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Showing posts from October, 2026

Aardman Stop Motion Heroes by SKB

Ahead of Aardman in Concert at Leicester`s De Montfort Hall Leicester the venue commissioned SKB or Syston Knitting Banksy to render various well known Aardman Stop Motion Animation heroes as bollard toppers in her own unique and creative style. The toppers will welcome the audience to the show which is a fun celebration of the animation studios work shown on a screen and accompanied by a live orchestra. Among the knitted heroes we see Chaz & Morph famous for their mischievous exploits alongside the late great Tony Heart on Heartbeat and later SMart etc, there is also Fluffles Gromits "Girlfriend" from a mater of Loaf and Death, next along we find the sheep from Mossy Bottom Shaun The Sheep (here seen in his A Close Shave jumper, next up the evil "Chicken" Feathers Mc Grawl and probably the most famous Plasticine duo (fon`t tell morph & chaz) Wallace & Gromit who round up a cracking collection of stop motion heroes loved by thousands worldwide.  

The Pigeon Tower - Journeys Festival International

  I visited LCB Leicester Creative Bsiness Depot in the cities Cultural Quarter to see an installation called Pigeon Tower by Peyvand Sadeghian. The work is inspired by centuries old "kabootar-khaneh" or Pigeon Towers found in Iran built to house thousands of messenger birds. Drawing on workshops with Leicester communities the work holds fragmented audio shaped by the transience of movement. The various sounds heard comprise of messages, remembered songs, memories etc of those who attended the workshops and these become the ever evolving soundscape of the work. Alongside the tower hangs a painting by Afsoon Hajihasani called Idea of Home, in it an eye sits inside the fragmented architecture of a pigeon tower. The work is part of the Journeys Festival international 2026.

The Return Of The Leicester Monsters

  Look Up !, Look Out !, The Monsters are back for Halloween invading Leicester`s buildings and bringing monstrous fun from Tentacle Terry to Slick Jagger and all manners of larger than life characters they are invading from 22nd - 31st October 2026. My film features the crazy crew on and around various Leicester landmarks from the Clock Tower to the Highcross Shopping Centre and even the newly refurbished and reopened Jewry Wall Museum, how many will you spot when you Visit Leicester this spooky season ?. The return of Leicesters Monsters is and event by BID Leicester, Leicester Catgedrsl and Leicester City Council with support from many Leicester business.

FLOW - Journeys Festival International

     Flow an audio and light installation at ​⁠​⁠ as part of the Journeys Festival International , it explores migration and its integral role in human existence. Depicting the net migration of people coming to the UK between 2021 and 2025, it takes data from the ONS datasets , visualising the flow of people in and out of the country. Watch for a royal cameo from King Richard III !.

Mughal Miniatures: The Awakening, Journeys Festival International 2026

  Mughal Miniatures: The Awakening is a vibrant dance and music production by the Sonia Sabri Company . During the show, four performers start inside a large, ornate frame, bringing traditional Indian and Persian Mughal miniature paintings to life. We join a feisty Mughal Queen , her servant, a court musician, and a court dancer, tired of being confined to the restrictive social roles and frames (literally). They break out into the contemporary world, expressing empowerment and discovery through dance and music. This performance was filmed at the Art Reach Journeys Festival 2026 in Leicester's Haymarket Shopping Centre .

GCR Autumn Steam Gala

Great Central Railway held their Autumn Steam Gala, Featuring four days of intensive timetabled engine movement along the line I took a trip to Rothley station to see the various arrivals and departures over the course of the Friday afternoon and early evening. From goods trains to double header express trains and even a cheeky diesel loco there was something for everyone. We begin at Leicester North but it's not long before we find ourselves arriving at the picturesque Rothley Station kept immaculately by a dedicated group of volunteers and station staff some of whom we see throughout the film. So take a step back in time (no TARDIS required) and witness the lost era of steam at one of Leicester and Leicestershire`s great attractions the ‪GCR‬ another great reason to ‪Visit Leicester.