The first wave of events at Bradford Cathedral during the first four months of the UK City of Culture year have just been announced.
It will include a play, a talk, tours, an exhibition, music recitals, and much more.
Bradford City of Culture 2025
And the cathedral is hiring! Deadline is 23 january for all three jobs – check them out here.
As part of our major project for City of Culture 2025, we will be helping people to explore the rich heritage of Bradford through the historic threads of the wool trade that go back to our foundations 1,400 years ago and bind our global city together. We will host demonstrations, offer tours around our many links with the wool trade and present art exhibitions on the theme of our woollen history. To accompany this, we will be placing a large loom in the Cathedral and inviting everyone to add a piece of wool to a large tapestry that will hang in the Cathedral after 2025. This legacy tapestry will represent the countless stories of people’s connection to Bradford.
The theme for the first third of the year is ‘Creativity Under Pressure’:
“Arts and culture are at their most powerful and meaningful when they flow from the crucibles of life. At times of upheaval, trauma and change, artists, poets, musicians rise up to express in new creative ways the unchanging, universal truths of humanity.
“It is under pressure that the arts become their most prophetic, pointing us to new possibilities, hidden hope and wells of strength. This season we will be presenting exhibitions, performances and events that inspire us to explore why this is and how we can engage with it.”
The season begins in January with the return of the weekly free organ recitals Wednesday@One, with the programmes played by the guest organists reflecting the theme of Music in Times of War.
Two Historical Pilgrimages will be held on Saturday 18th January, where you can journey around the ancient building to the sound of prayers, poetry, stories, hymns and music of former times.
January will conclude with a special Holocaust Memorial Service, and local school children will be invited to the Cathedral as part of a Bradford Schools of Sanctuary event, where children’s author Tom Palmer will speak about how many of his books feature refugees and why that matters to him.
Moving into February and Bradford Cathedral will be represented at the Blaise Wool Festival at Bradford Industrial Museum. On the same weekend two Ecclesiastical Textiles’ Tours will be run at the Cathedral, where you can discover the amazing stories behind the Cathedral’s textiles.
On the 10th February the Beacon of Hope exhibition will launch, featuring work created by the creative voices of students from Carlton Bolling School, with a presentation evening being held later in the month.
Moving into March and two Morris & Co. Stained Glass Window Tours will be held on the Saturday before Morris’ birthday anniversary.
Then, in April, there will be five performances of Gideon: a play with music, a piece about Gideon Klein, a bright and brilliant young composer murdered by the Nazi, a co-production between Bradford Cathedral, Bradford Reformed Synagogue and Modalways CIC.
Finally, on the last day of the month, there will be the first in a series of events under the banner of Re:Imagine, exploring Intercultural Conversation.
Also, during this season, Bradford Cathedral will be one of the host venues for The Third Anglican Intercultural Mission Conference; there will be further videos documenting the creation of a model Cathedral by Michael Scott; you can explore the history of the Cathedral through the outdoor timeline; and the Cathedrals Cycle Route baton will be on display, with more to be announced.
There are also the regular services, events and meetings held at Bradford Cathedral, including the return of the monthly Bradford Faith Trail from March, and everyone is welcome to discover the Cathedral by visiting during the daily opening hours.
The Revd Ned Lunn, Canon for Intercultural Mission and the Arts, says:
“This season, we invite you to explore the transformative power of creativity in the face of adversity. As we embark on a journey through the first months of Bradford’s UK City of Culture year, we celebrate how art and culture thrive under pressure—whether it’s through music, storytelling, or visual exhibition.
“From stirring organ recitals to the first of our new Re:Imagine series of conversations, each event invites us to reflect on the strength of the human spirit in times of challenge and change.
“Join us at Bradford Cathedral, where creativity will not only inspire but also offer new possibilities, hidden hope, and shared strength. We look forward to welcoming you to a season full of reflection, discovery, and inspiration.”
More events and exhibitions will follow later in the year, with more information available on the Bradford Cathedral website. Future themes include ‘Weaving Stories’ (May – September) and ‘Global Connections’ (September – December), and within these there will be an exhibition from Airedale Stitchers called Our Bradford; a new piece called Woven Lives; and a Heritage Open Day celebrating the work of women in the Cathedral’s windows and textiles. More will be announced soon.
For the Weaving Stories project the Cathedral are also looking to fill three paid roles of Project Evaluator, Sound Artist, and Visual Artist, and more information about these can be found online from Monday 16th December.
Sitting alongside these will be the next Yorkshire Heritage Way pilgrimage; the Art of Andalucia flamenco evening; the launch of the next Cathedrals Cycle Relay; the New Music Biennial; Bradford Festival Choral Society: Echoes of Eternity and the next Chordiality concert.
You can find out more about all the events happening from January to April 2025 – and beyond – by clicking here, calling the Cathedral office on 01274 77 77 20, visiting the Cathedral during its daily opening hours, or picking up a What’s On booklet.
