Holy Week and Easter at Bradford Cathedral
The story of Jesus’ journey through Holy Week and Easter will be told anew at Bradford Cathedral this spring through a programme of services and events starting with services on Palm Sunday on the 24th March. All are invited to join in person, with the Sunday 10:30am services also streamed online.
We are delighted that the well-known and well-loved Bradford boy, the Revd Canon Robin Gamble, will be taking a leading role. In addition to preaching on Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday and Easter Sunday, Robin will lead a series of events around the city centre which will give people the opportunity to engage in the question of why Jesus, his death and resurrection 2000 years ago, are significant for the people of Bradford people. This will culminate in From A Cross Bradford on Good Friday.
Further details can be found below, and all are welcome at these services. We also have our regular Sunday services at 8am, 10:30am and 3:30pm.
Please note that there won’t be Choral Evensong on the Monday and Tuesday of Holy Week.
“At this time of year Christians around the world begin to move, in Holy Week, towards remembering the death and resurrection of Jesus.
“Here at the Cathedral we will do the same, starting on Palm Sunday when we remember Jesus’ triumphant entry into the city of Jerusalem.
“This is the most significant week in the Christian year, a week which goes from triumph to apparent disaster and back into triumph.
“But not triumph as many would see it: the triumph of one who goes from death to life – who says to all people, at all times in history, there is always hope.
“We invite you to come and discover that here at Bradford Cathedral during Holy Week this year.”
Summary of Services
Where booking is needed / advised, the links are clickable.
Palm Sunday (Sunday 24th March)
8am – Holy Communion (BCP)
10:30am – The Liturgy of Palm Sunday (also live-streamed)
Come and Sing Requiem (Matthew Coleridge)
1pm – Registration & Rehearsal (booking required)
5pm – Liturgical Performance
Monday 25th – Friday 29th March
12:30pm – 1pm – Holy Week Witness (Centenary Square)
Discover more about Holy Week
Wednesday 27th March
8:15am – Holy Communion
10:15am – Holy Communion
Maundy Thursday (Thursday 28th March)
11am – Chrism Eucharist (Limited Spaces)
7pm – The Liturgy of Maundy Thursday / The Watch
Good Friday (Friday 29th March)
12noon – Meditations Around the Cross
1:30pm – The Liturgy of Good Friday
7pm – From A Cross Bradford
Holy Saturday (Saturday 30th March)
3pm – Messy Easter
7pm – The Easter Liturgy
Easter Day (Sunday 31st March)
8am – Holy Communion (BCP)
10:30am – Choral Eucharist (also live-streamed)
3:30pm – Choral Evensong
Daily Prayer
You can join us daily for prayer and the reading of the scriptures, Mondays to Saturdays. Morning and Evening Prayer take place online at 9am and 5:30pm (duration: up to 30 minutes). You can also join us in person for Morning Prayer, as well as for Midday Prayer, which takes place in the Lady Chapel at 12noon (duration: 10 minutes).
Please note that there won’t be a Midday Prayer on Thursday 28th or Friday 29th March 2024.
“There has been a Christian presence in Bradford for 1,400 years. We might even be bold enough to state that Bradford only exists because an Anglo-Saxon preaching cross was erected on the site where Bradford Cathedral now stands, attracting people from near and far to gather and listen to the message of Jesus. It was on that site, all those centuries ago, that the story of Jesus was first told and it has continued to be told throughout the development of our city. We are excited to carry on that task for the 21st century city that we now know as Bradford… City of Sanctuary, City of Culture, City of Film… City of Salvation.”
Holy Week and Easter Services in detail
Worship is the heartbeat of Cathedral life and is offered daily through online Morning and Evening Prayer and the seven services each week. The main weekly service is on Sunday at 10:30 am which is also live-streamed. You can download an Order of service in advance or use the Proclaim app instead of an Order of Service.
At the start of the week, the 10:30am Liturgy of Palm Sunday will feature the annual procession of palms, music sung by the Cathedral Choir, a sermon given by the Revd Canon Robin Gamble, and Holy Communion.
Sunday 24th March 2024 (Palm Sunday)
- 8am – Holy Communion (BCP)
- 10:30am – The Liturgy of Palm Sunday (also livestreamed)
- 1:30pm – Come and Sing Requiem (Matthew Coleridge) –
Registration & Rehearsal - 5pm – Come and Sing Requiem – Liturgical Performance
Join Bradford Cathedral Choir for a Come and Sing Requiem for Palm Sunday. We’ll spend the afternoon rehearsing this sublime work, before singing in a Palm Sunday evening service co-directed by Matthew and the Cathedral’s Director of Music, Graham Thorpe.
Singers are invited to gather at 1pm for registration followed by a rehearsal. All are invited to the performance which will take place at 5pm.
Matthew Coleridge is one of the UK’s most exciting compositional voices. Matthew’s music leapt into the spotlight in 2023, when his Requiem was voted into the Classic FM Hall of Fame’s top 100 – making him the second youngest composer on the list, and 10th highest living composer overall.
