Sunshine came softly through my a-window today. Could’ve tripped out easy a-but I’ve a-changed my ways. It’ll take time, I know it but in a while. You’re gonna be mine, I know it, we’ll do it in style. 1960’s icon Donovan welcomes the sun with his trippy “Sunshine Superman” which was also the title track of his third studio album, in 1966, which marked a notable shift toward psychedelic folk-rock. Remarkably Happy Mondays Shaun Ryder married his daughter Oriele as well as copying his lyrical style. Anyway, The good news is, if you want to see Shaun Ryder and Happy Mondays then you don’t need to marry him, just enter the competition on page 30. If you prefer your music a little more sedate then there’s also a competition to see Wet Wet Wet and also actor turned singer Kiefer Sutherland. If football is more your thing, then some Leeds United legends are on at the Grand Theatre (page 12) this is your chance to hear firsthand accounts of what it meant to wear the white shirt—from dressing room banter to battles on the pitch.

Welcome to Issue 150 of ELM. TOTALLY Independent & Rooted in East Leeds. “My mum’s an anarchist and she don’t know it, She hates politicians says their hypocrites, Their values are skewed and their narcissistic, They make mistakes and they never admit it.” Nervous Twitch with ‘My Mums an Anarchist’ from their album released late last year called ‘The Day Job Gets in the Way.’ We’ve an article on Nervous Twitch and a chance for you to win some goodies from their merchandise. If you’re prepared to travel a bit, the excellent Brit Fest has a fantastic line up this year and we will be featuring a different day each issue for the next few months. The Classical day is first and there’s a chance to win a couple of tickets. If that’s a bit far there’s a competition for the Gary Davies Grown Up Disco in Leeds. Lee Murtagh’s first boxing show of the year is on 28th February and if your child would like to learn how to play a musical instrument or perform onstage then maybe ‘Music Learning for Kids’ or ‘Showgroup LS14’ might be for you. Maybe Warren should have stayed at home at Christmas, he went all the way to Thailand and got himself bitten by an Asian Water Monitor. And finally, can we help Neil? An appeal to help community stalwart Neil Adair on page 26. Please help if you can. Peace & Love. All at East Leeds Magazine

Portly and with good grace. The secret straight-back ogre entered. His brain aflame. With all the dreams It had conjured. Victim, Don’t wanna be a victim. The centimeter square, Eat y’self fitter. Said it purged fear, Eat y’self fitter. The Fall – Eat y’Self Fitter, from the 1983 album Peverted By Language a recording that saw them dip their toes into krautrock and northern wonky psychedelia, it marked a new chapter in the evolution of the legend that was Mark E Smith and his band. And as 2026 begins maybe it’s time to start a new chapter in our lives. Andrea Feehan might never have been mentioned in the same paragraph as the Fall before but she ate herself fitter and she’s all about helping and changing lives with her new Slimming World group in Colton. We’ve also competitions for tickets for The One and Only Chesney Hawks, football legend Harry Redknapp, The Sound of Philly, Motown & Stax and Gary Davies with his ‘Disco for Grown Ups’ shows. Happy New Year, Have a great 2026!