Fountains Abbey floodlit from 9 October, Frightwater Valley from the 10th, pumpkin patches at Birchfield and Ripon, then bonfires at Ripon and the Stray.

The Harrogate Comedy Festival has most of the town’s evenings this month, at Harrogate Theatre, the Royal Hall and the Convention Centre. From Friday 9 October the National Trust floodlights Fountains Abbey on eight evenings, Lightwater Valley’s Halloween event opens on Saturday 10 October, and half term brings Halloween to Stockeld Park, Mother Shipton’s and RHS Harlow Carr. All the Halloween events are on our Halloween page. November opens with two bonfires on consecutive nights, Ripon on the 6th and the free Stray display on the 7th, then Remembrance Sunday on the 8th.

Everything below comes from the organisers’ own pages, read on 28 and 29 September and rechecked on 3 October 2026, and each entry links back to its source. Prices are the organisers’ published ticket ranges before any booking fee. For places that are open whatever the month, see our guide to things to do in Harrogate.

This week

  • Birchfield Pumpkin Festival, open now, Birchfield Farm, Summerbridge, HG3 4JS. The pumpkin patch is free to enter and pumpkins cost £2.50 to £15; farm admission is £8.95 for adults and children 2 to 16. The farm posts its opening days a week at a time: this weekend it is open 10am to 4pm on Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 October, and it was closed on weekdays this week (Birchfield).
  • Stockeld Park Halloween Adventure, opens Saturday 3 October, 9.30am to 5.30pm, Stockeld Park, Wetherby, LS22 4AN. Open every October weekend and every day through half term to Sunday 1 November, with a costume competition on the forecourt at 4.45pm each day and face painting at £6 (Stockeld Park).
  • Bootleg Beatles in Concert, Saturday 3 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall, Ripon Road, HG1 2SY. £37.50 to £91. Songs from the Beatles’ five best-selling albums, from Rubber Soul to Abbey Road (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Petar Pejcic and Nour Auyadi, Saturday 3 October, 7.30pm, St John’s Church, Sharow. £22, students and children £5. Heimweh, a cello and piano programme of Chopin, Dvořák, Debussy and Fauré (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Hyena Lounge Comedy Club, Saturday 3 October, 8pm, Harrogate Theatre. £22. Stand-up from Geoff Norcott, Glenn Wool and Jenny Hart. Ages 16+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Francis Rossi: Quo Song Book, Sunday 4 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £43 to £103. Francis Rossi plays his own selection from the Quo catalogue, with commentary between songs (Harrogate Theatre).

Next week

  • Seann Walsh: This Is Torture, Tuesday 6 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre, Oxford Street, HG1 1QF. £21 to £84. A new hour of stand-up, part of the comedy festival. Ages 14+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Ed Patrick: Numb and Number, Thursday 8 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £21 to £84. The comedian and NHS anaesthetist’s new show. Ages 16+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Fountains by Floodlight, from Friday 9 October, Fountains Abbey and Studley Royal, Ripon, HG4 3DY. Adults £12, children 5 to 17 £6. The abbey ruins are lit on Friday 9 and Saturday 10, Friday 16 and Saturday 17, Friday 23 and Saturday 24, and Thursday 29 and Friday 30 October. Entry is by half-hour time slot from 5pm, last entry 8pm, and you can stay until 9pm. There are guided tours at 6pm and 7.15pm and choral music in the cellarium at 6.30pm and 7.45pm. Day tickets do not carry over: the estate closes at 4.30pm and reopens for the evening (National Trust).
  • Michael Starring Ben, Friday 9 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £23 to £66. Ben Bowman’s Michael Jackson tribute, with a live band. Ages 14+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Rachel Mars: Your Sexts Are Sh*t, Friday 9 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £20. Centuries of filthy love letters read against modern sexts, part of the comedy festival. Ages 18+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Frightwater Valley: Movie Mayhem, from Saturday 10 October, 10.30am to 5pm, Lightwater Valley, North Stainley, Ripon, HG4 3HT. Open on Saturday 10 and Saturday 17 October, then every day from Saturday 24 to Saturday 31 October, according to the park’s own calendar. A trick or treat trail (extra charge), a live scare maze, a Dead Pirate Show and a DJ to finish. Early bird tickets are £18 a person with the code FRIGHT18; parking is free (Lightwater Valley).
  • Olaf Falafel’s Stupidest Super Stupid Show, Saturday 10 October, 1pm, Harrogate Theatre. £19 to £76, with concessions for under-16s. An hour of family comedy from the children’s author (Harrogate Theatre).
  • John Simpson: The Leaders and Lunatics Tour, Saturday 10 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £37 to £94. The broadcaster on the leaders he has met in nearly 60 years, from Gorbachev and Mandela to Putin (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Jason Byrne: 30 Years Byrning, Saturday 10 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £33 to £132. Thirty years of stand-up, with the props and stunts back. Ages 16+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Miriam Margolyes: Full English Live, Sunday 11 October, 2pm, Harrogate Convention Centre, Kings Road, HG1 5LA. £37 to £73; the top band includes her book (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Maisie Adam: Whatsherface, Sunday 11 October, 3pm and 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. Both shows are sold out, the theatre says, and she brings it back to Harrogate in February 2027 (Harrogate Theatre).

