Hulme’s beloved Community Garden Centre is once again set to turn into a fun and floral music venue as Green Island Festival returns for 2023.
Entering its third year on the circuit, the cult-hitHulme festival arrives this summer, spreading across three incredible days of music, culture, afterparties and, naturally, plenty of plants.
Hulme Community Garden Centre is exactly what it says on the tin: an important and much-celebrated institution in the local community and has served as an important non-profit for the surrounding Greater Manchester area since 2001.
That being said, while we love flexing our green thumbs and seeing the incredible work they do all year-round, there is no better to be there than when Green Island Festival rocks up.
Teaming up with the likes of BBC Introducing, local brewing legends Seven Bro7hers, Ruffy’s Lab, as well as Northern Lights Home x The Garden, the organisers are looking to deliver the best Green Island Festival to date.
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If last year’s festival was anything to go by, they’re going to rip the leafy roof off this place. Well, there isn’t one — it’s mainly a lot of plants, trees and tents, but you catch our drift.
Promising three stages packed with live music, pumping afterparties round the corner at iconic local institution NIAMOS, to pre-festival DJ courses from Reform Radio, sensational local food and booze, as well as plenty of other family-friendly activities during the day. There really is something for everyone.
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The lineup‘s looking absolutely great already, with some of the best up-and-coming local artists already on board as the festival series aims to champion all manner of genres and enrich Manchester’s music scene by spotlighting underground and criminally underrepresented musicians. That’s what we like to hear.
Green Island Festival 2023 starts on 17 June, with a follow-up night on 29 July before the final chapter draws the party to a close on 9 September.
Unbelievably, if you want to come along (and you should), it will only set you back £12.50 for each individual day or afterparty you want to attend and since accessibility is fundamental to the founders’ vision, you can grab yourself a pass that covers both for just £22.50. Absolutely class.
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We’re not lying when we say we’re genuinely debating doing all three dates. Why not?
You can grab your tickets for this year’s Green Island Festival at Hulme Community Garden Centre HERE.
There’s a big listening party for Taylor Swift’s new album happening in Manchester this week
Emily Sergeant
One of the biggest, if not the biggest, popstars in the world right now will be releasing a brand-new album this Friday, and there’s a dedicated listening party happening in Manchester especially for the occasion.
In case you aren’t a Swiftie, or you just generally weren’t aware, Taylor Swift announced back in early February that she would be unleashing her eleventh studio album, titled The Tortured Poets Department, on the world on 19 April.
Just like anything the 34-year-old singer-songwriter does, the surprise announcement of the new album – which is a follow-up to her 2022 critically-acclaimed and GRAMMY award-winning album, Midnights – pretty much broke the internet when it happened, and her dedicated fans have been counting down the days ever since.
Now, after months of eagerly waiting, the big day is finally happening this Friday, and in a bid to properly mark what a massive day it will be, one popular Manchester venue has decided to host a dedicated listening party, so that Swifties can unite under one roof and celebrate the special occasion together.
Fairfield Social Club (FSC) which has recently opened its doors in the heart of Manchester city centre, is inviting fans to “gather with your closest Swifties” and head on down to its Green Quarter venue this Friday for a night that’s “dedicated to Tay Tay and her legacy”.
Not only will you get to hear The Tortured Poets Department in full from start to finish surrounded by dozens of fellow fans, but there’ll also be a bunch of other Swift-themed activities too.
There’s a big Taylor Swift new album listening party happening in Manchester this week / Credit: FSC
These include a Taylor Swift pub quiz with questions to all about her life and groundbreaking career to test your knowledge, friendship bracelet-making sessions, and just the chance to share the love and swap stories with other Swifties.
If all of that didn’t sound brilliant enough as it is, there’s also set to be a selection of themed cocktails to sip whilst you spend time ruminating on what Taylor meant in the lyrics of her songs only released a few hours prior.
Oh, and the best bit? FSC promises there “won’t be a Scooter Braun in sight” on the night.
The Tortured Poets Department Listening Party is taking over Fairfield Social Club this Friday 19 April from 7pm right through until 10pm – with tickets now on sale setting you back just £6 each, and already selling fast.
Smash-hit musical Kinky Boots starring Strictly’s Johannes Radebe is coming to Manchester next year
Emily Sergeant
Smash-hit musical Kinky Boots is heading out on a tour of the UK next year, and the talented cast will be stopping off here in Manchester.
The Broadway and West End phenomenon, which is based on a true story and is an adaptation of a 2005 film of the same name, has become known and loved by musical theatre fans all across the globe since its stage debut back in 2012, and has scooped up several Tonys, Olivier Awards, and GRAMMYs along the way.
And now, it’s set for a revival starring Strictly Come Dancing‘s Johannes Radebe, and the production will be touring the UK and Ireland from January 2025.
Kinky Boots The Musical features a score by Cyndi Lauper and a book by Harvey Fierstein, and this new production will be directed by Artistic Director, Nikolai Foster – who has famously helmed productions of The Wizard of Oz and Billy Elliot, to name a few – as well as starring the fan-favourite Strictly pro as Lola, alongside and rising star Dan Partridge as Charlie Price.
Smash-hit musical Kinky Boots starring Strictly’s Johannes Radebe is coming to Manchester / Credit: Ollies Rosser (via Supplied)
In case you’re unfamiliar with the Kinky Boots story, here’s brief rundown.
After inheriting his family’s failing shoe factory and with a relationship on the rocks, life is proving to be very challenging for Charlie Price, but that is until he meets Lola – a drag queen whose “sparkle and unsteady heels” might just hold the answer to saving the struggling business.
The 2025 revival production is already being billed as “guaranteed to raise you up” and “celebrate everybody’s individuality” when it arrives here in Manchester next February.
👢 On sale to ATG+ members 👢
Kinky Boots The Musical, is strutting back to Manchester in a new production starring Strictly Come Dancing’s Johannes Radebe and rising star Dan Partridge.
“Kinky Boots is one of the things I’m proudest of in my career,” commented Cyndi Lauper, on the musicals return to the road across the UK.
“I’m so excited that audiences will get to see it again, in a new production, as it’s like a happy pill, and we could all use some of that right now, so I can’t think of a better time or place to relaunch this special show in its place of origin.”
Danny Jones -
7th April 2023 
