Ted Hughes - Poet Laureate

Hebden Bridge Arts Festival

Hebden Bridge Picture House

HEBDEN Bridge has been described as ‘the St Ives of the North’ because of the legions of artists, performers and craftspeople who settle here.

Drawn partly by the emotional wildness of the surrounding landscape and partly by the area’s historic rebelliousness, Hebden Bridge today zings and tingles with the whole spectrum of arts activity.

Apart from a hugely diverse programme of exhibitions at galleries throughout the town - from Bridget Riley to genteel watercolours - studios and workshops abound.

Visitors tapping into this artistic ferment quickly notice that the area is also rich in informal shows and performances at pubs and cafes where poetry readings, storytelling, dance and meet-the-author talks are everyday happenings.

A creative infrastructure of craftspeople like jewellers, potters and weavers underpins the town.

More formally, Hebden Bridge Arts Festival attracts thousands of visitors every year and has made its mark on the national arts scene with the imagination and vigour of its programming.

This pioneering spirit is echoed in other Hebden Bridge places and events like the Hardcastle Crags sculpture trail, Land Farm Garden and Gallery, the Pace Egg Plays.

The UK’s leading bands, musicians, comedians and entertainers use two important venues in Hebden Bridge: the Trades Club and the Picture House.

As a cinema, the Picture House is rare for being local authority owned, and for its special schedule of films spanning latest releasese, minority interest screenings and foreign movies.

It is also one of the oldest cinemas in Britain and manages to combine efficiency with an eccentric atmosphere beloved by its local audiences.

Many poets and authors have written about the area, including former Poet Laureate Ted Hughes. A national poetry centre dedicated to his work is opening soon at the old railway station in Mytholmroyd where Hughes was born.