Later in October

  • Jerusalem, Thursday 15 to Saturday 17 October, 7.30pm with a 2.30pm matinee, Harrogate Theatre. £20. Harrogate Dramatic Society stage Jez Butterworth’s play. Ages 16+, strong language throughout (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Tez Ilyas: Tez Things I Hate About You, Thursday 15 October, 8pm, Harrogate Studio Theatre. £33. New stand-up, part of the comedy festival. Ages 18+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Autumn Weekend, Friday 16 to Sunday 18 October, 11am to 4pm, RHS Garden Harlow Carr, Crag Lane, HG3 1QB. Included with garden entry. The RHS Late Fruit and Vegetable Competition, an apple display where you can have your own apples named, talks, and fungus forays at 11.30am and 1.30pm at £3 a person (RHS).
  • Stockeld Park Pumpkin Nights, Saturday 17 and Saturday 24 October, 5.30pm to 9pm, Stockeld Park. £15 a person, half price with a day ticket. A new evening event at the pumpkin patch, with food, live music and games (Stockeld Park).
  • Pumpkin Patch at Ripon Walled Garden, Saturday 17 to Saturday 31 October, from 9.30am, Palace Road, Ripon, HG4 3HN. Free entry, with carving on site and Halloween cake in the café; the money raised supports the charity’s work with adults with learning disabilities. The garden opens 9.30am to 4pm Monday to Saturday and 10am to 3pm on Sundays (Ripon Community Link).
  • Atlantic Voyagers, Saturday 17 October, 7.30pm, Ripon Cathedral, Minster Road, HG4 1QT. £20, under-18s free. St Cecilia Orchestra play Bernstein’s Candide overture, Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F with Martin Roscoe, and Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony (Harrogate Theatre).
  • We Will Rock You, Wednesday 21 to Saturday 24 October, 7.30pm with a 2.30pm matinee, Harrogate Theatre. £28.50 to £114. Harrogate St Andrew’s Players stage the Queen musical. Ages 14+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Queen of the Night, Saturday 24 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £26 to £73. A tribute to Whitney Houston. Ages 14+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • October half term at Harlow Carr, Saturday 24 October to Sunday 1 November, 9.30am to 4pm daily. Spooky plants, a garden trail and creepy crawlies from ZooLab, included with garden admission. The bookable potion sessions, Monday 26 to Friday 30 October, cost £2.50 a person (RHS).
  • Halloween at Mother Shipton’s, Saturday 24 October to Sunday 1 November, Mother Shipton’s Cave, High Bridge, Knaresborough, HG5 8DD. A Hocus Pocus-inspired trail through the woodland, with witches to meet (Mother Shipton’s).
  • Reece Shearsmith: Things I Took From the Dark, Sunday 25 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £32 to £100. The Inside No. 9 co-creator shows his collection of macabre objects (Harrogate Theatre).
  • John Lydon: Talk Tour, Tuesday 27 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £38 to £152. The Sex Pistols singer on his new book (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Adam Garcia’s Emerald Storm, Tuesday 27 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £29 to £78. Irish dance meets urban tap in a new show starring Adam Garcia and Tom Ball, with live musicians. Ages 14+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Swan Lake, Wednesday 28 October, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £46 to £96, under-16s £29. Imperial Classical Ballet with a full live orchestra (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Thrum, Wednesday 28 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £15 to £60. A new show from Daniel Kitson, part of the Harrogate Comedy Festival. Ages 16+ (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Halloween Ghost Hunting, Thursday 29 October, 11am and 1.30pm, Workhouse Museum, Ripon, HG4 1LE. Ghost goo, a spooky story and a hunt for ghouls round the Workhouse. No booking; £2 a child, or free with an annual pass. Suggested for ages 5 and up (Ripon Museums).
  • Too Much Too Young, Thursday 29 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £31 to £124. Two hours of ska, from Jamaica to 2Tone (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Gilbert O’Sullivan, Friday 30 October, 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £39.50 to £188. Sixty years of songs, including Clair and Alone Again (Naturally) (Harrogate Theatre).

