page_title: Kirkstall Abbey
section_title: The abbey today
hierarchical_section_title: Kirkstall Abbey / The abbey today
caption_attribution_description: view of the church of Kirkstall Abbey in Leeds, Yorkshire (England), from the west own work; photo taken on 30 April 2006
context_page_description: Kirkstall Abbey is a ruined Cistercian monastery in Kirkstall, north-west of Leeds city centre in West Yorkshire, England. It is set in a public park on the north bank of the River Aire. It was founded c. 1152. It was disestablished during the Dissolution of the Monasteries under Henry VIII.
  The picturesque ruins have been drawn and painted by artists such as J.M.W. Turner, Thomas Girtin and John Sell Cotman.
  Kirkstall Abbey was acquired by the Leeds Corporation as a gift from Colonel North and opened to the public in the late 19th century. The gatehouse became a museum. Today it is part of the Leeds Museums & Galleries group.
context_section_description: The abbey is a Grade I listed building and Scheduled Ancient Monument. After a £5.5 million renovation programme there is a new visitor centre with interactive exhibits which illustrates the history of the abbey and the lives of the monks.  Entry to the Abbey itself is via the visitor centre – free of charge, but with a donation box. Occasionally, guided tours are available (free of charge).
  The Leeds Shakespeare Festival, performed by the British Shakespeare Company, took place annually in the cloisters from 1995 until 2009. The abbey grounds are a public park, and are used for occasional events such as the annual Kirkstall Festival and the Kirkstall Fantasia open-air concerts.
  On the other side of the main road, the grade II* listed former abbey gatehouse now forms the Abbey House Museum.
  The Abbey was also used on 19 March 2011 for the live BBC Three event Frankenstein's Wedding... Live in Leeds. A live music drama starring Andrew Gower and Lacey Turner as fiancees Victor Frankenstein and Elizabeth Lavenza.
  On 10 and 11 September 2011 the Kaiser Chiefs played two concerts at Kirkstall Abbey to a maximum audience of 10,000 on each day.
  The BBC Television series Gunpowder (2017) used Kirkstall Abbey as a location.
caption: Western Elevation of the abbey
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