A new community-lead art trail is set to line the streets and brighten up Old Trafford when it arrives next month.
The OT Art Trail – which has been organised by OT Creative Space and is funded by Arts Council England – sees a number of artists work together with members of the local Manchester community to create six individual large scale murals, which are soon to be painted onto walls and building gable ends around the area, including in Seymour Park and Ayres Road.
The new murals will add to murals and artwork already seen around Old Trafford.
The several new street art sites will be linked together via a downloadable audio tour, which is said to be suitable for people of all ages.
Five artists, all bringing an individual and different style to the mix, have been commissioned by OT Creative Space to paint the new murals, and they include Old Trafford artist and designer Robert Lomas, aerosol and graffiti art specialist Jamie Rennie, fine artist Sam Owen Hull, Russ Meehan, who is also known as Mural Life and graffiti artist, and photographer Martene Rouke.
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On top of that, Old Trafford-born spoken word artist and writer Isaiah Hull will also create a piece of spoken word to connect the murals as part of the audio tour.
Each mural on display will centre around the theme ‘community togetherness and diversity’.
Due to several lockdowns and ongoing restrictions amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, the workshops that the art trail team had originally planned to hold in local schools, residential homes and other community settings had to be put on the back-burner, and they instead sent out 300 creative packs.
The team also involved the community through a number of activity sessions over Zoom and through social media, as well as with interactive displays in the window of OT Creative Space on Ayres Road.
Several local organisations also lent a hand in recruiting the community on board, and creative packs were even handed out to families in local parks.
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That’s not all either, as last month, the trail team ran a prize draw with local shops in the Old Trafford area to encourage residents to submit their ideas, and pupils from two local schools – St Alphonsus RC Primary and Old Trafford Community Academy – were also asked to get involved and share their thoughts on what Old Trafford means to them.
Speaking ahead of the arrival of the OT Art Trail, Lynda Sterling – from OT Creative Space – said: “We had to be very creative in order to maximise community participation at a time when we are being encouraged to stay apart rather than come together.
“Technology has played a part, but also good old fashioned paper and colouring pencils”.
She continued: “To find the locations, we walked around the local area and picked out key places [and] it was then a case of knocking on doors and putting notes through people’s doors if they were out.
“We found people extremely keen to have original artworks painted on their houses, [and] we estimate the murals will last between five and 10 years before they start to fade, so it’s quite a commitment”.
Michelle Griffith, one of the Old Trafford residents who has volunteered her home on Ayres Road as a blank canvas for a mural, has said that the trail is “just what Old Trafford needs”.
“It will bring some colour to an otherwise muted part of Old Trafford.” she continued.
“I’m really excited by the community engagement and getting to work with and alongside the artists.
“It’s bringing together factions of the community that are normally dormant”.
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You can find more information ahead of the launch of the OT Art Trail in early May via the OT creative SPACE website here.
What's On
A noughties fashion throwback is returning to Manchester and handing out freebies – including tattoos
Danny Jones
Beloved nineties and noughties clothing band Bench is at the beginning of a renaissance, and as they prepare to hand out free samples and even tattoos as part of their ‘Revival Collection’ sale, they’re returning to where it all started: Manchester.
Toasting the Y2K trends that have come back into style, the locally-founded label – started here in our city circa 1989 – is once again looking to make inroads and remind everyone why they were such a cult favourite name to begin with.
Preparing to reinstate its position in the Manc streetwear scene, Bench is set to make its comeback with a massive sample sale right here in Manchester, and there’s plenty of discounted stuff plus complimentary bits up for grabs.
We’re about to dance and dress like it’s 1999.
@bench.official Your first look at our AW25 Revival collection, available exclusively at Bench. Open House at the @Manchester Social this Thursday 6th November 👀 Shop samples old and new (yep, there’s even more available) for exclusive prices at our Manchester city centre sample sale event 💸 #samplesale#manchester♬ original sound – Bench Official
Spread across three whole floors, the ‘Bench Open House’ and Y2K Revival Collection will be on show at The Manchester Social tattoo studio.
Featuring timeless staples like oversized tees, vintage wash and classic turn-of-the-century style denim, big, baggy sweats and low-slung trousers re-designed for a new era.
Promising “extra goodies” from brands like Isovibe and Sunday Rain to the first 50 purchases on the day, you can expect plenty of familiar makes on show.
