We’re into our second week of December now, and we just can’t get over how festive everything feels across Greater Manchester.
With Christmas cheer having now been firmly spread right across the region, and the big day itself just a matter of weeks away, everyone is getting suitably in the festive spirit and the events calendar is, once again, absolutely jam-packed with plenty to be getting up to, so we’ve cherry-picked a few of the best bits for another edition of our ‘what’s on‘ guide.
As always, some of the events we’re going to mention are completely free, while others will set you back a few pounds, and many will need to be booked in advance.
Here’s our top picks.
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Manchester Christmas Markets 2022
Manchester City Centre
Monday 5 – Thursday 22 December
Manchester Christmas Markets 2022 / Credit: Manchester City Council | Flickr
Manchester Christmas Markets 2022 are in full swing.
The iconic annual event – which draws in visitors from all across the globe each year, and has been voted the best Christmas markets in the UK for 2022 – are here once again to spread some cheer right across the city centre.
Open every day until Thursday 22 December, the the main market hubs in will be in Exchange Square, St Ann’s Square, King Street, and Market Street.
Other zones, however, are set to open after Christmas Day and run into the New Year.
You can find out everything you need to know here.
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Lightopia 2022
Heaton Park
Monday 5 December – onwards
Lightopia 2022 / Credit: Lightopia
Lightopia has made a return to Heaton Park this year.
Once again lighting up Manchester and captivating audiences for the fourth year in a row, award-winning illuminations event Lightopia is promising to bring the magic of Christmas back to the grounds of Heaton Park from this Thursday – with a brand-new immersive experience set to take over the park until January.
Through brand-new and unseen audiovisual displays, this year’s festival is a “once-in-a-lifetime adventure” for the all the family to enjoy.
Find out more about Lightopia 2022 and grab tickets here.
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Backyard Cinema
Depot Mayfield
Monday 5 December – onwards
Backyard Cinema / Credit: Supplied
Did you see that Manchester’s newest cinema on the roof of Depot Mayfield has a whole host of Christmas films on the agenda over the next few weeks?
Backyard Cinema brings its immersive movie going experience to the north for the ever first time, and features way more than a cosy purpose-built cinema room, as it comes complete with an Enchanted Forest, two bars, street food trucks, and a live music stage to boot.
Elf, Home Alone, Love Actually, The Holiday, How the Grinch Stole Christmas, and Miracle on 34th Street are just some of the films you can sit down to watch at the 330-capacity indoor venue.
The highly-anticipated and long-awaited exhibit is currently showcasing 145 iconic Banksy pieces all amassed from private collections across the globe to create the world’s largest touring collection of Banksy artworks.
Visitors will have the chance to experience the infamous artist’s most well-known works alongside those rarely seen by the public, all on loan from private collectors.
Christmas With Paddington / Credit: Trafford Centre
Paddington has dug out his Christmas hat and headed to the Trafford Centre.
The shopping centre’s grotto is always a highlight of the festive season each year, but it’s now bigger and better than ever before with Paddington’s arrival.
Proper festive fun for all the family, the Christmas with Paddington grotto experience – which is curated by award-winning experiential events company Bakehouse Factory – includes fun photo opportunities for all ages, the chance to travel through snowy festive trees and scenic street scenes, and so much more.
FIFA World Cup 2022 / Credit: Love Factory & Road To Victory
The FIFA World Cup 2022 is well underway, and Mancs are right to be wondering where to watch the World Cup in Manchester.
International tournaments are always a special occasion we eagerly await to come around and while we’re sure you could walk into any old pub and enjoy yourself, there are some seriously good venues showing Qatar 2022 this winter – so, with that in mind, we thought we’d put together a list of the best places to watch in our city.
Read our round-up list here, and browse for Love Factory tickets here.
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Skate Manchester 2022
Cathedral Gardens
Monday 5 December- onwards
Skate Manchester 2022 / Credit: Skate Manchester
What’s a festive season in the city without Skate Manchester?
Back once again for 2022 with twinkling lights, the smell of gingerbread, and Christmas songs playing on repeat, Skate Manchester’s stunning outdoor ice rink is in the heart of the city at Cathedral Gardens until 2 January 2023.
With covered rink having a roof to allow everyone to enjoy the ice, whatever the weather, this year, there’s also a brand-new ice path allowing you to skate around the beautiful Christmas tree centre.
Escape to Freight Island has brought its highly-popular Winter Island back to Manchester, just in time to get you in the mood for the festive season.
