York Ice Trail 2025: Taking the theme of Origins on February 1 and 2
YORK Ice Trail, Make It York’s annual “free weekend of frosty fun”, returns on February 1 and 2 with a 2025 theme of Origins as York’s streets are turned into an icy wonderland of frozen tableau.
Among the 30 ice sculptures showcasing 2,000 years of city history will be a Roman shield, a Viking helmet, a chocolate bar, a drifting ghost, a majestic train and a Yorkshire rose, all captured in the language of ice by ice sculpture specialists Icebox.
The ice sculptures will bring captivating tales to life, each telling a story from York’s rich heritage or depicting a moment of celebration or a creature that lived long ago.
On display too will be an origin block of ice, showing how each ice sculpture starts before Icebox’s team of professional ice carvers bring designs to life.
From 12 noon each day, visitors can experience the thrill of live ice carving demonstrations at St Sampson’s Square, where expert sculptors from Icebox will transform raw blocks of ice into works of art before your eyes.
Throughout the weekend, the grounds of Middletons Hotel will be transformed into The Sweeter Side of Life in a family-friendly showcase of four ice sculptures, including Sweet Like Chocolate, dedicated to the heritage of the hotel’s Sir Terry Alms Cottages. Look out too for The Ice Wall, where you can “‘freeze” yourself in a perfect photo moment.
York BID will be journeying back 2.4 million years to the Ice Age to present five prehistoric animals, once thriving in the frozen era but now extinct, brought to life anew in sculptural form.
Make It York managing director Sarah Loftus says: “We’re so excited for the York Ice Trail weekend! With these stunning ice creations set to transform the city, we can’t wait to see the incredible artistry and imagination that will bring the Origins theme to life.
“We’re incredibly grateful to all the local businesses whose support makes the York Ice Trail possible. Their contributions are essential to bringing this beloved event to life, and we couldn’t do it without them. See you there!”
Icebox managing director Greg Pittard says: “We are so excited to be returning to York this year with 30 spectacular ice sculptures, each telling a different story. With years of experience and a passion for creating ice masterpieces, Icebox takes pride in turning ordinary gatherings into extraordinary experiences.
“Our team of talented artisans worked closely with Make It York and partners to craft custom ice sculptures that reflect their unique vision, making this York Ice Trail an exceptional one that guests will talk about for years to come. Whether you’re a local or a visitor, you’ll thank us for this mesmerising experience!”
Illustrator Katie Smith with one of her giant Top Trumps cards to be hidden around the city during the Jorvik Viking Festival 2025. All pictures: George Slater
ILLUSTRATOR Katie Smith has come up Top Trumps for Jorvik Viking Centre.
Thousands of examples of her work will be handled by children and games fans around the world after the launch of a new set of the card game by the York visitor attraction.
Katie, who has worked for 18 months for York Archaeology, the charity behind Jorvik, has designed the newest addition to the Top Trumps game, newly on sale this week.
When Jorvik was approached to create its own set of Top Trumps, a game collected and played by enthusiasts globally, Katie leapt at the chance of designing a set of illustrations for the 30-strong pack.
Lisa Wood, head of communications and marketing for York Archaeology, says: “Top Trumps is an iconic game, and we wanted to create a set of cards that reflected Norse heritage, myths and legends, but unlike versions featuring cars or athletes, we couldn’t really photograph mythical creatures or Norse Gods, so this was an amazing opportunity to use Katie’s illustration skills.”
“Designing a set of Top Trumps and actually holding the completed game in my hand feels amazing,” says Katie Smith
York Archaeology Viking lore expert Lucas Norton created a list of characters to feature, whereupon Katie set to work creating the array of illustrations to be used on the cards. “It was a lot of fun, but also hard work making sure that the illustrations captured not only the look, but also the spirit of the character – and with their core strengths highlighted in the statistics below each image, that had to be right!” says Katie, 25.
Jorvik Viking Centre’s Top Trumps are on sale in the gift shop and online at jorvikshop.com, priced at £12.50.
The new game will feature in the Jorvik Viking Festival 2025, running from February 17 to 23. Giant Top Trump cards will be hidden in locations across the city, creating a new Viking-themed trail, and Katie will host an illustration workshop, aimed primarily at young artists aged 15 and over.
“There are so few opportunities for young people to explore opportunities in illustration, and I would have found it incredibly useful to have someone to talk to before I made my college and university choices about how you can turn a passion for art into a career,” says Katie.
“Breaking into the industry when you don’t know anyone within it can be tough, and it took me a couple of years of building a portfolio while working full-time in a very different role before I found my feet. Designing a set of Top Trumps and actually holding the completed game in my hand feels amazing.”
York Archaeologyillustrator Katie Smith will hold Art of Illustration workshop at Barley Hall on February 20
The Art of Illustration workshop will take place at Barley Hall on February 20 and will feature an introductory talk followed by a drawing workshop, where participants will be supported by Katie.
Each participant will receive a limited-edition Top Trumps card that Katie will sign. The workshop costs £10 per participant, with discounted tickets available for anyone on a low income. To book, visit jorvikvikingfestival.co.uk.
Top Trumps are made by Winning Moves. Yasmin East, custom games executive at Winning Moves UK, says: “We’re so happy we could include Katie’s illustrations and it’s now one of our favourite custom packs in-house with our designers and office nerds! We’re also really pleased we can be part of Jorvik Viking Festival. We love activities here and think it’s a smashing way to launch the game.”
Katie Smith: the back story
Illustrator and graphic designer, aged 25, from Armley, Leeds, with a degree in illustration from the University of Huddersfield. Worked in York Archaeology communications and marketing team for 18 months, creating eye-catching illustrations for posters, events and guidebooks used in York Archaeology’s attractions, Jorvik Viking Centre, DIG: An Archaeological Adventure and Barley Hall.
Taboo-shattering comedy: Ed Byrne in Tragedy Plus Time at Grand Opera House, York. Picture: Roslyn Grant
FROM Narnia to ice sculptures, comedy in wolf’s clothing to Ayckbourn’s 91st play, Charles Hutchinson finds plenty to perk up the days and nights ahead.
Taboo subject of the week: Ed Byrne: Tragedy Plus Time, Grand Opera House, tonight, 7.30pm
MARK Twain, the 19th century American writer, humorist, and essayist, defined humour as Tragedy Plus Time. Irish comedian Ed Byrne tests that formula by mining the most tragic event in his life – the death of his brother Paul from Hodgkin’s lymphoma at 44 – for laughs.