Being housed at Manchester Social too, the first 25 guests to book in will get a free flash tattoo on the night, courtesy of the studio’s talented fine-line artists; bookings can be made online or over the phone in advance for this directly.
And that’s no way near all there is on offer…
Those coming along can also enjoy retro gaming, nostalgic beats from live DJs supplying ’90s house party vibes, as well as cool photo ops, cocktails from Zubrowka (bison grass vodka brand), Baby Beer shots by Licor 43, plus non-alcoholic rum cocktails from Caleño. Immaculate energy all night long.
We’re personally loving how much late 1990s/early ’00s fashion is doing the rounds again. (Credit: Press shots)
Most importantly of all, the full proceeds from the sale will be donated to the native homeless charity Mustard Tree, which helps support people across the region.
Joanne Reidy, Head of Marketing at Bench’s parent group Apparel Brands, commented: “At Bench, Manchester isn’t just our home, it’s helped shape our identity.
“We’re proud that every sale from the Open House sample sale will go directly to Mustard Tree, supporting their vital work helping people across the city.”
Jack Barton, Head of Communications at the non-profit organisation, added: “We’re incredibly grateful to be the beneficiary of this event. Our mission is to combat poverty and prevent homelessness – it is down to the goodwill of our Greater Manchester partners who make this possible.
The Bench Open House and sample sale event takes place from 6-10pm at Manchester Social (9 South King Street, M2 6DG) this Thursday, 6 November. It’s completely free entry, but those looking to cop one of the selected designs can book in now.
Featured Images — Press shots (supplied via Bench)
What's On
You can get 25% off your bill when eating out at this well-known Italian restaurant with a secret code
Danny Jones
Fancy going out for tea but still trying not to spend too much money at this time of year? Well, Manchester, you can get 25% off your bill at an already affordable British restaurant chain by simply saying a special phrase.
This deal is only available this week, though, so we wouldn’t wait around.
We’ve all been there: you’re fed up of getting home after working and having to cook, so you start trying to justify ‘just one‘ night out, but it can be a real pull between enjoyment and ease versus trying to save those pennies – especially with the festive period looming.
Luckily, well-known Italian restaurant group Carluccio’s, who have a site right here in central Manchester, is offering a significant discount by simply asking for the bill in Italian. Simple as.
As a recognisable name on the UK high street, the authentic Italian eatery dates back nearly three and a half decades, the London-born deli and food shop going on to open its first-ever sit-down venue called Carluccio’s Caffè back in 1999.
In addition to their long-standing Manchester location in Piccadilly Station, the brand was also a shop-window establishment for the Trafford Centre, sitting front and centre as one of the first places to eat as you walked in the Orient entrance.
Now, as for how you access this welcome bit of money off your bill, it’s very straightforward and can be secured as fast as you can say “The bill, please”; well, actually, you need to ask for it in Italian, as it is this phrase that Carluccio’s has dubbed the ‘secret code’.
Following a study by language learning app, Preply, which recently carried out research into menu anxiety and struggling to make a decision when dining out, they’ve teamed up with Carluccio‘s to help push people to feel more confident ordering dishes not in their native tongue.
They found that almost half (49%) have felt embarrassed about not speaking another language, with one fifth of those surveyed lacking the confidence to try and pronounce foreign words, while one in six worried they’d be judged for getting it wrong.
Well, there’s no getting it wrong in this instance, as the Carluccio’s and Preply are giving you the specific keywords not only to ask for the bill in Italian – “Il conto, per favore” – but to unlock the bonus of a quarter off the final sum.
Anna Pyshna, spokesperson at Preply, says: “People may know how to say gnocchi in theory, but when the waiter’s standing there, confidence can vanish. We want to show that getting things wrong is part of learning and sometimes, even worth a discount.
“By turning a simple phrase into a real-world reward, we’re helping people take that first, brave step to speak up. It’s a reminder that the language learning process doesn’t start with perfection, it starts with the willingness to try.”
So, that really is it: dine at any of their restaurants across the country (including here in Manchester) and ask for the bill in Italian to get 25% off your bill; once again, the offer is only on until 9 November. You can find your nearest Carluccio’s location HERE.
Emily Sergeant -
8th April 2021 
