings. He is a digital communications specialist as well as writer, and his writing has been published in numerous places both in print and online, and focuses on collaborative relationships and culture.

YAK! is an ongoing alternative education project led by Alexander Stubbs. Alexander is a creative practitioner based in Hull, UK. Working primarily in text-based and collaborative practice, he explores the ways in which text and archives can be reanimated in new contexts. He has a particular interest in community-building practices, and often works with other artists to deliver workshops, reading groups, and community events. He enjoys working with young people and artists at all stages of their careers, especially in settings outside of mainstream education, and provides mentoring to a wide range of groups including early-career artists and young people. 

YAK! seeks to offer clarity, introspection, and dialogue for understanding the processes of our art making. It is a nomadic reading group, facilitating conversations in towns and cities across the UK, hosted in non-institutional spaces. 

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Roundhouse Poetry Slam 2025: regional heat
Mar
7
7:30 pm19:30

Roundhouse Poetry Slam 2025: regional heat

Tickets HERE

Roundhouse Poetry Slam returns to Leeds with one of its regional heats. Watch the performers slam it out for a spot at the Grand Final!

Join us for the Leeds Heat of the prestigious Roundhouse Poetry Slam competition. Bringing together emerging spoken word artists from across the UK to compete for a cash prize and the coveted title of Slam Champion 2025.

The Roundhouse has a trailblazing five-year partnership with international law firm Taylor Wessing. A well-known supporter of the arts, and with the Roundhouse specifically over the past few years, Taylor Wessing is the principal partner, including their dedicated support of the Poetry Slam.

Some of the best young poets in the North will compete against each other for a coveted slot at the Roundhouse Poetry Slam Grand Final. The judges for the evening are three highly acclaimed poets and performers, yet to be announced!

If you are interested in competing in the slam, you can express your interest here until 10am on Friday 15 November!

This will be an evening of spellbinding poetry in one of the North's best-loved alternative venues. The event is being produced in partnership between Roundhouse and LIVEwire Poetry.

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Leeds Cineforum presents a screening of ... Repentance
Mar
5
6:30 pm18:30

Leeds Cineforum presents a screening of ... Repentance

FREE JUST TURN UP

We’re screening Repentance, the 1980s Georgian Soviet political satire directed by Tengiz Abuladze.

Produced in 1984, the film was initially banned in the Soviet Union for its allegorical critique of Stalinism. But in 1987, the film was released to fanfare across the USSR, Abuladze was awarded the Order of Lenin, and he accompanied Mikhail Gorbachev on his first visit to New York. 

Immersed in a surreal atmosphere, it follows the days after the death of Varlam Aravidze, the Stalin-like mayor of a small Georgian town, when his corpse mysteriously keeps returning and appearing in the most unusual places. What does the return of this familiar tyrannical face mean for the town’s residents?

The film will be presented by Nathan Brand, a former PhD researcher at the University of Leeds. 

When and where: Wednesday, 5 March, from 6:30 PM onwards at Hyde Park Book Club.

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Sleeve Heart by Eleanor May Blackburn- Poetry Book
Feb
25
7:00 pm19:00

Sleeve Heart by Eleanor May Blackburn- Poetry Book

Tickets HERE

Eleanor is a neurodivergent, disabled, queer actor/writer/theatre-maker/poet from Sheffield. She had her first Chapbook ‘Ghost and Found’ published by Cerasus Poetry in 2021 but this is her first full length collection of poetry, published by Stairwell Books. Eleanor is a supported artist for Sheffield Theatres and has created 2 autobiographical solo shows: Subdural Hematoma and Does My Fanny Look Big in This?

Her collection Sleeve Heart is the musings and growing ups of a young adult who doesn’t quite feel like a grownup. Yet. Through her breaking, boredom, travelling and loving she discovers she absolutely wears her heart upon her sleeve and her poems fall impulsively, but always lovingly, off the tip of her tongue. She is confused by the way some people treat her, but don’t pity her: she never stays in one place for too long so she can’t stay sad and she never gets bored- there is always more to be done. Her greatest love story might surprise you, but it shouldn’t.

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Lippy Magazine Semester 2 Give it a Go!
Feb
8
7:00 pm19:00

Lippy Magazine Semester 2 Give it a Go!

Tickets HERE

Come and join us on Saturday the 8th of February for our semester two ‘Give it a Go’. There will be a chance to collect your pre-ordered copies of our ‘Soul’ issue as well as chat to other members or learn about Lippy if you are new! The event will take place from 7-10pm at the fabulous Hyde Park Book Club Snug area. There are limited tickets and they are free so make sure to grab one to ensure entry!