Byrne’s show carries the content warning “Discussions of death”. “But as with any subject I do, there are always digressions into asides,” he says. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Mark Reynolds’ illustration for Stewart Lee Vs The Man-Wulf, on tour at York Theatre Royal for five nights
Comedy and not comedy: Stewart Lee Vs The Man-Wulf, York Theatre Royal, January 28 to February 1, 7.30pm; The Shed presents Indeterminacy with Tania Caroline Chen, piano, Steve Beresford, piano and objects, and Stewart Lee, voice, National Centre for Early Music, York, February 1, 3.30pm
IN Stewart Lee Vs The Man-Wulf, Lee shares the stage with a tough-talking werewolf comedian from the dark forests of the subconscious who hates humanity. The Man-Wulf lays down a ferocious comedy challenge to the “culturally irrelevant and physically enfeebled Lee”: can the beast inside us all be silenced by the silver bullet of Lee’s deadpan stand-up? Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
On John Cage and David Tudor’s 1959 double LP Indeterminacy, Cage read 90 of his stories, each one, whether long or short, lasting precisely one minute. Unheard by Cage, Tudor simultaneously played the piano and other things in another room. Now Stewart Lee joins pianists Tania Caroline Chen and Steve Beresford to do their own version of Cage’s work in a 40-minute performance in one room, where the musicians do their best not to hear Lee’s reading. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk.
York Ice Trail 2025: Taking the theme of Origins on February 1 and 2
After this week’s deep freeze, here comes York Ice Trail 2025, February 1 and 2
YORK’S “free weekend of frosty fun” returns with a 2025 theme of Origins as York’s streets are turned into an icy wonderland of frozen tableau in this annual event run by Make It York. Among the 30 ice sculptures showcasing 2,000 years of city history will be a Roman shield, a Viking helmet, a chocolate bar, a drifting ghost, a majestic train and a Yorkshire rose, all captured in the language of ice by Icebox. Full details can be found at visityork.org/york-ice-trail.
The book cover for Elizabeth Sharkey’s Why Britain Rocked: Under discussion with musician and environmental campaigner husband Feargal at Pocklington Arts Centre
One-off interview comes into view: Why Britain Rocked: Elizabeth and Feargal Sharkey, Pocklington Arts Centre, February 13, 7.30pm.
FEARGAL Sharkey, former frontman of The Undertones, will interview his wife, author Elizabeth Sharkey, on one night only of her debut book tour: the final show, which just happens to be in Pocklington.
Together they will explore the history of British pop music, as charted in Why Britain Rocked: How Rock Became Roll And Took Over The World, wherein Elizabeth re-writes the established history by uncovering the untold stories behind Britain’s musical evolution and challenges the American claim to have invented rock’n’roll. Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.
The Corrs: Kicking off the 2025 season at Scarborough Open Air Theatre
Off to the East Coast this summer: Scarborough Open Air Theatre season
IRISH siblings The Corrs lead off Cuffe & Taylor’s 2025 season in Scarborough with support from Natalie Imbruglia on June 11. In the diary too are Gary Barlow, June 13; Shed Seven with special guests Jake Bugg and Cast, June 14; Pendulum, June 15; Basement Jaxx, June 21, and The Human League, plus Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey and Blancmange, June 28.
July opens with The Script and special guest Tom Walker on July 5; UB40 featuring Ali Campbell, with special guest Bitty McLean, July 6; Blossoms, with Inhaler and Apollo Junction, July 10; Rag’n’Bone Man, with Elles Bailey, July 11; McFly, with Twin Atlantic and Devon, July 12; Judas Priest, with Phil Campbell & The Bastard Sons, July 23, and Texas, with Rianne Downey, July 26. Box office: scarboroughopenairtheatre.com.
Bunmi Osadolor (Edmund), Jesse Dunbar (Peter), Kudzai Mangombe (Lucy) and Joanna Adaran (Susan) in The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe at Leeds Playhouse. Picture: Brinkhoff-Moegenburg
Touring show of the year: The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe, Grand Opera House, York, April 22 to 26, 7pm plus 2pm Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees
STEP through the wardrobe into the kingdom of Narnia for the most mystical of adventures in a faraway land. Join Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter as they wave goodbye to wartime Britain and say hello to Mr Tumnus, the talking Faun, Aslan, the Lion, and the coldest, cruellest White Witch.
Running at Leeds Playhouse until January 25 in the most spectacular production of the winter season, this breathtaking stage adaptation of CS Lewis’s allegorical novel then heads out on a new tour with its magical storytelling, bewitching stagecraft and stellar puppets. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Alan Ayckbourn: Directing his 91st play, Earth Angel, at the SJT, Scarborough, in the autumn. Picture: Tony Bartholomew
Alan Ayckbourn’s 91st play: Earth Angel, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, September 13 to October 11
STEPHEN Joseph Theatre director emeritus Alan Ayckbourn directs his 91st play, Earth Angel, wherein Gerald has lost his wife of many years. Amy was the light of his life, almost heaven sent. It is tricky thinking about life without her but he is trying his best to put a brave face on things, accepting help from fussy neighbours and muddling along as best he can.
Then a mysterious stranger turns up at Amy’s wake. He seems like a nice enough chap, washing the dishes and offering to do a shop for Gerald, but is he all that he appears? Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com.
In focus: The Waterboys’ new album and tour dates at York Barbican, May 15; Sheffield City Hall, May 9, and Leeds O2 Academy, June 17
Mike Scott: Leading The Waterboys at York Barbican for the eighth time on May 15. Picture: Paul MacManus
THE Waterboys will showcase “the most audacious album yet” of Mike Scott’s 42-year career, Life, Death And Dennis Hopper, on their latest return to York Barbican, having previously played their “Big Music” brand of folk, rock, soul and blues there in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2021 and 2023.
Released on April 4 on Sun Records, their 16th studio album charts the epic path of the trailblazing American actor and rebel, as told through a song cycle that depicts not only Hopper’s story but also the saga of the last 75 years of western pop culture.
“The arc of his life was the story of our times,” says Scott, “He was at the big bang of youth culture in Rebel Without A Cause with James Dean; and the beginnings of Pop Art with the young Andy Warhol.
“He was part of the counter-culture, hippie, civil rights and psychedelic scenes of the ’60s. In the ’70s and ’80s he went on a wild ten-year rip, almost died, came back, got straight and became a five-movies-a-year character actor without losing the sparkle in his eye or the sense of danger or unpredictability that always gathered around him.”
