It’s been touch and go whether Manchester Pride weekend would go ahead this year. But with the lifting of restrictions and the mass roll out the vaccine programme we can safely say it’s game onby now.
Despite the annual Pride parade becoming another victim of COVID-19 after being cancelled down to safety concerns, the city has still got us covered with a range of other events starting as soon as Wednesday to really get us in the Pride mood.
So, if you’re not heading to the official Manchester Pride Live festival down at Homeground or are keen to experience Pride outside of the village this year, here is our hefty roundup of music events happening across the city centre.
Escape to Freight Island
Escape to Freight Island are set to embark on a five day Pride extravaganza. Image credit: Escape to Freight Island.
Really making the most of the weekend is Escape to Freight Island which is kicking off its Pride celebrations from Wednesday 25 August.
Across a whopping five days, the popular al fresco dining and drinking hotspot is putting on a full jam-packed programme of music, DJs, live performances, drag shows and more to coincide with Manchester Pride Festival.
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Renowned UK party starters High Hoops will be opening the show on the Wednesday. Expect to hear the signature disco, acid, psychedelic house and electro sounds that High Hoops are known for.
Then the funky vibes will continue into weekend from Friday with a takeover from Manchester collective Rebecca Never Becky who are all about championing emerging and LGBTQ+ artists.
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Whilst on Saturday, the soul, reggae and afrobeat sounds of the So Flute DJs will switch things up, before Katbrownsugar and special guests take control.
Freight Island’s very own Amuse Bouche will take over on Sunday as well. Hosted by Mix-Stress, the day will see a whole load more DJs followed by a special drag show courtesy of Performance is Power.
Escape to Freight Island | 25 – 30 August | 11 Baring St, Manchester M1 2PZ
‘Something For Everyone’ at Ducie Street Warehouse
Also kicking Pride off early at Native Manchester on 26 August is the ‘Something For Everyone’ event presented by Ducie Street Warehouse.
There’s a whole five-day programme in place. It’ll be packed with performers, artists, live music and DJs in what will be Ducie Street’s first Pride Weekend event.
Mix-Stress and Friends will take care of the music on the Thursday, followed by four days of parties curated by Kiss Me Again, with takeovers from some familiar LGBTQ+ collectives.
Marking the midway point in the festivities on Saturday will be Manchester’s own Gina Breeze, Luke Solomon and Krysko who will expertly soundtrack the evening with their years-worth of DJing experience.
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Ducie Street Warehouse | 26 – 30 August | 51 Ducie Street, Manchester, M1 2TP
The Refuge’s Come As You Are Weekender
The Refuge’s Come As You Are event has become a Pride weekend institution. Credit: The Refuge
The Refuge’s annual ‘Come As You Are’ event is not to be missed – and this year the weekender is back and bigger than ever.
The venue’s stunning spaces will be opened up for a three-day and three-night spectacular from Friday to Sunday.
Local legend DJ Paulette, Abigail Ward, Queer Latifah and Jamie Bull will provide all your house and disco mixes and everything in between across the weekend.
It’s all free and walk-in only too so no need book tickets, just get yourself down there.
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The Refuge | 27 – 30 August | Oxford St, Manchester M60 7HA
Feel Good Club
Northern Quarter café and bar, Feel Good Club, have announced their own plans for the weekend, too.
Kicking things off on Thursday will be the launch of their monthly LOUDER music residency. It’ll focus purely on celebrating LGBTQ+ musicians making Pride the perfect time to launch the series. The inaugural evening will be in collaboration with Incantation Records, and will see SOFT LAD, The Elephant Trees and HUSK with The KTNA headlining.
Other Feel Good Club highlights across the weekend include a rebrand of their greenhouse to ‘Queen House’, which will become a safe space to meet and chat with likeminded individuals. And on Sunday afternoon, get some Pride pre-drinking in from 12pm-4pm.
Feel Good Club | 26 – 29 August | 26-28 Hilton St, Manchester M1 2EH
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Cottonopolis
There’ll be music, food and dancing at Cottonopolis all weekend. Credit: Cottonopolis
It’s full-on party mode at Cottonopolis this bank holiday. From Friday to Monday there’s is something different going on each day.
Music highlights include live DJs, bongos and live sax players as they dust off the disco ball and transform the venue into a glittering extravaganza on Saturday.
All the music and festivities will be accompanied by some cracking Japanese-inspired food, including a drag brunch, dining experiences, bottomless booze options and all of those famous Cottonopolis small plates and more.
Square One | 28 August | Cakebread Street, M12 6HF | 2pm-11pm
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Garden Party at Afflecks
There’s even more fun to be had at Afflecks, too.
With a nod to the original Pride parade theme for this year, Manchester’s iconic emporium will be hosting their very own ‘Garden of Freedom’ party celebration in its place on Saturday 28 August.
The whole building will be looking the part, adorned in heaps of glitter, decorations and all things garden party.
Meanwhile inside, drag DJs and queens will be roaming the venue for our entertainment throughout the day.
Afflecks | 28 August | 52 Church St, Manchester M4 1PW | 10am-6pm
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StreamGM and The Manc have teamed up to show some serious love and support to the region’s renowned theatres, nightclubs, and live-music venues with the launch of SeeGM – a digital campaign to shine a bright spotlight on many of the amazing events, club nights, gigs and shows in our region.
