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Leeds (pronunciation ) is a city in West Yorkshire, England. It is located on the River Aire and is the urban core of the City of Leeds metropolitan district. It is one of England's core cities, and according to the 2001 UK census the Leeds Urban Area had a population of 443,247 [1], while the metropolitan district, City of Leeds, was estimated to have a population of 750,200.[2] It is one of the fastest growing cities in the UK.
In the middle ages Leeds was a merchant town, but it grew rapidly in the 18th and 19th centuries, firstly through the wool trade and then as a centre of the Industrial Revolution. In 1893 it was given its city charter. Leeds today is a centre for commerce, higher education, retail, and nightlife.
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[edit] History
The name "Leeds" came from "Loidis" (Bede states: "...regione quae vocatur Loidis" region known as Loidis), a word of Celtic origin, also surviving in the nearby place names of Ledston and Ledsham. Leeds has been known since being mentioned (as "Ledes") in the Domesday Book of 1086, (the name evolved into "Leedes" and finally "Leeds"). Leeds was an agricultural market town in the Middle Ages, and received its first charter in 1207. In the Tudor period Leeds was mainly a merchant town, manufacturing woollen cloths and trading with Europe via the Humber estuary, and the population grew from 10,000 at the end of the 17th century to 30,000 at the end of the 18th. At one point nearly half of England's total exports passed through Leeds. The Industrial Revolution had resulted in the radical growth of Leeds whose population had risen to over 150,000 by 1840. The city's industrial growth was catalysed by the introduction of the Aire & Calder Navigation in 1699, Leeds and Liverpool Canal in 1816 and the railway in 1848. In 1893 Leeds had been granted city status. These industries that developed in the Industrial Revolution had included making machinery for spinning, machine tools, steam engines and gears as well as other industries based on textiles, chemicals and leather and pottery. Coal was extracted on a large scale and the still functioning Middleton Railway, the first successful commercial steam locomotive railway in the world, transported coal from Middleton colliery into the centre of Leeds. The first permanent set of fully automatic traffic lights was installed at the junction of Park Row and Bond Street, Leeds, in 1928.
By the 20th century this social and economic status had started to change with the creation of the academic institutions that are known today as the University of Leeds, Leeds Metropolitan University and Leeds Trinity & All Saints. This period had also witnessed expansion in medical provision particularly Leeds General Infirmary and St James's Hospital. Following World War II there was a decline in secondary industries that had thrived in the 19th century. In 1951, half the workforce was still in manufacturing; by 1971 the figure was a third. Leeds lost a third of its manufacturing jobs during 1971-1981 (Champion & Townsend, 1990, p.82). In 1991, 64,000 were employed in manufacturing. In 2003, 2,103 firms employed 44,500 (10% of workforce) - see Leeds Economy Handbook. But there are still some large engineering firms. The largest make turbine blades, components, alloys, valves and pipelines for the oil industry, switchgear, printers' supplies, copper alloys, surgical and hospital equipment, pumps, motors, radiators.
In the 1980s, the Conservative government designated Urban Development Corporations on a number of UK cities: some declining areas were taken out of local authority control and government funding was provided with the aim of speeding up and concentrating private sector investment in the most run-down areas. Leeds Development Corporation ran from 1988-1995 and helped to focus attention on two decayed industrial areas (The lower Kirkstall Valley and the riverside area to the south east of the city centre). Achievements of LDC included refurbishment of many riverside properties, the opening up of Granary Wharf and the Royal Armouries development.
Today Leeds is known as one of eight core cities that act as a focus of their respective regions and Leeds is generally regarded as the dominant city of the ceremonial county of West Yorkshire, and the dominant city in Yorkshire as a whole.[3]
[edit] Governance
Leeds is the administrative centre of the City of Leeds metropolitan district of West Yorkshire, having previously lain within the West Riding of Yorkshire, within which it was an independent county borough from 1889 to 1974.[4] The metropolitan district covers a wider area than Leeds, including separate towns such as Otley, Wetherby, Morley among others: a list of places is available here.
Leeds City Council governs the whole metropolitan district, and is based in Leeds Civic Hall in the city centre. It has 99 elected members, three for each of 33 wards; councillors are elected for a four year term, and one third are elected at local elections held in three years out of four. It is as of 2007 controlled by a coalition of Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Independent members. The Conservative and Liberal Democrat group leaders take the rôle of Leader of the Council for six months alternately.
Leeds is represented by six MPs, for the constituencies of Leeds Central, Elmet, Leeds E, Leeds NE, Leeds NW and Leeds W. All but the first of these constituencies also cover areas outside the city, but within the metropolitan district. Five constituencies are as of 2007 represented by Labour, and Leeds North West by a Liberal Democrat.