As a first taste of what lies in store, Hopper’s On Top (Genius) was unveiled on streaming and video this week, capturing the electric, heady moment when Hopper’s Easy Rider became a cultural phenomenon and cemented his place in Hollywood history. Buoyed by Scott’s searing vocals, vibrant instrumentation and a psychedelic edge, the song channels the euphoria and hubris of the 1960s’ counterculture that Hopper epitomised.
Scott worked for four years on Life, Death And Dennis Hopper. Produced with Waterboys bandmates Famous James and Brother Paul, the album spans 25 tracks that trace the trace the extraordinary ups and downs of Hopper’s life, from his youth in Kansas to his long rise, five wives, tumultuous fall and ultimate redemption.
The album cover artwork for The Waterboys’ Life, Death And Dennis Hopper, set for release on April 4
Every song has its own special place and fascinating, deep-rooted story. “It begins in his childhood, ends the morning after his death, and I get to say a whole lot along the way, not just about Dennis, but about the whole strange adventure of being a human soul on planet Earth,” says Scott.
The album will be The Waterboys’ first for Sun Records. “Hey, we’re label mates with Howlin’ Wolf and young Elvis,”says Scott, who is joined by a stellar line-up of guests, ranging from Bruce Springsteen, Fiona Apple and Steve Earle to Nashville-based Alt Americana artist Anana Kaye, English singer Barny Fletcher, Norwegian country-rockers Sugarfoot, Taylor Goldsmith of Dawes, Kathy Valentine of The Go-Go’s and punk arch-priestess Patti Palladin.
The 31-date UK and Ireland tour will run from May 1 to June 19. Box office: York, yorkbarbican.co.uk; Sheffield, sheffieldcityhall.co.uk; Leeds, academymusicgroup.com.
Life, Death And Dennis Hopper track listing:
1. Kansas (featuring Steve Earle) 2. Hollywood ’55 3. Live In The Moment, Baby 4. Brooke/1712 North Crescent Heights 5. Andy (A Guy Like You) 6. The Tourist (featuring Barny Fletcher) 7. Freaks On Wheels 8. Blues For Terry Southern 9. Memories Of Monterey 10. Riding Down To Mardi Gras 11. Hopper’s On Top (Genius) 12. Transcendental Peruvian Blues 13. Michelle (Always Stay) 14. Freakout At The Mud Palace 15. Daria 16. Ten Years Gone (featuring Bruce Springsteen) 17. Letter From An Unknown Girlfriend (featuring Fiona Apple) 18. Rock Bottom 19. I Don’t Know How I Made It (featuring Taylor Goldsmith) 20. Frank (Let’s F**k) 21. Katherine (featuring Anana Kaye) 22. Everybody Loves Dennis Hopper 23. Golf, They Say 24. Venice, California (Victoria)/The Passing Of Hopper 25. Aftermath
“We are passionate about getting the community involved,” says Art Of Protest Projects founder and creative director Jeff Clark
ART Of Protest (AOP) has been awarded a UK Shared Prosperity Fund grant by City of York Council to create a more vibrant, people-friendly, accessible space for all in Front Street, Acomb.
The grant will go towards installing a community mural and eight benches as part of a wider regeneration of Front Street.
Art Of Protest Projects, a social impact enterprise founded in 2016 and based in York, engages communities in place-making and public art, with its team of professional creatives, artists and storytellers having delivered a series of projects in York and beyond so far.
Many of the team reside in Acomb, making the latest project close to their hearts, and already AOP is proactive within the Acomb community, presenting their flagship creative learning workshops at York High School and Inspire Academy.
Founder and creative director Jeff Clark says: “We want to deliver something that the Acomb community can be proud of for decades to come. It’s not just about creating art, it’s about listening to the views of the people.”
Councillor Katie Lomas, City of York Council Executive Member with responsibility for Finance and Major Projects, says: “It is great to see the Front Street project taking another step forward and this is a very exciting part of the transformation. So far, we have seen new seating and planters installed, upgraded public toilets, improved Blue Badge parking and removed a significant number of bollards.
“We are looking forward to working closely with artists at Art Of Protest Projects to introduce public art to the area, which 68 per cent of respondents supported during our consultation last spring. We will continue listening to the community and get to the heart of what residents would like to see.
“It is vital that the local community is involved and helps to shape these designs, which will be part of Front Street for years to come, so I’d encourage everyone who lives or spends time in Acomb to share your thoughts. I would also like to thank everyone for their patience while work is ongoing in the area, and I look forward to seeing more of these improvements take shape as the project progresses.”
Jeff adds: “AOP aims to creatively engage and impassion individuals of all capabilities and backgrounds to build local capacity and skills. We believe that art is a common and universal language where people of all ages, creeds and beliefs can meet, engage and connect.”
AOP has tight deadlines set by UK Shared Prosperity Fund to complete the installation by the end of March, preceded by a series of open consultation events running during the last week of January and the first week of February.
Art Of Protest’s poster invitation to mural and benches engagement sessions in Acomb
Spray paint mural engagement sessions will be held at Acomb Explore Library on January 27, 5pm to 7pm, The Place, Acomb, January 28, 4pm to 5.30pm, and Gateway Centre, Acomb, February 3, 5pm to 7pm. Paint-a-pot benches engagement sessions will take place at The Place on January 29, 3.30pm to 4.30pm, and Acomb Explore Library on January 31, 10am to 12 noon.
Jeff says: “We want to build on the community consultations that have already taken place, listening to the views to celebrate Acomb’s heritage, to be bright, fun and inviting.”
For the mural consultations, he explains: “We are arranging a series of workshops at local schools, as well as creative spray paint workshops where participants can take away their own piece of art home and inspire the design brief for the mural. The mural will be a community totem, carefully crafted and shaped by community input”.
For the bench consultations, Jeff says: “Accessibility is really important and there is also an opportunity to signpost the local community to our green spaces and celebrate local flora. The bench engagement sessions will be an opportunity to chat about what you want to see, as well as paint your own plant pot to take away a seedling or plant.
“The curators’ responsibility is to capture as many Acomb residents’ voices and project them into one shared vision. We love the local area and want to create a legacy piece that celebrates all the local green spaces as well as Acomb’s connection to the oak trees.”
You can book for the engagement events at eventbrite.co.uk/o/art-of-protest-projects-40881047083 or by emailing workshops.aopprojects@gmail.com.
AOP is arranging drop-in sessions on Front Street with everyone welcome at The Place on January 30, 10am to 12 noon, Bluebird Bakery, February 1, 3pm to 5pm, and Gateway Centre, February 4, 2.30pm to 4.30pm.
A key aspect of the project is the Street Art Academy, delivered in partnership with The Place with its ethos to create, collaborate and increase curiosity, confidence and capability. This structured programme will up-skill and create cultural capital and legacy by providing career pathways in the creative industries.
