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X Factor Auditions in Nottingham: This is Not a Drill

Spare your neighbours’ ears and flex your vocal chords in front of a panel of judges instead. X Factor 2019 open auditions are coming to Notts, so it’s time to show ‘em how much talent lies in this citeh.

Ayup Duck: The Latest Nottingham News

What's been rufflin' Ayup Duck's feathers this month? 

Interview: The Staircase lawyer David Rudolf

We caught up with David Rudolf, Michael Peterson’s criminal defence lawyer from the compelling Netflix documentary series The Staircase, as he arrives in the UK for a series of speaking engagements...

Left Magpie: Dracula has a Better Record Against Crosses...

Kübler-Ross may sound like the type of enigmatic signing Notts need to pull themselves out of the bleakness that has befallen the season, but its presence at Meadow Lane is almost as significant.

Tentacles is a Creative Collective for Disabled and D/deaf Writers in Nottingham

Tentacles takes place at Nottingham Playhouse on Wednesday 30 January, 5pm.

Two People and a Wheelchair User

"Two people and a wheelchair user." This was once said while we were booking a table. I laughed it off, just happy to be going out. I still knew that I was being pegged as the “other”. Even the term “disabled person” sounds like we’ve been deactivated. “Invalid” sounds like we’ve failed at being human and should try harder next time. I can’t represent all “disabled people” any more than I could answer “what women think” questions as the only female on a discussion panel, but there needs to be a conversation led by those directly affected by these barriers to inclusion. I’m gobby, so I’ll start.

Film Review: Dumplin'

Netflix original film Dumplin' made us laugh AND cry, but was it actually any good? 

Manu Delago's Parasol Peak: A Music and Film Project Recorded in the Alps

What happens when a group of musicians lug their instruments up a mountain in the Alps to record an album? This month, multi-instrumentalist and composer Manu Delago brings his fascinating new project, Parasol Peak, to Metronome. Fusing music and film, the result is raw and mesmerising. We caught up with Manu ahead of the screening and live performance…

Under Cover Artist: David Severn

This month’s cover artist is one of the most hardworking photographers in the city. Having just released his Whitby Goth Weekend photobook, and with a bunch of other projects in the pipeline, we sat down with David Severn to get the skinny on his wrestling shoot at Nottingham’s House of Pain, for this issue of LeftLion...

The Thompson Brothers on New Year’s Resolutions, Def Leppard and Wrestling

Nottingham's most opinionated grocers on...

Ayup Duck: The Latest Nottingham News

left Brian: Discovering Fire

In his excellent book Sapiens, Yuval Noah Harari explains that with the discovery of fire, humans leapt from mid-table in the natural food chain to top of the league, seemingly overnight. And although the physical benefits of this were obvious in terms of our diet and ability to tame the natural world, psychologically humans had evolved to fear predators and therefore subsequently struggled (and indeed, may still be struggling) to adapt to a life which no longer involved checking over our shoulders every five minutes for a peckish lion. Deep in our nature is a fear of the unknown and a natural predilection to suspect you could get eaten at any moment.

5 Community Christmas Dinners in Nottingham

Christmas is a funny ol’ season. Although its celebrations can often provide lots of laughs, the C word can also be stressful for many who feel lonely at this time of year. Whether you’re looking to get into the giving spirit and help out, or just want to enjoy Christmas with others, here are some community dinners happening in Notts...

5 Albums to Listen to This Christmas Holiday

All the good stuff for your tabs from some cracking Notts musicians...

Live Music Review: Dom Pipkin’s Smokin’ Boogie at Peggy’s Skylight

If you like blues piano then you will almost certainly have liked Dom Pipkin's Smokin' Boogie piano show at new Nottingham Jazz Bar Peggy's Skylight on Sunday 16 December…

Theatre Review: Red Riding Hood at Nottingham Lakeside Arts' Djanogly Theatre

We took a little person to Nottingham Lakeside Arts' Djanogly Theatre to check out Red Riding Hood...

New Exhibition at Lakeside Arts Marks the Centenary Since the Death of British Artist Harold Gilman

Nottingham Lakeside Arts’ Djanogly Gallery host the first extensive survey of his work in over 35 years with Beyond Camden Town...

Discotech are Making a Home in Notts

Notts is a pretty good place to parteh. And we're not the only ones who think so. Originally Derby-based, house heads discotech are setting up shop here in the new year...

Can You Spot The Difference Between These Photos of Nottingham?

Oh, how Nottingham has changed over the years. We’ve gone from an industrial mining town full of factories and goose flogging, to a city crammed full of restaurants, call centres, arty shops, and one proper cool magazine. For a fun game of spot the difference, here are a few modern-day shots, alongside some found in John Henry Spree’s Nottinghamshire: a book of photos from around 1910, up to around 1930, put together by the photographer’s great grandson Alan Spree…

4 Books From Notts Authors to Read This Christmas Holiday

There’s no time like Crimbo to get stuck into the printed pages of a new novel or poetry collection. The turkey’s roasting, the fire’s crackling and the wine’s mulling, giving you plenty of time to curl up in your stretchy trousers and prepare yourself for a feast of literary goodness…

Christmas Without Abuse and Violence: A Campaign for Midland Women’s Aid

Midland Women’s Aid are running a campaign to raise funds for Christmas presents that'll go to 26 children escaping domestic abuse…

The Nottingham Hidden History Team Have Saved Many a Cave From Destruction

The Nottingham Hidden History Team, fittingly, have been around for yonks. Uncovering all sorts of tales about this city of ours, the organisation has saved caves from being destroyed in local redevelopment, and has held the torch up to many-a past goings-on. LeftLion Street Tales columnist and current member of the organisation, Joe Earp, gives us a little look-in to the origins of the team, and what’s driven them to lift the lid on Notts, for the past fifty years...

Get on Yer Bike with Nottingham Bikeworks

This month saw the launch of the Nottingham Bikeworks Month of Giving, a drive that promises every cycle purchased through the organisation in December is matched with a donation to the Nottingham and Nottinghamshire Refugee Forum.

Theatre Review: Entanglement! An Entropic Tale at Djanogly Theatre

We got down to Nottingham Lakeside Arts' Djanogly Theatre to see Infinite Opera's Entanglement! An Entropic Tale...

Ayup Duck: The Latest Nottingham News

What the bob happened last month?