Leeds is within the Yorkshire and the Humber European constituency, which as of 2007 is represented by two Conservative, two Labour, one Liberal Democrat and one UKIP MEPs.
[edit] Lord Mayor of Leeds
The first mayor of Leeds, in 1662, was Thomas Danby after whom Leeds Thomas Danby college is named. There were 240 mayors until in 1897 Queen Victoria gave the city the privilege of having a Lord Mayor. The Lord Mayor is elected in May each year from and by the members of Leeds City Council and is the Chair of the Council.[5] The Lord Mayor fulfils many ceremonial duties during the year, and chooses a "Lord Mayor's charity" to support. The full title of the Lord Mayor is "The Right Worshipful the Lord Mayor of the City of Leeds". Although the Lord Mayor's remit covers the whole of the City of Leeds metropolitan district, there are also town mayors in some of the other towns in this district.
A full list of Aldermen (1626-1661), Mayors (1662-1896) and Lord Mayors (from 1897) is available on the council's website. [6]
[edit] Geography
Leeds has grown from its original centre on the River Aire. In doing so it has subsumed numerous separate villages and towns such as Horsforth.
[edit] Areas of the city
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Until the 1974 reorganisation of local government, the city of Leeds was defined as including the former parishes of Armley, Beeston, Bramley, Chapel Allerton, Farnley, Headingley/Burley, Holbeck, Hunslet, Leeds, Osmondthorpe, Potter Newton, Seacroft, Temple Newsam (covering the areas of Halton Moor, Halton, Whitkirk, Colton and Austhorpe) and Wortley[7]. [edit] Location grid
[edit] CrimeLike many other English industrial cities, the crime rate in Leeds is well above the national average,[8][9]. In July 2006, the think tank Reform calculated rates of crime for different offences and has related this to populations of major urban areas (defined as towns over 100,000 population). Leeds was 11th in this rating (excluding London Boroughs, 23rd including London Boroughs). [10] [edit] Economy
Leeds was voted 'Britain's Best City for Business' by Omis Research in 2003 but dropped to 3rd place behind Manchester and Glasgow in 2005 ("Relative under-performance over the past two years in transport improvements and cost competitiveness were the major contributing factors")[11]. It is also regarded as the fastest growing city in the UK[12]and has a diverse economy with the service sector now dominating over the city's manufacturing industries. Leeds is the largest financial centre in England outside the capital [13]. New tertiary industries such as retail, call centres, offices and media have contributed to a high rate of economic growth since the early 1990s. In the late 1990s dot-com bubble, Leeds became one of the key hubs in the emerging new media sector, and companies such as Freeserve, Energis, Sportal, TEAMtalk and Ananova emerged to dominate the UK internet industry. Now, over 33% of the UK's internet traffic is claimed to go through Leeds, making it one of the most important regional internet centres in the UK. Over 100,000 people work in financial and business services in Leeds, which is about a quarter of the total workforce. The strength of the economy is also indicated by the low unemployment rate. However, despite the growth of the Leeds economy in recent years, some parts of the city still remain poor, especially to the south and east of the city centre, typical of many large cities in the UK. Growth sectors in financial & business services: banking, labour recruitment*, commercial cleaning, legal services, insurance, pension funds, computing*, architecture and civil engineering, real estate, investigation & security, accountancy, equipment leasing, consultancy & market research*, advertising, and R&D*. Some of the faster growing sub-sectors during the 1990s marked *. [edit] Development
In recent times Leeds has seen many new developments, with high rise schemes making a much larger mark on Leeds' skyline. Sixteen skyscrapers are currently under construction or proposed, all of them taller than West Riding House (262 ft/80 m) - Leeds' tallest building since it was built in the 1970s[14]. Bridgewater Place recently became the tallest building in Leeds, however this title is anticipated to be shortlived as the 561 ft (171 m) Lumiere building is expected to be finished by 2010. There are also plans in Leeds to build an even taller skyscraper than Lumiere, which will if built be known as the Millgarth Tower. Estimates of the height of this new building range from 190m - 210m. Between 60-63 floors high. [edit] TourismLeeds has received several accolades in the field of tourism; including being voted by Condé Nast Traveler magazine Readers' Awards as the "UK's favourite city" in 2004, "Best English city to visit outside London" in 2005, and also "Visitor city of the year" by The Good Britain Guide in 2005. A vibrant city, rich in culture and heritage, and ideally located in the very heart of England, it is supported by an extensive rail, road and air network which makes travelling to Leeds quick and easy. Situated close to the UK's geographical centre, it benefits from good transport connections with the M1 running from Leeds to London, the M62 connecting Leeds with the seaports of Liverpool and Hull, and