Socialising in Leeds

A lady in another thread asked why it was soo hard for her to find a husband, so thought a post about socialising in Leeds may be helpful to people.

I would say in the last year I have met and talked to (for more than five minutes Protected content people. I am not one for pubs and clubs, or just going out to get drunk. Some people can do those places, this guide is for those of us who cannot or prefer not to.

Before I start to list places, please do not head to any of these with a desperate need to find a partner. It shows, it is off putting, and most people are at these places for friendship and fun. I will scribe some information about dating sites at the end.

Put it a different way, if you think you are just going to speak to people of the opposite sex, and are hunting, then others will notice, and you will soon get a reputation that may stick for a long time. Join the groups when you are happy being you and enjoying life, and people will be attracted to you.

Let’s start with social organisations. They are great, as because there is a common bond you can go and talk to anybody.

Hopefully you have all been to an internations meeting, and I do recommend those.

Next we have Protected content . This is a totally free collection of groups, run by its members. I know people in there from 19 to around 85. Most I would say are mid 20’s to 40’s, though each group seems to attract set parts of the spectrum.

One of those groups is Leeds International Friends. It is much smaller than Internations, and does not meet in such nice places, but it is a very friendly group.

A group called Escape can have Protected content turn up for one of their newbie nights. There are plenty of other activities that the group organises, though if you are a party person this is one of the first groups you would join.

There is the live music and arts group who are often at gigs and the theatre.

And if you are female and want to build up your network of female friends, then there is lady only Leeds Ladies Love group.

There are a couple of dating meetup sites if you want to go that way. Though personally believe you will meet many single people (if that is what you are after) through the other groups.

On the site you can browse through the groups, there are probably Protected content for Leeds alone. A couple may charge a tiny membership, but nearly all are free.

Next we have Protected content . This is a pay monthly group. The age group is mainly Protected content Yorkshire. Though there are many events where you will get the younger members. You can go onto the site, and have a look at the events. The events also cost, but you will get to do many events you may not be able to do normally. In the time I was there I have driven a tank, mud buggies, archery, pistol shooting, abseiling, built a dry stone wall, had a good number of weekends away, even met my ex-partner through there. I have been to over a few years over Protected content . Not all are active, there were also quizzes, dinner shuffles, and many black tie balls (Was at one last weekend).

Protected content This is another pay group. Younger than spice, but more of it around meals and pubs. You can browse the events online. Every so often I jump in for a month of this. Friendly group of people. You soon get to recognise faces.

If you like and can manage a hike. The walking groups are a great way to meet people. What is nice is that you can easily move away if somebody is boring you :)

There are a number of walking groups out there, if you look at the meetup ones, you will be able to see the average age by clicking on an event, then looking at the pictures.

Trying to be polite about this, I like a good spread of ages in any group, but there are a couple of walking groups where nearly everybody may be 20 years older than you and at a different stage of their lives.
For a younger group take a look at: Protected content What is nice with these is many of the walks can be reached by public transport, and once you get to know people you can probably get lifts. They also have a good social calendar.

There are a lot of one off events that go on. Some will depend on if you are a little more social, and can smile and approach random people.

Protected content , Protected content , Protected content , Protected content are all good places to start.

Charity events are normally very friendly, also dance events. Shipley day of dance, literature festivals are great. Black tie balls, record launches, restaurant openings, all have a buzz.

Any sort of convention is perfect, as you have people there all with a common bond. I have been to an Elvis convention, a breakdancing convention, sci-fi, does not matter what it is, there is that bond. Though please only go if you do have an interest.

Dancing lessons are great. As well as having a shared interest, often people are in the same newbie stage with makes it easier to talk. If you like, or have ever been tempted by salsa, have a look at:
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Though there are many dancing lessons out there of other styles.

A lot of people go to dancing lessons to have fun (including myself), if you are in desperate partner hunting mode, please avoid these, as unlike with most other activities where people can get away from you, here they cannot. People who are there for the wrong reasons are easy to spot and very annoying.

You also have activities like Yoga, Running, Singing. For running with a difference, have a look at Hashing, a slightly older group, but jolly fun.

If you are religious you have your churches, if not there is a once a month non-religious ‘church’ with the slogan of ‘we may not have God, but we have cake’.

On facebook have a look for SwanLove, he holds great events and there should be a new one soon. I now find maybe a fifth of the events I go to through facebook by being linked to people who also have great social lives. If they are going to an event, then if I search events, it will show up.

Personally I believe that activities aimed directly at dating bring out the scary people, but for completeness I will cover them.

There are a couple of speed dating companies that do events in Leeds.

You then have the apps and websites.
At its most basic you have tinder (or grinder if you are gay). You get to judge people on how they look. I really would not recommend these, but have had a couple of friends who have met partners through it.

Plenty of Fish is free, and know it has worked for some friends, but also know you are very likely to get a flood of people sending you pictures of their genitals and sending two word messages.

Match.com is very popular. They hold occasional events (singles nights) around Leeds. You will still get the odd genital picture, but not as many, though you are likely (if female) to be flooded by chancers. A rather attractive female friend of mine, had over Protected content in 3 months. Mostly stock messages, bad pickup lines, or three of four word messages. There are some brilliant people on Match, but also many who are not.

EHarmony makes you fill in page after page, but does not have many members.

Guardian Soulmates. Where match.com will have many people saying perfect evening is with a dvd, bottle of wine (probably Chardonnay, or Merlot), on a sofa. With pictures that have their ex-partners cut off, and them holding drinks. You will often find more effort has gone into a Soulmates profile. A lot less members than Match.

Well there we go, a basic guide on some of the social scene in Leeds.
If you are a bar and nightclub person, maybe you could write a small guide on where is good.
Jonathan x