With 2026 on the horizon, we’ve put together a list of Cumbria’s top stories for 2025.
It’s been another year of big news in the county and we’ve covered everything from tiny churches to Bafta dresses, but some stories have stood out more than others.
It’s not always the big breaking news stories that get you reading, sometimes it’s feel good news or local tales that you enjoy the most.
It’s part of our job to notice what you all like reading the best and while hard news is popular, we do often see positive stories break the mould.
So, we’ve put together a list of 10 of our most-read stories in no particular order for you to read through before the year comes to an end.
1. Largest Viking building in UK unearthed in Cumbria
A Cumbrian archaeological project unearthed the largest Viking building in the UK in February.
Excavations began at High Tarns Farm, near Silloth, in January 2024 and were led by Grampus Heritage and Training, the dig was funded by Defra.
In 2022, satellite images suggested a large building could be beneath the land and it was initially thought it could be related to the 12th century Cistercian monastery at Holme Cultram Abbey.
From last summer, archaeologists and volunteers found the whole footprint of a building and carbon dating has revealed that the building in fact dates back to the late 10th/early 11th century – making it a nationally significant and overall impressive find.
2. Lake District’s smallest church set to undergo first major restoration
A Lake District church is set to carry out its first major restoration in 132 years – thanks to a fundraising push.
St Olaf’s Church, in Wasdale, has been raising money since 2023 in an effort to carry out essential work to keep it fit for visitors.
The passage of time, weather and heavy footfall have taken their toll on the Grade II-listed 500-year-old church, which has left it in urgent need of repair and restoration.
While trustees of the church had hoped to see work start sooner over the past few years – the work required is both very extensive and expensive, and a total of £210,000 is needed to complete all the work the building needs.
Earlier this year, we shared the church’s plea for help to raise funds for a restoration project and as a result, a further £5,000 was raised, bringing the church’s fundraising total to around £121,380.
Hugh Foulerton, chair of the church’s trustees, said thanks to the extra push, the church is now finally able to start the essential work to fix the historic building in March next year.
3. Teacher wins £4 million Lake District house
A primary school teacher won the keys to a waterside winter wonderland in the Lake District worth £4 million – along with £250,000 in cash – and broke her Dry January promise to celebrate.
Hannah Drury, 42, won an Omaze Million Pound House Draw and became the proud owner of a secluded sanctuary surrounded by nature, offering spectacular views, with the third largest lake in the Lake District, Coniston Water, right on her doorstep.
The stunning property was redeveloped and redesigned by Omaze, and comes mortgage-free, with all legal fees covered.
Hannah was also given £250,000 in cash to help her settle in and was able to decide to either live in the house, rent it out for a supplementary income or sell it whenever she wished to become a cash multi-millionaire.
4. Lake District’s first public observatory opens
The Lake District’s first public observatory and planetarium opened this year.
The new Grizedale Observatory and Planetarium is the result of an partnership between Forestry England and GF Productions Ltd.
Housed in the iconic Yan building in Grizedale Forest, the observatory offers a purpose-built observatory with state-of-the-art equipment and immersive planetarium shows bringing the wonders of the universe to life.
5. Uppies and Downies 2025: Uppies take first blood on Good Friday
Uppies took first blood in the 2025 Uppies & Downies series this year – and later won overall.
The mass no-rules football game takes place in Workington every year and the first of three games is held on Good Friday. The game is then followed by clashes on Easter Tuesday and the following Saturday.
A Workington tradition that dates back hundreds of years, for the uninitiated – the town divides into two and the Uppies have to get the ball to Workington Hall and the Downies have to get the ball to Workington Harbour.
6. Sara Davies’ Bafta dress sensation finds home in Cumbria
A dress worn by Sara Davies which caused a stir on the Baftas red carpet found a new home in Cumbria.
Sara’s stunning handmade outfit was a wow at the May event and the celebrity crafter revealed on social media that it had been created in three days.
The dress was worn in July by Jill Glencross, who was celebrating her 50th birthday at Rose Castle in Dalston, near Carlisle.
7. Michelin star joy for 13 Cumbrian restaurants
13 Cumbrian restaurants retained their Michelin stars this year – and a new kid on the block was honoured with a Bib Gourmand by the prestigious guide.
The Michelin Guide held its presentation of stars, green stars and Bib Gourmands in February, in Glasgow and Cumbria was once again among the top regions for stars.
The Schelly, opened by brothers Ryan and Craig Blackburn in Ambleside last year, was also presented with a Bib Gourmand.
The Schelly was included in the Michelin Guide within three months of opening its doors, and is now the only restaurant in Cumbria to hold a Bib Gourmand.
8. Olly Murs moves young fan to tears at Cartmel Racecourse concert – and checks he’s okay
Olly Murs moved a young fan to tears at his concert at Cartmel Racecourse.
The pop star performed at the South Cumbrian venue in June.
Olly popped off stage to say hello to the crowd when he noticed 11-year-old Zak was emotional.
Zak was a little overcome with the atmosphere and seeing his hero perform.
Olly went over to ask Zak if he was okay and check on him – and the youngster later got free tickets to see another one of Olly’s shows.
9. Jennings Brewery returns to Cockermouth under new ownership
The historic Jennings Brewery in Cockermouth was acquired by two local businesspeople and entrepreneurs.
The acquisition of the brewery for an undisclosed sum saw Kurt Canfield, CEO of specialist engineering business Delkia, and Rebecca Canfield, owner of wine and spirits company Wine and the Wood, take ownership of the brewery site, to resume brewing Jennings beer in Cockermouth.
10. WATCH: Atlantic salmon spawn in restored section of West Cumbrian river for first time
Atlantic salmon were filmed spawning in a section of a West Cumbrian river for the first time after it underwent restoration work.
West Cumbria Rivers Trust captured the video as part of its river restoration projects that take place across the area annually.
Three Atlantic salmon were spotted reaching their spawning grounds and building nests where restoration work was carried out earlier in the year.