the A1(M) for linking to the north. Leeds Bradford International Airport is one of the fastest growing regional UK airports, with a 75 per cent growth in passenger numbers in the last five years. Over 450 weekly flights connect the city to over 50 major European business and holiday destinations. Tourism in Leeds is estimated to support over 20,000 full time equivalent jobs, and on average Leeds attracts around 1.4 million people annually who stay overnight, plus a further 18.4 million who visit on day trips. Visitors to the city bring in nearly £735 m into the local economy each year and Leeds' vibrant and cultural scenes are some of the key reasons that visitors from across the UK and Europe come to Leeds. Major national and regional attractions include the Royal Armouries, the Henry Moore Sculpture Centre, West Yorkshire Playhouse and the award winning Harewood House, which was voted one of the best large visitor attractions in the Excellence in England Awards for Tourism 2003.[15] Leeds is also only city outside London to have both its own opera and ballet companies – the internationally acclaimed Opera North and Northern Ballet Theatre. Additionally, in the Good Hotel Guide 2004, four Leeds hotels were named as top choices for places to stay in the UK. [edit] Transport[edit] RailThe rail network is still of great importance. Leeds City station is one of the busiest in the UK outside central London, with over 900 trains and 50,000 passengers per day. Its modern interior provides connections to London, Southampton and the south, Birmingham and the Midlands, Bristol and the West Country, Newcastle, Edinburgh and the north east, Manchester and Liverpool and the north west, as well as to local and regional destinations. The station itself has 17 platforms, making it the largest in England outside London. From Leeds City station MetroTrains operated by Northern Rail operate to all parts of West Yorkshire and surrounding local and commuter locations and other operators including GNER, Virgin Cross Country, Midland Mainline and TransPennine Express operate services to the rest of the country. Leeds has two railway lines offering direct services to London. The principal route is along the East Coast Main Line which operates at least once per hour and is planned to become half-hourly through the day. Midland Mainline offers an alternative route via Leicester along the Midland Main Line to London St Pancras International, home of Eurostar international services. The Midland Mainline service operates principally because the train operators fleet of diesel high speed trains (HST's) is based at Neville Hill maintenance depot in Leeds. There are three trains per day in each direction. [edit] Tram plansThe city had plans in the 1990s and 2000s for a tram network known as Supertram. However the government axed the scheme due to an unwillingness to pay for any costs over budget, and the Department for Transport's apparent preference for a bus-based rapid transport scheme rather than a tram-based scheme.[16][17] Prior to this, in the late 1930s the City Council were offered central government funding to construct a sub-surface tramway system which could double as a public air-raid shelter facility. Leeds City Council failed to take up this offer having spent too long debating the issue. Leeds remains the largest city in the European Union without a mass transit system. [edit] RoadsLeeds is the focus of the A58, A61, A62, A63, A64, A65 and A660 roads. Nowadays, with the M1 and M62 intersecting just to its south and the A1(M) passing just to its east, it is one of the principal hubs of the northern motorway network. There is an Inner Ring Road with part motorway status and an Outer Ring Road. The city centre is pedestrianised, and is encircled by the clockwise-only 'loop road'. [edit] Bus/coachOn 30th January 2006, a zero-fare bus service (the FreeCityBus) started running, on a circular route, in the centre of Leeds. Leeds has a large modern bus station served by National Express and local bus services. Buses in the city are mainly provided by FirstBus and Arriva. Harrogate & District provides a service to Harrogate and Ripon. The Yorkshire Coastliner service runs from Leeds to Malton, Scarborough, Filey, Whitby and Bridlington via Tadcaster, York and Malton. [edit] Trolleybus plansA business case for a new trolleybus system in the Leeds region is scheduled to be submitted to the Department for Transport towards the end of 2007. This system would broadly follow the route of the axed Supertram project[1]. [edit] Local public transport informationLeeds Travel Info is Leeds City Council's public access website providing real-time travel information in the Leeds area. West Yorkshire Metro provides bus and train information on its website, and offers the innovative "My Next Bus" service of real-time bus information by text message or online. This real-time information is also displayed in certain bus shelters. [edit] Air transportLeeds Bradford International Airport is located near Yeadon, to the north-west of the city and has both charter and scheduled flights to destinations within Europe plus Egypt and Turkey. There are connections to the rest of the world via London Heathrow Airport, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. There is a direct rail service from Leeds to Manchester Airport, with trains running throughout the night. Robin Hood Airport Doncaster Sheffield is 40 miles (65 km) south of Leeds. [edit] Sea transportLeeds has good connections by road, rail and coach to Hull, only an hour away, from where it is possible to travel to Rotterdam and Zeebrugge by ferry services run by P&O Ferries. [edit] Events
