News.
NORTHERN LIGHTS LEEDS REVEALS DETAILS OF NEW 2025 ILLUMINATIONS
17th September 2025
NEW TEMPLE NEWSAM FESTIVE SPECTACULAR SHARES DETAILS ON CHRISTMAS VILLAGE ARTISANAL FARE
The Lily of the Lake will make its Leeds debut
Ahead of the event’s return to the iconic grounds of Temple Newsam this winter, Leeds’ immersive festive spectacular Northern Lights has shared a preview of the incredible illuminations set to be displayed, as well as some of the delicious seasonal food and drink that’ll be available inside the curated Christmas Village during the events run from 21st of November to 31st of December 2025.
Over 100,000 visitors were taken on an otherworldly journey through a world of breathtaking illuminations and beautiful musical scores during Northern Lights’ debut year and 2025 sees the immersive trail totally reimagined; offering returning visitors an all-new festive spectacle.
At the heart of Northern Lights this year, taking pride of place on Temple Newsam’s Menagerie Ponds, will be Lily of the Lake. Designed by internationally renowned, Australian digital design firm Mandylights; Lily of the Lake is a larger-than-life, six metre wide mirrored lily that will float on the lake’s peaceful waters. Each of the lily’s petals will be edged with cutting-edge colour changing neon lights and the whole piece will be up-lit by innovative underwater lighting to create a dramatic and constantly changing ripple effect on the petals above.
Elsewhere, Northern Lights are delighted to welcome the award-winning Ithaca Creative Sound & Light Art team back to Temple Newsam where they will be transforming some of the park’s wintery woodland into Jungle Tree; a sumptuous digital rainforest with snaking, twisting vines of lush neon lights and sparking, Spanish Moss-inspired hanging garlands complemented by a bespoke jungle-themed soundscape.
2025’s Northern Lights will also see the return of Ithaca’s magical Sea of Light from last year, but ingeniously reinvented as Winter Reflections; a singular installation offering two unique experiences. When viewed from a distance, Winter Reflections is a mesmerising display of interlinked rings of light, programmed to reveal stylised festive snowflakes and more but, when seen up close, visitors will be treated to a more abstract display of swirling, snow-like lights.
To the south of the site, a clearing in the trees will house an awe-inspiring illuminated flower forest from prominent UK-based light art studio Jigantics. Symbolic of new life and enduring love, Tulips is an immersive garden of giant, glowing blooms that range from 3 to 6 metres tall, taking visitors on a journey down the rabbit hole and reminding us of the natural beauty that surrounds us.
This year, the one-mile paved wonderland walk will feature light installations and musical compositions from international artists and local creatives alike, all dotted across more than fifteen distinct illuminated zones throughout Temple Newsam’s beautiful gardens to produce an inimitable sensory experience. As well as vintage fairground rides and stalls selling the likes of mulled wine, hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows will complete the festivities, the Christmas Village will be back with an extensive range of delicious food and drink from local artisanal street food vendors including gourmet burgers and fries from local favourites The Otley Burger Company, loaded hot dogs from sausage connoisseurs Diamond Dogs and for those with a sweet tooth, an authentic Spanish Churros stand.
Northern Lights have also made a series of enhancements to the site and visitor experience for 2025. This year’s event will see the introduction of a new improved system for amending bookings, reduced event capacity at peak hours, extra neuro-inclusive sensory slots with reduced capacity and lower audio levels, increased customer services resources, significantly upgraded car parking facilities and more.
Northern Lights Leeds will be sharing more details of this year’s event including further illuminations highlights, Christmas Village vendors, local charity partners and much, much more soon.
Roxy Robinson – Director, From The Fields said:
“It’s so exciting to finally be able to share a sneak peek of how we’re transforming Temple Newsam for the second Northern Lights Leeds this year! The response and ticket sales have been brilliant and we cannot wait to show Yorkshire our reimagined Christmas experience. It might seem a bit early to be thinking about the festive season but we’ve already sold a quarter of this year’s tickets so, if you want to experience these magical installations from our friends at Ithaca and Mandylights and more, best grab them whilst you can!”
Praise for Northern Lights:
“If the cold night air doesn’t take your breath away, these lights will”
BBC Look North
“The perfect family day out”
Yorkshire Evening Post
“For those who are looking for something a bit new over the Christmas period or just wanting a winter treat for all the family, we definitely recommend Northern Lights.”
Leeds Living
“I followed the Rainbow Road at Temple Newsam – and found gold”
Yorkshire Post
“It is really hard to find any flaws with it – it ticked all the boxes for us. A fun, family-friendly, festive night out that really is worth a visit.”
LeedsLive
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