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HPAC- Re-imagining Leeds beyond the Eastside - Workshop
Feb
4
6:00 pm18:00

HPAC- Re-imagining Leeds beyond the Eastside - Workshop

Sign Up HERE

Join us for this FREE interactive workshop to re-imagine our city’s creative spaces in this exciting collaboration between Leeds Civic Trust x No Space Left to Play x Hyde Park Art Club.

Re-imagining Leeds beyond the Eastside invites you to explore the transformation of creative spaces in our city by reflecting on a collective vision for Leeds Eastside and an maps of lost spaces.

In this workshop, you’ll get the chance to map your ideas for future spaces and to translate them into collages using tracing paper and film photographs. The finished collages will be added to an ongoing archive that aims to influence the city’s future regeneration plans.

The workshop responds to Is This What We Have Left? exhibited at Hyde Park Book Club in 2024, focused on current dialogues about creatives and space.

You can find out more information about the collaborators of this event here:

Sign up today for this unique opportunity to shape the future of Leeds!

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The Long and Short
Jan
31
7:00 pm19:00

The Long and Short

Tickets HERE

Welcome to The Long and Short!

The Long & Short is an evening of true and personal storytelling, where ordinary people with a tale to tell share their stories related to a theme. This monthly event first started in Squamish, British Columbia and is making its way to Leeds on January 31st.

The theme is: Turning Over a New Leaf

This month we're celebrating New Year's resolutions gone wrong, periods of dramatic change and self improvement (cult stories are always welcome). Maybe this year’s 'new year new you' involves sharing your first story in front of a friendly audience! You do not need to be an expert, just come with a good bit of enthusiasm and something to share.

Interested in telling a tale? We have a few simple rules to follow:

Stories must:

- be true

- have happened to you

- be under 5 minutes long

- be connected to our theme - turning over a new leaf

SIGN UP by emailing el.parnham@outlook.com or sign up on the night.

And since a story isn’t a story without anyone to listen to it, you are also welcome to come along and listen.

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Does My Fanny Look Big in This?
Jan
21
7:30 pm19:30

Does My Fanny Look Big in This?

Tickets HERE

Have you ever been riding a homosapien and asked (internally) 'omg am I squashing this person like a double decker bus?'? Or stumbled mentally upon, 'please lord, let me have shaved my nipples'? (free the hairy nips.) That right there is sex anxiety, but not the kind where you can’t get interested in sex- just the kind where you’re afraid they’ll be offended by the smell of your fanny. Join Ellie as she navigates a class of 30 adolescents asking her anything about sex; and what happens when they go home?

Does My Fanny Look Big in This? Tackles sex education, validates sexual anxiety, and deals with sexual trauma while answering questions you’ve always been a little too embarrassed to ask. Let’s explore the sexual world through spoken word, uncomfortable noises, an inflatable sex doll, (bad) singing, anxiety and a limerick.

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SLIP ACROSS THESE PLANES - Julia McKinlay @ Hyde Park Art Club
Jan
17
6:30 pm18:30

SLIP ACROSS THESE PLANES - Julia McKinlay @ Hyde Park Art Club

Tickets HERE

The event will include an In-Conversation between Marion Harrison from HPAC and our artist Julia McKinlay plus DJ set from Speede Bump.

HPAC is delighted to announce our next exhibition at our loved home @hydeparkbookclub which will open with an artist in conversation with Julia McKinlay and Curator Marion Harrison and a set by DJ Speed Bump.

‘Slip Across These Planes’ will be a solo presentation of works by Leeds based artist @Julia_McKinlay.

McKinlay’s practice is a process of discovering a language of sculptural forms. Her work explores the boundaries of the human made in relation to organic and lithic matter. McKinlay’s practice is spatial, she is interested in how objects and images interact in space and form connections with the viewer, sometimes creating imagined worlds for the viewer to explore.

For McKinlay’s solo presentation here at Hyde Park Art Club, work shifts away from external subject matter towards capturing specific shapes colours and forms that linger in the artists mind.

‘These forms are a language specific to my practice and my way of processing of the world as I experience it, a conglomeration of moments concretised into something solid’

This new collection of bold printed and drawn matter responds to materials and offers a bodily utterance that can be felt as well as seen. An embodied articulation of McKinlay’s inner visual language which, seeks to interact and form further connections with the viewer and the space in which they are presented.

