Bradford’s year as UK City of Culture is proving to be a landmark moment for the district – one that is not only transforming the perception of a place but also illuminating the power of creativity to connect, uplift and reimagine. From public artworks to intergenerational dance, site-specific theatre and participatory projects on an ambitious scale, the city is demonstrating how culture can act as both mirror and catalyst. At Aesthetica, we are proud to support our northern colleagues and champion this moment. As Cherie Federico, Director of Aesthetica, notes: “Bradford 2025 shows the transformative power of culture at every level. It’s a celebration of heritage, innovation and community – exactly what the UK needs right now.”
As the summer season unfolds, the city and district will host a remarkable programme that continues to push boundaries and centre local stories, often through global collaborations. Much of what is planned is free and open to all – a deliberate act of cultural democracy in a time when access and inclusivity matter more than ever. Amongst the first major interventions this summer is The RedBall Project (25–31 May), one of the longest-running street art pieces in the world. Conceived by US artist Kurt Perschke, this 15-foot inflatable sculpture will appear in unexpected locations across the city and countryside, encouraging play, conversation and perspective – shifting in public space. It’s a gesture that speaks directly to Bradford 2025’s curatorial ethos – make it bold, make it visible and bring people into the fold.
This approach extends across artforms. The Railway Children (16 July – 7 September) offers audiences the chance to ride a steam train along the same line used in the 1970 film, disembarking to see a site-specific production inside an engine shed at Oxenhope station. It’s a theatre experience rooted in place – not just responsive to location but inseparable from it. The power of participation runs through the heart of this year’s work. In Memories of the Future (5 July), world-renowned Akram Khan Company partners with Dance United Yorkshire to create a performance featuring over 70 participants from Bradford, aged 8 to 79. This isn’t tokenistic community involvement – it’s intergenerational storytelling, told through movement and driven by lived experience. “Bradford 2025 is not just a celebration,” explains Creative Director Shanaz Gulzar. “It’s a bold invitation for people to experience our city and district in ways they’ve never imagined … This summer’s programme brings together communities, cultures, and creativity reflecting Bradford’s spirit – proud of its past, alive in the present, and with a joyful vision for the future.”
This spirit is also captured in A Good Yarn, a major new commission from Luke Jerram and Bradford-based Bloomin’ Buds Theatre Company, which weaves together memories of the region’s textile heritage into a giant ball of yarn that will roll through the city’s streets. In Zee and the City, a four-metre puppet of a teenage girl leads an outdoor journey through Bradford’s past, present and future. Both form centrepieces of BD:Festival (26–27 July), the annual outdoor arts celebration. This year’s edition promises moments of spectacle, intimacy and joyful disruption.
Bradford’s identity as the world’s first UNESCO City of Film is being explored through open-air cinema and mobile screenings. The Incredible Moving Cinema (7–15 June) transforms an articulated lorry into a mobile venue, bringing curated films to neighbourhoods across the district. Meanwhile, Ilkley Lido and Thornton Viaduct provide dramatic settings for film under the stars. These screenings, developed with the National Science and Media Museum, connect audiences and environment in fresh ways.
Historical and contemporary narratives sit side by side in the season’s exhibition programme. At Cliffe Castle Museum, Ice Age Art Now (21 June – 14 September) pairs treasures from the British Museum with Bradford’s own collection to explore how creativity has been used to make sense of the world for over 20,000 years. In Tu i Tam / Tyt i Tam (3–27 July), visitors will find a nuanced visual exploration of migration, examining the experiences of Polish and Ukrainian communities in the district through rare archive and photography at new pop-up venue Loading Bay.
Bradford is also becoming a live music hub this summer. The New Music Biennial (6–8 June) brings a free three-day festival to city centre venues, offering new work across genre and form – many receiving their world premieres. All pieces will later be broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and performed again at London’s Southbank Centre. The global and local collide again in September, when Angélique Kidjo presents a Proms concert at St George’s Hall (7 September), drawing on the richness of African musical heritage. Food, too, becomes a lens for storytelling. The Bradford Selection biscuit tin project, a new cookbook Meet Our Mothers, and the World Curry Festival honour the multicultural culinary traditions that define the city. These are not gimmicks; they are explorations of identity, memory and migration through flavour and shared experience.
Bradford’s ability to programme at both scale and depth is evident in its use of mobile and outdoor space. The Beacon, a touring venue, returns with family-friendly events, music and comedy at Bowling Park and Cliffe Castle, hosting Blankets & Wine, a celebration of Kenyan culture, and Summer Sounds, headlined by Nitin Sawhney. There is also a dedicated programme for Refugee Week (16–22 June), underscoring the city’s commitment to sanctuary and storytelling.
Elsewhere, Bradford on Foot invites visitors and residents to explore the city’s full 144 square miles through new curated walks – connecting urban detail to rural expanse. New commissions include Channels (from 31 May), a series of audio artworks that tune into the district’s water infrastructure; Pink in the Park (28 June), an outdoor celebration of Bradford’s LGBTQ+ history; and RIDE (19–20 September), a visceral theatre project created with Gypsy and Traveller communities. The season closes with visual splendour in Bloom(26–27 September), an open-air contemporary circus performance in Shipley, and STRIKE! (3–5 October), a large-scale light and sound show revisiting the 1890s textile workers’ protest at Manningham Mills. These final acts draw a line between past and future – between local struggle and collective vision.
Explore the full programme and book tickets: bradford2025.co.uk
Words: Anna Müller
Image credits:
1. Nationhood Aïda Muluneh, Bradford 6 ©Aïda Muluneh.
2. A Good Yarn_hero image.
3. Penistone Hill © Karol Wyszynski.
4. RedBall Project in Calgary. Photo © Brit Worgan.
5. Memories of the Future ©Ellywel Photography.
