What's On
The best things to do in Greater Manchester this week | 14 – 20 October 2024
Emily Sergeant -
10th October 2024 
It may be nearing closer to the start of spooky season, but there’s loads of exciting events planned in our region.
With Halloween right around the corner, and schools soon set to break up for October half term, it’s about time all started to fully immerse ourselves in everything autumn has to offer, and thankfully, there’s absolutely no shortage of things for the whole family to be getting up to across Greater Manchester.
Finding it a bit tricky to pick what to do though? We’ve chosen a few of the best bits for another edition of our ‘what’s on‘ guide this week.
Here’s some of our recommendations.
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Scare City 2024
Camelot Theme Park
Monday 14 October – onwards
Scare City has returned to the North West for its fifth year running with its “most immersive” horror experience to date.
Taking over the grounds of the abandoned Camelot Theme Park for “another year of terror”, just as it has done for the past three years following the success of its initial 2020 launch as a drive-in cinema, this year’s event features a selection of terrifying zones to weave your way through – some familiar, some brand new.
Tickets are now available to book at £26.95 for standard entry, or £36.95 for the ‘Gold Entry’ (both plus a £2.45 booking free).
Find out more and grab tickets to this year’s event here.
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Chester Zoo’s Halloween Festival
Chester Zoo
Monday 14 October – 3 November
Chester Zoo has been transformed into a ‘super-natural spectacle’ for the spooky season, and there’s loads of exciting events planned now that Halloween is right around the corner.
The UK’s biggest charity zoo is getting into the scary spirit throughout October, with a trail of giant animals made out of pumpkins, and a fully animated 360-degree ‘mythical experience’ among the highlights at the huge new Halloween festival.
Visitors will come face-to-face with giant animal sculptures made with pumpkins, all before encountering untamed creatures at the new BEASTS experience – which is the first of its kind in the UK.
Find out more and grab free tickets here.
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STAB Horror Film Season
Cultplex
Monday 14 October – onwards
October is here… and so is STAB Horror Film Season.
Now a much-loved staple of Manchester’s spooky season, Cultplex’s annual horror film festival is back for 2024, and the Red Bank-based ‘mini cini’ has once again been taken over by a whole host of scary movies and more as part of the month-long festival.
This year’s lineup features sci-fi and supernatural classics such as The Exorcist and Alien, as well as full-on movie marathons, special spooky one-offs, and other events.
Find out more and book tickets here.
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NEW OPENING – Museum of Illusions
Market Street
The world-famous Museum of Illusions filled with optical illusions and interactive exhibits is now open in Manchester.
Inside the new attraction – which opened last week on Market Street, and is the only location in the UK – visitors are able to dangle upside down on a Metrolink tram, have their minds blown in the Vortex Tunnel, and probably learn a thing or two while they’re at it.
Visitors are promised mind-bending illusions and curious games around every corner.
There’s even somee brand-new, Manchester-exclusive installations too, like The Reversed Room, and The Building Illusion, where you can dangle, Spider-man-style, from a classic city brick terraced building.
Find out more here.
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Jurassic World: The Exhibition
Trafford Centre
Monday 14 October – onwards
A major Jurassic World exhibition that’s been mesmerising visitors all over the world has now arrived here in Greater Manchester.
Based on the beloved blockbuster film franchise, this official award-winning experience is one of the fastest-selling exhibitions in history, and it’s not hard to see why.
Manc visitors will be able to walk through the iconic Jurassic World gates, explore some richly-themed environments, and encounter a life-sized Brachiosaurus, Velociraptors, and the most fearsome dinosaur of all, the mighty Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Find out more and grab ticket here.
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Wild
Manchester Museum
Monday 14 October – onwards
A groundbreaking new immersive exhibition exploring our relationship with the natural world is now open at Manchester Museum.
‘Wild’ look at how people are creating, rebuilding, and repairing connections with nature, and how the natural world has traditionally been presented and idealised through Western art, as well as looking at some unique approaches to environmental recovery too.
The exhibition will also crucially look at how we can tackle the climate and biodiversity crisis by making the world more wild.
Find out more and grab your FREE tickets here.
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Paddington Visits Spinningfields
Spinningfields
Monday 14 October – onwards
Did you know that an adorable statue of Paddington Bear has been installed in Manchester?
Inviting passers-by to pull up a seat, the little likeness to the much-loved animated character in the middle of Spinningfields at Hardman Street is complete with red hat, blue duffle coat, and even his emergency marmalade sandwich.
The statue has been installed as part of the Paddington Visits trail right across the UK and Ireland, celebrating the upcoming release of Paddington in Peru.
The Paddington statue in Manchester has been constructed onto a bench with space beside him to sit with the loveable bear, and will be in situ for at least the next year.
Find out more here.
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Injecting Hope: The race for a COVID-19 vaccine
Science and Industry Museum
Monday 14 October – onwards
More than 100 objects and stories collected during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic are now on display as part of a new exhibition at the Science and Industry Museum.