‘In ’Slip Across These Planes ‘ I am presenting a group of new drawings and prints, working principally with paper, pigments and sheet material to explore shape, surface, weight and colour. The artworks will explore the narrow spatial field of flat materials and how they can be cut, embossed, incised and polished into something that feels absolute.’

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Kurtis Brade reads 'First Time'
Jan
12
8:00 pm20:00

Kurtis Brade reads 'First Time'

Musician and poet Kurtis Brade celebrates the release of his debut spoken-word poetry album, ‘Kurtis Brade reads First Time’ with a special live event at Hyde Park Book Club.

Tickets are PAYF and donations are encouraged.

‘First Time’ is Kurtis’ debut collection of poetry and was published via Moor Publications in late 2024. Esco Romanesco Records released the recorded spoken word version on Jan 5th 2025.

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Boardgames Night
Jan
9
6:00 pm18:00

Boardgames Night

PAYF Tickets HERE

Start the New Year off right with an evening of boardgames with Cards or Die.

I’ll be there to teach and recommend from a massive variety of modern classics and retro
favourites. So, whether you fancy playing battleship and downfall or Cascadia and
Forbidden Desert, we’ve got games to suit every interest, age, ability and mood!
From co-op to brutally competitive – we’ve got you covered.

Get in touch with requests.

Solo gamers are encouraged. Please get in touch if there is anything I can do to help
with your visit.

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HPAC Presents... YAK! Reading Group
Dec
18
5:00 pm17:00

HPAC Presents... YAK! Reading Group

YAK! is an open and communal reading group exploring radical histories through conversation and text. Journeying into worlds of protest, art, and writing, we take inspiration from poetry, prose, letters, journals, speeches, and plays to better understand those that came before us and the world we live in today. Meant as a forum through which our artistic practices are read, YAK! seeks to offer clarity, introspection, and dialogue for understanding the processes and praxis of our art making. It is a nomadic reading group, facilitating conversations in towns and cities across the UK, hosted in non-institutional spaces. 

YAK! is an ongoing alternative education project led by writer and curator Alexander Stubbs.

Alexander is a writer and curator based in Hull. Working primarily in text-based practice, his writing explores the world through imaginary landscapes in order to deconstruct and decode memory, grief, and language. Alexander has a particular interest in community-building practices, and shared and embodied knowledge through collaboration. He works often with artist-led organisations to deliver workshops, reading groups, and mentoring to a wide range of groups, and regularly works in collaboration with other artists. He enjoys working with young people and artists at all stages of their careers, especially in settings outside of mainstream education.

As a collaborative exercise, YAK! invites artists and curators into the conversation, responding appropriately to the space the groups are hosted in and the moment in which they happen.

This iteration of YAK! has been curated in collaboration with Wes Foster, and is being hosted by Hyde Park Book Club and Hyde Park Art Club. 

Wes is a practitioner based in Leeds, UK. His image making is focused on the relationship between text and image, communities and social space and culture. His commercial practice focuses on photography and video of workshops, the arts, space and happenings. He is a digital communications specialist as well as writer, and his writing has been published in numerous places both in print and online, and focuses on collaborative relationships and culture.

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The elves and the Shoemaker
Dec
15
9:50 am09:50

The elves and the Shoemaker

Tickets HERE

2 shows 10am -11, and 11.30am- 12.30

Mr Shooz is on his uppers. Nobody wants to buy his footwear anymore! Then something magical starts to happen 

Someone, or something is making amazing shoes in the middle of the night and leaving them on his workbench every morning.

Who are the midnight cobblers and how can he say thank you in return? 

The elves and the Shoemaker is a sole-full treat suitable for children aged 3 - 7 (and people with size 11 shoes too)

Shoe-horned full of delightful puppet characters and magical surprises it's a perfect show for the winter season.

It's 45 mins long plus you can meet the puppets afterwards!

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Film screening of “Risate di gioia” + Italo disco
Dec
11
6:15 pm18:15

Film screening of “Risate di gioia” + Italo disco

FREE JUST TURN UP

Leeds Cineforum is re-launching, Italian style! We’re screening a 1960s Italian comedy classic that’s rarely seen in the UK: Risate di gioia / The Passionate Thief. Followed by a post-screening party featuring the best (and trashiest) Italo disco, DJ’d by our friend Mike Meter.

We couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate the Cineforum’s return than screening Risate di gioia. Set in swinging Rome on New Year’s Eve, the film follows struggling actors ‘Totorella’ (Anna Magnani) and ‘L’infortunio’ (Totò) through a series of parties, cabarets and mishaps as they try to infiltrate the upper echelons of Roman society.

