One of York’s most creative festivals is back – as the York Festival of Ideas is set to make waves for 2025.
With over 200 mostly free events, the festival – taking place from Saturday 31 May to Friday 13 June – features talks, walking tours, discussions, and performances, plus a host of family-friendly activities with the theme of ‘Making Waves’.
Led by the University of York, it’s one of the largest free festivals of its kind in the UK and is made possible by the generous support of organisations including the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, LNER, the Morrell Centre for Legal and Political Philosophy, York Central and the French Embassy in the UK.
The 2025 Festival showcases contributions from an array of world-class speakers and performers, thousands of schoolchildren from across the country are also being invited to take part in a Michael Morpurgo Celebration Day on 3 June as part of the Festival.
Organised as a tribute to the renowned author’s power as a writer, communicator and advocate of the arts, the celebration marks his eighth York Festival of Ideas appearance – and his first as Patron.
Joan Concannon, Director of York Festival of Ideas, said: “One of the Festival’s strengths is its ability to bring people with different experiences together to try to understand complex, fast-moving challenges.
“This year, whilst recognising the difficulties faced by many across the world, we also want to take time to appreciate the things that bring people joy, and the world and characters that Michael Morpurgo has created for us, is certainly something to celebrate.
“Michael Morpurgo has been making waves since his very first publication and we invite you all to join our inaugural Michael Morpurgo Celebration Day. We celebrate not only Michael’s eighth Festival appearance but his first as Festival Patron.”
Take a look at six event highlights below, and see the full programme at the York Festival of Ideas website.
Bob Ross, Health Equity and Decision Making
Using the medium of art, Robert Malcolm, Project Director at York Health Economics Consortium, will explore the important topic of health equity and medical decision making.
Health equity can be described as avoidable, systematic and unjust differences in health between different groups within society. Using quotes and examples from Bob Ross paintings (made famous by The Joy of Painting series), Robert will describe potential methods, approaches and challenges to account for health equity that could be used in health technology assessment (HTA) in the UK.
Join Robert and gain a better understanding of the trade-offs that need to be made when funding medical interventions.
- York Explore Library, Museum Street, York YO1 7DS
- Sat 31 May
- 1pm
- Free, booking required
- Tickets
Cobweb
Enjoy readings from acclaimed author Michael Morpurgo’s latest work, Cobweb (HarperCollins), a stunning tale of courage and kindness. Exploring humanity, animals and the heartbreak of war, the powerful, moving adventure is inspired by the extraordinary true story of the French Drummer Boy of Waterloo.
Our live online event is hosted by Katie Razzall, BBC News Culture and Media Editor, and forms the centrepiece of our Michael Morpurgo Celebration Day. Join us online for a unique opportunity to hear Michael read excerpts from Cobweb, and to ask him questions about his work, inspiration and love of animals and nature.
- Online
- Tue 3 Jun
- 10am
- Free, booking required
- Tickets
Intraterrestrials: Discovering the strangest life on Earth
Life thrives in the deepest, darkest recesses of Earth’s crust – from methane seeps in the ocean floor to the highest reaches of Arctic permafrost – and it’s unlike anything seen on the surface.
Join biologist Karen Lloyd, author of Intraterrestrials: Discovering the Strangest Life on Earth, as she shares what scientists are learning about these strange types of microbial life – and how research expeditions to some of the most extreme locales on the planet are broadening our understanding of what life is and how its earliest forms may have evolved.
- Online
- Fri 6 Jun
- 6pm
- Free, booking required
- Tickets
Dirty Dancing: A workshop of scandalous dance
Throughout history the way we move our bodies to music has always been a source of contention. While dancing historically was widely regarded as a way to demonstrate grace and elegance, it was still often decried as evil or immoral by certain parts of the community.
Come along to a Dance the Past workshop and learn some of the most scandalous dances in history. Historic dance performer Lottie Adcock will take you on a trip through time to find those dances that broke boundaries and shocked polite society.
- The Mount School, Dalton Terrace, York YO24 4DD
- Sun 8 Jun
- 1-4pm
- £10, booking required
- Tickets
Protecting Our Blue Planet
Warming seas, plastic pollution, overfishing – our oceans are at risk, and our future depends on them, wherever we live on this planet. Our oceans are vital carbon sinks and generate most of the oxygen on our planet. We urgently need to better understand them so that we can protect them and use them sustainably.
Echoing the 2025 UN Ocean Conference in Nice, our panel of experts from France and the UK will discuss the challenges our oceans face, what scientists are doing to help preserve them and their biodiversity, and why it is important to raise public awareness of the plight of the oceans.
- Online
- Wed 11 Jun
- 12pm
- Free, booking required
- Tickets
The Willow Experience
Love it or Hate it? The Willow was an infamous part of York’s nightlife culture for 42 years – a Cantonese restaurant-cum-disco, which was run by the Fong family in Coney Street from 1973 to 2015.
Re-experience the Willow through your senses and bring those memories to life. Touch, smell and taste the free prawn crackers (while stocks last!), listen to cheesy music, but be careful of those stairs and whatever you do, don’t touch the ceiling (if you know you know)!
Watch the Willow Archive “STORIES”, a series of six short archive films that share memories, from the challenges and joys experienced by those at the centre of this family-run business, to why the punters loved it, and that epic last night.
- The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse, 13-17 Coney St, York YO1 9QL
- Fri 13 Jun
- 6pm
- Free, booking required
- Tickets