In addition, a talent development opportunity will become available for participants to shadow the creation of the mural.
“We are passionate about getting the community involved,” says Jeff. “What’s really unique about the programme is the Street Art Academy focused on skills development and capacity building.
“AOP would love to hear from the local community and will be arranging a celebration event following the installation of the mural and benches with details to follow. If you have any queries, please get in touch with workshop.aopprojects@gmail.com.”
Colour & Light: York BID free event returns to York Minster from February 12
YORK Minster’s South Transept is to be illuminated with York wildlife down the centuries for the return Colour & Light from February 12 to March 2.
Building on the impact of the 3D projection mapping illuminations at York Minster in 2023 and York Art Gallery in 2024 that drew tens of thousands of spectators from York and beyond, this year’s large-scale visual arts project will highlight the city’s heritage and creativity once more in celebration of the city’s UNESCO Media Arts status.
This free event promises a “mesmerising projection” of famous and lesser-known stories of York’s animal world, from the peregrine falcons that call the Minster home and the foxes that roam the city after dark, to the horses on which the Romans rode into Eboracum and the legendary dragons carved into York’s history.
Carl Alsop, operations manager at York BID, says: “Colour & Light is fast becoming a highlight of York’s cultural calendar. The event started at York Minster in 2023, so we’re proud to partner with them again for our 2025 event.
“We’re particularly excited as this year’s projections showcase the diversity of wildlife and unique animal stories that makes York so special. By encouraging families and visitors to explore the city centre during these quieter months, we’re not only creating magical experiences but also supporting local businesses and reinforcing York’s vibrant evening economy.”
Colour & Light 2024 on the frontage of York Art Gallery
Lisa Power, York Minster’s head of events and participation, says: “We are thrilled to welcome Colour & Light back to York Minster this February. The inaugural display in 2023 saw the city welcome tens of thousands of people during what is often the coldest, darkest and quietest time of the year.
“This year’s projections will bring York Minster’s heritage to life, this time through a spectacular display of flora and fauna illuminating the cathedral’s South Transept. We hope that this beautiful display will once again remind everyone that York is open all year round!”
Colour & Light will run nightly from 6pm to 9pm with projections on a ten-minute loop. The final hour each evening will feature a designated quiet hour with reduced noise and crowd levels, ensuring everyone can enjoy the event. No tickets are required.
Colour & Light 2025 is funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, highlighting the importance of investing in cultural initiatives to support local economies and enhance community well-being.
Visitors are invited to explore York’s shops, restaurants and cafés as part of their evening. Join the conversation on social media via #ColourAndLight2025.
Laura Fraser’s DI Bea Metcalf on the York waterfront in Channel 4’s crime drama Patience. Picture: Channel 4
FROM a neurodiverse TV crime drama to an Oscar winner’s stage return, Charles Hutchinson picks highlights of the year ahead.
Seeing York through a different lens: Patience, Channel 4 from January 8, 9pm
CHANNEL 4’s six-part police procedural drama Patience, set in York, opens with the two-part Paper Mountain Girl, on January 8 and 9, wherein autistic Police Records Office civilian worker Patience Evans (Ella Maisy Purvis) brings her unique investigative insight to helping DI Bea Metcalf (Laura Fraser) and her team.
Written for Eagle Eye Drama by Matt Baker, from Pocklington, Patience is as much a celebration of neurodiversity as a crime puzzle-solver. “The centre of York itself is a little bit like a puzzle,” he says.
Lara McClure: Atmospheric storytelling at A Feast Of Fools II at the Black Swan Inn
Out with the old, in with the new: Navigators Art presents A Feast Of Fools II, Black Swan Inn, Peasholme Green, York, Sunday, 7pm to 10.30pm; doors, 6pm
YORK collective Navigators Art presents a last gasp of mischief in an alternative end-of-season celebration of Twelfth Night and Old Christmas, packed with live folk music, spoken word and a nod to the pagan and the impish.
Dr Lara McClure sets the scene with atmospheric storytelling, joined by York musicians Oli Collier, singer, guitarist and rising star Henry Parker, York alt-folk legends White Sail and poet and experimental musician Thomas Pearson. Book tickets at bit.ly/nav-feast2.
Seeing eye to eye: Rob Auton in his new touring comedy vehicle The Eyes Open And Shut Show
The eyes have it: Rob Auton: The Eyes Open And Shut Show, Burning Duck Comedy Club at The Crescent, York, March 5, 7.30pm; Leeds City Varieties Music Hall, May 3, 7.30pm
“THE Eyes Open And Shut Show is a show about eyes when they are open and eyes when they are shut,” says surrealist York/Barmby Moor comedian, writer, artist, podcaster and actor Rob Auton. “With this show I wanted to explore what I could do to myself and others with language when eyes are open and shut…thinking about what makes me open my eyes and what makes me shut them.”
On the back of last summer’s Edinburgh Fringe trial run, Auton goes on the road from January 27 to May 4 with his eyes very much open. Box office: York, thecrescentyork.com; Leeds, 0113 243 0808 or leedsheritagetheatres.com.
York-raised artist Harland Miller with his title work for the XXX exhibition at York Art Gallery. Picture: courtesy of White Cube (Ollie Hammick), 2019
No stopping him this time, please: Harland Miller: XXX, York Art Gallery, March 14 to August 31, Wednesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm
AFTER the first Covid lockdown curtailed his York, So Good They Named It Once show only a month into its 2020 run, international artist and writer Harland Miller returns to the city where he was raised to present XXX, a new exhibition that showcases paintings and works on paper from his Letter Paintings series.
Coinciding with the release of a book of the same title by Phaidon, XXX features several new Miller works, including one that celebrates his home city, in a hard-edged series that melds the sacred seamlessly with the everyday. The exhibition will be accompanied by a Q&A with the artist plus community activities to “inspire, inform and involve all”. Tickets: yorkartgallery.org.uk/tickets.
Gary Oldman in the dressing room when visiting York Theatre Royal last March to plan this spring’s production of Krapp’s Last Tape
Theatre event of the year: Gary Oldman in Krapp’s Last Tape, York Theatre Royal, April 14 to May 17
ONCE the pantomime Cat that fainted thrice in Dick Whittington in his 1979 cub days on the professional circuit, Oscar winner Gary Oldman returns to the Theatre Royal to perform Samuel Beckett’s melancholic, tragicomic slice of theatre of the absurd Krapp’s Last Tape in his first stage appearance since the late-1980s.
