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Beloved Holi Festival returns to Leeds in 2023 – and it’s bigger and more colourful than ever

The annual event is bringing cultures together.

Clementine Hall Clementine Hall - 3rd March 2023

One of Leeds’ best-loved – and most colourful – events of the year is back for 2023, and it’s going to be bigger than ever before.

Holi Festival – known as the Festival of Colours – is a joyous celebration of peace, love, happiness and equality through live music and bright colours. 

Leeds Holi Festival 2022 was a triumphant success and saw 1,200 Holi Lovers making it the biggest Colour Festival in Yorkshire, but this year, Holi Festival are kicking it up a notch and are bringing 2,500 people together to celebrate – making it the biggest open air colour festival in the UK.

The event commemorates forgiveness and peace and is widely celebrated in India and adopted around the world for celebration.

Beloved Holi Festival returns to Leeds in 2023 / Credit: Leeds Holi Festival

Holi Festival celebrates the welcoming of spring and is seen as a time for people, no matter what caste or ethnicity, to get together and enjoy a feeling of togetherness, community and happiness.

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This year’s celebrations in Leeds are set to involve the traditional dry powder paints, as well as the serving of street food, live DJs and performances right in the heart of the city.

Red is the sign of love, yellow is synonymous with healing properties, blue is the colour of Lord Krishna, and green symbolises new beginnings – and through the use of these vibrant colours, Leeds Holi Festival aims at bringing different cultures together with different genres of music under one roof.

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It’s set to be bigger and more colourful than ever before / Credit: Leeds Holi Festival

Eshaan Kapoor, founder of Leeds Holi Festival said: “Our purpose is to bring different cultures together, spread love, positivity through music, colours and food. It is best known around the world for the powder that friends and families throw on each other and it’s the festival of love, peace and happiness.”

Holi Festival’s main sponsor this year is Leeds-based taxi firm Amber Cars – who will be providing festival goers safe journeys to and from the event with no added surcharge.

“We are proud to sponsor such a vibrant, unique festival and be part of Leeds Holi Festival,” said Tarlochan, Regional Director at Amber Cars.

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“Amber cars will be providing safe rides to all festival goers making their journey safe and secured”.

is a joyous celebration of peace, love, happiness and equality/ Credit: Leeds Holi Festival

British-Pakistani singer-songwriter, Zack Knight, will be headlining the event and providing the ultimate party tracks for guests to dance all day whilst being covered head to toe in bright colours from Ministry of Colours.

Other sponsors include Kirkstall Brewery and Slingsby Gin, with Punjabi Heaven from Roundhay providing delicious street food for the day. Through finding Yorkshire-based sponsors, the festival aims to bring like-minded people together to make Holi Festival one of the biggest events in the Leeds calendar.

Holi Festival will take place on 11 March 2023 at Beaverworks from 12.30pm till 7.30pm.

Tier one and two tickets have already sold out for the seven hour event, but remaining tier three tickets are still available to grab.

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For more information, visit the Leeds Holi Colours Festival 2023 Instagram Page.

Featured Image – Leeds Holi Festival

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The best glamping spots near Greater Manchester you can get to by train

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson The best glamping spots you can reach by train near Manchester

We all LOVE a little escape into the countryside, with so many beautiful spots around Greater Manchester to explore – and did you know there are loads of glamping spots you can get to by train?

Whether you’re wanting to ditch the car for a greener mode of transport, or you just don’t actually own your own car, this selection of gorgeous staycations are accessible by public transport within two hours. 

Dark sky reserves, wild swimming spots, heather-covered hills, and more are all on your doorstep, right across the North West. 

And even better, Canopy & Stars will give you a £75 voucher towards your next stay when you travel by rail to one of their beautiful accommodation options. 

So without further ado, here are some of the best glamping spots you can reach by train from Greater Manchester.  

Rufus’s Roost Treehouse, York

Rufus Roost
Rufus Roost
Rufus Roost
Rufus Roost
The best glamping spots you can reach by train near Manchester

I doubt you’ve ever laid eyes upon a home as fairytale and whimsical as this one…

You access Rufus’s Roost via a tree-lined boardwalk, leading to a gorgeous wooden lodge that looks like a magical turreted wooden castle. 

