Poet and writer Matt Abbott shares the five things he loves most about Farsley

My wife and I moved to Farsley from London in March last year. And whenever we tell people in and around Leeds that we live in Farsley, they give a “ooh, la-de-dah!” response; like we’ve moved to Beverley Hills or Greenwich Village.

But we haven’t. We’ve moved to a nice sandstone village, down the road from Pudsey, which a fair bit lot going on, and some nice views.

There’s a lot to love about Farsley, though, in fairness, and so here are some of my favourite picks…

1. The Constitutional (and the Trouble At Mill crew)

It was way back in 2014 when I first did a gig for Trouble At Mill. I could instantly see that they were the best event promoters in West Yorkshire. Pop-up cabaret nights featuring music, comedy, spoken word, street food, deckchairs, local beer, and an electric atmosphere. Whenever they booked me to do a turn, I always knew it’d be top.

This was way, way before I’d even considered moving to Farsley.

But now that I have, I’m buzzing to be starting a regular spoken word night at their venue The Constitutional. They’re the heart of Farsley’s thriving cultural scene.

2. The walk down to the canal at Rodley

We live near the Farsley Celtic ground. From the back field next to us, there’s a trail that takes you through the trees down to Springfield Mill. And from there, it’s only another five or 10 minutes down to the canal at Rodley. We were in a sunny lockdown when we moved, so this formed our new daily routine.

Once you get down there, the canal’s gorgeous – whether you have a pint on the terrace at Rodley Barge or walk on into Leeds. It’s one of the things that made us fall in love with Farsley and I can’t wait for spring.

3. Truman Books

Once we’d moved, I remember saying to my wife that the only piece missing from the jigsaw for me was an indie bookshop. So, I was over the moon to see that Truman Books was opening in June!

Amanda and her team can’t do enough for you. If they don’t have the book that you’re after in stock, they can almost always have it delivered for next-day collection. Their coffee’s nice too and they’ve started doing regular events. The only negative is having to fight the urge to spend a load of money in there every time I walk past.

4. The corner where Old Fold meets Town Street

This might seem weird, but I still get butterflies when I turn right from Old Fold onto Town Street. And it’s always my favourite moment when we take visitors on a walking tour around Farsley.

A lot of our friends are from the London/Essex area and don’t know Leeds at all, so when we turn right at Sabroso Street and Town Street unfolds beneath us – the sandstone buildings and the view of Horsforth at the other side of the valley – it always takes their breath away. I love it – it’s also great from the terrace at The Village!

5. The Sunny Bank Mills archive (and SBM in general)

Pretty much everybody knows about Sunny Bank Mills in general. Grumpy’s Pizza and the Amity Bar are common highlights. But not many people know about the Archive. I’ve been lucky enough to visit a few times recently as part of a writer-in-residence project, and I want to shout about it so that more people check it out.

Archive curator Rachel is extremely knowledgeable and always happy to chat through the fascinating history of the wool and textile mills.

The oral history recordings, pieces of machinery, and picture archives, bring it all to life. Well worth the £5 entry fee for adults.

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