Manchester’s new real-life Pac-Man experience is coming soon and you can grab early bird tickets
Danny Jones
Manchester already boasts a whole host of interactive games bars and activity destinations to boast, but we feel pretty confident in saying that there are very places on the planet where you can find a place to play a real-life version of Pac-Man.
First announced back in October and now scheduled to debut in March 2025, the Pac-Man Live Experience is the newest addition to Manchester’s growing entertainment scene and it’s promising to be a popular one too.
This brand-new life-sized immersive experience plunges players into the nostalgic world of the iconic video game we all know and love, only instead of using joysticks on an old-school arcade machine, they’ll physically sprint, dodge, and chomp their way through a maze.
Although the launch itself is still a few months away, the team behind this ingenious idea are getting ready for the frenzy and putting early bird tickets on sale ahead of opening day.
Credit: Concept Image (supplied)
So how does it work?
Good question: participants can gear up in a PAC vest and step into the role of the instantly recognisable yellow chomper, collecting power pellets, dodging the classic ghost characters – BLINKY, PINKY, INKY, and CLYDE – and racking up points on their way to victory.
Guided through an epic 12-level adventure, players will be led by the ‘PAC-MASTER’: a lively gameshow host who serves as commentator and referee; players will also be accompanied by immersive in-game effects like sound bites, lighting, and haptic (vibration) feedback to elevate the experience. Cool, right?
The striking Arcade Arena will feature two massive PAC-MAN courts projected onto the floor, while dynamic visuals transform the walls, fully immersing participants in the retro arcade universe. There’s no need for headsets either, so players can embark on a multi-sensory adventure, seamlessly blending the real world with augmented reality.
Created by Tom Lionetti-Maguire, the CEO and Founder of Little Lion Entertainment – the same team behind The Crystal Maze Live Experience, Tomb Raider, and Chaos Karts to the likes of London and more recently Manchester –
The whole thing has been brought to life in partnership with Bandai Namco Entertainment, lending the proper licensing to make the experience feel both fun and authentic. It’s the real deal.
Credit: Supplied
Early bird tickets for Pac-Man Live Manchester
If you’re not sold on playing a human-sized, real-life game of Pac-Man in a huge augmented-reality arena right here in Manchester then we don’t know what to tell you, to be honest – all we know is that we’ll be first in line when it arrives.
The Pac-Man Live Experience comes to the Arcade Arena on 22 March next year in line with the game’s 40th anniversary, and they’re inviting players of all ages and providing engaging gameplay for younger participants while delivering a nostalgic throwback that parents and grandparents will cherish.
Better yet, if you book during the early bird window, you can access discount ticket prices from just £25 per person too.
Early bird tickets go on sale at 12 noon today (Thursday, 21 November) – you can grab yours HERE.
Blood Brothers at Palace Theatre, Manchester – a timeless classic
Greg James
Bill Kenwright’s production of Blood Brothers surpassed 10,000 performances in London’s West End making it one of only three musicals ever to achieve that monumental milestone – and now it’s visiting us here in Manchester.
“Oh Bright New Day”, Blood Brothers has just landed back at the Palace Theatre. This musical written by Willy Russell is a British piece of theatre that is a staple in the musical theatre tapestry of our country.
For anyone who is unfamiliar with this iconic story, it is an emotional tale of two twins who are separated at birth and grow up on opposite sides of the tracks, only to meet again with the most fateful of consequences.
The story’s central character, Mrs Johnston is the linchpin in this whole story and carries us through the show.
This role has been played by many superb women over the years including Mel C, Kiki Dee, Barbara Dickson and nearly all of the Nolan Sisters. This time, Mrs Johnston is performed by Vivienne Carlyle who provides a lovely maternal performance.
The other two lead roles are Mickey and Eddie, played by Sean Jones and Joe Sleight respectively.
These are really complex roles to play as the actors have to portray the characters from early school years to grown adults.
The cast of Blood Brothers in Manchester. Credit: Jack MerrimanSean Jones, Gemma Brodrick and Joe Slight in Blood Brothers in Manchester. Credit: Jack Merriman
Sean Jones has been playing the role of Mickey now for nearly 25 years and so he is no stranger to this character. And I must say, he still fantastically plays the part, even when playing young Mickey, and the show really takes off when he enters the stage.
Joe Sleight is someone who I had not seen in the role of Eddie before and he gave just as strong a performance as Jones. He offered a real contrast to his counterpart with a really beautiful, touching performance.
The whole ensemble did a gorgeous job of helping to carry these characters throughout the musical, showing a real flair for multi-roling and beautiful musicality in the group numbers too.
Something which elevates this already gripping story though is the music. There are many recurring musical motifs throughout the show that on the surface may come off as repetitive but they offer perspective on how things can evolve and change over time.
Of course the song though that everybody is perhaps familiar with is the power ballad, ‘Tell Me It’s Not True’. This is the climax of the show and what a climax it is. There’s not a dry eye in the house when we reach this point of the story, I can assure you!
So, whether you are returning to watch this show again, perhaps know the story from studying it in English GCSE or seeing it for the first time, it will always be an absolutely timeless classic.
Blood Brothers is on at the Palace Theatre in Manchester until Saturday 30 November. Tickets are available HERE.
Hannah Starkie -
24th August 2021 