Inside you’ll find all sorts of quaint details, like banisters made from twisted branches, a secret tunnel leading to a cosy reading nook, a slide, a pretty mezzanine bedroom and loads more. 

Outside, there’s a hot tub, pizza oven, and a veranda where you can watch out for wildlife.

And on your doorstep you’ll have the beauty of the North York Moors and Dales, a GoApe at Dalby Forest, and a Pizza Shack within a 10 minute walk. 

Treehouse for six from £324 per night

Train: 1 hr, 40m from Manchester Victoria to Thirsk

Haedd, Shropshire

Haedd, Shropshire
Haedd, Shropshire
Haedd, Shropshire
Haedd, Shropshire

If your idea of a perfect weekend is being cosy, reading books, playing board games and drinking wine in front of a roaring fire, this retreat is the one for you. 

An old stable has been converted into a cosy hideaway on the edges of the Shropshire Hills, and inside it looks like something that’s been lifted from an interiors magazine.

There’s a hot tub beneath some of the UK’s starriest skies, an outdoor shower, a campfire with a Dutch oven, a hammock, and a kamado BBQ, plus plenty of more modern features like underfloor heating, luxury bed linen, robes, and fairy lights. 

When you stay at Haedd you’ll be able to go foraging for wild garlic in the surrounding woodland, grab local meat from the butcher a mile away, walk down to Leintwardine’s riverside pub for a refreshing pint (or an equally refreshing river swim). 

It’s just half a mile from the nearest train station, so you can walk or arrange a lift from your hosts. Bliss. 

Barn for two from £135 per night

Train: 2 hr, 7m from Manchester Piccadilly to Bucknell Station

Falling Water, Yorkshire

Falling Water
Falling Water
Falling Water
Falling Water

Now it’s time for a staycation you might have seen on screen – Falling Water at Ponden Mill had a star turn on George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces. 

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And what makes this woodland hideaway so amazing, you ask? How about the fact it’s built on top of a flowing stream?

The accommodation has floor-to-ceiling windows so that you feel completely immersed in your surroundings despite being tucked up in a giant double bed. And when the early morning light filters through Falling Water’s stained-glass door, it’s enough to take your breath away. 

You can spend your days exploring Bronte country and the Pennine Way before you cosy up with the sound of the stream running right past your pillow. 

The hosts of Falling Water will pick you up from Haworth station. 

Cabin for two from £170 per night

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Train: 1 hr, 40m from Manchester Victoria to Thirsk Train Station

Silva Treehouse, Cumbria

Silva Treehouse
Silva Treehouse
Silva Treehouse
Silva Treehouse

We’ve already shown you the magic of Silva Treehouse in Cumbria, but in case you missed it, let’s recap. 

This multi-level hideaway has three luxury bedrooms, a beautiful open-plan kitchen and living room with gigantic windows looking across the countryside, loads of outside space, including a veranda with a log-fired hot tub, and piles of board games to entertain you. 

Oh sorry, I forgot to mention the best bit – a slide, that will whisk you down beneath the house to a covered outdoor den, with a ping pong table, dartboard, pizza oven, fire pit, hammocks, and a bar. Pretty cool, right?

The Lake District is within a stone’s throw of Silva Treehouse, or you can take on a scenic riverside walk to the Featherstone Arms for hearty pub grub.

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Treehouse for six from £336 per night

Train: 1hr, 30m from Manchester Piccadilly to Penrith (North Lakes) or 1hr, 48m from Manchester Picadilly to Carlisle  

Poppy, Yorkshire

The best glamping spots you can reach by train near Manchester
The best glamping spots you can reach by train near Manchester
The best glamping spots you can reach by train near Manchester

The owners of Poppy, a Shepherd’s hut in the Yorkshire Dales, know a thing or two about creating a perfectly picturesque British escape – just look at it. 

From the adorable sleeping nook with a king-size bed and floral wallpaper, to the compact farmhouse kitchen, to the fairy-lit veranda, it’s as far removed from the busy city of Manchester as can be (while being less than two hours away on the train). 

This off-grid hut’s outside space really sets it apart, with access to a wood-fired sauna, twin outdoor bathtubs, and even a dog washroom for your four-legged family member. 

