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Festival Review: Bearded Theory 2026

Now a firm staple of the local festival calendar, Bearded Theory takes place in the beautiful Derbyshire countryside and is a haven for music lovers looking to kick start their festival season with plenty of wonder and family fun. Taking place over an extremely hot and sunny May bank holiday weekend, the 2026 edition boasted one of the most stacked line-ups of local, national and international talent that we can remember. To give us an insight, LeftLion contributor Marta Tavares went along to report from Catton Park…

Film review: The Last Spy

Katherina Otto-Bernstein’s insightful documentary ‘The Last Spy’ delves into the life of Peter Sichel, a German-born Jew who served in the United States’ secret service throughout the aftermath of Nazi occupation and throughout the Cold War.

Film review: Surrender to It

From the creative mind of the Midlands’ own Nottingham Television Workshop comes Tim Bryn Smith’s latest feature film, Surrender to It. This compelling narrative weaves together a journey of adventure, the pain of loss, and the enduring power of friendship.

The Thompsons on festivals and killer cows

Our latest catch up with Nottingham's most opinionated grocers...

Film review: The Devil Wears Prada 2

Strike a pose, your favourite iconic quartet has strutted back onto our screens after twenty years, ready to fulfil fans with their charm, ambition, and cerulean clothes. The Devil Wears Prada 2, directed by David Frankel, has officially hit UK cinemas and here’s what to expect…

Undercover artist: Heather Hodkinson champions Green Hustle festival

Our Green Hustle festival-inspired May cover is the work of artist Heather Hodkinson who, as well as helping to shape the visual identity of Green Hustle, has lent her talents to promote lots of other green initiatives around Notts. She talks to us about her love of collage and why it’s important to get out and about.

Out of time: a tale of two hotels on Derby Road

Two hotels once stood on Derby Road, and played roles in some unusual Nottingham history – one facilitated a dramatic confrontation featuring local suffragettes, the other housed a ‘mini Scotland’. Here’s the hidden history in those now-innocuous locations.

Here's why you cannot miss Dot To Dot Festival in 2026

Dot to Dot is a very special sort of music festival. Held in Bristol and Nottingham over a single weekend, it brings together local scenes and underground darlings, the concrete and the extreme. This year’s lineup is especially strong, with its mix of sleazy electroclash, Irish alt-grunge, rough and tough punk, and Americana emo, all culminating in a once in a lifetime experience...

Comedy, music festivals and local talent: Here's what's on this week in Nottingham 18 -24 May

 This week in Notts! Enjoy local theatre performances and live comedy, or head to Dot to Dot music festival and dance the night away in various venues across Nottingham. Here's our top picks...

What to expect from Green Hustle festival 2026

After five joyous, community-celebrating and grassroots action-galvanising Green Hustle Festivals, the team behind the event are this month putting on the most expansive and exploratory edition yet. With the theme of ‘Sow Good’, Green Hustle CIC Co-Director and LeftLion Environment Editor Adam Pickering guides us through how the crew hopes to seed a sustainable and thriving Notts through creativity, inclusion and inspiration.

LeftLion Interviews Podcast #17: Crazy P’s Jim Baron on international tours and festivals, soundtracking The Sopranos and his new venture White Elephant

This episode we are joined by Jim Baron from Crazy P who talks about his career in music, starting a band in Notts that became internationally renown, soundtracking for film and TV and his new venture White Elephant...

Competition: Win A Family Pass for Gloworm Festival 2026

We’ve teamed up with Gloworm Festival to give two lucky familes a truly magical adventure at Gloworm Festival, taking place at Thoresby Park this summer...

14 great music festivals in and around Nottingham for 2026

You can feel it starting... The evenings are lighter and the first warm weekends spark everybody into optimism, and suddenly someone shares a line-up in a group chat and writes, ‘We have to go!’

Across Nottinghamshire and the wider east midlands, 2026 is shaping up to be another packed one. Big-name headliners, grassroots weekends, city takeovers and quieter escapes all sit side-by-side. If you want to start planning your festival season soon, here are some suggestions. 

Record Store Day 2026 in Nottingham

Music aficionados united in Nottingham for Record Store Day 2026, a celebration of everything vinyl. We visited three of the city’s top record shops to soak up the vibe of a day dedicated to physical music and the enduring strength of independent retail...

Why Nottingham could be the UK’s next indie film city

Last month, we were lucky enough to be invited to the Q & A screening of The Correction Unit hosted by the folks at cinema collective Lounge Trip. From there, we mingled with the cast and crew of the film as well as local filmmakers to find out just what Nottingham needs in terms of funding for films, plus one big question: could Nottingham become the UK’ next indie film capital? 

Put your records on: eleven Notts vinyl stores worth visiting on Record Store Day

On 18 April it’s Record Store Day – a celebration of that unique grassroots culture which, even in the face of constant adversity wracking the UK music scene, endures and provides a community for innumerable lovers of physical media. Since the fifties, Nottingham’s been a hub for well-visited record stores, some becoming legendary like Selectadisc – which once hosted The Clash in store – and Way Ahead – who as well as selling vinyl also sold tickets for one of Oasis’ biggest tours. Music has changed a lot over the last few years, but here’s eleven record shops still worth checking out

Immersive indie theatre, all day gigs, impactful exhibitions: here's what's on in Nottingham this week 30 March - 5 April

This is a great week in Notts for music and art lovers... check out our top picks.

Film review: Palestine 36

1936. Tensions are rising across Mandatory Palestine, as the grip of British colonial forces tightens. Rising unemployment, heavy Jewish immigration, and an infectious sense of frustration trigger a national general strike and acts of violence that change a nation.

St. Paddy's Day and... unemployed donkeys? Here's what's on this week in Nottingham, 16 - 22 March

Each week in Notts is different, but during the coming week there's set to be a particularly high amount of events that set themselves aside from the norm... here's what's going on... 

Gig review: Widow's Rock n Rollium with Hystamine and You Want Fox at Billy Bootleggers for International Women's Day 2026 Nottingham

On International Women’s Day Billy Bootleggers played host to the Widow’s Rock n Rollium - a spicy night of cabaret, burlesque, bands and fierce femme energy, featuring bands You Want Fox and Hystamine. We went down to check it out…

Shakespeare Unfolded Festival: A celebration of insightful performances and creative exploration coming to Nottingham

Between Mon 16 – Sat 21 March Nottingham's Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall will be hosting a free festival of performances, workshops, academic insight and open mic nights; inviting audiences to experience William Shakespeare’s classic works in new ways...

Here's what's happening this International Women's Day in Nottingham

There's plenty happening in Nottingham this weekend to celebrate International Women's Day - check out workshops, performances, and exhibitions and support our city's wonderful women.

Film review: Hamnet

Chloe Zhao (acclaimed director of Nomadland) treats the story with dignity, passion and dedication. Knowing how tough the scenes would be to film, she insisted on the cast having dancing sessions after particularly difficult takes

Film review: Train Dreams

Answering Johnathan Ross’s question on ‘…choosing an ambitious project like Crime and Punishment for a debut’, Aki Kaurismaki responded, ‘Hitchcock said he would never touch that book because it is too difficult. And I said, “I’ll show you, old man.” It was too difficult.’

Night Creatures Podcast #5: Adam and Rob Perkins from Boho Festival on organising Notts parties from the 90s to now

Night Creatures is a LeftLion podcast, shining a light on the promoters of Nottingham. Your host and interviewer is Beane, co-founder of Nottingham’s beloved Soul Buggin’ night and he brings with him two decades of experience of putting on great parties in the city.