In-Person Events

Join us for an entertaining workshop with children’s author Alice Harman, who will provide a witty introduction to the Louvre Museum’s many masterpieces, including the Mona Lisa.

Come along to explore space in virtual reality! Discover the Martian landscape, fly over a moon of Saturn, wonder at the scale of space and experience what it might feel like to be an astronaut.

Come along to explore space in virtual reality! Discover the Martian landscape, fly over a moon of Saturn, wonder at the scale of space and experience what it might feel like to be an astronaut.

Tom Clark, editor of 'Broke: Fixing Britain’s Poverty Crisis' leads a discussion about the scale of poverty, its impact and consequences, and the inequality in Britain today.

Join us as we discuss how we can grow our collective ability to imagine a future free from poverty, to reshape economic and social models driving inequality.

Join our panellists as they discuss the importance of imagination and hope in supporting a transition away from an economic model in which poverty continues to rise.

The innovative Ligeti Quartet returns to York to present a ground-breaking new project with University of York alumna Anna Meredith, which marks the thrilling alignment of the two camps’ aesthetics.

Kids, join us for an interactive workshop that will give you the unique chance to turn your favourite toy into the star of a fully-animated short film.

Rediscover the archaeological treasures of Roman York in this fascinating panel discussion, which focuses on a Roman burial custom that, until recently, was shrouded in mystery.

Join David Raffaelli, ecologist and Trustee at Woodmeadow Trust, to learn about the partnerships between fungi, flowering plants and trees, and to discover how strange and familiar animals keep our soils, and our planet, healthy.

Our panel introduces a University of York project that challenges dominant, white, middle-class storytelling in archaeology and heritage, and spotlights the everyday stories of people who have immigrated to the UK.

Join us in York city centre for lots of fun and family-friendly hands-on activities, and discover some of the exciting research being carried out in York.

Come and celebrate inclusivity and diversity with us at North Yorkshire’s biggest annual LGBTQ+ event, which returns with a colour-filled parade and festival.

Join our panellists from France and the UK as they discuss their experiences of cultural regeneration, examples of best practice and new approaches to research, creation and innovation.

Explore issues about ‘end of life’ with our expert panellists, including Yorkshire author Colin Philpott.

Award-winning writer and historian Jill Liddington discusses Anne Lister’s 1836-38 diaries, focusing on Anne’s relationship with wealthy local heiress Ann Walker.

University of York researcher and activist Maddy Power exposes the inner workings of Britain’s food banks, revealing how religion structures food distribution and how Whiteness shapes the daily practices of food banks.

This intriguing talk examines the circulation of Modern Greek literature in Germany and how specific publishers enact German-Greek cultural relations.

From Dracula to Twilight, explore the history of vampires in literature with award-winning broadcaster, writer, art educator and cultural historian Christopher Frayling.

From ancient Egypt and Nubia to the Zulu Kingdom almost two thousand years later, learn about Africa’s rich political and social history.

Come along to experience the comfort and inspiration of the ocean, beautifully conveyed by violinist and composer Anna Phoebe, who will be joined by Klara Schumann and Jacob Kingsbury Downs.

Kids, join us for an interactive workshop that will give you the unique chance to turn your favourite toy into the star of a fully-animated short film.

Join us for an evocative journey through the acoustic world of 16th-century York that will allow you to view our city’s rich natural heritage from a fresh perspective.

Join the East Yorkshire Regiment Living History Group to find out about the men, kit and vehicles involved in the 1944 Normandy landings.

Find out about medieval ‘dating’ culture in York in this entertaining and engaging performance including a Q&A session with experts from the University of York’s Department of History.

Art historian and curator Susan Owens takes a look at England’s invented histories, from the glamorous to the disturbing, from the eighth century to the present day.

Renowned astrophysicist Joseph Silk discusses his inspiring vision of our return to the Moon and the importance of prioritising science in lunar exploration.

Discover the hidden world of watchmaking with award-winning designer, watchmaker and historian Rebecca Struthers, who will reveal the ways in which timekeeping has shaped our attitudes to work, leisure, politics, and more.

From chopines to stilettos and Louis XIV to Louboutin, Senior Shoe Curator Rebecca Shawcross takes you on a fascinating journey exploring the history of shoes, from antiquity to the present.

This illustrated talk by Alan Turnbull, author of Who Shot Van Gogh?, follows the extraordinary story of his Sunflower paintings - from the artist’s easel to a London auction house a hundred years later.