  • Northern Homebuilding and Renovating Show, Friday 30 October to Sunday 1 November, Harrogate Convention Centre. 10am to 5pm on Friday and Saturday, 10am to 4.30pm on Sunday. Two free tickets if you register in advance, worth £24 on the gate (Harrogate Convention Centre).

  • End of Season Firework Finale, Saturday 31 October, 5pm, Lightwater Valley. A 10-minute Halloween display over Swan Lake, set to music, weather permitting. Included with a Frightwater Valley ticket, early bird £18 (Lightwater Valley).

Our October half term page has the school dates and more for families, and our Halloween page has every pumpkin patch and trail.

November

  • Maisie Adam: Frank’s Fund Comedy Gala, Sunday 1 November, 2.30pm and 7.30pm, Harrogate Theatre. £26 to £107. Maisie Adam hosts comedian friends in aid of the local charity Frank’s Fund (Harrogate Theatre).
  • An Evening with Michael Portillo, Wednesday 4 November, 7.30pm, Harrogate Convention Centre. £33 to £62.99 (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Ripon Rowels Charity Bonfire and Fireworks, Friday 6 November, Ripon Racecourse. Gates open at 5.30pm, the bonfire is lit at 7pm and the fireworks start at 7.30pm. Adults £10, children under 16 £5, under-3s free. Enter by the racecourse turnstiles, not the main gate (Ripon Rowels, tickets). More in our bonfire night page.
  • Cuore Chamber Orchestra, Friday 6 November, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £16.50 to £81.50, under-18s £5. The season opener, with Grieg’s Holberg Suite and the Yorkshire premiere of Michael Berkeley’s Meditations (Harrogate Theatre).
  • Harrogate Stray Charity Bonfire and Fireworks, Saturday 7 November, the Stray alongside Oatlands Drive. Gates open at 5pm, the bonfire is lit at 6.30pm and the fireworks start at 7pm, with the UK Foo Fighters playing straight afterwards. Free entry; the Round Table asks for donations, this year for Mind and Samaritans. The organisers announced it through the headline sponsor (Your Harrogate, 28 September); the Round Table’s own page still shows 2025.
  • Remembrance Sunday, Sunday 8 November, from 10.30am, Harrogate War Memorial. A parade through the town centre, then the Act of Remembrance with the two-minute silence and wreath laying. Groups wanting to lay a wreath must register with the town council first (Harrogate Town Council). Our Remembrance Sunday page covers Ripon and Knaresborough.

  • Alexei Sayle: How I’ve Tried to Change the World, Sunday 8 November, 7.30pm, Harrogate Convention Centre. £32.95 to £42.95. Part of the Harrogate Comedy Festival. Ages 14+ (Harrogate Theatre).

  • Bellowhead: Burlesque 20th Anniversary Tour, Friday 13 November, 7.30pm, Harrogate Convention Centre. £38 to £58. The 11-piece folk band mark 20 years of their first album. Ages 14+ (Harrogate Theatre).

  • Harrogate Symphony Orchestra Winter Concert, Saturday 14 November, 7.30pm, Royal Hall. £18 to £60. Verdi, Bartók’s Third Piano Concerto with William Green, and Brahms’s Fourth Symphony (Harrogate Theatre).

Christmas has its own pages: the pantomime, Harlow Carr Glow, Christmas markets and Santa’s grottos.

Regular events

  • Harrogate parkrun, every Saturday at 9am on the Stray. The volunteers go for coffee at The Saints Coffee afterwards (parkrun).
  • Conyngham Hall junior parkrun, every Sunday at 9am, Conyngham Hall, Knaresborough, HG5 9AY (parkrun). We covered its first run.
  • Real Food Market at Ripley Castle, the last Sunday of each month, 10am to 3pm; the next is Sunday 25 October. Local makers and produce in the Castle Courtyard, and the gardens and grounds are free to enter on market days (Ripley Castle).

Send us your event

Running something in Harrogate, Knaresborough or Ripon? Email hello@harrogatelive.co.uk with the date, time, venue, price and a photo. Listings are free, and we add them to this page and to the diary on our What’s On hub.

Sources