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

Sun 07 Jul 2024

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

Sun 07 Jul 2024

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

Fri 05 Jul 2024

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

Burrata, focaccia, sangria - oh my! Explore the Notts food scene with this tasty new tour

Fri 05 Jul 2024

A new treat for cuisine connoisseurs in town is EAT: Nottingham Food Tours. Our two intrepid Food Editors, Julia and Lucy, take a wander through the streets of Nottingham to sample some of the best food the city has to offer - and along the way, they uncover historic tales that bring Nottingham’s past to life.

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

Thu 04 Jul 2024

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…

Film Review: Kinds of Kindness

Wed 03 Jul 2024

Yorgos Lanthimos is already back with another absurdist comedy...

Nadia on... Pride

Wed 03 Jul 2024

Regular columnist Nadia Whittome talks about Pride Festival

Review: Monuments and Melodies all-dayer at Rough Trade

Tue 02 Jul 2024

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...

Pick Six: writer, podcaster and resident drag artist at Gladrags, Nana Arthole

Tue 02 Jul 2024

For this month’s Pick Six, we turned to writer, entertainer, and all round creative type, the fabulous Nana Arthole.

Gig review: Sting and Nile Rodgers at Forest Live

Mon 01 Jul 2024

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

Mon 01 Jul 2024

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

Sun 30 Jun 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

Sun 30 Jun 2024

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

Sat 29 Jun 2024

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...

Follow the rainbow: we learn about Notts LGBT+ Network

Sat 29 Jun 2024

With official Pride month coming to an end and Notts Pride coming up soon, we thought it important to honour a charity that has given nearly fifty years of its time to Nottingham’s Queer community: Notts LGBT+ Network. Beth Green is a current volunteer for the Network; they caught up with two others David and Rachel, to share their commendable work and dedication.

Festival review: Day one at Download Festival

Fri 28 Jun 2024

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...

Concert Review: Sir Mark Elder's Farewell Concert

Fri 28 Jun 2024

The Hallé marks the end of Sir Mark Elder's glittering career with a farewell concert at the Royal Concert Hall...

LeftLion Issue #173 July 2024

Fri 28 Jun 2024

Featuring Charity Shop Sue, Cheap Dirty Horse, The Pastel Project, Graeme Park, Nottingham Food Tours, Notts LGBTQ+ music to check out and lots more

Gig review: Belle Chen at Metronome

Thu 27 Jun 2024

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...