(Re)discover York’s medieval city walls with archaeologist Barry Crump, who will make you see our city’s iconic landmark in a new light.

Egyptologist Jo Fletcher introduces you to some of North Yorkshire’s wonderful Egyptian treasures.

Curator and music expert Claire McGinn will explore whether it might be possible to play ‘expressively’ with mechanical instruments, which haven’t always been taken seriously in the history of performance.

Archaeological chemist Stephen Buckley reveals the unexpected tales preserved on ancient Greeks’ teeth, showing how their chemical ‘fingerprints’ provide the earliest evidence for the use of coal in the western world.

Come along for a powerful performance of 'War Horse', one of the most beloved books by renowned British children’s author Michael Morpurgo, in concert here with Ben Murray.

Join BBC presenter and Team GB triathlete Louise Minchin for a celebration of adventurous, brave, courageous women who are doing extraordinary things through sport, exercise and a love of the great outdoors.

Bring your family’s WWII stories and objects to this Digital Collection Day hosted by ‘Their Finest Hour’, a nationwide campaign to digitally preserve the stories and objects of the Second World War.

This workshop, hosted by University of York sociologists, will explore how women communicate their body sensations during labour, and the ways in which midwives respond.

Discussing her book, ‘From Cave to Cosmos: A History of the Yorkshire Philosophical Society’, author Sarah Sheils will explore the ideas and scientists forming part of the society’s distinguished 200-year-long history.

In this concert, musicians Supriya Nagarajan and Duncan Chapman take you on a wonderful journey into the world of Sita, the queen of Ayodhya and central figure in the ancient Sanskrit epic Ramayana.

Join us for an immersive audio experience that tells the story of a digitally excluded user of mental health services, challenging you to walk in her shoes and think how you can help.

Come along to the York Trailblazers workshop to hear and share stories about local heroes that have been forgotten, ignored or overlooked, and to help shape a city-wide sculpture trail in 2024.

From Colombian emeralds in Tudor jewellery to Black voices in 18th-century novels, Lauren Working and Olivia Carpenter of the University of York invite you to reimagine and rediscover British art and literature.

This walking tour of York will transport you back in time, allowing you to discover the stories of Jewish people who have called this city their home.

Find out about Thankonomics, a new concept developed by York-based author, Andrew Robshaw, who will explain how, through value and appreciation, we can challenge the fundamentals of business and economics.

Hear all about York Cycle Campaign’s manifesto, ‘42 Ways’, and find out how cycling in York can be made safe, convenient and accessible for everyone.

Gamelan Sekar Petak’s student and community ensembles present a relaxed performance in the spectacular setting of York’s 15th-century Guildhall.

Celebrate divine and earthly beauty at this year’s Flower Festival, organised by the All Saints Church in collaboration with Askham Bryan College, York.

Join community environment charity St Nicks to see river restoration in action as part of the York Cares Big Community Challenge, which aims to support river and wetland restoration at various locations across our city.

Participate in an exciting workshop on the power of clothes and their representation in literature, including creative writing exercises that will give you the opportunity to start your own piece of clothing memoir or fiction.

Join community environment charity St Nicks to see river restoration in action as part of the York Cares Big Community Challenge, which aims to support river and wetland restoration at various locations across our city.

Take a journey through the Mint Yard’s centuries-old story and through York Explore's extraordinary archives.

Join Alan Williams, Emeritus Professor of Iranian Studies, for a talk including a recitation and a performance by Seyed Ali Jaberi and the Hamdel Ensemble, centring on the story of an old musician, from the first book of Rumi’s ‘Masnavi’.

Find out about the OurLOTE Project, a collaborative social media project celebrating languages other than English used in the City of York.

Join philosopher and theologian Peter Vardy for a lively discussion on some of life’s biggest questions, posed by his two young daughters.

Celebrate divine and earthly beauty at this year’s Flower Festival, organised by the All Saints Church in collaboration with Askham Bryan College, York.

One of the UK’s largest student-run music groups, The Chimera Ensemble, presents a scintillating programme exploring the theme of music inspired by art and colour.

Participate in hands-on activities and tour the brand-new robotics laboratories and facilities at the University of York's Institute for Safe Autonomy.

Join us for a day of interdisciplinary events focusing on the changing ways in which humans have lived and farmed in and around Heslington from the pre-Roman period onwards.

Sports historian Duncan Stone discusses the history and future of English cricket in relation to social class, together with Kevin Tennent and Alex Gillett of the University of York’s School for Business and Society.