Having landed at Depot Mayfield‘s premier event space and cargo park, this year’s Winter Island is promising visitors everything from DJs, live entertainment, and Massaoke, to Christmas workshops, pop-up markets, and all the festive food you could hope for.
Food and drink to be scoffed from some of the best local and independent traders.
From Manchester favourites like Northern Soul grilled cheese and the award-winning Great North Pie Co. to Ancoats chocolatiers Cocoa Cabana, who will be letting you create your own boozy hot chocolate (the best kind), there’s so much to tickle your festive fancies.
Popular après-ski village Bar Hütte is officially back in the city centre.
After what was an undeniably successful run in 2021 and the plenty of years prior, Bar Hütte is better than ever this year, with 15 cosy Alpine cabins dotted across the Great Northern square courtyard to bring a lively, festive, and vibrant atmosphere.
Inspired by some of the coolest après ski bars in Europe, there’s everything from live music and free-flowing festive drinks, to the chance to try out the bar’s legendary ‘shot skis’, as well sing-along to all of your favourite tunes inside a private wooden karaoke cabin that’s festooned with twinkling tights.
Cheshire Oaks’ beloved grotto looks a little different to usual as Santa and his trusty elves are taking to the skies and inviting you on a fantastical festive adventure on the outlet’s all-new Big Wheel.
The Santa in the Sky experience is the perfect way to celebrate Christmas as a family this winter, and make memories to last a lifetime.
Open every weekend throughout December, with 10-minutes flights taking place from 10am-1pm, included in the ticket price is four spaces on the Big Wheel flight with Santa and his elves, and you’ll also get to sip on a mulled wine or hot chocolate and enjoy a festive cookie, as well as get a little gift to take home with you from Santa.
MANCHESTER, ENGLAND – OCTOBER 30: Steph Houghton of Manchester City gives a team talk before the FA Women’s Super League match between Manchester City and Liverpool at The Academy Stadium on October 30, 2022 in Manchester, United Kingdom. (Photo by Tom Flathers/Manchester City FC via Getty Images)
Manchester City is set to host the Barclays Women’s Super League Manchester derby at the Etihad Stadium this week.
Thousands of fans will descend on the stadium to watch their two big local women’s team face off, marking only the third time the Manchester City women’s team have played at the ground.
Family tickets start from just £18 for a family of four, or £8 for adults and from £1 for under-18s, and you can get them on the Manchester City website here.
What's On
A huge ‘Museum of the Moon’ art installation is set to land just outside of Greater Manchester
Danny Jones
Are you a space fanatic? Know a little one that’s obsessed with being an astronaut? Or are you just a fan of art exhibitions? Well, either way, you might want to take a trip to see the ‘Museum of the Moon’this summer.
Taking place in Cheshire, the magical Museum of the Moon experience returns to Macclesfield this September, and it really does need to be seen in the flesh to be fully appreciated.
For anyone completely unaware of the now recurring event, this up-close and personal look at the much-loved lunar installation in the Glasshouse in Alderley Park revolves around a massive, floating moon.
You can finally confirm it, in fact, isn’t made of cheese. Wallace and Gromit will be gutted…
Credit: Press Images (supplied)
On a more serious but still hugely exciting note, the Museum of the Moon forms part of this year’s SciTech Extravaganza, delivered by property Bruntwood every year, and this instant exhib-hit was always bound to make a comeback.
Created by Bristol-born artist Luke Jerram, this giant sphere is a towering six-metre replica of our Earth’s moon and commands quite the presence in the 150,000 sq ft innovation hub.
The Glasshouse itself is situated within the surrounding and truly stunning 400-acre parkland, which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year, located less than an hour’s drive from Manchester city centre.
SciTech Extravaganza 2025 marks just the second edition of the annual event, with promises of family-friendly fun, with plenty of affordable and completely free activities – including the Museum of the Moon itself, all the way up until 19 September.
Credit: Supplied
The day will see the artwork featured alongside a whole host of activities and entertainment, including three ‘Super Cells’ shows by the Royal Institute of Science, designed for three different age ranges: 4–7, 7–11, and 11–14.
In addition, there will also be a ‘balloon scientist’, hosting discussions on everything from elasticity, expansion and aerodynamics, to pressure, static electricity and many other topics via balloon art. Now that’s the kind of learning that gets our attention.