[edit] Culture and recreation[edit] Sport
The city has a strong sporting heritage, with Yorkshire County Cricket Club, Leeds Rhinos Rugby League Football Club and Leeds Carnegie Rugby Union Football Club playing at Headingley (cricket and rugby grounds are adjacent), Hunslet Hawks Rugby League Footbal Club, based at the South Leeds Stadium, and Leeds United Football Club playing at Elland Road. [edit] Football
Unlike many other large cities such as Manchester, London, and Liverpool, Leeds has only one league football team. Leeds United were formed in 1919 (in Salem Chapel just south of Leeds bridge), due to the bankruptcy of a previous club, Leeds City. Under the management of Don Revie, they were a major force in English football during the late 1960s and early 1970s, winning the Football League three times, FA Cup once, Football League Cup once and UEFA Cup twice. After Revie's departure for the England job in 1974, Leeds went into decline and did not win a major trophy until 1992, when Howard Wilkinson guided them to glory in the last-ever Football League championship before the creation of the Premier League. They remained at this level for 12 years before a financial crisis contributed towards their relegation in 2004, and three years later they fell into the third tier of the English league for the first time in their history. [edit] Women's footballLeeds City Vixens L.F.C. are a women's football team in Leeds. They play in the Northern Combination Women's Football League and last season the finished 2nd in the league. They moved ground from Adel Memorial to The Bracken Edge the same ground as Yorkshire Amateur A.F.C.. Another women's football team is Leeds United Ladies Football Club who play their home games at Tadcaster Albion's ground 'The Park'. [edit] Rugby league
Leeds Rhinos play in the Super League. Together with the Bradford Bulls and St Helens RFC they make up the top 3 sides in the league. In 2007 they finished 2nd in the league but won the playoff Grand Final against Saint Helens. So this makes them the Super League champions 2007. Leeds Rhinos will also have the chance to become the Rugby League World Club champions in 2008, when they play the Australian Rugby League champions Melbourne Storm NRL. Hunslet Hawks play in National League Two and play their home games at the South Leeds Stadium, and they are known as 'the Parksiders' after their former ground Parkside. Bramley Buffaloes and Leeds Akkies are other Leeds-based rugby league teams. [edit] Rugby unionLeeds Tykes, now known as Leeds Carnegie, won their first ever trophy in 2005 with battling performance to defeat favourites Bath in the Powergen Cup final. In the 2005-06 season the Tykes were relegated from the Guinness Premiership. However the Tykes won promotion back to the Premiership the following season. The club's name changed to the current Leeds Carnegie shortly after the 2006-07 season when Leeds Metropolitan University took a majority stake in the club (Carnegie College is the University's sport department). [edit] AthleticsLeeds City AC is amongst the biggest and most successful athletics clubs in the north of England and has had the most successful men's harriers section in the country in the 21st century. Since the turn of the millennium the team has never been out of the top 4 in the National Cross Country Championships, winning in 2003, 2006 and 2007. In 2006 and 2007 the team achieved the 'Grand Slam' of wins - Yorkshire, North of England and English National Champions. Many athletic clubs serve the youth of the city, and enter teams in the country's major running events - especially raising funds for local charities in the London Marathon and the British 10K. [edit] Other SportsSpeedway racing was staged in Leeds in the period 1928 to 1939. The track was at the greyhound stadium in Elland Road. The track entered a team in the 1931 Northern league. [edit] Sports facilitiesLeeds has a wealth of sports facilities including the 40,000 capacity Elland Road football stadium, a host stadium during the 1996 European Football Championship; the Headingley Carnegie Stadiums, world famous for both cricket and rugby league; John Charles Centre for Sport with an Olympic sized pool in its Aquatics Centre and a stadium used for rugby league (Hunslet RLFC), athletics, bowls, football and tennis. Other facilities include the Leeds Wall (climbing), Yeadon Tarn sailing centre. Nearby, in Castleford, is Xscape (real snow indoor ski and snowboard slope with ice climbing wall). [edit] Media[[Image:Yorkshire-1999.jpg|right|frame|Yorkshire Television Logo. Yorkshire Television Studios are on Kirkstall Road in Leeds]] Leeds has bases for some media activities for the UK. Yorkshire Post Newspapers Ltd, owned by Johnston Press plc, is based in the city, and produces a daily morning broadsheet, the Yorkshire Post, and an evening paper, the Yorkshire Evening Post, as well as other publications such as Leeds