Our panel of experts investigate the ways women continue to be omitted from historical records, and discuss how we can better preserve women’s stories and voices.

Celebrate divine and earthly beauty at this year’s Flower Festival, organised by the All Saints Church in collaboration with Askham Bryan College, York.

Come along to learn all about the story of the Prince of Wales’s Own Regiment of Yorkshire during the Cold War years.

Celebrate the beauty and diversity of our nation’s plants with ecologist, writer and BBC Countryfile presenter Mike Dilger, who discusses his mission to see 1,000 different wild plants in one calendar year.

Join us for an exhibition and activities surrounding the seventh-century, 90ft-long Sutton Hoo ship, which was discovered in 1939 and is now being rebuilt.

Join Edgar Buchanan of the School of Physics, Engineering and Technology to discover how University of York researchers are planning to create the first robot system that will design and produce other robots.

Join Master Shipwright Tim Kirk to find out about the Sutton Hoo ship’s design and build, and to discover how the project celebrates Anglo-Saxon craftsmanship, the art of rowing and the possibility of power under sail.

Join us for an exciting opportunity to conduct real-time, interactive research - choose from a Census record for The Mount School York or information about World War 1 VAD nurses.

Join us for an exciting talk with Alex Jackson, Curator at the National Football Museum in Manchester.

Palaeontologist Phil Manning takes you on a journey to the remote badlands of Wyoming, where he and his team have been investigating a dinosaur graveyard packed with skeletons, fossilised plants and footprints.

Learn about rescue robotics and discover how a laser-powered ‘puppet’ could tackle challenges of extremely harsh environments without sacrificing the mission.

Come and listen to top female and non-binary scientists as they take science to the streets of York - while standing on a soapbox!

Join us for an afternoon of energetic, crafty, puzzling and historical fun with University of York postgraduate students and staff.

York St John University academics and Biomedical Science students invite you to (re)discover the love of science, as they take you through the research design process to find new ways of understanding cancer and other common diseases.

Ignite Music celebrates 60 years since the publication of John Burningham’s touching tale, 'Borka: The Adventures of a Goose With No Feathers', with a magical 45-minute children’s opera weaving live music, drama, singing, puppetry and animation.

Award-winning dog groomer, TV personality and experienced dog handler Verity Hardcastle tells you everything you need to know to create a joyful friendship with your dog.

Immerse yourself in gorgeous harmony with a massed choir of singers as we test the idea that group singing is an effective way of forming social connections with strangers.

Delve into the fascinating topic of cryptocurrencies with science communicator James Lees, who examines their origin, purpose and future.

A panel of experts discuss how the successes and failures of policy makers in the face of previous periods of economic change, both at home and abroad, can help us work out a plan to successfully navigate the economic challenges we are facing.

Explore the planned voyages of the Sutton Hoo ship with University of York archaeologist and Sutton Hoo Ship’s Company Chair Martin Carver, and discover how they are designed to help us learn more about the seventh century.

Join archaeologist Jim Leary of the University of York for a fascinating exploration of our past that will make you look at the landscape around you with fresh eyes.

Using creative methods developed at the University of York, this workshop will allow you to reimagine the future of mobility and how to rebuild our city for a sustainable future.

Award-winning health journalist Sarah Graham reveals the systemic and deep-rooted sexism within medicine, and explains what it will take to bridge the gender health gap.

Textile expert and author Clare Hunter discusses how Mary, Queen of Scots, used textiles to advance her political agenda, affirm her royal lineage and tell her own story.

Join us for what promises to be a feast of music by British composer Vaughan Williams, performed by York Musical Society and its German partner choir, Philharmonischer Chor Münster.

Celebrate divine and earthly beauty at this year’s Flower Festival, organised by the All Saints Church in collaboration with Askham Bryan College, York.

Come along to learn all about the story of the Prince of Wales’s Own Regiment of Yorkshire during the Cold War years.

Join our panel of experts to hear all about the groundbreaking ‘Pyramids of Life’ project that seeks to better understand how we can work sustainably to manage our oceans.

Join University of York Visiting Researcher Monika Zabrocka to discover how offering viewers more appealing, creative Audio Description formats allows us to reinvent this tool in entirely new contexts.

Join us for a guided walk exploring the flora and fauna of the University of York campus grounds.

Award-winning writer Peter Ross shares the tales of our country’s churches, and through them a story of Britain, one that is about people as much as place.

Our experts survey the current state of the UK’s criminal justice system and discuss which areas most urgently need reform.

