GatherPress

Hookable patterns for events & venues

Last updated July 11, 2026, Version 0.34

GatherPress registers multiple invisible block-patterns, that are used as template properties for the main post types.

Patterns allow to be filtered by the (upgraded since WordPress 6.5) Block Hooks API. Making use of this API brings some advantages, which are at least:

  • GatherPress’ blocks can be easily moved, modified, or removed by extenders via standardized core code
  • GatherPress provides central entry points for plugin developers to hook-in own blocks, to extend GatherPress
  • GatherPress’ blocks will provide their hooking code themself, which keeps concerns separate and code clean

For example, the gatherpress/event-template pattern is the Block Hooks anchor that companion plugins extend; the user-facing “Event with RSVP” starter pattern surfaced in the new-event chooser modal seeds the same canonical block layout.

Overview of hookable patterns

GatherPress combines four of such block-patterns to curate the creation of:

New Event

Creating a new event opens WordPress’s “Choose a pattern” starter modal — the same UX Twenty Twenty-Five uses on new pages. The bundled patterns live in includes/core/templates/event/; each file returns a name/title/description/content array and the loader registers it scoped to core/post-content plus every post type declaring gatherpress-event-date support. Adding a new pattern is just dropping a file into that directory.

The bundled default ships with the plugin:

  • gatherpress/event-with-rsvp (title “Event with RSVP”) seeds the
    canonical event layout: event-date + add-to-calendar + venue +
    online-event + RSVP + description paragraph + rsvp-response. Venue,
    RSVP, and rsvp-response carry patternPicked: true so their
    in-block pattern pickers stay suppressed.

Third parties can append their own without forking by hooking the gatherpress_event_starter_patterns filter. The second argument is the array of post types declaring gatherpress-event-date support that the patterns will be registered against — branch on it to scope an entry to your own event-acting post type only:

add_filter(
    'gatherpress_event_starter_patterns',
    function ( array $patterns, array $post_types ): array {
        if ( ! in_array( 'production', $post_types, true ) ) {
            return $patterns;
        }
        $patterns[] = array(
            'name'        => 'my-plugin/minimal-event',
            'title'       => __( 'Minimal Event', 'my-plugin' ),
            'description' => __( 'Date + RSVP only.', 'my-plugin' ),
            'content'     => '<!-- wp:gatherpress/event-date /--><!-- wp:gatherpress/rsvp {"patternPicked":true} --><div class="wp-block-gatherpress-rsvp"></div><!-- /wp:gatherpress/rsvp -->',
        );
        return $patterns;
    },
    10,
    2
);

Per-user dismissal is handled by the modal’s own “Always show starter patterns for new pages” toggle — that’s a WordPress-core user preference, not a GatherPress setting.

The gatherpress/event-template pattern still exists as the Block Hooks anchor for companion plugins that hook blocks before/after the event-date block via hooked_block_types.

New Venue

Same shape as the event flow. Bundled venue starter patterns live in includes/core/templates/venue/; each file returns a name/title/description/content array and the loader registers it scoped to core/post-content plus every post type declaring gatherpress-venue-information support.

The bundled default:

  • gatherpress/venue-with-map (title “Venue with Map”) seeds a
    single gatherpress/venue block with patternPicked: true so the
    block’s in-block picker stays suppressed.

Third parties can append their own via the gatherpress_venue_starter_patterns filter — same shape as the event filter above.

Per-user dismissal is handled by the modal’s own “Always show starter patterns for new pages” toggle — that’s a WordPress-core user preference, not a GatherPress setting.

The gatherpress/venue-template pattern still exists — it is the Block Hooks anchor and the seed used by Venue\Setup::maybe_apply_venue_template() when venues are created programmatically (e.g., via REST without content).

New Event Queries within any post

…

Venue Details within any post

…

Modify the blocks in the patterns

Change order of the default blocks

Example: To move the RSVP-Response block directly behind the RSVP block for every new created Event, you could call:

/**
 * Move the "RSVP-Response" block directly behind the "RSVP" block.
 *
 * @param string[]  $hooked_block_types The list of hooked block types.
 * @return string[]                     The modified list of hooked block types.
 */
add_filter( 'hooked_block_types', function( array $hooked_block_types ) : array {
    $index  = array_search('gatherpress/rsvp-response', $hooked_block_types);
    if ( $index !== false ) {
        // Remove the "RSVP-Response" block from its current position.
        $block = array_splice( $hooked_block_types, $index, 1 );
        // Find the index of the "RSVP" block.
        $rsvp_index = array_search( 'gatherpress/rsvp', $hooked_block_types );
        // Insert the "RSVP-Response" block directly behind the "RSVP" block.
        array_splice( $hooked_block_types, $rsvp_index + 1, 0, $block );
    }
    return $hooked_block_types;
});

Add blocks to the default patterns

Example: To add the Featured Image block before the Event Date block for every new created Event, you could call:

/**
 * Add the 'Featured Image' block before the 'Event Date' block.
 *
 * @see https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/hooks/hooked_block_types/
 *
 * @param string[]                 $hooked_block_types The list of hooked  block types.
 * @param string                   $relative_position  The relative position  of the hooked blocks. Can be one of 'before', 'after', 'first_child', or  'last_child'.
 * @param string|null              $anchor_block_type  The anchor block type.
 * @param \WP_Block_Template|array $context            The block template,  template part, or pattern that the anchor block belongs to.
 * @return string[] The list of hooked block types.
 */
add_filter( 'hooked_block_types', function ( array $hooked_block_types, string $relative_position, ?string $anchor_block_type, $context ): array {
    // Check that the place to hook into is a pattern and
    // hook block into the "gatherpress/event-template" pattern.
    if ( 
        is_array( $context ) &&
        isset( $context['name'] ) &&
        'gatherpress/event-template' === $context['name'] &&
        'gatherpress/event-date' === $anchor_block_type &&
        'before' === $relative_position
    ) {
        $hooked_block_types[] = 'core/post-featured-image';
    }
    return $hooked_block_types;
}, 10, 4 );

Remove default blocks

Example: To remove the RSVP-Response block, you could call:

/**
 * Remove every use of the RSVP-Response block (everywhere).
 *
 * @see https://developer.wordpress.org/reference/hooks/hooked_block_types/
 *
 * @param string[]  $hooked_block_types The list of hooked block types.
 * @return string[]                     The modified list of hooked block types.
 */
add_filter( 'hooked_block_types', function( array $hooked_block_types ) : array {
    return array_diff( $hooked_block_types, array( 'gatherpress/rsvp-response' ) );
});

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