For over 30 years Slaithwaite Moonraking Festival has been lighting up the Colne Valley in February half term with lanterns and bringing a glow to the village that has become legendary.
Slaithwaite Moonraking Festival was started 30 years ago by Satellite Arts with Slaithwaite Community Association. The festival now takes place every two years (in the odd year) and has grown and developed into an exciting celebration of creativity, crafts and storytelling.
Now an independent, charitable organisation run by local people, the Slaithwaite Moonraking Festival has embraced a role in profiling the uniqueness of Slaithwaite as a place to live, work and visit.
February is a dark time of year; by the end of it we are all ready for a ‘lift’ and the Moonraking Festival provides a welcome diversion from the winter gloom. At its heart is a week of lantern making workshops, where people of all ages create wonderful willow lanterns of all shapes and sizes. This is interwoven with storytelling, music workshops and performances building to a finale.
Parade photo credits 2025 - Andy Hirst freelance journalist c/o Huddersfield Hub
https://www.slaithwaitemoonraking.org.uk/