When you include kids’ computer coding sessions by Skills Supply, face painting, a wide variety of pop-up food and drink stalls to enjoy, and even DJ sets, this really is set to be an entertaining, engaging and crucially educational experience for adults and children alike.
The Glasshouse itself is home to some incredible showcases of tech, software and app development; AI, fintech (financial technology), gaming and more, making it the perfect day out for curious minds and aspiring scientists of all ages.
In fact, if you want to make your visit really special, you can book yourself in to see the massive and rather magnificent model of the moon, in particular, during the evening.
Dr Kath Mackay, Chief Scientific Officer for Bruntwood SciTech, said: “We’re delighted to be welcoming the extraordinary Museum of the Moon to Alderley Park.
“The installation has captured the attention and imaginations of visitors across the globe, so to have it displayed in our beautiful parkland is incredible. And what better way to celebrate its time with us than with the return of SciTech Extravaganza?
“It’s a unique opportunity to showcase the world of science and technology at its very best, and nurture curiosity and innovation in STEM-related fields. We look forward to welcoming families back for another unforgettable day, and to help inspire a new generation of scientists, mathematicians and engineers.”
Running from Monday, 1 September until Saturday, 20 September, tickets to witness the Museum of the Moon and all the other wonderful things on show at SciTech Extravaganza 2025 are available now – you can grab yours for free right HERE.
A giant ‘carnival on bikes’ championing Black culture is coming to Manchester
Danny Jones
One of the biggest bike ride events in the country, dubbed a ‘carnival on wheels’, is coming to Manchester this year.
The Black Unity Bike Ride (BUBR) was set up in London following the murder of George Floyd, which took place on 25 May 2020 and set shockwaves around the world.
Now, as the event is looking to reach across the UK, the event celebrating Black culture, joy, empowerment and unity is coming to our city region and its surrounding areas for the first time ever.
It’s set to be a truly brilliant and inspiring event.
Teaming up with London Marathon Events (LME) once again, the mass participation veterans have been lending expertise since 2021, and now they’ve reached a new five-year agreement to help continue strengthening BUBR and, hopefully, create a national movement by setting up in two new cities.
Manchester marks the first stage of the Black Unity Bike Ride expansion, which will see thousands take to cycling from Alexandra Park in Moss Side on a 12-mile route through the city and back to the beautiful outdoor space.
Aiming to mirror the success of the flagship BUBR event down in the capital, Manc participants and supporters can expect a vibrant, ‘festival feel’ with pumping music throughout.
Back at Alexandra Park, there’ll be even a huge pop-up home base for the event, bringing together Greater Manchester’s Black community with a big food and vendor village, more music and an uplifting atmosphere all day long.
The inaugural Manchester event will come just a fortnight after the sixth annual edition of the founding Black Unity Bike Ride in London, which sees waves of cyclists take on 17 miles, starting at Leyton Sports Ground and finishing in Dulwich Park.
Credit: Black Unity Bike Ride Manchester (supplied)
Promising route leaders, cheer zones and pitstops on the route, plenty of music, not to mention various indie food and drink traders pulling from a wide range of different ethnicities and cuisines, it’s this kind of full-on festival energy that BUBR Manchester is striving to capture.
Once again, it’s a ‘carnival on wheels’.
BUBR MCR 2025 will take place on Sunday, 17 August, the birthday of Marcus Mosiah Garvey, a key political activist – the forefather of the ‘Garveyism ideology – as well as publisher, journalist and orator who has his own national day named after him in his home country of Jamaica.
He advocated for the empowerment and rights of African descendants and founded the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African Communities League (UNIA), in addition to organising America’s first-ever Black nationalist movement.
You can see the event documentary film, which chronicles last year’s Black Unity Bike Ride in full down below. It really is a moving watch – pardon the pun.
It’s also worth noting that the Black Unity Bike Ride Fest is completely FREE, as the goal is to get as many people as possible. You can sign up
BUBR founder, Tokunbo Ajasa-Oluwa, said of the upcoming event: “What began as a bold idea on London’s streets has grown into a national movement. We are very excited to bring the event to Manchester, it has been an aspiration for a few years so we can’t wait until Sunday, 17 August.”
“BUBR has valued London Marathon Events’ support since 2021, and we are very proud to extend this relationship with a new five-year commitment. The partnership is a true statement of intent when it comes to community, inclusion and inspiring active lives.”
BUBR has been to Rwanda, South Africa, Ghana and more; Manchester is up next and there’ll be another new home in 2026.
Emily Sergeant -
4th December 2022 