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FINGS BY FLOSS 2ND BIRTHDAY
Dec
10
7:30 pm19:30

FINGS BY FLOSS 2ND BIRTHDAY

Join Fings, in celebration of their 2nd birthday. A small repayment thank you. Fings has grown far great than a sustainable clothing brand; there now comes a wide community of beautifully like-minded humans surrounding it. That deserves a party!! Clothing, drinks, music and a room full of magically creative humans. Come slow down your wardrobe, and your day, with Fings. 

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Festive Wreath Workshop
Dec
3
7:00 pm19:00

Festive Wreath Workshop

Tickets HERE

Join us for 2 festive hours of making fun. You will learn how to make a traditional moss based wreath with mixed foliage and berries. We will talk you through the whole process and give you any tips and assistance you may require. We will also bring a bag of festive additions for you to make your wreath really shine ready for your door!         

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Femme Fatale Faerytales Presents The Five
Nov
29
7:00 pm19:00

Femme Fatale Faerytales Presents The Five

Tickets HERE

Five: The Untold Story of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper

Join us for a haunting storytelling experience as adult storyteller Sasha Parker brings to life the untold tales of the five Women killed by Jack the Ripper. This unique performance delves deep into the lives and struggles of these women, presenting their stories from a perspective never heard before.

Step into the shadows with Sasha, where horror and trauma intertwine with flickers of light and hope. Sasha Parker, an evocative storyteller, invites you to witness the resilience of these women as they share their truths and return from the grave for one night only to cast light on what actually happened to them.

Prepare to be captivated, moved, and perhaps even find a light at the end of the night.

Join us for a night of storytelling that promises to resonate long after the final word is spoken!

FEMME FATALE FAERYTALES REVIEWS:

"It's like the women are speaking through you."

"Lyrical and stylish."

"A poetic bedtime story."

"Truly inspiring."

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Esprit De La Ruche Book Launch Party
Nov
28
6:00 pm18:00

Esprit De La Ruche Book Launch Party

FREE JUST TURN UP

The event is a celebration for the release of Aran Harris' book 'Esprit De La Ruche'. We are hoping to see plenty of Leeds and the North's creative faces for a night of socialising and catching up. He will be there selling a few of his copies and some prints, along with some drinks and a quick 'thank you' speech at 8pm. Start time will be 6pm but anyone is welcome to come at any time. The event is open invite!

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HPAC - Is This What We Have Left? Artists In Conversation
Nov
25
7:00 pm19:00

HPAC - Is This What We Have Left? Artists In Conversation

Tickets HERE

Join artists James Thompson, Kate o'Neill and Marta Dyczkowska in conversation about their current show 'IS THIS WHAT WE HAVE LEFT' and how their rich and conversant practices form a tale of two cities that has resonant effect.

Our current show is focused on the wider current dialogues we are having as creatives around space in our city, and this event will give you a chance to engage in discussions with artists from another city on the same theme. This is part of a series of events to accompany this exhibition. It will take place at Holding Patterns, a sister space to Hyde Park Art Club. At a time when our city mourns the loss of creative venues and space, we invite you to join us in celebrating this new addition to the cultural scene, and to join the conversation about what spaces mean to you in our city.

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HPAC - Workshop: Collective Recording of Hyde Park Book and Art Club
Nov
25
2:00 pm14:00

HPAC - Workshop: Collective Recording of Hyde Park Book and Art Club

Drop-in architectural frottage (rubbings) workshop with ‘Is This What We Have Left?’
artist James Thompson on Monday 25 th November between 2pm and 5pm based in
the snug space at the Hyde Park Book / Art Club.
The workshop gives you the opportunity to recorded architectural details of desire
from spaces across the Hyde Park Book Club using a similar architectural frottage
on paper technique used to produce one of the works in exhibition. James will be on
hand to provide support and demonstrate the process as you experiment with a
range of different media to capture an essence of the space.
Basic workshop materials will be provided, but you are welcome to bring along your
own drawing materials or paper to experiment with.


No Ticket required. Drop in.

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Sunday Vinyasa Yoga with Liv
Nov
24
1:30 pm13:30

Sunday Vinyasa Yoga with Liv

Tickets HERE

Sunday Yoga at Hyde Park Book Club

Come join us for a sunday yoga at Hyde Park Book Club. Open level class. perfect for anyone looking to unwind and stretch out on a Sunday. Move your body, flow to feel good and create stillness in your mind. Stick around for a coffee or brunch after - the perfect Sunday afternoon!

Please bring a yoga mat if you have one, however we will be able to provide some :) Liv X

Instagram @liv__moves 

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