60 years of Doctor Who is to be celebrated with impressive programme of talks, panels, and performances at this year’s Bluedot festival.
Cheshire’s multi award-winning celebration of music, science, and cosmic culture will once again be taking over the grounds of the iconic Jodrell Bank Observatory from Friday 20 – Sunday 23 July – with Grace Jones, Pavement, Roisin Murphy, Max Richter, and Leftfield among the names lined-up to take to the stage over the three-day festival.
BBC Concert Orchestra, Young Fathers, and Annie Mac also form part of this year’s already-announced lineup, alongside a series of hands-on science workshops, exhibitions, and so much more.
And now, you can add a massive Doctor Who anniversary celebration that list.
It’s pretty fitting that Bluedot’s Jodrell Bank home would host the 60-year celebrations to the long-running BBC sci-fi show, as fans will know that the Observatory is rightly-renowned in Whovian lore for having provided the backdrop to the fourth Doctor’s transition to the fifth back in 1982 – when Tom Baker handed the role over to Peter Davison.
ADVERTISEMENT
Taking place on the Sunday of the three-day festival, with a full programme of events curated by the Bluedot festival team – who are self-confessed Who superfans – actor and renowned Doctor Who expert Toby Hadoke, and the charity Delia Derbyshire Day, 60 Years of Doctor Who – A Celebration promises festivalgoers a spine-tingling experience.
Radiophonic Workshop will be the event’s very-special guests with the premiere of brand-new live show, Dawn of the Doctors.
ADVERTISEMENT
Aside from that though, Toby Hadoke’s series of talks and panels include a conversation with BBC Radio 4’s Robin Ince for a “fascinating and hilarious deep-dive into life as a Whovian”, a talk with Dr Tom Attah, Dr Emma Alexander, and comedian and Doctor Who actor Bethany Black titled ‘Why Do We Love This Silly Programme So Much’.
One of the stand-out talks in Toby’s lineup is ‘Doctor Who Made Me’ – which will be made up of prolific TV scriptwriter and producer Stephen Gallagher, who wrote the Doctor Who stories Warrior’s Gate and Terminus, and actor and writer Dan Starkey, who has played the fan-favourite Strax the Sontaran character in numerous episodes.
Further panels include ‘Reversing the Polarity of the Timey Wimey Flow: The Changing Portrayal of the Scientist in Doctor Who’ with David Butler, Jen Gupta, and Simon Guerrier, and ‘Doctor Who and the Current Crisis; The Role of Drama in Imagining Futures’ with Sashwati Mira Sengupta.
ADVERTISEMENT
Another one of the event’s highlights is ‘Conversations in Space, Time, Science and Music: Doctor Who at 60’ – which is a fascinating programme of panels featuring Dick Mills, who was Delia Derbyshire’s tape assistant during the production of the original theme, and Mark Myers of the Radiophonic Workshop Band.
Both final day and weekend tickets for Bluedot 2023 are on sale now, and you can find out more and grab yours here.
Featured Image – Lucas Sinclair
What's On
Science and Industry Museum reveals ‘gloriously gross’ half term events lineup
Emily Sergeant
One of Manchester’s most-visited museums has unveiled its exciting events lineup ahead of half term in a couple of weeks time.
Fancy diving into the “gloriously gross” world of our brilliant bodies?
It’s certainly not an invite you get every day, but as schools across Greater Manchester break up for half term at the end of this month, and parents and carers gear up to entertain the little ones, the Science and Industry Museum has, thankfully, just announced a wide range of events and activities especially for the holidays.
Anyone who considers themselves to be “curious about the incredible inner workings of the human body” are invited to join in with the series of anatomy-themed special events, star-studded appearances, and half term transformations.
And the best bit is that a good chunk of the events planned are actually open for you to get involved with for completely free of charge.
As the curtains on Operation Ouch! are due to close for good on Sunday 9 June, the museum has chosen to dedicate the entire month of May to celebrating the record-breaking exhibition and making sure it goes out in “a blaze of glorious grossness” by having it inspire all the upcoming ‘brilliant bodies’ events – and this half term is no different.
