Breaking News in Blackburn
Stay informed with the most pressing and breaking stories from Blackburn. From major events to urgent updates, find it here.
Snow White Panto Launched at Historic Hoghton Tower
The magic of Christmas came early this year as the cast of the Blackburn Empire Theatre’s 2025 pantomime, Snow White, gathered at the historic Hoghton Tower for the official launch of the show.
What’s On in Blackburn: Monday 15 to Sunday 21 September 2025
Looking for things to do in Blackburn & Darwen this week? 🎉 Blackburn’s biggest and busiest What’s On Guide is back — with events for every taste and age! From gothic exhibitions and live music to comedy gigs, drama, Pokémon tournaments and wellbeing workshops, it’s all happening right here.
Blackburn Museum & Art Gallery is preparing to launch what’s being described as its most ambitious exhibition to date — a breathtaking showcase of rare books, manuscripts, artworks, and ceramics that explores how nature has inspired creative expression across centuries, cultures, and religions. The Nature of Gothic opens this weekend and runs through to December.
Plans are underway that could bring the biggest shake-up to Blackburn with Darwen’s local government in over 50 years — potentially ending its status as an independent council and merging it into a much larger East Lancashire authority. Residents, businesses and community groups are now being urged to have their say before final proposals are submitted in November.
Most Read
Older Blackburn News
Did you miss out? Here are some of the older stories and news about Blackburn and Darwen
What’s On in Blackburn: Monday 8 to Sunday 14 September 2025
Looking for things to do in Blackburn & Darwen this week? 🎉 Blackburn’s biggest and most exciting What’s On Guide is back — featuring comedy clubs, music legends, soul tours, and a huge 3-day community festival! Plus, new events are added every day. It’s also free to add your own events to the guide!
Songs From The Rat Pack – A Swinging Big Band Spectacular
Yorkshire’s premier Big Band brings the golden age of swing to Blackburn with a spectacular Rat Pack celebration this September.
This Week in Blackburn (Mon 01 – Sun 07 Sept 2025)
Looking for things to do in Blackburn & Darwen this week? 🎉 Blackburn’s biggest and busiest What’s On Guide is back — with over 40 new events added in the last 7 days! From legendary live music and comedy nights to community festivals, bingo, gaming and family fun, it’s all right here. Don’t forget — it’s completely free to add your own events too.
Blackburn News Archive
All the archived stories from Blackburn Life – News about Blackburn and Darwen
A BLACKBURN home shaped by designer Wayne Hemingway is being given away to raise funds for a Lancashire children’s charity.
SIXTEEN-year-old Jacob Reddy from Blackburn is touring the country with his acoustic guitar to raise money for the children’s hospice where his brother was cared for.
Following a period of closure during the pandemic, the Caribbean and restaurant and bar on Cathedral Square is getting ready to welcome Caribbean good times back to Blackburn
This August, the National Festival of Making is bringing the Dodecalis Luminarium, created by Architects of Air, to Blackburn’s Corporation Park!
BLACKBURN shoppers flocked to grab a bargain yesterday (Tues) at the official opening of Derian House Children’s Hospice’s brand new charity shop.
A stall on Blackburn Market is becoming a popular destination to pick up lunch. JW Chilli Salt has been becoming more and more popular over the last 18 months and so we went to see what the fuss was all about.
The opening of German Doner Kebab in Blackburn was greeted with much anticipation on social media, so we thought we’d give it a try to see what the fuss was all about.
The Mall Blackburn is excited to announce the grand opening of their new Bubble CiTea kiosk
Reel Cinema is excited to announce that they will be opening their latest cinema in Blackburn on 17th May.
German Doner Kebab has opened its doors in Blackburn, bringing a new fast-casual dining experience to the town.
Masters of Martial Arts Academy in Blackburn town centre have been awarded a Sports England ‘Return To Play’ grant.
As school and college students prepare to return to full-time education across east and central Lancashire, the area’s leading bus operator The Blackburn Bus Company is to step up services on several of its most popular services.
Tensar is a world-leading manufacturer and provider of ground stabilisation and soil reinforcement solutions, with international offices across the globe – including their head office in Blackburn.
Boris Johnson has announced a “roadmap” for easing Covid restrictions in England. What will the first steps be?
The government has published the ‘COVID-19 Response – Spring 2021’ setting out the roadmap out of the current lockdown for England. This explains how the restrictions included in this guidance will be lifted over time.
The Blackburn Empire Theatre has thanked over 100 supporters who have helped to raise over £6,000 to enable the theatre to make vital improvements before it opens again later this year.
Two markets in Lancashire have joined forces to support struggling families with children eligible for free school meals. Blackburn Market and Darwen Market have been at the forefront of the initiative which has seen hundreds of vouchers issued to local families to buy high quality fresh foods direct from the markets.
Following the overwhelming response to 2019’s ‘The 1980 Tour’, Midge Ure & Band Electronica are delighted to return to the road in 2022 with the ‘Voice & Visions’ tour, celebrating 40 years since the release of Ultravox’s Rage In Eden and Quartet albums.
Councillor Julie Gunn, Executive Member for Children, Young People and Education and Dominic Harrison, Director of Public Health from Blackburn Council have said that Primary Schools in the area will not face a blanket closure, but individual schools can make their own decisions.
Here we are again with our BIG guide of all the opening times for Blackburn & Darwen – Shops, Supermarkets, Markets, Leisure & more for Christmas 2020 and New Year 2021.
Actual Music are delighted to announce the release of a new Christmas song and music video – written, produced & performed by musicians representing Musique Agency, from across Lancashire and the North-West.
Blackburn Market is pleased to announce the re-opening of pop-up craft & gift markets just in time for Christmas.
Euro Garages is now recruiting for its latest venture, the famous US brand Cinnabon.
As Blackburn with Darwen are confirmed as heading into Tier 3 from 2nd December 2020, now, more than ever we need to support small independent businesses in our local towns.
The government have now published a postcode lookup facility to discover which Tier you will be in from 2nd December and it has been confirmed that Blackburn with Darwen will be in Tier 3.
The Mall Blackburn is extending its opening hours to support retailers and give shoppers more time to get everything they need for Christmas.
The government yesterday announced the new rules for when the area comes out of “LockDown 2” and assuming Blackburn and Darwen will remain in Tier 3, these are the rules for the area
Blackburn Police have posted an update to the work they have been doing recently and highlighted two breaches of the current lockdown restrictions
Blackburn Empire Theatre has today received the news that it has been awarded £108,000 as part of the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF) to help face the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic and to ensure they have a sustainable future, the Culture Secretary has announced today.
Blackburn with Darwen is being placed into the ‘very high’ alert level of the Government’s new three-tier system of interventions to tackle the spread of Covid-19 from midnight tonight!
King George’s Hall and Darwen Library Theatre have been awarded £364,000 as part of the Government’s £1.57 billion Culture Recovery Fund (CRF) to help face the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic and to ensure they have a sustainable future, the Culture Secretary has announced today.
The UK’s third-largest cinema chain Vue will reduce its opening hours to four days a week
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council have announced that COVID-19 testing capacity in the borough has improved.
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council have delayed the planned unveiling of a statue to former Blackburn MP Barbara Castle until 2021. The unveiling was originally due to take place Tuesday 6th October, which would have been her 110th birthday.
The team at Darwen Library Theatre are thanking the whole community after they reached their fundraising target to keep live theatre in the town.
A recent analysis of figures by property company Coulters shows that Blackburn with Darwen had 2,717 vacant dwellings in the borough, with with over 4% sitting empty.