Express and the weekly freesheets of the Leeds Weekly News, Wharfe Valley Times and Pudsey Times. There are also a number of regular dedicated lifestyle magazines based in Leeds, most notably including 'The Leeds Guide' and 'Absolute Leeds', which both include regular nightlife listings and pages on Food & Drink, Shopping, Fashion, Property, Travel, Clubbing, Film and Rock & Pop in the city. Both magazines reflect the diversity of cultural life in Leeds and Yorkshire, with areas such as Art, Literature, Cinema, Comedy, Dance, Gay Scene, Classical Music, Opera, Jazz and Theatre all regularly represented. Regional television and radio stations also have bases in the city; BBC Television, ITV and Yorkshire Television all have very large studios and broadcasting centres in Leeds, but there is concern over the future of regional independent television with the consolidation of Independent Television franchises in the UK. There are a number of independent film production companies based at The Leeds Studios, including the not-for-profit cooperative Leeds Animation Workshop, founded in 1978; community video producers Vera Media and several small commercial production companies. BBC Radio Leeds, Radio Aire, Magic 828, Galaxy 105, Real Radio and Yorkshire Radio all broadcast from the city. In the 1980s, pirate radio stations including Rapid City Radio (RCR), amongst other shorter-lived stations broadcasting a mainly reggae playlist from Chapeltown, later diversifying into hip hop and house. Later, Dream FM (Leeds) was one of the biggest pirate radio stations in the country, but folded soon after getting a license to operate legally. Leeds is the UK's third largest media city, behind London and Manchester[citation needed]. A recent development in industry (particularly the boosting of the British Film Industry), Yorkshire will host the International Indian Film Academy Awards in 2007, where Leeds and Sheffield will play core parts in this, being the two keys cities during the ceremony. The IIFA Awards are Bollywood's (the Hindi film industry) equivalent to the Oscars in Hollywood. The four-day event is expected to generate around £10 million in inward investment to the economy and Leeds will be responsible for nearly half this amount. [edit] Museums and the arts
A new Leeds City Museum is expected to open in August 2008[18] in the building of the former Mechanics Institute, more recently used as the Civic Theatre, in Millennium Square. The previous city museum was in the Central Library building, and closed some years ago. Abbey House Museum is housed in the former gatehouse of Kirkstall Abbey, and includes walk-through Victorian streets and galleries describing the history of the abbey, childhood, and Victorian Leeds. Armley Mills Industrial Museum is housed in what was once the world's largest woollen mill, and includes industrial machinery and railway locomotives. Thwaite Mill Museum is a fully-restored water-powered mill on the river Aire to the east of the city centre. A fulling mill was built on the site in 1641, and it was extensively rebuilt in 1823–25. The Thackray Museum is a museum of the history of medicine, featuring topics such as Victorian public health, pre-anaesthesia surgery, and safety in childbirth. It is housed in a former workhouse next to St James's hospital. The Royal Armouries Museum opened in 1996 in a dramatic modern building when this part of the collection was transferred from the Tower of London. Leeds Art Gallery reopened in June 2007 after a major renovation project, and houses important collections of traditional and contemporary British art. Leeds boasts the Grand Theatre (where Opera North is based), the City Varieties Music Hall (which has hosted performances by Charlie Chaplin and Harry Houdini plus being the venue of TV's "The Good Old Days") and the West Yorkshire Playhouse. The Leeds Festival takes place every year in Bramham Park, having moved from Temple Newsam after pressure from some local residents. It features some of the biggest names in rock and indie music. The city is home to the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition, held every three years since 1963, which has launched the careers of many major concert pianists. There is also the Leeds International Concert Season the largest local authority music programme of any UK city outside London. The city also has an internationally recognised film festival; the Leeds International Film Festival is the largest film festival in England outside London and shows films from around the world. It incorporates the highly successful Leeds Young People's Film Festival, which features exciting and innovative films made both for and by children and young people[19]. Some of the first moving pictures in the world were taken in the city, by Louis Le Prince, of a Roundhay Garden Scene and of Leeds Bridge in 1888. Leeds also has a very important dance community; it currently is the home of the world-renowned dance companies the Northern Ballet Theatre and Phoenix Dance. [edit] Historic houses and parks
