The IF Oxford Science and Ideas Festival is set to bring immersive family fun and scientific discovery to Oxford North on Friday 24 October 2025, as part of the innovation district’s Engage programme of art, culture, and community events.
This year’s festival features over 100 events across the city, designed to ignite curiosity and conversation around science, technology, and the future. At Oxford North, ‘Zone ONE’ will take centre stage as one of the festival’s flagship experiences, combining science, creativity, and performance against the backdrop of the city’s new £700 million innovation hub.
Visitors to Zone ONE will enjoy hands-on experiments and interactive demonstrations from science experts, while overlooking ‘Your planetary assembly’, a landmark series of planetary sculptures in Fallaize Park by Icelandic-Danish artist Olafur Eliasson.
The experience will also feature Orbit, a new promenade theatre performance by Creation Theatre, offering small groups of up to 15 people a half-hour guided journey through the Solar System. Using the new park’s accessible pathways, the playful outdoor show invites audiences to explore gravitational forces and the wonder of space.
Tickets are free, with guests encouraged to make a charitable donation to the Oxford Science and Ideas Festival when booking. All attendees must reserve a ticket in advance. Refreshments will be available from pop-up café Pannekoek between 4.00pm and 8.30pm.
Dane Comerford, IF Oxford Director, said:
“We’re amazed by the partnership with Oxford North this year. The scale of ambition is huge for creating the city’s most exciting innovation district in the science sector, where solutions to the future’s biggest questions will be created.
“It’s a partnership based on a shared passion for science and creativity, inspiring future generations, and Zone ONE brings together so many key concepts within the Festival.
“Sculpture, interactivity and theatre will align, and I hope the sunset from the third floor provides a magical backdrop for hundreds of people experimenting and creating their own collage poetry or robotic instructions, trying out the Glow Gallery and meeting scientists and artists, with imagination running free.”
Simon Ruck, Managing Director of Oxford North, said: “We’re proud to be hosting Zone ONE in partnership with IF Oxford, to further connect our beautiful park and Your planetary assembly with our community and help inspire more people with the wonder of science.
“This forms part of our commitment to the arts, science and our community and we’re looking forward to a remarkable evening full of wonder, through live performances and interactive activities for people of all ages.”
Victoria Collett, Development Director of Thomas White Oxford and Chair of the Public Art Steering Group, said: “We’re committed to connecting Oxford North to the cultural heart of the city and delighted to host IF Oxford to deliver a highly engaging programme.
“Oxford North is the perfect place to bring together scientists, artists, families and local residents to join in a shared journey of discovery. Thank you to our steering group for helping create our Engage programme which underpins art and culture at Oxford North and deliver public events such as Zone ONE. We look forward to welcoming everyone.”
IF Oxford is delivered by the charity The Oxfordshire Science Festival, which this year celebrates its 34th science and ideas festival. Tickets are offered on a ‘pay what you decide’ basis and must be booked in advance.
Oxford North, located in the city’s northern gateway, will comprise one million sq ft of laboratories and workspaces, 480 new homes, a hotel, nursery, café, bar, three public parks, and new infrastructure. Phase one includes the Red Hall — which will feature an 80-seat café and 100-seat theatre due to open in early 2026 — and the first two laboratory buildings, now available to lease.
Owned by Oxford North Ventures, a joint venture between Thomas White Oxford (the development company of St John’s College), Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan, and Stanhope, the project aims to deliver long-term social and economic benefits to Oxford and the wider region.