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Poppy is located on the edge of the Nidderdale National Landscape and Yorkshire Dales National Park, surrounded by a wildflower meadow, wild river swimming, and firepit feasts. 

Shepherd’s Hut for two from £149

Train: 1 hr, 40m from Manchester Piccadilly to Thirsk Train Station

Caban Cefncoed, North Wales

Imagine if Little House on the Prairie came to the UK but there were brunches on your private terrace, a swing to watch sunsets from, and a bunkbed with a rock wall you can scramble up to get in. Sounds pretty idyllic, right? 

This is Caban Cefncoed, a private little cabin where you’ll find unspoiled views, a roaring log burner and total peace and quiet (apart for the odd visit from the owner’s Labrador). 

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The owner also has a list of Strava routes you can use to explore the local area, with loads of activities including white water rafting and hiking in nearby areas like Llangollen, Chirk or Froncysyllte.

Cabin for two people – from £139 per night.

Train: 2hrs 30min from Manchester Piccadilly to Chrik Station (via Flint)

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Featured image: Canopy & Stars

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A huge free careers festival geared towards young creatives is coming to Manchester this week

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

The Catch22 TikTok Creative Academy and Factory International are hosting a careers festival in Manchester this week, designed to empower young creatives. 

The huge free event on Thursday 3 April will take over Aviva Studios, offering everything from speed mentoring to CV clinics to expert talks. 

Attendees will be able to have a free headshot taken, meet employers and like-minded creatives, and generally get a feel for how to build a career in the creative industry.

The Career Festival will boost Manchester’s creative future by supporting the next generation of creators, investing in their skills and confidence. 

It’s all geared towards young people aged between 16 and 24 who face challenges in finding sustainable careers within the creative industries.

On the day, attendees will be able to receive one-on-one career advice from top industry professionals in speed mentoring sessions, learning from experts in marketing, media, production and more. 

They’ll also be able to network with organisations, training providers and employers including Crew gal, Walk the Plank, and Gate Films.

Expert talks will give advice on how to break into the industry, while a CV clinic will help to hone CVs into a stand-out that’ll get a foot straight in the door, along with free headshot portraits. 

A huge free careers festival geared towards young creatives is coming to Manchester this week
A huge free careers festival geared towards young creatives is coming to Manchester this week
The Catch22 TikTok Creative Academy and Factory International careers festival. Credit: Mark Crayden Photography

And the whole time attendees will be surrounded by other creatives, building a network that could launch them towards their next big opportunity. 

The TikTok Creative Academy, delivered by Catch22 and funded by TikTok, is a free employment program designed to provide vital support to young people aged 16-24 seeking to enter the creative industries.

It’s been specifically targeted towards young people who experience barriers to employment, whether that’s because of challenges like mental health and limited educational attainment, or involvement with the criminal justice system.

The programme itself has a free employment course, offers targeted supports, and opens the door to the industry, fostering networking and career development. 

The Catch22 TikTok Creative Academy and Factory International careers festival.
The Catch22 TikTok Creative Academy and Factory International careers festival.
The Catch22 TikTok Creative Academy and Factory International careers festival. Credit: Supplied

It also offers practical skills development and emphasises creative abilities to help young people thrive. 

Quote from TikTok Creative Academy Senior Service Manager, Hilda Dotsey: “At Catch22, we are acutely aware of the challenges that young creatives face when it comes to finding sustainable employment in the creative industries and we are about to mark the 1000th person supported into work, training or further education through TikTok Creative Academy. 

“With lack of industry insight and experience cited as one of the key barriers to quality creative careers, it is fantastic to be partnering with Factory International once more. 

“This event, which celebrates our third year of delivering the programme, will open up pathways for Manchester youth, linking up the next generation of creative talent with industry experts and Manchester’s top creative voices.”

The Catch22 TikTok Creative Academy and Factory International: Career Festival will take place at Aviva Studios from 1pm to 4pm on Thursday 3 April. 

You can find out more about Catch22 and the services available HERE. 

Read more: MediaCity launches brand new state-of-the-art creative content space

Featured image: Mark Crayden Photography

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