A three-day outdoor festival full of food, drink, live entertainment, and more is set to take over a hidden street in Manchester city centre.
Back by popular demand after what were successful runs in both 2021 and 2022, city centre dining and leisure destination, Great Northern Warehouse, has announced that its outdoor street festival, Deansgate Mews Festival, is once again making a return at the end of this month – with live music, al fresco dining, independent traders, and so much more on the packed lineup.
Just as the name suggests, Deansgate Mews – which is a hidden street nestled just above the city’s main thoroughfare – will welcome the three-day festival this late May bank holiday weekend from Friday 26 – Sunday 28 May.
The festival is all about championing the very best of Manchester culture, as well as the eclectic range of independent businesses on the street.
Festival full of food, live entertainment, and more to take over ‘hidden street’ in Manchester city centre / Credit: Phil Tragen (via Supplied)
Completely free to attend, festival organisers are this year promising a lively celebration of food, entertainment, and stalls from a variety of independent local retailers, as well as a plenty of family-friendly activities to get stuck into.
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Over 45 live music acts are booked to play over a number of stages across the extended weekend.
A pop-up outdoor stage at local neighbourhood bar, Lions Den, will see headline performances from Mancunian indie rock band Strawberry Lemonade, North London-based band The Social Club, and Mansfield-based indie rock band The Publics, while there’ll also be additional indoor and outdoor stages at Low Four, and another indoor stage at Manchester One Media.
William KZ, Bright Light Rooney, Dan Disgrace, Nikki & The Waves, Jackie Moonbather, Norrisette, Terry Venomous, and Hank Stankovic are just a handful of the other names set to entertain crowds.
With Deansgate Mews being the perfect place to spend an afternoon basking in the sunshine on the large outdoor terrace, festivalgoers can make the most of al fresco dining from some of the street’s best-loved bars and restaurants – including The Mews Bar, Another Hand, and Acai & The Tribe.
There’ll also be a pop-up ‘gift emporium’ with talented traders, fashion labels, and local artists such as Bah Florals, The Lemur Arts, Helen Jones Art, Hoop and Fred, NoWear To Go, and IOLLA all celebrating the best of Manchester’s independent brands.
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Deansgate Mews / Credit: GNW
All the festival’s proceeds will be donated to community charity Forever Manchester.
“Following on from the success of previous years, we are delighted to once again be hosting Deansgate Mews Festival,” Great Northern’s centre director Mark Schofield said ahead of the festival.
“We hope to welcome locals to enjoy a free weekend of music and socialising, alongside the best of outdoor dining, drinks, and shopping that Great Northern Warehouse has to offer.”
Find out more about Deansgate Mews Festival 2023 here.
Featured Image – Supplied
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Faulty Towers The Dining Experience is returning to Manchester next month
Daisy Jackson
One of the world’s silliest and most-loved experiences is returning to Manchester this year, offering people the chance to step inside the world of Fawlty Towers.
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience sees immersive theatre blend with a three-course dinner, bringing Britain’s most infamous hotel to life.
Fans of the hit 1970s comedy will enjoy two hours of mayhem led by Basil, Sybil and Manuel, all while tucking into a delicious era-appropriate meal.
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience has become an immersive dining phenomenon, scooping awards and selling out venues across the globe since launching almost 30 years ago.
In the years since, it’s welcomed more than one million guests, celebrated 13 years of its West End residency in London, and hosted celebrations for 50 years of the original BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.
And now it’s Manchester’s turn, with the event returning to our city between 3 and 15 February.
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience is returning to ManchesterThe event is hosted by actors playing Basil, Sybil and ManuelAround 70% of the action is improvisedGuests are served a three-course 70s-inspired meal during the Faulty Towers experienceCredit: Rosie Powell
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience will be taking over the Voco hotel on Portland Street for a limited run, starring Aaron Millard as ‘Basil’, Rebecca Norris as ‘Sybil’, and Simon Hourihan as ‘Manuel’.