“York, for me, is the completion of a cycle,” says the Slow Horses leading man. “It is the place ‘where it all began’. York, in a very real sense, for me, is coming home. The combination of York and Krapp’s Last Tape is all the more poignant because it is ‘a play about a man returning to his past of 30 years earlier’.” Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Suzy Cooper and Mark Holgate: Teaming up as Titania and Oberon – and Hippolyta and Theseus too – in York Stage’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Look who’s back too: Suzy Cooper in York Stage’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Grand Opera House, York, May 6 to 11
GARY Oldman will not be the only former Berwick Kaler co-star returning to a York stage in 2025. Suzy Cooper, for more than 20 years the ditzy, posh-voiced, jolly super principal gal in the grand dame’s pantomimes, will lead Nik Briggs’s cast alongside York actor Mark Holgate as the quarrelling Queen and King of the Fairies, Titania and Oberon.
Briggs relocates his debut Shakespeare production from the court of Athens to Athens Court, a northern council estate, where magic is fuelled with mayhem and true love’s path still does not run smooth. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Beach hut five, Shed Seven: York band to make Scarborough Open Air Theatre debut in June
“Biggest ever headline show in their home county”: Shed Seven, TK Maxx Presents Scarborough Open Air Theatre, June 14
IN the aftermath of their 30th anniversary celebrations and two number one albums in 2024, refulgent York band Shed Seven will focus on the great outdoors in the summer ahead, fulfilling a dream by making a long-overdue Scarborough OAT debut, when Jake Bugg and Cast will be their special guests. “It’s a stunning and historic venue…Yorkshire’s very own Hollywood Bowl!” enthuses lead singer Rick Witter.
The Sheds also return to Leeds Millennium Square on July 11, supported by Lightning Seeds and The Sherlocks. Box office: Scarborough, scarboroughopenairtheatre.co.uk or ticketmaster.co.uk; Leeds,gigsandtours.com and ticketmaster.co.uk.
Bridget Foreman: Co-writer of York Theatre Royal and Riding Lights’ community play His Last Report
Community play of the year: York Theatre Royal and Riding Lights Theatre Company in His Last Report, York Theatre Royal, July 22 to August 3
YORK Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster and York company Riding Lights artistic director Paul Birch will co-direct a large-scale community project that focuses on pioneering York social reformer Seebohm Rowntree and his groundbreaking 1900s’ investigation into the harsh realities of poverty.
Told through the voices of York’s residents, both past and present, Misha Duncan-Barry and Bridget Foreman’s play will ask “What is Seebohm’s real legacy as the Ministry begins to dismantle the very structures he championed?” Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Nothing could burst Shed Seven’s celebratory balloons in 2024. Picture: Chris Little
CharlesHutchPress doffs his cap to the makers, creators, artists and shakers who shaped York’s year of culture.
Story of the year and gigs of the year:Shed Seven’s 30th anniversary annus mirabilis
GOING for gold anew, York’s likely lad Britpop veterans had the alchemist’s touch throughout their busiest ever year, matching Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin and Elton John in notching two number one albums in a year in January’s studio set A Matter Of Time and October’s newly re-recorded compilation Liquid Gold.
In a year of resurgent upward motion in York, one that ended with York City atop the National League, Shed Seven’s resurrection was crystallised by lead singer Rick Witter’s name being appropriated for a council road gritter but even more so by two nights of homecoming concerts at York Museum Gardens in July, when special guest Peter Doherty’s beatific smile best captured the exultant mood of celebration.
Tristan Sturrock’s Blue Beard versus Katy Owen’s Mother Superior in Wise Children’s Blue Beard at York Theatre Royal
You Should Have Seen It play of the year:Wise Children’s Blue Beard, York Theatre Royal, February 27 to March 9
“IT certainly won’t be boring,” promised Wise Children writer-director Emma Rice, and it certainly wasn’t. Blue Beard, her table-turning twist on the gruesome fairytale, was everything modern theatre should be: intelligent, topical, provocative, surprising; full of music, politics, “tender truths”, mirror balls and dazzling costumery.
It had comedy as much as tragedy; actors as skilled at musicianship as acting and dancing to boot, all while embracing the Greek, Shakespearean, cabaret, kitchen-sink and multi-media ages of theatre. So, why oh why, weren’t the audiences bigger?
Angst and anger: Bright Light Musical Productions in Green Day’s American Idiot
York debut of the year:Bright Light Musical Productions in Green Day’s American Idiot, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, July 4 to 6
BRIGHT Light Musical Productions staged the York premiere of punk rock opera Green Day’s American Idiot in Dan Crawfurd-Porter’s high-octane, politically driven, perfectly-timed production that opened on American Independence Day and the UK General Election day, also marking the 20th anniversary of Green Day’s groundbreaking album American Idiot.
“Personally, the issues it tackles have affected me profoundly, as they have many others,” said Crawfurd-Porter. “The aim is to give a voice to those who feel unheard, just as it has given one to me.” The show, with its commentary on America and the impact of politics at large, did just that.
Jack Savoretti performing at Live At York Museum Gardens, presented by the Futuresound Group. Picture: Paul Rhodes
Event launch of the year:Futuresound presents Live At York Museum Gardens, July 18, 19 and 20
LEEDS concert and festival promoters Futuresound stretched their wings to launch Live At York Museum Gardens, selling out all three nights featuring Anglo-Italian singer-songwriter Jack Savoretti and a brace of gigs by local heroes Shed Seven, each bill featuring York and Yorkshire support acts. One complaint, from Clifton, over the Sheds’ noise levels was rejected by City of York Council, and Mercury Prize winners Elbow are booked already for 2025.
Rob Auton: Comedy mined from self-examination at The Crescent, York
Comedy show of the year:Rob Auton in The Rob Auton Show, Burning Duck Comedy Club, The Crescent, York, February 28
ROB Auton, hirsute York/Barmby Moor stand-up comedian, writer, podcaster, actor, illustrator and former Glastonbury festival poet-in-residence, returned north from London with his tenth themed solo show.
After mulling over the colour yellow, the sky, faces, water, sleep, hair, talking, time and crowds in past outings, surrealist visionary Rob turned the spotlight on himself, exploring memories and feelings from his daily life, but with the observational comic’s gift for making the personal universal as the sublime and the ridiculous strolled giddily hand in hand.
Bristol street artist Inkie’s artwork for Rise Of The Vandals at 2, Low Ousegate, York
Exhibition of the year:Bombsquad’s Rise Of The Vandals, 2, Low Ousegate, York, June 22 and 23, June 28 to 30 and July 5 to 7
YORK art collective Bombsquad launched Rise Of The Vandals in a celebration of the city’s street art scene, taking over a disused office block with the owner’s permission but suffused with the underground spirit of squatters’ rights. Art was not only wall to wall, but even the loos were given a black-and-white checkerboard revamp too.
