Date: Sunday 11 October 2026, 10:30 am-12:30 pm
Venue: York Art Gallery
Art for Wellbeing
Sunday 11 October 2026, 10.30am – 12.30pm
Suitable for ages 16+ | Included in general admission | Book Tickets
Date: Sunday 11 October 2026, 10:30 am-12:30 pm
Venue: York Art Gallery
Art for Wellbeing
Sunday 11 October 2026, 10.30am – 12.30pm
Suitable for ages 16+ | Included in general admission | Book Tickets
Date: Thursday 15 October 2026, 4:30 pm-6:30 pm
Venue: York Castle Museum
York Castle Museum Primary School Teachers’ CPD and Consultation Event
Thursday 15 October 2026 | 4.30pm – 6.30pm
Free, booking essential | Book Now
Join us at York Castle Museum, for our first ever Primary School Teachers’ CPD and Consultation Event!
Enjoy a tour of the museum, explore how our collections can support your teaching, and help shape our future school learning programme by telling us what topics and activities you’d like us to offer. Attendees will also get priority booking on any future free workshop pilots at the museum.
This session takes place at York Castle Museum. Teas, coffees and cakes will be provided.
Spaces at this free event are limited, so secure your place now using our online form
Date: Wednesday 21 October 2026, 1:30 pm-3:30 pm
Venue: York Art Gallery
Sketchbook Circle
Wednesday 21 October 2026 | 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Suitable for ages 16+ | £5 per person* | Book Now
*General admission to York Art Gallery is included.
Pick up a pencil – draw and discover!
Give yourself time to sharpen and share your drawing skills in this 2-hour sketching workshop with artist Griselda Goldsbrough.
Enjoy working in sketchbooks in a relaxed and friendly group, taking inspiration from the collections at York Art Gallery.
These informal practical art sessions run one Wednesday each month for beginners or those who create regularly. Suitable for ages 16+. Materials are provided. Please book separately for each session.
Date: Thursday 22 October 2026, 10:00 am-12:00 pm
Venue: York Art Gallery
Gallery Babies Thursday 22 October 2026 |10am - 12pm £2 per person | Book Now
Drop-in sensory play sessions every Thursday during term-time, for pre-walking babies and their grown-ups, set in the atmospheric surroundings of York Art Gallery.
Using our beautiful sensory toolkit, a collection of colourful squishy sculptural objects, sessions will be gently facilitated, exploring shape, colour and texture.
Gallery Babies is a welcoming and supportive space to relax, bond with your baby and meet other parents and carers, providing a bit of calm and care to your daily routine.
The session starts at 10am and finishes at 12pm, but you can drop in and out at any time. Even after the session has finished, our sensory toolkit will be out in the Burton Gallery for you to continue to explore with your baby.
These sessions are designed for pre-walking babies; however, we understand that you may have your hands full with more than one child. The session takes place in the Burton Gallery, a space with plenty of room to play, read and The Studio is also available to eat much needed snacks outside of the galleries if needed. Buggy parking and baby changing facilities available.
We are also offering a special offer in Sketch café for anybody attending a session: Hot drink and cake £7.00 and lunch and drink £15.00.
Please note: Participants must have a pre-booked ticket to attend the session. Gallery Babies admission includes free access to the permanent gallery spaces, tickets for temporary exhibitions require a separate admissions ticket. This event takes place in the Burton Gallery.
Date: Saturday 24 October 2026, 10:00 am-4:00 pm
Venue: Yorkshire Museum
Make and Play: Bayeux Tapestry Weaving
Saturday 24 October 2026 | 10am – 4pm
Included in general admission | Book Tickets
Celebrate the display of the Bayeux Tapestry at the British Museum, one of the Yorkshire Museum’s partners, by having a go at weaving in our craft room.
Date: Saturday 24 October 2026, 10:30 am-4:00 pm
Venue: York Castle Museum
Saturday 24 October 2026
10:30am – 4pm | Demonstrations throughout the day
Included in general admission | Book Tickets
Call into the Castle Kitchen during your visit, located off the Secrets of Dress gallery, to watch live seasonal cooking demonstrations throughout the day.
This October Half-Term, we’re making Soul Cakes, a small cake with sweet spices traditionally made for Halloween. These treats are a symbol of community and remembrance in Christian traditions, used as offerings to commemorate the dead.
Try a tasty samples and scan the QR code on display for the recipe, so you can try it yourself at home!
Date: Saturday 24 October 2026, 10:30 am-4:00 pm
Venue: York Castle Museum
Tales of Nut-Crack Night
Daily, Saturday 24 October – Saturday 31 October 2026
Performances throughout the day
Included in general admission | Book Tickets
History Riot return to York Castle Museum this October Half-Term daily from Saturday 24 – Saturday 31 October, with an array of family friendly performances.
Join two eccentric Victorian characters for silliness and autumnal adventures on Kirkgate. Experience and learn about Yorkshire traditions from All Hallow’s Eve, or as the Victorian’s called it, Nut-Crack Night!
Date: Saturday 24 October 2026, 7:00 pm-8:00 pm
Venue: Tempest Anderson Hall, The Yorkshire Museum
Bear and the Band
Saturday 24 October 2026 | 7pm
Tempest Anderson Hall at the Yorkshire Museum, York
Adults: £8 | Children: £4 | Book Tickets
A remarkable piece of York history is being brought back to life in Bear and the Band, an exciting new performance combining storytelling, animation and live brass music at the Yorkshire Museum in the York Museum Gardens.
There really was a bear in the York Museum Gardens. In 1831, she was sent to London – travelling there on top of a stagecoach!
Now, returning to the very gardens where the real bear once roamed, Martin Watt’s story will be brought vividly to life through live storytelling, animated film by award-winning creative designer and filmmaker Andy Burns, and live music from Kirkbymoorside Town Brass Band.
Date: Sunday 25 October 2026, 10:00 am-4:00 pm
Venue: Yorkshire Museum
Make and Play: Bayeux Tapestry Weaving
Sunday 25 October 2026 | 10am – 4pm
Included in general admission | Book Tickets
Celebrate the display of the Bayeux Tapestry at the British Museum, one of the Yorkshire Museum’s partners, by having a go at weaving in our craft room.
Date: Sunday 25 October 2026, 10:30 am-4:00 pm
Venue: York Castle Museum
Tales of Nut-Crack Night
Daily, Saturday 24 October – Saturday 31 October 2026
Performances throughout the day
Included in general admission | Book Tickets
History Riot return to York Castle Museum this October Half-Term daily from Saturday 24 – Saturday 31 October, with an array of family friendly performances.
Join two eccentric Victorian characters for silliness and autumnal adventures on Kirkgate. Experience and learn about Yorkshire traditions from All Hallow’s Eve, or as the Victorian’s called it, Nut-Crack Night!
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