You can definitely expect two hours of theatre, chaos, and a 70s-inspired three-course meal, but with around 70% of the performances completely improvised, we can’t tell you much more than that…
Producer Jared Harford said: “It’s such a joy to be bringing Basil and the team back to Manchester. After such an incredible 2025 celebrating 50 years of Fawlty Towers, we can’t wait to continue sharing the laughter, chaos and community spirit that make this show so special.”
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience in Manchester:
Tuesday 3 February to Sunday 15 February
Tuesday to Saturday – doors open 6.45pm, seating and show starts 7.30pm
Saturday and Sunday – doors open 12.45pm, seating and show starts 1.30pm
Ticket prices, all including three-course meal and two hour immersive experience:
Tuesday to Thursday dinner, and Saturday or Sunday lunch – £67.50 pp (including fees) Friday or Saturday dinner £71.50 pp (including fees). Bookings can be made via the box office on (+44) 020 3700 3138 or online at www.faultytowersdining.com
Autotrader and viral food brand SpudBros are opening their first jacket potato drive-thru
Daisy Jackson
Autotrader has teamed up with SpudBros, the UK’s viral jacket potato trader, to open the first jacket potato drive-thru in Manchester.
The UK’s largest automotive marketplace is working with the SpudBros duo on the new Autotater drive-thru, where the duo will be handing out free jacket spuds – and which can also value your car in less than 10 seconds.
You’ll be able to visit the one-of-a-kind drive-thru for one day only next month, picking up a baked potato from an exclusive menu that includes the Autotater (a twist on a classic loaded spud) and the Curry In A Hurry (SpudBros’ signature garlic chicken curry).
You’ll also be able to tune into the Spud FM radio with SpudBros co-founders Jacob and Harley. Autotrader and SpudBros have teamed up for the drive-thru experience off the back of new research that has shown 44% of UK drivers have no idea what their car is actually worth.
The same research has also revealed that half of those surveyed are unsure how to determine the value of their car.
So now Mancs will be able to have their car instantly valued in less than 10 seconds, by Autotrader’s award-winning valuation service*, simply by visiting the Autotater drive-thru on 12 February.
Autotrader will be dishing out free valuations, to help ensure car owners don’t get small potatoes for their car and are empowered to choose when it’s the right time to sell.
Autotrader and viral food brand SpudBros are opening their first jacket potato drive-thru
This will be the first drive-thru for SpudBros, a brand which grew a traditional jacket potato van into a national sensation, finding viral fame on TikTok.
With a cult following of more than 4.8m people on TikTok and Instagram, the pair are now bringing their trademark energy offline for a drive-thru window with free spuds.
Erin Baker, Editorial Director at Autotrader said: “We know no one loves admin, which is why we want to make it easier and quicker for people to find out the true value of their car, in under 10 seconds.
“There’s something fun about that moment of surprise when you finally see what your car is really worth. Once you have that information, you can decide what to do next – whether that’s selling, upgrading or simply showing off to your mates.”
Jacob and Harley Nelson, the founders of SpudBros commented: “This is a big one for us. We’ve fed people across the country and even internationally, and Manchester is one of our most requested visits, so this is a really exciting opportunity.
“We love doing things that get people talking, and we also love cars, so teaming up with fellow Northern brand Autotrader lets us serve up something new that we feel passionately about – a free spud, a car valuation, and telling the story through social media.”
The Autotrader drive-thru will open in Manchester on 12 February, at Depot Mayfield. Tickets will be available through a draw on the Autotrader website for a limited time only.
To be in with a chance to get on the guestlist and for more details on the event, head HERE, and to join the millions who value their car free with Autotrader, visit HERE.
You can also follow @autotraderuk on Instagram for the latest updates.
*Highly Commended Winner of the 2025 Car Dealer Power Award in the Used Car Valuations category.
Emily Sergeant -
19th May 2023 