Anthony Gray, Bradford Cathedral’s Assistant Director of Music, says:
“We’re delighted to be welcoming Matthew Coleridge to Bradford Cathedral to lead this year’s Palm Sunday Come and Sing alongside the music staff.
“Matthew’s Requiem is a powerful and evocative setting, employing the full breadth of musical abilities of a choir, organ, soloists and cello (for which we’ll be joined by Skipton Camerata’s Doug Badger).
There will also be the opportunity to discover more about Holy Week and Jesus in Centenary Square from 12:15pm – 1pm from Monday – Friday during Holy Week, alongside a chance to take part in conversations and sing songs.
Monday 25th March – Friday 29th March 2024
- 12:30pm – 1pm – Holy Week Witness: Discover more about Holy Week (Centenary Square)
Wednesday 27th March 2024
- 8:15am – Holy Communion
- 10:15am – Holy Communion
This Holy Week pick up a copy of the ‘Walk the Week’ booklet, a reflective companion to the services.
Thursday 28th March
On Maundy Thursday there will be the Diocesan Chrism Eucharist at 11am, led by the Rt Revd Nick Baines, Bishop of Leeds. At the heart of this service is the consecration of oils for baptism, confirmation/ordination and anointing the sick which will be used in churches and communities across West Yorkshire and the Dales, and the renewal of the vows of all bishops, priests, deacons and lay readers who minister in those places. As one of three Cathedrals in the Anglican Diocese of Leeds, Bradford hosts this service once every three years. Please note that there are limited spaces available at this service.
Later on that day there will be the Liturgy of Maundy Thursday at 7pm, a service which will re-tell the story of Jesus’ passion for the world through a moving service in which we re-enact his washing of the disciples’ feet, remember him in the sharing of bread and wine, and then have the opportunity to keep ‘The Watch’ with him at the Altar of Repose until his arrest at midnight. The Revd Canon Robin Gamble will preach.
Thursday 28th March 2024 (Maundy Thursday)
- 11am – Chrism Eucharist (Limited Spaces)
- 7pm – The Liturgy of Maundy Thursday / The Watch
Friday 29th March
On Good Friday, the traditional three hours that mark the crucifixion will be kept in two services. At 12noon there will be Meditations Around the Cross, a creative and reflective engagement with the story of Good Friday using music, art and poetry. At 1:30pm, the Liturgy of Good Friday offers an opportunity to meditate on Jesus’ crucifixion through choral music, silence, the reading of The Passion according to St John, the Reserved Sacrament (Holy Communion), and the symbolic burying of the cross in St Aidan’s Chapel.
Also on Good Friday – at 7pm – will be From A Cross Bradford, an informal event of music, conversation, fun and reflection.
Friday 29th March 2024 (Good Friday)
- 12noon – Meditations Around the Cross
- 1:30pm – The Liturgy of Good Friday
- 7pm – From A Cross Bradford
“Come and journey through the interactive story of Holy Week in one afternoon. Join the crowd who welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem. Sit at the table with Jesus and his friends at their last supper together. Stand at the foot of the cross and hear Jesus’s final words. Then approach the tomb in preparation for the great climax of the story.”
Saturday 30th March
On Holy Saturday from 3pm – 4pm there will be a ‘Messy Easter’ event. These popular events for children and families include activities, crafts and interactive play entering the stories of the Bible. This time we will be exploring the story of Holy Week and what Jesus might have been thinking and feeling.
Later on Saturday, the 30th March starting at 7pm, the Liturgy of Easter will dramatically retell the story of the resurrection through ancient prophecy, the lighting of a fire, and the sharing of Holy Communion.
During this service, there will also be an opportunity to be baptised or to renew baptismal vows. Interested persons are encouraged to get in touch with the cathedral in advance. The Venerable Andy Jolley, Archdeacon of Bradford, will be the preacher.
Saturday 30th March 2024 (Holy Saturday)
- 3pm – Messy Easter
- 7pm – The Easter Liturgy
Sunday 31st March
Finally, on Easter Day, there will be services at 8am (Holy Communion from the Book of Common Prayer), Choral Eucharist at 10:30am (also livestreamed), and Choral Evensong at 3:30pm. The Revd Canon Robin Gamble will preach at the 10.30am service.
Sunday 31st March 2024 (Easter Day)
- 8am – Holy Communion (BCP)
- 10:30am – Easter Day Choral Eucharist (also livestreamed)
- 3:30pm – Choral Evensong
Visit Us:
Opening times
Monday-Saturday 10am – 4pm
please see our what’s on calendar for any changes
What to See?
Bradford Cathedral has been a site of Christian worship since the 7th century. Explore over 1000 years of history in the heart of Bradford. We also have a wealth of Morris & Co. stained glass, 18th Century monuments and a range of contemporary and historic textiles.
School Resources
Bradford Cathedral has also made available online resources for the season of Holy Week and Easter, for teachers, parents and carers.
Palm Sunday
Holy Week and Easter
EYFS/KS1
- Holy Week and Easter PowerPoint- Meaning and key images
- Easter Story PowerPoint
- Bunting
- Butterfly template
- Colour-in Cross
- Design an Easter Cross
- Easter colouring
- Easter Story booklet and colouring
- Palm leaf template