The Leadmill

The opening of The Leadmill in 1980 was a response to the lack of cultural facilities in Sheffield and was set against the backdrop of a political and economic environment characterised by the beginning of ‘Thatcherism’. Dissemination of the steelworks, coupled with soaring youth unemployment gave rise to slogans such as ‘no future no hope’ for the majority of youngsters. An unlikely spark of hope was struck in a derelict flour mill in a rundown area of Sheffield. Part of the building housed the legendary Esquire Club where during the sixties, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, The Small Faces and others played on a stage made from two grand piano’s with their legs sawn off. A mixture of volunteers, students, artists and unemployed came together with a vision of setting up a centre of the arts and music for people like themselves who had nowhere to go. These values The Leadmill has maintained for the past 35 years and will continue to throughout its career. The Leadmill is a 900 capacity live music venue, which also hosts regular weekly club nights, comedy events, theatre, cinema screenings and much more. Over the years hundreds of bands and artists have played The Leadmill stage, from Pulp to Kasabian, Disclosure to Coldplay. Arcade Fire are quoted as saying ‘Playing The Leadmill is a rite of passage for any band worth their salt’. A little known fact is that also within The Leadmill there are 9 studios which throughout the years have been rented out to a variety of businesses within the cultural industries. They now house 2 artists, 2 fashion design companies, a tattooist, an events management company and a photography studio.