Wainsgate Chapel, Wainsgate Lane, Old Town, Hebden Bridge (2026)

The chapel was transferred into the Historic Chapels Trust’s ownership by the Yorkshire Baptist Association in 2002, after it fell out of use for regular worship. Wainsgate is considered to be ‘at risk’ by English Heritage and is listed grade II*. Wainsgate is looked after locally by the Friends of Wainsgate group which is responsible for the day to day running of the building and the events that take place there.

23/05/2026

Just getting set-up for tomorrow’s Sunday Session with Matthew Hawkins
Matthew has been dancing his whole life, and all over the world.
From his early years training and then dancing with the Royal Ballet, through to dancing with Michael Clark and a host of other comapnies including his own; dancing is an essential part of who he is.
This Sunday 24th May as Matthew approaches 70, come and see him practice what he practices every day.
It’s a beautiful, idiosyncratic and precise thing that he does.
One man who has dedicated himself to movement, and who keeps on keepng on - endlessly engaged in something rigorous, curious and precise.
It’s a thrill to have him at Wainsgate.
Come and spend an hour in his company.
And there’s delicious home-made cake, tea coffee, and whatever tipple you might fancy from the bar.
https://wainsgate.co.uk/matthew-hawkins-ready/

14/05/2026

Come along and experience the work of Matthew Hawkins (which spans several decades from the Royal Ballet to the Michael Clarke company to forming his own company and much much more) via these two contemporary dance workshops on Saturday 23rd May. All Welcome.

Up in Scotland, in a normal week, Matthew gives contemporary dance classes for the Inclusive community and for elders. He also teaches ballet at adult-beginner level. On a Wednesday he lectures in choreography and contemporary technique amid late-teens at Glasgowclyde college. Fridays find him running through his solo work in a vacated retail unit in a shopping mall. Most Mondays, he joins an informal improvisation/research group run by Curious Seed.

All these regular experiences and exchanges will compress into the workshops he is offering at Wainsgate dances.

The sessions will feature chances to work and move, but also watch, talk and unpack questions. Where (if anywhere) do Matthew's initial achievements in the realm of ballet sit in his current practice? Why Beethoven?

Many of Matthew's teaching sessions proceed almost wordlessly. His current material survival rests on his ability to physically demonstrate all his proposals. How is this maintained as he approaches his seventieth year? What is it about his working (and remedial) process that could inspire a wide-range of practitioners?

Throughout the day at Wainsgate, Matthew will show workshop participants episodes of his solo performance READY. In between, he will instigate a planned agenda of exploration and also respond to questions and requests - allowing a focus that will fit those present, be they primarily involved in dancing or more tangentally inclined.

Matthew trialled this showing/sharing procedure at a recent event in Fife.

More information here:
https://wainsgate.co.uk/matthew-hawkins-workshop/

11/05/2026

Coming up on Sunday 24th May - with tea and cake of course, an exquisite, intricate and quirky dance performance from Matthew Hawkins whose incredible and varied career has moved from dancing in the Royal Ballet to dancing with Michael Clarke in his early genre bending years to having his own highly acclaimed company and much more. He’s also a great teacher, and will be teaching a workshop on Saturday 23rd.

https://wainsgate.co.uk/matthew-hawkins-ready/

04/05/2026

Wainsgate Piano Weekend will not only be a feast for the ears, but Ben Fogarty will be producing some delicious things to feast your taste buds with to.

Every time Ben makes food for a Wainsgate event, we hear people saying it's the most delicious thing they've ever tasted (no pressure Ben 😋), and we have an amazing crew of cake bakers who provide some very delicious sweet treats.

So come and experience a wonderful weekend of incredible music and food in this (even though we say it ourselves) fantastic venue up on the hill.

We only brag about it because we love it so much, and we want you to enjoy it as much as we do. (oh and you can wah down the tasty food with Pimms/beer/wine/prosecco... or tea/coffee. See you at the weekend!!

All the info here:

https://wainsgate.co.uk/piano-weekend-2026/

(a little sample of Ben's cooking in the pics)

28/04/2026

Wainsgate Piano Weekend - Katya Apekisheva - solo piano recital
Sunday May 10th 7.30pm

“Astute colours and brilliant technique” The Times

PROGRAMME
Haydn: Sonata G minor Hob XVI:44
Beethoven: Sonata n.15 “Pastoral” op.28
Tchaikovsky: The Seasons interspersed with
Elena Langer: Seasons
Described as a ‘profoundly gifted artist’ by Gramophone Magazine, Katya Apekisheva has earned her place as one of Europe’s most renowned and gifted pianists.
Born in Moscow, into a family of musicians, she attended the Gnessin Music School for exceptionally gifted children making her stage debut at the age of 12. She continued her studies in Jerusalem at the Rubin Music Academy and later at the Royal College of Music in London.
From these auspicious beginnings she went on to be a Prizewinner of the Leeds International Piano competition and has gone on to enjoy a career performing with many of the world’s leading orchestras, including the London Philharmonic Orchestra, the Philharmonia Orchestra, the Halle Orchestra, the Moscow Philharmonic, the Jerusalem Symphony, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, working with renowned conductors such as Sir Simon Rattle, David Shallon, Jan Latham-Koenig and Alexander Lazarev.

More info/tickets: https://wainsgate.co.uk/katya-apekisheva/

Address

Wainsgate Lane, Old Town
Hebden Bridge
HX78SU

Website

http://www.wainsgate.co.uk/

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