Spread over four floors in one of the tallest buildings in the city, the installation showcased retrospective and contemporary spray paint culture, graffiti, street art and public art in three galleries, complemented by a cinema room, an art shop and live DJs. There really should be more such artistic insurrections in York, instead of turning every shell of a building into another hotel or yet more student accommodation.
Honourable mention: National Treasures, an exhibition built around Claude Monet’s The Water-Lily Pond, as part of the National Gallery’s bicentenary, at York Art Gallery, May 10 to September 8.
Leading lights: Riding Lights’ new executive director Oliver Brown, left, and artistic director Paul Birch at Friargate Theatre in York
Re-enter stage right: Riding Lights Theatre Company and Friargate Theatre, Lower Friargate, York, under the new artistic directorship of Paul Birch, picking up the baton from late founder Paul Burbridge. York Theatre Royal Studio, re-booting for cabaret nights as The Old Paint Shop.
Behind you: Departing dame Berwick Kaler gave his last pantomime performance as Dotty Dullally at the Grand Opera House, York, on January 6 2024. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick
Exit stage left: Dowager dame Berwick Kaler, from York pantomimes after 47 years; Harkirit Bopara, from The Crescent community venue; The Howl & The Hum’s Sam Griffiths, from York and Leeds for London; At The Mill, from serving up theatre, comedy, music, fine dining and Saturday sausage sandwiches at Stillington Mill; The Victoria Vaults, from promoting gigs, in an enforced pub closure on December 11 after 160 years. The very next day, City of York Council upheld York CAMRA’s request to list the Nunnery Lane premises as a community asset. Watch this space.
Gordon Kane RIP. Picture: Gareth Jenkins
Gone but not forgotten:Gordon Kane, actor and good sport
A SCOTSMAN by birth and richly theatrical accent, but long resident in York, this delightfully playful screen and stage actor, and casual cricketer and golfer to boot, appeared in Time Bandits, The Comic Strip Presents and latterly Nolly and Buffering, but around Yorkshire he will be treasured for his work for York Theatre Royal, Shakespeare’s Rose Theatre, Harrogate Theatre and Hull Truck Theatre, not least in John Godber’s plays.
His good friend Mark Addy delivered the eulogy – written with typically mischievous humour by Gordon himself – at December 18’s funeral at York Cemetery.
Born to pun: Robin Simpson’s Dame Dolly in Aladdin at York Theatre Royal. Picture: S R Taylor Photography
PANTOMIMES, theatrical family adventures and a Wonderland experience are still delighting in 2024 as Charles Hutchinson also looks ahead to 2025.
Still time for pantomime: Aladdin, York Theatre Royal, until January 5 2025
LOOK out for CBeebies’ Evie Pickerill at the double, dashing between the Spirit of the Ring and the Genie of the Lamp in the fifth collaboration between Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster and Evolution Productions script writer Paul Hendy.
Paul Hawkyard’s villain returns to York after a winter away doing panto in Dubai to renew his Theatre Royal double act with Robin Simpson’s dame, playing bad-lad Ivan Tobebooed to Simpson’s Dolly (not Widow Twankey, note). Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
In the frame: Phil Atkinson’s bodacious baddie, Hugo Pompidou, in UK Productions’ Beauty And The Beast at the Grand Opera House, York. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick
Still time for pantomime part two: Beauty And The Beast, Grand Opera House, York, until January 5 2025
THE jokes are as cheesy as the French setting of the village of Camembert, brassier and fruitier too in Jon Monie’s script, as George Ure directs the Grand Opera House pantomime for the first time.
Tracy Beaker star Dani Harmer is a magically bouncy Fairy Bon Bon; Jennifer Caldwell delights as Belle; Samuel Wyn-Morris is a stentorian-voiced Beast/Prince; comedian Phil Reid’s Louis La Plonk and Leon Craig’s towering dame, Polly La Plonk lead the comic japes with gusto and Phil Atkinson sends up his French-accented dastardly hunk, Hugo Pompidou, to the max. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Bea Clancy’s Harrietty Clock and Marc Akinfolarin’s Pod Clock in The Borrowers at Hull Truck Theatre
“Perfect alternative to pantomime”: The Borrowers, Hull Truck Theatre, until January 4 2025
SET against a backdrop of Christmas in the East Riding of Yorkshire during the 1940s’ Blitz, artistic director Mark Babych’s enchanting production explores themes of adventure, friendship and the joy of love and togetherness in the tale of adventurous, spritely Borrower Arrietty Clock, who lives secretly under the floorboards of a country house.
Her small but perfectly formed family borrows from the humans above, but Arrietty longs for freedom and fresh air. However, the Borrowers have one simple rule: to remain hidden from the “human-beans”, especially bad-tempered housekeeper Mrs Driver and rebellious gardener Crampfurl. When an evacuee, a human boy from neighbouring Hull, arrives in the main house, Arrietty becomes curious… and starts making mistakes. Box office: 01482 323638 or hulltruck.co.uk.
Checks and stripes: Alice’s Christmas Wonderland at Castle Howard. Picture: Charlotte Graham
Madder than the Mad Hatter if you don’t see: Alice’s Christmas Wonderland, Castle Howard, near Malton, until January 5 2025
FALL down the rabbit hall into “an experience like no other”: Lewis Carroll’s Alice in her Christmas Wonderland at Castle Howard, where the CLW Event Design creative team, headed by Charlotte Lloyd Webber and Adrian Lillie, has worked on the spectacular project since January.
The stately home has been transformed into an immersive Christmas experience, dressed in set pieces, decorations and floristry, coupled with projections, lighting and sound by Leeds theatre company imitating the dog. Box office: castlehoward.co.uk.
Casting a shadow: James Willstrop’s villainous bruiser, Bill Sikes, in Pick Me Up Theatre’s Oliver Twist at Theatre@41, Monkgate, York
Dickens of a good show: Pick Me Up Theatre in Oliver Twist, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, 7.30pm on December 28 and 30, plus 2.30pm, December 28 and 29
HELEN Spencer takes the director’s reins and plays Fagin in York company Pick Me Up Theatre’s staging of Deborah McAndrew’s adaptation of Charles Dickens’s 1838 novel, described as a “a new version of Oliver with a festive twist”.
