Week-long festival to 'bring people together'

Thousands of people are expected to turn out for the culmination of a week-long festival featuring music, dance and cultural celebrations.

Now in its second year, Leeds Road Festival has expanded from a two-day celebration into a week of events, which come to a close this weekend.

Launched on 9 August at Bradford Live by MP Imran Hussain, the week will close with live music, creative activities and stalls at Bradford Moor Park on Saturday and Sunday.

Leeds Road Festival co-founder Yaseen Mohammed said the event was a "showcase" of what the area had to offer.

"The whole idea to set up the festival is not just about a dinner and a big event in the park, it's about how we act as a bit of a convener, how we bring people together," he said.

Leeds Road has been known for decades as the city's Curry Mile and was the home of the first Akbar's and Jinnah restaurants.

"We wanted to showcase what culture means on Leeds Road," said Mohammed.

"We've got retail, we've got fashion, we've got communities, we've got faith, we've got cars, we've got everything going on.

"Leeds Road brings in thousands of people, especially on weekends. We get families coming from around the UK wanting to shop here or dine here."

Mohammed said that as Bradford city centre struggled to attract visitors the "gateways" of the city had grown.

"Leeds Road is now probably the busiest gateway. There's a real connection into the city centre, we've probably got about a mile and a half, two miles of so much activity and it's just organically grown.

"Akbars at one point had three businesses just on Leeds Road, it's kind of pulled the crowds in - we've got the plazas as well, which is a kind of unique retail experience."

The inaugural 2025 event drew a crowd of 20,000 visitors and was part of the Bradford City of Culture programme.

The festival will feature performances from traditional Qawwali performer Wajid Ali Baghdadi, as well as singers Abrar Ul-Haq and Nadia Gul, and rapper Wilko Wilkes.

There will also be a sports arena with events led by Yorkshire Cricket Club and Bradford Bulls.

Alongside the live performances, the festival will feature funfairs, street food, family entertainment and cultural activities.

The event includes a lunch commemorating the founder of restaurant Akbars, Shabir Hussain, who was known as the "Curry King" and claimed to have invented the "naan tree".

Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.