The groundbreaking new exhibition, titled Injecting Hope: The race for a COVID-19 vaccine, explores the worldwide effort to develop vaccines at pandemic speed, while uncovering the inspiring stories of scientists and innovators around the globe who collaborated to tackle the worldwide COVID-19 challenge along the way.
The best bit? It’s absolutely FREE to attend, and advanced tickets are available to book on the Museum’s website now.
Find out more and book tickets here.
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Did you see that a massive new vintage clothing store has now opened in Manchester city centre?
ReMarket has opened on London Road, wedged between Piccadilly Markets and Manchester Piccadilly train station, with 6,000 sq ft filled with rails ripe for the rummaging.
From Dickies and Levi’s, to Stone Island and Gucci, there are some serious brands and serious bargains to be found inside, as well as a number of different independent brands – including Bare Necessities, Archive X, 28 Vintage, Cherry Blossom Vintage and Blank Seams.
The best way to think of it is as a department store… but for very cool, independent vintage and second-hand brands.
Find out more here.
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The Halloween Trail
Trafford Centre
Thursday 17 October – onwards
A brand-new Halloween trail will be leading people through an enchanted and haunted woodland this autumn.
Kicking off this week, and taking place at the Trafford Centre’s little-known Wilderspool Woods, the 4.5 acre hidden woodland in the grounds of the iconic shopping centre will be taken over by skeletons, bats, and all sorts of other spooky creatures.
More than 100,000 lights will illuminate a Skeleton Village, and there’ll be laser-filled gardens of mist, a spooky soundtrack of otherworldly tunes curated by DJ Rasp, and supernatural surprises around every corner – whether it’s colourful bats soaring overhead or glowing LED eyes watching down from the treetops.
Find out more and grab tickets here.
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Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair 2024
Victoria Baths
Thursday 17 – Sunday 20 October
Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair (GNCCF) is not only the largest and most prestigious craft fair in the north, but it’s also one of the best in the UK, and it’s taking over the stunning historic Victoria Baths in Manchester for its 17th annual edition this weekend.
GNCCF brings together 200 talented makers from across the UK, with established artists and new graduate talent under the same roof, all selected for their excellence by a panel of craft experts.
It’s an unrivalled opportunity to browse and buy a wide array of high-quality, one-off handmade pieces – including ceramics, jewellery and silver, interior and fashion textiles, glass, basketmaking, prints, wood, furniture, so much more.
Find out more and grab tickets online here.
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Manchester Science Festival 2024
Science and Industry Museum
Friday 18 – Sunday 27 October
You can explore the extremes of nature, human capability, and creativity at Manchester Science Festival this year.
The massively-popular festival is making a grand return for 2024 from this week, and it’s offering visitors the unique opportunity to become a genuine part of history through a wide range of immersive events and activities.
Organisers say the festival is all about “tackling the extremes of our world” this year, and this means attendees will get to learn about some of science’s most cutting-edge developments through multi-sensory experiences and hands-on family fun.
Find out everything happening at this year’s festival here.
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The Manchester Mindfulness Festival 2024
Bridgewater Hall
Saturday 19 October
The Manchester Mindfulness Festival returns for 2024 this weekend.
Taking over the Bridgewater Hall in the heart of the city centre this Saturday, this an independent not-for-profit event aims to serve the community through a comprehensive programme filled with informative mindfulness-based talks and workshops.
It’s all in a bid to make mindfulness more easily available to everyone, and ensure inspiration ripples across the region and beyond.
Find out more and grab tickets here.
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#LiveLaughLidl Drag Brunch
Impossible
Sunday 20 October
Lidl has partnered with Hunsnet to host its first-ever drag brunches, and there’s one happening in Manchester this weekend.
Exclusive to just London and Manchester, the #LiveLaughLidl Drag Brunches sound set to offer “a visual and literal feast” by bringing together two huntastic cultural icons in a showstopping spectacle to celebrate the supermarket retailer’s ties to the ‘hun’ subculture.
Greater Manchester huns can get a ticket to the one-off event in Manchester for a bargain £6.49, along with with a £20 deposit that’s returnable upon attendance.
Find out more here.
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LEGO Creativity Workshop
Manchester Arndale & Trafford Centre
Sunday 20 October
Little Mancs who love LEGO can take part in some interactive building workshops in Greater Manchester this Sunday.
Aimed at young creators aged six to 12, the workshops – will take place down at Manchester Arndale and the Trafford Centre, as well as online for those who can’t make it in person – will be focused on themes such as entertainment, space, imagination, and gaming.
Kids can create their own ‘video game level’ or buildable characters, or have a go at building anything they want, all with a little help from the LEGO store associates for guidance.
Find out more and see if you can book FREE tickets here.
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Featured Image – Chester Zoo | The Manc Group | Science Museum Group
