Leeds’ major new revamped music venue TESTBED is set to reopen next month after a major overhaul.
Founders Laura Wellington and James Abbott-Donnelly have overseen the project which sees the venue expanding from 10,000 square feet to 23,000 square feet with an overall crowd capacity of 2,500.
Guests entering through the new lobby will find a brand-new 5,000 square feet mezzanine level, an upstairs bar and a balcony view overlooking the main dance floor. Downstairs, a custom-built stage allows for an immersive 360-degree crowd setup around the DJ booth, with plans already underway for a Room 2 reveal in 2027.
It will also be the “only venue in Leeds equipped with a custom-built L-Acoustics L2 system for festival-grade audio clarity” along with a huge 8m x 4m high-res LED video wall, and a custom LED ceiling display. You can take a first look inside the venue below.
Temporary portaloos have also been permanently removed, replaced by four brand-new, custom-designed toilet blocks that double previous capacity. In addition, a high-capacity ventilation and air circulation system has been fitted throughout the industrial warehouse space.
Since opening in 2021, TESTBED has “carved out a reputation as a unique, forward-thinking, multi-purpose space,” according to a press release.
AMAAD – the promoters behind Junction 2 Festival, LWE events, and Ironworks – has partnered with the venue, along with live music programmer Ghostwriter who has brought the likes of Little Simz, Yungblud and Geese to The Prospect Building in Bristol, and Everything Everything, The Sherlocks, and The Callous Daoboys to Quarters in Brighton.
Full lineups and opening details for TESTBED will be announced in the coming weeks.
Elsewhere, Reading & Leeds has also seen the upcoming festival’s “biggest staging and arena overhaul” ever for this year’s edition.
The northern leg in Leeds will take place at Bramham Park between August 27 and 30. Florence + The Machine, Charli XCX, Fontaines D.C., Dave, Raye and Chase & Status will all top the bill.
Kasabian are due to open proceedings up in Leeds, serving as the northern site’s first-ever Thursday night headliners. There’ll be various acts exclusive to each location, too, including Blossoms (Leeds), Loyle Carner (Reading), Jamie Webster (Leeds), Men I Trust (Reading), The K’s (Leeds) and Gunna (Reading).
As part of these major improvements, the festival’s main stage has been revamped as The Grid. Other stages include The Gallery, The Ballroom and The Canopy