Author and linguist Paul Anthony Jones explains the true nuts and bolts of language, and provides answers to a plethora of linguistic questions you’ve likely never thought to ask.

Join historian Gillian Waters of the University of York’s Centre for Lifelong Learning to rediscover the fascinating stories behind the City of York’s coat of arms, which tell us more about medieval York.

Solicitor and former Chief Prosecutor Nazir Afzal provides insights into his 30-year-long groundbreaking career, the UK’s relationship with race and power, and more.

Learn about the lost art of baroque musical improvisation, and experience live how improvisation in classical music can increase accessibility, diversity and excitement.

Join historian and writer Caroline Dodds Pennock to find out what ‘discovering Europe’ meant for Indigenous Americans and how their worldviews and cultures impacted European civilisation.

Join our panel as they explore the root causes of public mistrust as well as the importance of understanding how policing contributes and responds to vulnerability.

Delve into the topic of biodiversity and discover the nuanced relationships between humanity and nature with environmental writer Emma Marris and Chris Thomas, Director of the Leverhulme Centre for Anthropocene Biodiversity at the University of York.

Travel back in time with media scholar Joanna Starzynski to watch and reflect upon footage from Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation and her tour of England.

Environmental writer Louise Gray shares the stories behind our favourite fruits and vegetables, and why nothing is ever perfect.

Join our panellists as they compare and contrast the UK prison system with other approaches and alternative real-life examples.

Film and TV studies expert Helen Wheatley of the University of Warwick discusses her recent study on representations of death, dying and bereavement on television, in conversation with University of York death studies scholar Ruth Penfold-Mounce.

Join us for a special film screening of ‘Spike Milligan: The Unseen Archive’, including a Q&A with the documentary makers and Spike’s daughter, Jane.

Former Financial Times Whitehall editor Sebastian Payne presents the explosive inside account of how a prime minister lost his hold on power.

This walking tour of York will transport you back in time, allowing you to discover the stories of Jewish people who have called this city their home.

Hear from service users, carers and healthcare professionals in this panel discussion, which considers how and why our healthcare system has to change to meet the needs of people with severe mental illness.

Join us to find out all about the curious and enduring relationship between one of Britain’s most renowned literary figures and his sister-in-law.

Join Graeme Green, curator for The Royal Dragoon Guards Collection, to discover the role of tanks during the Normandy landings.

Delve into the diversity of grammatical variation in spoken dialects of English with University of York linguist Claire Childs to find out how dialects follow their own sets of rules.

Join author and BBC Radio producer Phil Tinline for an insightful talk exploring the highs and lows of British politics over the past century.

Rediscover the intellectual and cultural value of art through a close encounter with objects from the historic collection at Castle Howard.

Our panel of experts discuss the world of complex and unexpected imagery that people throughout history have used to inscribe their identities on their bodies.

Join us for a film screening and Q&A that will change your understanding of what development means.

Writer Alex Niven provides an in-depth exploration of the importance of the North of England in the modern era.

Personal and Business Coach Diane Tricker helps you discover a brilliant new way to problem-solve and expand your sense of possibility in partnership with the world around you.

Come along for a hands-on experience of what it’s like to be a student nurse at York St John University, and discover the cutting-edge facilities that are shaping the nurses of the future.

Come along to this panel discussion, hosted by Citizens Advice York, to engage with and better understand the workings of our justice system.

Science Museum Curator Glyn Morgan discusses the worldwide phenomenon of science fiction, revealing the scientific advances and imagination behind it.

Join bestselling author, historian and broadcaster Tracy Borman to hear one of the most extraordinary mother-and-daughter stories of all time.

Did you know that York is twinned with Münster in Germany and Dijon in France? Learn about York’s partnerships with these cities and discover how you, too, can get involved and benefit from these connections.

Join us for a fascinating conversation with Michael Cashman, who made history - first as an actor, one half of the first gay kiss on a British soap, and then as a campaigner and politician fighting for gay rights.

Come along to this inspiring panel discussion and exhibition, captured by an artist’s live drawings, that will invite you to imagine what a rewilded York could look like.

Inspired by the unique Pricke of Conscience window at All Saints North Street, historian Andrew Crome of Manchester Metropolitan University explores how people through time have imagined the apocalypse.

Dave Harper, US-UK Fulbright Scholar at the University of York, discusses how the relocation of the King’s Printer to York in 1642 invites us to consider anew the relationship of print and power.

Our panel invites you to explore how we can find beauty in our day-to-day lives and to discover how beauty can manifest itself in seemingly ordinary items and actions - from slang to football shirts.