Not to be confused with Lionel Bart’s musical Oliver!, it does feature John Biddle’s musical arrangements to complement Dickens’s fable of Oliver Twist being born in a workhouse, sold into an apprenticeship and recruited by Fagin’s band of pickpockets and thieves as he sinks into London’s grimy underworld on his search for a home, a family and love. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Party invitation: The poster for Irie Vibes Sound System’s New Year’s Eve Party at The Crescent, York
New Year’s Eve Party: Irie Vibes Sound System, The Crescent, York, December 31, 8pm to 2am
IRIE Vibes Sound System bring the full rig and crew for a joyous night of reggae, roots, dancehall, dub and jungle to the closing hours of 2024 and beyond midnight. MC Sherlock Art will be on hosting duties, bringing the fire, while Lines Of Duty will be delivering their brand of dance music in Room 2, “manipulating long- playing micro-grooves for a full frequency audio experience”. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.
Music talk to note: The Arts Society, Helmsley presents Christmas In Bach’s Leipzig: The Christmas Oratorio of 1734/5, Helmsley Arts Centre, January 6 2025, 7.30pm
IN his illustrated talk, commentator, broadcaster, performer and lecturer Sandy Burnett explores how Johann Sebastian Bach brings the Christmas story alive in his Weihnachtsoratorium or Christmas Oratorio, written for Lutheran congregations in 1730s Leipzig.
An overview of Bach’s life and achievement precedes a close look at this magnificent work, where the German composer draws on various forms, ranging from recitative, arioso, aria, chorale and instrumental sinfonia through to full-blown choruses infused with the joyous spirit of the dance. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
Malton & Norton Musical Theatre’s poster for January’s production of Jack And The Beanstalk
First big show of the New Year at Milton Rooms, Malton: Malton & Norton Musical Theatre in Jack & The Beanstalk, January 18 to 25. Performances: January 18, 1pm and 5.15pm; January 19, 2pm; January 21 to 24, 7.15pm; January 25, 1pm and 5.15pm
MALTON & Norton Musical Theatre pantomime stars promise a family-friendly giant adventure packed with laughs, toe-tapping songs and plenty of audience participation.
Jack, his brave mother and their quirky friends will face off against the towering giant in a magical world full of comedy and surprises in an enchanting tale of bravery and beanstalks. Box office: 07833 759263 or yourboxoffice.co.uk.
Paul Hawkyard’s villain Ivan Tobebooed and Robin Simpson’s Dame Dolly in York Theatre Royal’s Aladdin. Picture: S R Taylor Photography
OUT with the old, in with the new, as the pantomimes season concludes and Charles Hutchinson’s 2025 diary starts to take shape.
Still time for pantomime: Aladdin, York Theatre Royal, until January 5 2025
LOOK out for CBeebies’ Evie Pickerill at the double, dashing between the Spirit of the Ring and the Genie of the Lamp in the fifth collaboration between Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster and Evolution Productions script writer Paul Hendy.
Paul Hawkyard’s villain returns to York after a winter away doing panto in Dubai to renew his Theatre Royal double act with Robin Simpson’s dame, playing bad-lad Ivan Tobebooed to Simpson’s Dolly (not Widow Twankey, note). Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Samuel Wyn-Morris’s Beast and Jennifer Caldwell’s Belle in Beauty And The Beast at Grand Opera House, York. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick
Still time for pantomime part two: Beauty And The Beast, Grand Opera House, York, until January 5 2025
THE jokes are as cheesy as the French setting of the village of Camembert, brassier and fruitier too, in Jon Monie’s script, as George Ure directs the Grand Opera House pantomime for the first time.
Tracy Beaker star Dani Harmer is a magically bouncy Fairy Bon Bon; Jennifer Caldwell delights as Belle; Samuel Wyn-Morris is a stentorian-voiced Beast/Prince; comedian Phil Reid’s Louis La Plonk and Leon Craig’s towering dame, Polly La Plonk lead the comic japes with gusto and Phil Atkinson sends up his French-accented dastardly hunk, Hugo Pompidou, to the max. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Marc Akinfolarin’s Pod Clock in The Borrowers at Hull Truck Theatre
“Perfect alternative to pantomime”: The Borrowers, Hull Truck Theatre, until January 4 2025
SET against a backdrop of Christmas in the East Riding of Yorkshire during the 1940s’ Blitz, artistic director Mark Babych’s enchanting production explores themes of adventure, friendship and the joy of love and togetherness in the tale of adventurous, spritely Borrower Arrietty Clock, who lives secretly under the floorboards of a country house.
Her small but perfectly formed family borrows from the humans above, but Arrietty longs for freedom and fresh air. However, the Borrowers have one simple rule: to remain hidden from the “human-beans”, especially bad-tempered housekeeper Mrs Driver and rebellious gardener Crampfurl. When an evacuee, a human boy from neighbouring Hull, arrives in the main house, Arrietty becomes curious… and starts making mistakes. Box office: 01482 323638 or hulltruck.co.uk.
The poster for Irie Vibes Sound System’s New Year’s Eve Party at The Crescent, York
New Year’s Eve Party: Irie Vibes Sound System, The Crescent, York, December 31, 8pm to 2am
IRIE Vibes Sound System bring the full rig and crew for a joyous night of reggae, roots, dancehall, dub and jungle to the closing hours of 2024 and beyond midnight. MC Sherlock Art will be on hosting duties, bringing the fire, while Lines Of Duty will be delivering their brand of dance music in Room 2, “manipulating long- playing micro-grooves for a full frequency audio experience”. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.
Professor Kettlestring: Launching a new attraction in York next month
First grand opening of the New Year: The Puzzling World Of Professor Kettlestring, Merchantgate, York, from January 10 2025
WELCOME to Matthew and Marianne Tritton-Hughes’s new attraction, The Puzzling World Of Professor Kettlestring, an immersive, educational world of more than 20 optical illusions, interactive exhibits and brain-bending challenges designed for curious minds of all ages.
Visitors can walk into the Professor’s sideways living room, disappear into his incognito chamber and discover a kitchen parlour where heads appear severed on platters. Box office: puzzlingworldyork.co.uk.
Jessica Steel: Performing at The Crescent in aid of Millie Wright’s Children’s Charity
Fundraiser of the month ahead: Lindow Man and Jessica Steel & Stuart Allan, The Crescent, York, January 11 2025, 7.30pm
ELECTRIFYING York soul, blues and rock’n’roll trio Lindow Man and York blues and soul singer Jessica Steel and guitarist Stuart Allan will play in aid of Millie Wright’s Children’s Charity.