The ruins of Kirkstall Abbey, a Cistercian abbey dating from the 12th century, are in an open park alongside the river Aire in Kirkstall, to the west of the city centre. The abbey gatehouse houses the Abbey House Museum. To the east of the city centre, Temple Newsam house dates from the early 16th century and has an extensive estate including gardens and a rare breeds farm. The house was left to Leeds City Council following the occupiers death in 1922. The house is notable Jacobean architecture. Lotherton Hall, with art collections and a bird garden, lies to the east of the city, Bramham Park to the north-east (this now hosts the Leeds Carling Weekend (Leeds Festival) since it was moved from Temple Newsam due to riots and trouble in the surrounding estates, and Harewood House to the north. Kirkstall Abbey, Temple Newsam, and Lotherton Hall are owned and administered by Leeds City Council. To the north lies Roundhay Park with its well regarded Tropical World hothouse. Other parks in the city include Golden Acre Park which lies between Adel and Bramhope, Hall Park in Horsforth, Woodhouse Moor in Hyde Park, Potternewton Park between Chapeltown and Harehills, Temple Newsam Park stretching from Halton Moor to Colton, East End Park in the location of the same name, Cross Flatts Park in Beeston and Middleton Park in Middleton. The parks of the city are put to good use. Roundhay Park hosts numerous concerts, as does Bramham Park (near Wetherby) and Temple Newsham. Roundhay Park is probably the most notable of the parks in Leeds and certainly the largest (in excess of 700 acres/283.3 hectares). It is one of the largest inner city parks in Europe and visited by almost one million people every year. The car park at Roundhay Park is notable as it contains the only remaining trolley poles from the former tram system in the city. The arena area of Roundhay Park is used for concerts and over the years had seen concerts from The Rolling Stones, Michael Jackson, Simple Minds, Madonna, Genesis, Robbie Williams and U2. [edit] Shopping
Leeds has an extensive and diverse range of shops and department stores, and has been branded with the title of the 'Knightsbridge of the North.'[20] The diverse range of shopping facilities, from individual one-off boutiques to large department stores, which notably include Harvey Nichols and Louis Vuitton outlets, has greatly expanded the Leeds retail base. The Victoria Quarter, several existing arcades connected together by roofing the entirety of Queen Victoria Street with stained glass, is located off Briggate, Leeds' main shopping street. Other popular shopping attractions include the Corn Exchange, Leeds Kirkgate Market, Granary Wharf, Leeds Shopping Plaza, Headrow Shopping Centre, The Light, The St John's Centre, The Merrion Centre Leeds, Crown Point, Birstall Retail Park and the White Rose Centre. In addition, there are also 2 proposed shopping developments, namely the Eastgate Quarters and Trinity Quarter. [edit] Music
Leeds has produced many notable acts, some recent examples being the Kaiser Chiefs, The Music, the Pigeon Detectives and Corinne Bailey Rae. Other acts from Leeds include The Wedding Present - who once had 12 new hit singles in the same calendar year, a feat unmatched by any other artist - Chumbawamba and Melanie B, of the Spice Girls.
House Music had a big impact on Leeds when it arrived in the late 1980s. Early house nights included Downbeat at the Warehouse, Meltdown at the Astoria in Harehills, and Joy and Kaos at various temporary venues, along with a thriving Shebeen or "Blues" scene in Chapeltown. Along with Sheffield and Bradford, Leeds was a centre for the Yorkshire Bleeps and Bass scene in 1989-1990, with influential local bands such as LFO, Nightmares on Wax, Ital Rockers, Unit 93 and Juno on Sheffield's Warp Records and Leeds' Bassic Records. Dance band Utah Saints hit the top ten several times between 1991 and 1993. The earlier underground house scene developed into the Leeds club scene of the 1990s, when for a while Leeds held the title of Britain's clubbing capital. Both Back to Basics and mixed gay night Vague enjoyed the title of best club in Britain at different points in the decade, whilst The Orbit in Morley was an internationally recognised techno mecca (Orbit closed in the late 1990s and was replaced by a restaurant).
Leeds is very well-known for its current DIY underground music scene, with all genres well represented from hardcore,post-punk, and noise rock, electronica, indie pop, dub reggae, dubstep and folk. There is a vibrant and active community based around the DIY ethic[21].
Leeds initially played host to the northern leg of the V Festival between 1996 and 1998 before the event moved to Weston Park, Staffordshire. In 2000, Leeds played host to the first and as of 2006 the only ever BBC Radio 1 Love Parade at Roundhay Park. Since 1999 the Leeds Festival, a northern leg of the well established Reading Festival, has taken place on August bank holiday weekend. The event was initially held at Temple Newsam (the venue for the Leeds V Festival) before protests from residents forced a move to Bramham Park. Leeds is also home to the Leeds International Pianoforte Competition which is regarded highly. It was established in 1963 by Fanny Waterman with the 15th competition in September 2006. West Yorkshire Playhouse and the neighbouring Venue at Leeds College of Music play host to the biennial FuseLeeds Festival showcasing an eclectic mix of more left-field music. 2006 had seen the two-day O2 Wireless Festival take place at Harewood House.