Join us for an unforgettable evening of powerful spirituals performed by GRAMMY-nominated countertenor Reginald Mobley and acclaimed jazz pianist Baptiste Trotignon.

Come along for a unique experience mixing magic, mentalism and fMRI research - and maybe have your mind read!

Join us for a walking tour of sites and stories of significance to York’s LGBTQI+ communities past and present.

Join Julius Bryant, Keeper Emeritus of Word and Image at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, to discover some of the most influential and compelling illustrated books on topics ranging from religion to shopping, and natural history to fashion.

Zombies have taken over York! Come along and watch as University of York scientists dissect a captured zombie, and help us save the city through hands-on activities.

Join cultural studies expert Kirsty Sedgman to find out how unfairness and discrimination got baked into our social norms, and why, sometimes, we need to act unreasonably to bring about positive change.

Our panel of historians, librarians and literary scholars revisits the work of York-born historian and public intellectual Christopher Hill, exploring the legacy and afterlife of radical traditions in local and national history.

It's the 10th anniversary of York's Three Minute Thesis Competition! Be inspired and learn about the cutting-edge research at the University of York from ten of our talented PhD researchers in the live final of the competition.

Scottish MP Ian Blackford and award-winning broadcaster and writer Gavin Esler discuss the relationship between Scotland and England in the recent past, exploring the potential for creating a more constructive and positive relationship going forward.

Join geologist and science writer Nina Morgan to discover how every element of the Oxford University Museum of Natural History building was designed to teach science - and learn a lot about geology along the way!

Preti Taneja - writer, activist and literature professor - discusses her award-winning non-fiction book ‘Aftermath’, which interrogates the language of terror, trauma and grief, with writer and University of York lecturer Juliana Mensah.

Join author and perfumery expert Charles Sell for an engaging exploration of biblical perfumes that blends science, history and religion.

(Re)discover the Ukrainian language in its uniqueness and be reminded of the power of language in this important talk with University of York linguist Ursula Lanvers and Ukrainian visiting scholar Tetyana Lunyova.

In the spectacular setting of York Minster, University of York Choir and Symphony Orchestra come together to perform Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius.

Join archaeologist, educator and broadcaster Julian Richards for a captivating discussion on why science may not have all the answers to our questions about the past, and why we need imagination to bring it to life.

Historian Thomas Wright discusses the role of coercion and control in 1950s colonial Kenya through the lens of the rediscovered and controversial ‘migrated archives’.

Come along to the York Trailblazers workshop to hear and share stories about local heroes that have been forgotten, ignored or overlooked, and to help shape a city-wide sculpture trail in 2024.

Come along to this interactive drop-in event for people of all ages to discover the latest research on how people over 65 in the UK are using the internet, and to find out how we can better support each other in the face of digital threats.

Our two panels explore a different approach to urban regeneration through inclusive growth and by harnessing the power of major employer institutions, education providers and social enterprise for more equitable and inclusive economic outcomes.

Historian Charlotte Lydia Riley of the University of Southampton asks how the 1957 Home Office surveys and police responses to it can tell us more about the Windrush Scandal, the Hostile Environment and cultures of policing in Britain today.

Zombies have taken over York! Come along and watch as University of York scientists dissect a captured zombie, and help us save the city through hands-on activities.

Join University of York art historian Theo Gordon in conversation with photographer Sunil Gupta, whose work has continually pushed the boundaries of representation in photography, centring queer and postcolonial experiences.

Pianist Lucy Parham and actor Tim McInnerny come together in this powerful performance celebrating the 150th birthday of composer and pianist Sergei Rachmaninoff.

Bring along your instrument(s) and a music stand (if you have one), and be guided through a range of specially tailored activities and music conducted by the All Seasons Orchestra’s Artistic Director, Catherine E. Holbrook.

Following their sold-out concert in 2022, University of York Jazz Orchestra returns for its popular summer mix of standards and new compositions.

Think you can do better than our current politicians? Want to challenge them and share your ideas with policymakers? Then come along to the Big Tent Ideas Festival to participate in conversations and interactive sessions.

Discover the Brazilian martial art of Capoeira with musician, percussionist and workshop leader Claudio Kron in this fun-packed introductory session guaranteed to keep you on your toes.

Discover the Brazilian martial art of Capoeira with musician, percussionist and workshop leader Claudio Kron in this fun-packed introductory session guaranteed to keep you on your toes.

Join us as the winners of the 15th annual York Design Awards are revealed.