The Science and Industry Museum has revealed its ‘gloriously gross’ half term events lineup / Credit: Science Museum Group
As well as exploring the exhibition before it closes, mini Mancs can also bring a bear (or any soft squishy friend) to the museum and take them round the departments of the ‘Teddy Hospital’, as well as learn all about looking after their brains, bones, and bottoms with fun and fascinating activities, and find out how their skeleton works, what their poo is made of, and why we have blood.
The museum‘s team of Explainers will also be back in action this half term.
They’ll be putting on interactive science shows packed with “fun facts and wow moments” that explore how and why our bodies are all the same, but different too.
There’s so much to discover and explore about our ‘brilliant bodies’ at the museum this month / Credit: Science Museum Group
Away from the ‘brilliant bodies’ events, if you haven’t had the chance the make the most of the museum’s smash-hit gaming exhibition, Power UP, then this upcoming half term is the ideal time to do so.
Revolution Manchester, the museum’s interactive Experiment gallery, and the Textiles Gallery are also open for exploring for free all throughout the half term week.
Both free entry tickets to the museum, and charged-for tickets for Operation Ouch! Food, Poo and You and Power UP, can be booked now on the Science and Industry Museum website.
You can find more about all the activities taking place at the museum over the half term here.
Featured image – Science Museum Group
What's On
Manc icons to be turned into trail of stunning floral installations lining city centre streets
Emily Sergeant
Caroline Aherne and Emmeline Pankhurst are among the ‘Manchester Icons’ set to turned into floral installations for a new trail that’ll line the city centre streets.
In case you missed it, it was announced back in January that Manchester is all set to become one of the most picturesque places in the UK once again this summer, and that’s because the city will be getting dressed up in celebration of the annual Flower Festival – which is back by popular demand for its seventh year.
The four-day festival – which is organised annually by Manchester BID and CityCo, and is often dubbed the “most Instagramable event of the year” – always sees Manchester bloom to life, with plants and flowers covering landmark buildings, shop windows, doorways, balconies, statues, fountains, and more right across the city centre.
This year’s Festival will take place over the late May bank holiday weekend from Friday 24 – Monday 27 May 2024.
And now, the theme for this year’s floral trail has now been revealed by the Festival’s organisers.
‘Manchester Icons’ is the name and theme of this year’s trail – which is always one of the most popular events at the Festival each year – and visitors are being told they can expect to see 10 glorious displays inspired by Manchester-born figures, music icons, and even legendary buildings.
All the installations in the trail are created by local artists, gardeners, and flower enthusiasts.
The late Manc actress Caroline Aherne, Manchester suffragette icon Emmeline Pankhurst, Girls Aloud and Stockport-raised band member, the late Sarah Harding, and local singing legend Rowetta are among the ‘icons’ who will be turned into floral art pieces, alongside other famous sites such as Gnome Island, the Hacienda, and Boddington’s brewery.
Manchester will be filled with fresh blooms as annual the Flower Festival returns this summer / Credit: Carl Sukonik & Fabio De Paola | The Manc Group
King Street, New Cathedral Street, St Ann’s Square, the Corn Exchange, and Manchester Arndale are just a few of the sites the installations will call home in a couple of weeks time.
The names and locations of the 10 installations are:
‘What first attracted you to the comedian Caroline Aherne?’ – New Cathedral Street
‘The Girls Aloud Tribute Garden’ – St Ann’s Square
‘Emmeline’s Town Hall’ – On the corner of King Street and Cross Street
‘Queen Bee Rowetta’ – The Royal Exchange
‘Gnome Island’ – King Street
‘The Second Summer of Love’ – Manchester Arndale
‘Boddingtons Blooms’ – Corn Exchange
‘The Iconic Hive’ – New Cathedral Street
‘This is Manchester’ – St Ann’s Square
‘The Hacienda Gardens’ – On the corner of King Street and Deansgate
Alongside the headline floral trail, organisers say this year’a Manchester Flower Festival is also set to bring “fun and frivolity” to the city’s streets – with a cocktail trail, al-fresco dining, live music, lots of family entertainment, floral workshops, arts and crafts markets, and so much more.
Manchester Flower Festival 2024 is free for all to attend from Friday 24 – Monday 27 May, and you can find out more about the floral trail and everything else happening across the four days here.
Featured Image – Carl Sudonik (via Manchester BID)