From 4 to 7 June 2026, over 5,000 people came to see the UK AIDS Memorial Quilt in Wakefield, the first time the full collection has been shown outside London.
The main display at Wakefield Exchange drew visitors from across the region, with many spending up to two hours with the collection and watching the full screening of the newly rediscovered documentary There Is A Light That Never Goes Out. Around 250 people attended the Reading of the Names on Saturday, where poet Andrew McMillan presented a new poem written in response to the Quilt for the very first time.
Individual panels were also shown across 10 venues throughout the district, including The Hepworth Wakefield, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Theatre Royal Wakefield, Pontefract Castle and The Art House – bringing the Quilt to new audiences across the region. Free HIV testing and advice was available throughout the week, alongside quilt-making workshops and a panel discussion on the story of HIV and the Quilt, hosted by AIDS Quilt UK partnership member George House Trust.
The response from visitors was extraordinary. “Deeply moving and devastatingly beautiful – a testament to the power of love,” wrote one. Another described it simply: “Moving, beautiful, heart-breaking, joyous.”
If you didn’t make it to Wakefield, you can get a sense of the week from this interview with AIDS Quilt UK Partnership Chair Siobhán Lanigan and Andrew McMillan filmed by Leeds TV here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pyz7VTXeVoE)
A huge thank you to Wakefield Exchange, all the partner venues and services across the district, and everyone who came, volunteered and made this possible.