Spectacular 2026 Colour & Light show transforms Eye of York

Colour & Light 2026 will launch at 6pm tonight (Wednesday, February 4).

The mesmerising light projection show will transform the Eye of York – lighting up York Castle Museum and Clifford’s Tower.

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The free ten-minute show features the rogues, rebels and legends who left their mark on York throughout the ages.

Speaking at the preview of the show, York BID operations manager Carl Alsop said: “We’re so lucky to be from a city that is so rich in heritage.

Clifford's Tower captured from the projection's best viewing spot - The Eye of York (Image: Newsquest)

“If I take the two canvases we're projecting on tonight, for example, one of them is on the site of a building that was created the year after we ousted Vikings from our country.  

“Since then, it's been rebuilt three times and has hosted hugely historical events.

“The other is a 320-year-old building that has been two different prisons and has held countless notorious people.”

The show highlights York's past rogues and legends (Image: Newsquest)

Carl added that the draw of Clifford’s Tower and York Castle Museum is cemented by the people, good and bad, who made their mark on them.

But the feature of the show is York’s scoundrels and rogues.

Carl said: “Everyone loves the baddy – someone with an edge, and whose backstory is as intriguing as it is alarming.

“They’ve got questionable morals and they’ve got complexities – complexities that keep appearing in fictional characters.

“This is what draws us in and us what we have in abundance in this city.”

Kathryn Blacker, representing York Museums Trust, made a speech at York Castle Museum on the preview night on Tuesday (February 3) (Image: Newsquest)

Carl said that Colour & Light is, and has always been, a free 10-minute show – cast on York’s historic monuments for three hours a night across February half term.

He added: “Last year, we managed 100,000 viewers and this year, we’re determined to beat that.”

The show will feature on a continuous loop from 6pm till 9pm, each night, until Sunday (February 22).

This year, York BID has worked in collaboration with York Museums Trust, English Heritage, York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority and Double Take Projections.  

For more information, please visit  www.theyorkbid.com/colour-and-light.