Based at Leeds General Infirmary, the charity is committed to addressing inequalities in hands-on charitable support for families looking after children with life-threatening conditions by working towards providing practical and emotional help to parents and carers via Family Support Workers. Pizzas from Curious Pizza Company will be available on the night. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.
Chris McCausland: Playing the Grand Opera House in 2025 and 2026
Comedy gig announcement of the week: Chris McCausland, Yonks!, Grand Opera House, York, February 3 2025 and May 17 2026
AFTER lifting the glitterball trophy as the ground-breaking first blind contestant on Strictly Come Dancing, Liverpool comedian Chris McCausland will return to his “day job” on his Yonks! tour, now to be extended into 2026.
Appearing on Sky Max over Christmas with fellow comic Lee Mack as sparring neighbours who must take on a gang of thieves in the festive film Bad Tidings, McCausland has added a second York date after selling out the first. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Public Service Broadcasting: Heading to York Barbican in March
Belated York debut announced: Public Service Broadcasting, York Barbican, March 27 2025, doors 7pm
AFTER 15 years of “teaching the lessons of the past through the music of the future”, London archivist art rock pioneers Public Service Broadcasting will make their York Barbican debut next spring with a line-up of corduroy-clad J Willgoose Esq., drummer companion Wrigglesworth, flugelhorn player J F Abraham and Mr B, specialist in visuals and set design for live performances.
Last October’s fifth studio album, The Last Flight, was built around the ill-fated final flight of American aviator Amelia Earhart on July 2 1937, when she disappeared over the Pacific Ocean while attempting to become the first woman to fly around the world. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Gallery owner Terry Brett holding an artwork by Alan Stokes, part of the Deck The Halls 30th anniversary Christmas exhibition at Pyramid Gallery, York
CHRISTMAS may be a time of joy and festivities, but for Terry Brett, curator and owner of Pyramid Gallery in, Stonegate, York, the season is a “strange time”.
“We prepare for it throughout the year from March,” he writes in his latest blog. “By the time we eventually get to the first week of December I am totally washed out by the whole thing.”
Terry goes on to outline the challenges of mounting Pyramid’s 30th anniversary Christmas exhibition, Deck The Halls, featuring minimalist lithographs by Alan Stones, from Cumbria; metal boxes by Marcus Steel, from the North York Moors; hares and foxes by Blandine Anderson, from Bude; ceramics by Craig Underhill, from St Ives, and paintings by Frans Wesselman, from Worcester.
On show too is glass sculpture by David Reekie, from Dickleburgh, Norfolk; ceramics by Ben Arnup, from York; prints by Mychael Barratt, from London, and portrait art by John Wheeler, from Middlesbrough.
Those challenges vary from a lorry hitting the National Trust-owned building on Monday, to the impact of the York Christmas Market, to the vagaries of the artists who exhibit at Pyramid.
Ceramicist Ben Arnup in his York studio
The lorry first. “I came in at 9.30am to see a large gouge in the render under the overhanging bay and Sarah sweeping the pavement,” writes Terry. “The lorry had mounted the pavement in an attempt to get past a van that was parked opposite our building.
“For me, it was a complete waste of half a day, with more time wasted on Tuesday and probably for the next two months.
“The landlord is the National Trust and they are responsible for the structure, but I need to talk to them about it and provide photographs and videos etc, so that they can assess the damage and make a claim from the truck company’s insurance. They have sent two people to inspect. They are very good, but it all takes time!”
Next, York Christmas Market. “I would like to say that the Christmas Market benefits York, but I have nothing but negative thoughts about it,” writes Terry. “Saturdays are ruined. Except for Saturday 7 December, when York was blasted by Storm Darragh. Thank you Storm Darragh for closing down York Christmas Market.
“The closure for one day was announced on the media and in Pyramid Gallery we had our best trading day since the day we sold a large Paul Smith bronze fox in February 2024. For me this just proves my worst fears about having a Christmas Market in York.”
Windswept Oak, lithograph, by Alan Stokes
Terry continues: “It used to be a nice event – a single weekend when everyone dressed up for the Victorian Christmas Fair. Now it is just a calamity with people coming in droves and queuing for sausages or mulled wine, then realising that they need a toilet, so they now have to queue for a cafe (because there are not enough public toilets in York).
“My customers prefer not to come into the city centre on a Saturday afternoon. It’s a disaster. Except when there is a storm – Storm Darragh I Love You! P.S. Sundays are much more pleasant in the city centre and Pyramid will be open between 11am and 5pm this Sunday.”
Thirdly, the artists and makers. “We know certain things will sell well, but we always want to offer something fresh,” writes Terry. “It’s very difficult to know what will work, so we tend to ask too many makers for too many things – and if everything arrives, it is a logistical nightmare!
“The artists may or may not be able to get the work to us in time – for various reasons (e.g. equipment failures, health issues, family issues, production issues due to trying something new), so again we tend to ask for work from more makers than we really need.”
Certain things could be sold over and over again, if Terry were able to acquire them. “Here is an example: Gin Durham,” he writes. “She lives in High Wycombe and in a studio in her house she produces the most delightful ceramic hares and foxes with highlights to the ears in gold lustre.
Paintings by Frans Wesselman and ceramics by Craig Underhill
“This year she had some health issues and needed to take things easy. She wanted to get work to us, but the task of packing it all up for posting was just too much. When she does send it, there is sometimes a casualty or two and this is a massive ‘downer’ for any artist.
“So, even though we have been talking to her since spring, the work was not going to be arriving. So I said, ‘what if I drive down to High Wycombe? Can I collect?’ And that is how I spent a day last week.”
Terry arose at 6am and arrived back home at 8.30pm, having driven 540 miles. “The hares and foxes have nearly all sold within a week,” he writes. “But this is needing a huge amount of my time…
“Even though I managed to also see the brilliant sculptor Jeremy James in Derbyshire (he let me take away 26 pieces which are now part of the Christmas show) and also Alison Vincent, who makes those astonishing waves and icebergs in glass, when she is not diving with sharks or swimming with Orcas! I absolutely love visiting artists and collecting work, but it takes it out of me and prevents me updating the website.”
Terry, nevertheless, ends on a high note: “The gallery is looking its very best. The work that artists have given us is astonishing and I thank everyone who has said this to me over the last four weeks. Thank you!.”
Pyramid Gallery, Stonegate, York, is open every weekday, 10am to 5pm; Saturday, 10am to 5pm; Sunday, 11am to 5pm; Christmas Eve, 10am to 3.30pm or 4pm; closed Christmas Day and Boxing Day; December 27, 11am to 4pm; closed New Year’s Day.
The poster for Deck The Halls at Pyramid Gallery, York
