Rochdale will be filled with dazzling pyrotechnic displays later this month when the Ignite Fire Festival returns to town.
The spectacular free event will see the gardens opposite the Rochdale Town Hall – which reopened to the public earlier this year – transformed with fiery displays, blazing sculptures and illuminated installations.
The smash hit event debuted last year, attracting more than 10,500 people, and this year’s will be even bigger with three nights of magical family entertainment.
And the festival will culminate on the Sunday with the Rochdale Christmas lights switch-on.
Ignite Fire Festival comes from Walk the Plank, the outdoor arts specialists behind some of the UK’s biggest and best outdoor arts events, who have called upon artists and pyro technicians to create the many installations on show.
Between 5pm and 8pm each night, visitors will be able to walk past fire-based sculptures like goblets of fire, a daisy chain of flaming flowers, a fire bird with blazing eyes, and smaller birds circling a flaming nest – to name just a few.
There’ll also be sculptures that twist, flap and erupt with balls of fire, and ‘In The Balance’ will be a festival highlight, where rotating globes of flame seemingly defy the laws of physics.
Ignite Fire Festival is back in Rochdale this month. Credit: Supplied
Each evening, a fire drawing designed and made by local residents will be ignited alongside flaming hot performances from some of the UK’s top talent including Flame Oz – a thrilling fire dancing and juggling show.
There’ll also be performances from Liverpool’s Bring the Fire Project, local favourites Skylight Circus Arts, and street theatre and interactive arts group Travelling Light Circus.
Visitors should look out for Drum Machine, a 20-strong drumming collective, The Fire Man Dave performing a live fire show with fire eating and juggling, and Astro Aliens, a trio of cosmic beings that will entertain all ages.
The incredible event, sponsored by car supermarket The Trade Centre UK, is set to take place between Friday 22 and Sunday 24 November.
Ignite Fire Festival takes place in the gardens opposite the Rochdale Town HallThere’ll be performers as well as pyrotechnic sculptures. Credit; SuppliedIgnite Fire Festival is back for a second year. Credit: Supplied
After exploring the gardens, you’ll be able to pick up hot food, mulled wine and other seasonal drinks served each night.
On Sunday, Father Christmas will be in town to switch on the Christmas lights at 5.30pm in front of the town hall.
Councillor Sue Smith, cabinet member for communities and co-operation at Rochdale Borough Council said: “Last year’s Ignite Fire Festival and Christmas Light’s Switch On was a fantastic event and an instant hit with audiences from across Greater Manchester.
“It’s an exciting and unique event and the perfect addition to our big switch-on, providing family entertainment across the weekend.”
Mark Bailey, founder and owner of sponsor Trade Centre UK added: “Our partnership with Ignite Fire Festival and the Rochdale Christmas Lights Switch On is a fantastic opportunity to give back to a community that has welcomed us so warmly.
“At Trade Centre UK, we believe in more than just selling cars; we believe in being part of the fabric of the local area. Supporting events like this, which bring people together to celebrate in the heart of Rochdale, aligns perfectly with our core values of community and connection.”
The event is free, and no tickets are required. Ignite is organised by Rochdale Borough Council in partnership with Walk the Plank and Culture Co-op, a ‘Creative People and Places’ programme, funded by Arts Council England.
Find out more and plan your visit to Ignite Fire Festival HERE.
Star of hit CBBC show Operation Ouch! to host live Q&A and meet and greets in Manchester this summer
Emily Sergeant
Little Mancs can meet the star of one of their favourite TV shows at the Science and Industry Museum this summer.
In case you hadn’t heard, Operation Ouch! is back in Manchester again with a fresh new experience for 2025, and this time around, visitors can journey through an ear canal covered in gooey wax, squeeze past sticky snot, and delve deeper into how our brains interpret the world.
Thousands of families from across Greater Manchester and beyond have already visited the city centre museum make the most of the new exhibition, and get stuck into the wide range of immersive and interactive activities it has on offer.
But for those who haven’t been able to pay a visit yet, this summer couldn’t be a more ideal opportunity to do so.
That’s because Dr Xand Van Tulleken – who is one of the presenters of the BBC showOperation Ouch! – will be at the museum in a couple of weeks time to meet visitors as part of his myth-busting mission to answer some of the public’s deepest questions about our senses.
The Science and Industry Museum has unveiled its ‘summer of senses’ programme / Credit: Science Museum Group
Dr Xand Van Tulleken will be at the Science and Industry Museum for one day only, and will not only join mini medics on their voyage through the senses, but will also be on-hand to answer brain teasers from the audience during a series of live Q&As.
Whether it’s banging on a super-sized eardrum, venturing into a massive eyeball, or even taking a whiff of a ‘smell library’, this world-premiere exhibition dives into the science behind hearing, sight, touch, taste, and smell – and Dr Xand will be there every step of the way.
Dr Xand’s visit comes amid a senses-themed summer programme at the city centre museum, where visitors can enjoy everything from silent discos and science shows, to a ‘bogie lab’, brain-boggling challenges, and loads more during six weeks of activities inspired by its latest exhibition.
Book your tickets to visit Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You on Tuesday 12 August, for any of the time slots between 11:30am – 1pm, and 2:45 – 4:15pm for the opportunity to grab a selfie with Dr Xand from inside the exhibition.
Tickets will cost visitors £10 each, with those under three going free, and a range of family discounts available.
Find out more about the exhibition and get tickets here.
Featured Image – Science Museum Group
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Aspiring artists can get their work displayed on one of the biggest digital screens in Manchester
Danny Jones
Are you a budding artist looking to get your work seen or know some who is? Well, you might want to pay attention because there’s an opportunity to have your creation seen by countless passers-by and on one of the biggest displays in the entire UK over at the Printworks.
If you’ve passed through the much-loved hospitality and leisure complex over the past year or so, you’ll have noticed their roof is now no longer a roof at all, really; the striking ceiling is now a constantly moving image and the largest of its kind in all of Europe.
Meaning that anyone who got their artworks on there would effectively be securing one of the biggest displays and public installations on the continent.
As Printworks themselves put it: “This isn’t just a screen; it’s an artistic stage viewed by millions of visitors every year, with the power to turn a single artwork into a 360-degree sensory experience.”
With that in mind, they’re giving one lucky individual the chance to grab the spotlight and see their creative expression plastered on the 1,000m² wraparound LED canvas.
“Supporting emerging talent and seeing fresh, creative perspectives is always inspiring, and I can’t wait to see what these young artists bring to the table! It was so surreal seeing my artwork on the digital.”
Past installations have included the ‘Spaces Up-Above’ exhibition by world-renowned light artist, Rupert Newman, as well as an International Women’s Day showcase by Heitzman herself, as a fellow Manchester-based creative.
In case you need a better idea of the sheer scale of this screen and why this is such an exciting opportunity for up-and-coming local artists, here’s how they celebrated Oasis returning to Manchester for their Heaton Park reunion gigs this week:
Synchronised with sound and added motion effects, the competition is now open to students who are currently enrolled in college, university or art school.
Better still, you don’t even have to be from or based in the area to take part – this is a nationwide competition hoping to spotlight the best talents in the UK.
All you have to do to enter this exciting competition in Manchester is simply provide Printworks your details and upload your artwork of choice HERE by Sunday, 3 August.
Daisy Jackson -
14th November 2024 
