Heritage Open Days at Hyde Park Picture House

What are Heritage Open Days?

Every September, organisations and volunteers come together to facilitate free celebrations of the history and heritage places around our country. Doors that are usually private are opened to the public and secrets that are held behind lock and key are revealed.

Heritage Open Days were established in 1994 in contribution to European Heritage Days, a 50-country-wide celebration of Europe’s cultural heritage. In England, over 5,000 events take place, showcasing the diversity of our heritage, a goal at the core of the scheme. This year, Heritage Open Days return from Fri 6 – Sun 15 September 2024.

We’re throwing open the doors of our beloved cinema Hyde Park Picture House to join in the fun. So, join us to learn more about the history of our cinema and cinema in Leeds, or come along to one of our screenings of some cinematic classics.

Our Screenings

Enjoy a classic film in a classic venue, following our recent renovation last year, our Grade II listed cinema is the perfect place to revisit this important and innovative film with the whole family. To celebrate Heritage Open Days, tickets are absolutely free. Remember to book your free seats so you don't miss out!

The Kid

After a young mother abandons her new-born baby, Charlie Chaplin's The Tramp inadvertently finds the child and takes him under his wing. The Tramp and the Kid, partners in crime, develop an irreplaceable bond. Five years pass and the Kid’s mother reappears on the scene, putting the pair’s relationship in jeopardy.

Sat 07 Sep • 11:00 [activity]
Sun 08 Sep • 11:00 [Autism-friendly], 11:30  

Join us at our Saturday screening from 10.30am to create your own traditional moving images using a zoetrope and creating your own thaumatropes!

Find out more & book.

Mary Poppins

When the children of the wealthy and uptight Banks family, are faced with the prospect of a new nanny, they are pleasantly surprised by the arrival of the magical Mary Poppins (Julie Andrews). Embarking on a series of fantastical adventures with Mary and her Cockney performer friend, Bert (Dick Van Dyke), the siblings try to pass on some of their nanny's sunny attitude to their preoccupied parents.

Sat 14 Sep • 11:00 [activity]
Sun 15 Sep • 11:00 [Autism-friendly], 11:30

Join us at our Saturday screening from 10.30am to create your own traditional moving images using a zoetrope and creating your own thaumatropes!

Our Events

Self-Guided Cinema Tours

A great opportunity to explore our cinema for free, a year on from our recent renovation. Get to see our heritage features without interruption alongside the new aspects of our building such as our new Screen Two and Café Bar. Our cinema building will be open to visitors from 1pm - 3pm, on Sat 7th and Sun 8th September, for audiences to come and explore the cinema, with self guided tour information available and staff on hand to answer any questions. Please note: our guided projection room tours are now fully booked.

Find out more.

Guided Cinema Tour

Open to those with no prior knowledge of the Picture House and its history, this guided tour will take visitors around every nook and cranny of the building, exploring old and new alike. Led by our Young Audience Officer, Sylvia Barber, the talk will explore the history of the Picture House whilst also highlighting the work undertaken in our recent refurbishment to secure the future of this much beloved building. 

Mon 09 Sep • 10:00
Tue 10 Sep • 10:00

Find out more & book. 

Do You Remember the Old Cinemas of Leeds?

Join us for an intimate talk with Jane Ellis looking back to the era before corporate multiplexes, when Leeds had around 100 independent picture-houses and cinemas. As these fine buildings began gradually to disappear, speaker Jane Ellis began making a photographic record from the 1980s of what remained, and collected the memories of local people who remembered with affection the heyday of “going to the pictures”.

Tue 10 Sep • 18:30 [sold out]

Discover other Leeds treasures

We share a place in the Leeds heritage landscape with some other incredible buildings and spaces. Get to know our city with four other events we think you may enjoy.

Leeds Central Library - Heritage Tour • Sat 07 - Fri 13 September

Take a guided tour of this Grade II* listed Victorian masterpiece in the historic heart of Leeds. From antique Potts clocks to grinning stone guard dogs, explore the secrets behind the scenes of one of the city's most amazing public buildings, taking in four floors of this building that opened in 1884.

Find out more.

Sunny Bank Mills Heritage Tour • Fri 06 - Sun 08 September

Explore 195-year-old Sunny Bank Mills, an important woollen and worsted mill, which produced some of the finest cloth in the world, on a free heritage tour. Visit the new Gallery exhibition, artists' Open Studios, Sculpture Trail & Family Trail.

Find out more. 

The Great Ginnel in Headingley • Tue 10 September • 10:00

  The Great Ginnel is united by two footpaths, which are both long and ancient. Join Richard Tyler (who edits the HeadingleyLeeds.com website) for a journey through space and time, exploring the longest and oldest ginnel in Headingley starting at Hyde Park Corner and ending up in Weetwood.

Find out more.

Hyde Park Our Story at Left Bank • From Tue 10 September

Hyde Park has a rich cultural heritage, a unique suburb of the city with many stories to tell. Hosted by creative and community space Left Bank, this event will launch an exhibition of works and memorabilia about Hyde Park, featuring speakers sharing the history and stories of life then and now.  

Find out more.