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Review: Gate To Southwell Festival

Despite its size, Gate To Southwell Festival offers a surprisingly deep and wide array of music and entertainment for all the family, attracting folk and roots artists from all over the world. LeftLion spent Saturday there and came away very impressed...

Nottingham designer and entrepreneur, Sara Christie talks about merging representation, authenticity, and empowerment with her family heritage

Nottingham designer and entrepreneur, Sara Christie, is no stranger to turning heads with her iconic, bold, statement accessories and signature chunky chains. Since the launch of her label BYSARACHRISTIE in 2020, her pieces have garnered a cult following. Fans include the likes of global superstar Kelis, popular singer-songwriter RAYE and actress Sarah Niles to name a few. Following the launch of her latest collection, The Empress Collection, we caught up with Sara to find out more…

Kings Of Leon, PETEBOX, Acoustickle, Women in S.T.E.M and a picnic. Here's what's on in Nottingham this week - 8th-14th July 2024...

This week Nottingham is bringing you music galore, kicking it off with BRIT Award winners Kings of Leon on Monday night. Then, later on in the week, the first LeftLion Live Podcast with The Petebox, and local acts from Acoustickle and Cultural Vibrations will come together for 15th anniversary showcases. Plus we have an exciting day of talks, that will celebrate women in S.T.E.M, a comedy night and much more.

In Photos: Push Rope with Airport Dad and Retina at Rough Trade

Gig review and interview: Calva Louise speak our language at The Bodega

The feast is far from over: a band fluent in electronica rock and fuzzy grunge, before their Rough Trade Nottingham gig, we sat down with Jess Allanic, Alizon Taho, and Ben Parker of Calva Louise to discover what it really means to be an oportunista...

In photos: Could Be Real Tribute Festival at Newstead Abbey

LeftLion headed to the beautiful Newstead Abbey for a one-of-a-kind event featuring 10 of the UK's best musical tribute acts across two stages. It may not have been the real thing, but that didn't stop everyone having fun...

Hedonism at Wollaton Hall: the Haçienda comes to Nottingham

The party of all parties comes to Nottingham, with support from a legendary, local, much-loved music brand.

We learned about the Big City Reads project, which is giving away thousands of books to Nottingham’s youngsters

Books broaden young people’s horizons, give them an educational leg up, and can even provide big health benefits - but sometimes reading gets costly. We learned about the Big City Reads project, which is giving away thousands of books to Nottingham’s youngsters…

Nadia on... Pride

Regular columnist Nadia Whittome talks about Pride Festival

Review: Monuments and Melodies all-dayer at Rough Trade

2024’s Monuments & Melodies Festival at Rough Trade Nottingham promised to be "a beacon for music enthusiasts”. LeftLion spent the day, and discovered a varied and dazzling array of talent, showcasing alternative music at its best...

Gig review: Sting and Nile Rodgers at Forest Live

The Forest Live concert series at Sherwood Pines – our area's largest public woodland, and part of Nottingham's back garden – has become a firm favourite on the local music festival scene. LeftLion went down to the woods and witnessed two legendary names, Nile Rodgers & CHIC and Sting, in action...

We speak to The Pastel Project about safety, healthcare, education, and making Nottingham a Trans Sanctuary City

Trans identities have become a huge news topic in recent years. Despite only 0.5% of the population reporting their gender identity and sex to be different than when registered at birth*, the media often leads us to believe that trans people pose a risk to the wider society, while trans people are rarely given a voice.

To learn more from the community themselves, we put some questions to Nottingham organisation The Pastel Project, to hear how they are looking to make Nottingham a Trans Sanctuary City, and understand their perspective on topics such as safety, law-making, healthcare, and education.

*respondents in the 2021 UK census

Festivals, exhibtions and gigs: Here's what's on this week in Notts: 1 - 7 July 2024

This week in Notts! Enjoy some homegrown talent on the canal at Waterfront Festival or an array of tribute acts at Could Be Real Festival, take an arty excursion to New Art Exchange or have a family day out at the Sneinton Festival.

Festival review: Day three at Download Festival

A fortnight ago, Download 2024 had reached its final day. LeftLion was there to witness an incredible climax to a weekend of rock and metal music at Donington Park...

Festival review: Day two at Download Festival

This time two weeks ago, LeftLion was fully immersed in the world of Download, the spiritual home of rock and metal music. Here's what happened on day two of the festival...

Festival review: Day one at Download Festival

Every year, thousands of rock fans from across the globe make the pilgrimage to Donington Park, only half an hour from Nottingham city centre. This year, LeftLion joined them for an epic weekend at the 2024 edition of Download, perhaps our country's most legendary rock and metal music festival. Here's what happened on day one...

Gig review: Belle Chen at Metronome

Belle Chen is a captivating modern classical artist, born in Taiwan and raised in Australia. Last week, she graced the stage at Nottingham's Metronome – a venue with a growing reputation for bringing our city the very best in established and new touring music as part of their ongoing Piano Sessions series...

Notts Book Arts Festival Returns To A Library Near You

'Blend' is the word at this year's celebration of zines, illustrations and bookbinding...

Nottingham Arts Theatre: The Full Monty review

Middle aged men stripping off...

A Mini-Tour of The Nottingham Poetry Festival

Every summer a wave of dreamy-eyed people bearing notepads descends upon the city...

Now, although only in its seventh edition, the Nottingham Poetry Festival is already one of our most treasured parts of our cultural calendar. This year LeftLion sampled just a small slice of what was on offer...

Dig it! We speak to York Archaeology about community digs at Wollaton Hall

Every year since 2019, a motley crew of students and local history enthusiasts has descended upon Wollaton Hall for a series of archaeological training excavations. They can be easily spotted about the grounds: a happy-looking crowd clad in mud stained high-vis, gleefully digging away or enthusiastically explaining themselves to curious park-patrons. These digs are run by Laura Parker and Tristan Cousins, community archaeologists from York Archaeology, who I met to talk about the project…

Gig review: John Grant at Rough Trade

The great man that is John Grant visited Nottingham’s Rough Trade to support the release of his brand new album The Art of The Lie. We headed down to watch his performance and Q&A with the album’s producer Ivor Guest...

Sneinton Community Festival is 20!

Sneinton Community Festival is a free family festival, this year taking place from the 6 to 14 July, for the people of Sneinton and beyond. This year’s theme ‘There’s no place like home’ celebrates the diversity, different cultures and ways of being in the area. Organiser Kathryn Cooper takes a look at the history of the festival and what is coming up this year.

In photos: Eyre Llew with Pacific K and Matt Darin at Rough Trade

Well-loved local band Eyre Llew took to the Rough Trade Nottingham stage to play a very special local show before setting off for a European festival trip. Support came from Pacific K and Matt Darin. Nigel King captured the action...

We Speak to Indie Musician Electronic Cherry Seraph Ahead of Her Bodega Gig

Female producer and queer artist Cherry Seraph's sonic evolution over the years is displayed throughout her discography. She released her debut EP mid-pandemic, and since then explores an ethereal genre bending sound. We caught up with Cherry ahead of her gig at The Bodega on 11 July.