Leeds plays host to many venues, currently including Leeds University refectory (where The Who recorded their 1970 live album Live at Leeds and Motörhead partially recorded their most successful album No Sleep Til Hammersmith, The Cockpit, Brudenell Social Club, The Faversham, The Hi-Fi club, The Wardrobe, The Irish Centre, Joseph's Well, The New Roscoe, The Vine and The Mixing Tin among others. Occasional gigs are held in Millennium Square in the city centre (including the Kaiser Chiefs and Fall Out Boy in 2006), Roundhay Park (which was home to Love Parade in 2000 and has hosted gigs by the likes of Robbie Williams, U2, Michael Jackson and The Rolling Stones), Harewood House has hosted gigs by the likes of James Blunt and The Who, Leeds Town Hall (hosted the Kaiser Chiefs, Morrissey and many classical music events) and Leeds Parish Church. Recently attempts have been made to build an arena in the city (currently larger touring acts tend to play either Manchester or Sheffield owing to the relatively small capacity of the refectory, Leeds's biggest permanent venue). [edit] NightlifeLeeds has a very large student population and boasts a large number of pubs, bars, nightclubs and restaurants, as well as a multitude of venues for live music such as The Cockpit, New Roscoe, Joseph's Well, The Brudenell Social Club, The Leeds West Indian Centre and The Wardrobe which combine to generate a vibrant and nationally renowned nightlife. Leeds has gained a reputation as one of the UK's favourite clubbing destinations and is often described as the UK's 'clubbing capital', being a popular 'Stag' and 'Hen Weekend' destination and also the original home of the pioneering club nights Back 2 Basics and Speedqueen. [22] Also, until a few years ago, nearby Morley, was home to the legendary Orbit, which for 13 years was known internationally as one of the original and best techno clubs in the country. Leeds is home to a number of large 'super-clubs' including Oceana (Leeds), Discotheque by Gatecrasher, and [Club Mission]. Leeds also has a well established gay nightlife scene. The Bridge Inn and The New Penny, both on Call Lane, have long been gay night spots. Queen's Court offers a similar experience to its London counterpart Rupert Street. Other more recent additions such as Bar Fibre, on Lower Briggate and Mission offer more contemporary 'straight friendly' environments, along with The Viaduct and Blades just across the road. During the summer months the secluded courtyard that lies between Bar Fibre and Queens Court transforms into a lively a beer garden. The refurbished Warehouse venue is now also home of the alternate Saturday club nights Technique/Asylum. Towards Millennium Square and the Civic or Northern Quarter, is a growing entertainment district thriving on both students and weekend visitors. Millennium Square bursts into life during the night with its many bars (including amongst others popular chains Jongleurs, Tiger Tiger, Revolution and Ha!Ha!), various upmarket restaurants and large outdoor screen mounted on the side of the Civic Theatre. Millennium Square also plays host to many large seasonal events such as Earth From The Air, IceCube (Europe’s largest outdoor ice rink), Christmas markets, Gigs and Concerts, citywide parties and the world famous Rhythms of the City Festival. Millennium Square is adjacent to the Mandela Gardens, which were opened by Nelson Mandela in 2001. A number of public art features, fountains, a canal and greenery can be found here as an oasis amongst the city centre excitement. Leeds is also home to some Bohemian bars that are not aimed at the 'usual' weekend crowd[clarify][citation needed] - especially the bars in and around Briggate and North Street North Bar, Sandanista, Mojo, The Reliance (Reli), Reform, etc), Baby Jupiter on York Place and Milo on Call Lane. [edit] Walking
The Leeds Country Way is a waymarked circular walk of 62 miles (99 km) through the rural outskirts of the city, never more than 7 miles (11 km) from City Square. The Meanwood Trail leads from Woodhouse Moor along Meanwood Beck to Golden Acre Park. Leeds is on the northern section of the Trans Pennine Trail for walkers and cyclists, and the towpath of the Leeds and Liverpool Canal is another popular walking route. In addition, there are many parks and public footpaths in both the urban and rural parts of Leeds, and the Ramblers Association, YHA and other walking organisations offer sociable walks. The Ramblers Association publish various booklets of walks in and around Leeds[23]. [edit] ReligionThe majority of people in Leeds identify themselves as Christian[24]. Fairly unusually for a city of its size, Leeds does not have a Church of England Cathedral. Leeds is part of the Anglican Diocese of Ripon and Leeds with the Cathedral for this Diocese being in Ripon. However, Leeds does have a Roman Catholic Cathedral, being the Episcopal seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Leeds. Many other Christian denominations are established in Leeds, including