A DJ in Bradford can mean a party in stone: a converted mill, a Victorian hall, an old chapel or a cricket clubhouse up the valley. DJ Sime's three DJs, with Simon Aston in charge and behind the decks since 1992, can set up in any of them for birthdays, weddings, karaoke and work dos. The city itself is inside the 20 miles from Leeds that carry no travel charge.
What should you ask a mill, chapel or clubhouse before you book?
Bradford grew on wool, and the district is full of the stone buildings that trade left behind. Little Germany, the merchants' quarter of tall warehouses below the cathedral in the city centre, was where the textile export houses traded. Saltaire, the mill village Titus Salt built by the River Aire from 1851, has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001. Up the valleys, the mill towns have their own halls, chapels and sports clubs.
Old buildings bring their own questions. Bare stone walls and high ceilings reflect sound rather than soaking it up, so a room like that needs the volume set with care, not simply turned up. Before you pay a venue deposit, check four things.
First, the space for the decks: it needs to be level, and at least 6ft by 4ft. Second, the power: two 13-amp plug sockets no more than ten feet from where the decks will stand. Third, the way in: which door, where the car can pull up and how many steps, with the loading details confirmed 48 hours before the night. Fourth, the sound limiter, if the venue has one: find out the level it is set to and pass it on when you book.
Shipley, Keighley, Ilkley: where does the free travel end?
The City of Bradford is not just the city. Its boundary runs up Airedale through Shipley, Bingley and Keighley as far as Silsden, west over the moors to Haworth and Oxenhope in the Worth Valley, north into Wharfedale for Ilkley and Addingham, and out to Thornton and Queensbury.
The city is the simple part: about nine miles west of central Leeds, comfortably inside the free 20 miles. Some of the towns at the far ends of the district sit near the edge of that radius; the questions below cover what to do about it.
Venues in the middle of Bradford have a question of their own. A city-centre room can carry a separate charge for loading and parking, so if your party is near City Park or in Little Germany, read the answer on that first.
What a DJ in Bradford costs, from the published list
Standard discoa four-hour party set
from £180
Standard karaokea four-hour sing-along, screens and microphones included
from £200
Children's partya two-hour party
from £160
School discoa three-hour school event
from £170
Standard weddinga five-hour day with a team DJ
from £280
Gold or Platinum weddingfive hours, Simon plays and meets you first
from £400 / from £500
Northern Soul, vinyl, club or theme nightSimon's own specialist sets
from £250
Published starting prices, before any travel band or extras. Every package and price is set out on the contact page.
What can be added to the starting price?
The extras you pick, any travel or city-centre charge, a stairs charge where the room has no lift, any extra time agreed on the night, and a £10 admin fee for digital payment on the night. The extras come in three tiers, from smoke and bubble machines up to LOVE letters and the spark machine, and every one is in the price list.
Whatever is still owed is paid in cash when the DJ has finished setting up and the night begins, unless another way of paying has been agreed in writing. Worth sorting before the day, so whoever is paying has the cash ready when the music starts.
Which Bradford nights can DJ Sime play?
The party DJ page covers birthdays, hens, stags and celebrations of life. If your crowd would rather sing than dance, there is karaoke hire.
For a Bradford firm's Christmas party or an awards dinner, read the page on Christmas parties, work dos and venues. If you only need the sound, without a DJ, the general events page lists an iPod hire rig at £120 and a 2000W sound system from £200.
Some nights only Simon plays. He started out on records: his first booking, in February 1992 at Kippax Clubhouse, was played entirely on vinyl, and he still plays sets of original 7-inch singles. The vinyl and Northern Soul sets page explains how those nights run. Couples who want him at their wedding book Gold or Platinum, and the wedding packages page compares the three.
New for 2027: video DJ sets from January (from £250) and a disco photo booth from March (from £400).
Reviews, insurance and how to book
Over 30 years of nights. 198 Google reviews averaging 4.9 stars, number one on ThreeBestRated's list of DJs in Leeds, and a Yorkshire Prestige Awards winner. What customers wrote is on the reviews page.
For venues that ask: £5 million public liability cover, a yearly PAT test on the equipment, and a DBS check in Simon's name.
To ask about a Bradford date, use the date check: say what the night is, when and where, and about how many are coming, then add your contact details. Prefer to talk? Call or message on WhatsApp: 07368 595711. The phone is answered on weekdays and Saturdays, between 9am and 6pm.
Bradford bookings: common questions
How do I know if Keighley or Ilkley carries a travel charge?
Put the town in the date check and pick the band you think fits. If it is the further-out band, the £20 to £60 travel charge shows next to the package price before you send anything, and Simon confirms the exact charge before you book. Not sure? Ring or WhatsApp 07368 595711 and ask.
Does a venue in Bradford city centre pay the £50 charge?
The flat £50 is for Leeds, York and the other big city centres, where loading and parking are harder. Bradford is a city, so if your room is in the centre, ask whether it applies when you book.
What if the function room is upstairs?
If the room is on an upper floor with no lift, the extra carrying costs £10 to £20, so ask the venue which floor it is on.
Can the DJ be set up before the wedding breakfast?
Your DJ arrives around an hour before the music begins to set up, and packing away afterwards takes about the same. An earlier set-up, so the room looks finished before guests sit down to eat, is available on request.
Will Simon play our Bradford party himself?
Simon plays Gold and Platinum weddings, his specialist sets, work dos and awards nights, and the events listed under his name on the general events page, such as hen parties and celebrations of life. Birthdays, stags, children's parties and the Standard packages go to the team: DJ Pat, with over 40 years of weddings, karaoke and big events, and DJ Ashley, who covers modern parties and karaoke.
