Ecclesiastical Textiles’ Tours on Saturday 1st February 2025 and Morris & Co. Stained Glass Window Tours on Saturday 22nd March 2025 will lift the lid on some of the amazing things to see in Bradford Cathedral
On Saturday 1st February, Bradford Cathedral will be opening its doors for a pair of Ecclesiastical Textiles’ Tours where you’ll be able to discover more about the beautiful textiles on display in the Cathedral, as well as those usually not seen. Then, on Saturday 22nd March, there will be two Stained Glass Window Tours, focussing on the Morris & Co. windows in the Cathedral.
Being held as part of Bradford 2025, the UK City of Culture year, the Ecclesiastical Textiles’ Tours are the perfect chance to discover more about the history of Bradford Cathedral through its collection of beautiful, intricate and historically significant ecclesiastical textiles.
These include altar frontals and other textiles designed by Morris & Co., the Leek Embroidery Society, Bradfordian artist Ernest Sichel and renowned Bradfordian embroiderer, Louisa Pesel, who designed an altar frontal that was worked on by shell-shocked soldiers during World War One. There are also contemporary textiles designed by Polly Meynell.
Maggie Myers, Bradford Cathedral’s Director of Education and Visitors, says:
“Join us as we tour the Cathedral, seeing these stunning textiles in situ – some of which are rarely on display – and hearing the fascinating stories behind them.
“The Cathedral is such a lovely building, with so many wonderful features and stories. This is a rare opportunity to focus on its fascinating textiles and to get up close to them in order to appreciate them fully.”
The 11:30am tour is almost fully booked, and tickets can be bought at https://ecclesiastical-textiles-1.eventbrite.co.uk/, with additional tickets available for the 1:30pm tour, from https://ecclesiastical-textiles-2.eventbrite.co.uk/
Then, in March, the Cathedral will be celebrating the life and work of William Morris, on the weekend of his 191th birthday anniversary.
The famous Victorian artist and designer William Morris founded Morris & Co. and, along with renowned figures such as Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Edward Burne-Jones and Ford Madox Brown, created many pieces of stunning stained glass, some early examples of which are on display in four locations in Bradford Cathedral. The stained glass also includes a figure, recently discovered to have been designed by William De Morgan.
The tours, taking place on Saturday 22nd March, will also include an appreciation of the magnificent West Window, a beautiful Pre-Raphaelite window designed by Heaton, Butler and Bayne.
You can book your places now for the tours, which take place at either 11:30am or 1:30pm.
You can book your tickets for the Saturday 1st February Ecclesiastical Textiles’ Tour at https://ecclesiastical-textiles-1.eventbrite.co.uk/ (11:30am) and https://ecclesiastical-textiles-2.eventbrite.co.uk/ (1:30pm), via the Bradford Cathedral website, or by calling the Cathedral office on 01274 77 77 20 (Mon-Fri, 9am – 2:45pm).
Places for the Morris & Co. Stained Glass Window Tour of Bradford Cathedral on Saturday 22nd March 2025 can be booked at https://morris-co-tour-1.eventbrite.co.uk/ (11:30am) and https://morris-co-tour-2.eventbrite.co.uk/ (1:30pm).
ENDS