Assembly of God, Baptist, Christian Scientist, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints ("Mormons"), Community of Christ, Greek Orthodox, Jesus Army, Lutheran, Methodist, Nazarene, Newfrontiers network, Pentecostal, Salvation Army, Seventh-Day Adventist, Society of Friends ("Quakers"), Unitarian, United Reformed, Vineyard, Wesleyan Church, an ecumenical Chinese church, and several independent churches. [25][26] The proportion of Muslims in Leeds is average for the country[24]. Mosques can be found throughout the city, serving Muslim communities in Harehills, Hyde Park and parts of Beeston. The largest mosque is Leeds Grand Mosque in Hyde Park. The Sikh community is represented by Gurdwaras (Temples) spread across the city. There is also a colourful religious annual procession, called the Nagar Kirtan, into Millennium Square in the city centre around 13th/14th April to celebrate Baisakhi - the Sikh New Year and the birth of the religion. It is estimated around 3,000 Sikhs in Leeds take part in this annual event. Leeds has the third-largest Jewish community in the United Kingdom, after those of London and Manchester. The areas of Alwoodley and Moortown contain sizeable Jewish populations. There are eight active synagogues in Leeds.[27]. The small Hindu community in Leeds have a Hindu temple at Hyde Park.[28] . The temple has all the major Hindu deities and is also dedicated to the Lord Mahavir of the Jains. Various Buddhist traditions are represented in Leeds.[29], including: FWBO, Soka Gakkai, Theravada, Tibetan and Zen. The Buddhist community (sangha) comes together to celebrate the major festival of Wesak in May. 16.8% of Leeds residents in the 2001 census declared themselves as having "no religion", which is broadly in line with the figure for the whole of the UK (also 8.1% "Religion not stated"). [edit] Notable peopleAn inhabitant of Leeds is locally known as a Loiner, a word of uncertain origin[30], possibly from Loidis, an early name for the region mentioned around 700AD by Bede. The term is rarely used or understood. The mock-classical adjectives Leodensian and Leodiensian are sometimes used by some local sports clubs, and the word Leodensian also features in the lyrics of "I Predict a Riot" by Kaiser Chiefs, although in that context it was referring to John Smeaton, a famous 18th century resident of the city (who resided in Austhorpe Lodge, now the site of Austhorpe Primary School) as a founder of Leeds Grammar School, as a Leeds Grammar School leaver is called an Old Leodensian. Notable people born in and around the Leeds area include:
[edit] Education
Leeds has a very large number of primary schools, secondary schools, special schools and further and higher education establishments, with Education Leeds having responsibility for statutory education for young people in the city. There is a partial list of state and independent schools, colleges and universities in Leeds. Leeds has two universities, the University of Leeds, with around 31,500 full-time students (and a further 52,000 on short courses), and Leeds Metropolitan University with around 26,000 (according to UCAS; the LMU website claims 37,000). It also has several higher education colleges: Leeds College of Art and Design (formerly Jacob Kramer College), Trinity & All Saints College, and Leeds College of Music, which is the largest music college in the UK. This gives Leeds one of the largest student populations in the country. Indeed recently it has gained accolades as the Best UK University Destination in The Independent newspaper. The city is home to several further education colleges, such as Park Lane College Leeds (the largest further education college in Leeds with over 38,500 students), Leeds College of Technology, Leeds College of Building, Joseph Priestley College and Thomas Danby College. Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College is a very large college for A-level students close to the city centre. The city's state schools trace their history to the Elementary Education Act 1870 and the formation of the Leeds School Board in 1871. Under the Government's targets for better schools for children, many schools are being rebuilt or undergoing refurbishment. The city's oldest and largest private school is The Grammar School at Leeds, which was legally created in 2005 following the merger of Leeds Grammar School and Leeds Girls' High School. Both schools had long histories, dating back to 1552 and 1857 respectively. There are several other private schools. OFSTED reports are available for all schools and further education colleges in Leeds.[31] [edit] Twin townsTown twinning, or "sister cities", takes place at the level of local authority. The City of Leeds metropolitan district has several twinning or partnership arrangements: The city also "has close ties or is undertaking projects with"[33]: [edit] References
[edit] Further reading
[edit] External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to:
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