People made of cake, a bathtub filled with more cake, wallpaper covered in icing – this is the newest art installation to open in Manchester, and it’s literally good enough to eat.
This is An Edible Family in a Mobile Home, a restaged piece of art that was a major feminist artwork in the 1970s.
Artist Bobby Baker has now recreated this incredible piece of work outside the Whitworth Gallery, alongside the Women in Revolt! Art and Activism in the UK 1970-1990.
Step inside this prefabricated home and you’ll find different figures in each room, each one of them in some way edible.
From the father watching television in his armchair (he’s made of fruit cake) to a coconut cake baby in a crib, to a Garibaldi biscuit teenage boy lying in a bathtub of vegan chocolate cake, to a floating teenage girl made of meringue, visitors will be able to eat their way through the sculptures.
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Each cake inside is made by beloved Levenshulme bakery Long Boi’s Bakehouse too, and having taken a bite of the very first slices – they’re all delicious.
The space used to stage An Edible Family in a Mobile Home is plastered floor-to-ceiling in mid-70s newspaper and magazine pages, advertising everything from secretarial jobs to cigarettes, and documenting landmark moments like the death of Elvis Presley.
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These wallpaper cuttings have then been decorated with icing doodles.
There are also old radio stations playing in the kitchen, and 70s comedy on the TV.
An Edible Family in a Mobile Home at the Whitworth in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group
Bobby Baker’s work was first created in her prefabricated East London house in 1976, then wasn’t seen for almost 50 years until she restaged it at the Tate Britain in 2023.
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And now it’s Manchester’s turn, with this impressive, playful piece in residence at the Whitworth art gallery until 20 April.
During which time, the artist’s cake ‘family’ will be steadily eaten away by the public.
This installation is possible thanks to public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
Bobby Baker said: “Originally I wasn’t overtly considering the work as ‘feminist’, however over the years – and having had children and now grandchildren, I have come to realise that unpaid domestic labour is an incredibly undervalued part of life.
“It is fundamental to how the human world operates – how we look after each other and care for our children and stay healthy.
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“However, domesticity and the work it requires still have words like ‘menial’ attached to it. In 1976 when people came to see Edible Family in what was my actual mobile home, they could contemplate who plays what domestic roles and why – and restaging this now, I feel that this work is still very much relevant today.”
Elsewhere in the Whitworth, ‘Women in Revolt! Art and Activism in the UK 1970-1990’ features over 100 women artists and celebrates their often-unsung contribution to British culture.
An Edible Family in a Mobile Home is free to visit and is open from 7 March until 20 April,
Alison Moyet has announced a huge European tour, including multiple Northern dates in the UK
Danny Jones
Seasoned British singer-songwriter and pop legend Alison Moyet is coming back to Manchester and more after announcing an extensive run of 2026 EU, UK and IE tour dates.
No rest for the wickedly talented and long adored.
Alison Moyet last visited Manchester in February last year, playing the stunning Bridgewater Hall in support of her latest album, Key, the 10th studio LP of her solo career.
However, now the 64-year-old artist and music veteran is set to play songs from her eighth record, the minutes, as well astracks from her days with Yazoo and more across Europe.
NEW: @alisonmoyet is headed on tour! Playing songs of Yazoo, including cuts from the minutes & Other, with a date at #O2ApolloManchester Fri 16 Oct.
— O2 Apollo Manchester (@O2ApolloManc) March 9, 2026
Moyet (real name Geneviève Alison Jane Ballard) formed Yazoo with ex-Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke in 1981, releasing two albums and becoming one of the most influential British groups of the time.
While clashes on multiple fronts saw the synth-pop duo ultimately break up in ’83, a handful of Yazoo hits like ‘Only You’, ‘Don’t Go’ and ‘Situation’ have continued to crop up in the Basildon-born artists over the years.
Once nicknamed ‘Alf’ as a youth – the same title she gave to her seminal debut album, released the year after the split – the young ‘tomboy’, turned teen punk, then synth, soul and pop act has experimented with everything from electronica to printmaking.
Put simply, she remains just as much of a creative force today as she was back then.
2025 saw her first full headline tour in eight years, playing shows not just here and over in Ireland, but across the mainland continent, Australia and New Zealand.
This current calendar will also see her touring with fellow 80s icons The Human League and Soft Cell on their ‘The Generations Tour’ in the summer – but by the autumn, she’ll be rolling back the years and working through her own back catalogue.
As you can see, as well as coming to Manchester’s O2 Apollo, other dates to see Alison Moyet live in the North this October include the Empire Theatre in Liverpool, Sheffield‘s City Hall, Buxton, Blackpool and several others.
Speaking on the upcoming tour, Alison said: “Many years touring the same pool of songs, and I am keen for a palate refresher.
“Specifying which years I will be fishing from, too, I think, is a grand way to serve potluck for specific tastes. No bones…” Ever the wordsmith.
The domestic pre-sale window here opens at 10am this coming Wednesday, 11 March, with general admission tickets going live at the same time the following Friday (13 Mar); you can get ready to grab yours right HERE.
Oh, and if you were wondering how her live performances sound these days, look no further than her recent Isle of Wight slot.
Featured Images — Publicity picture (supplied)/Hinnerk Rümenapf (via Wikimedia Commons)
Art & Culture
A special The Smiths reissue was cancelled due to a dispute between Morrissey and Johnny Marr
Danny Jones
According to some new information, a special reissue of The Smiths’ debut album was reportedly abandoned due to disagreements between Morrissey and Johnny Marr.
Since the Gallagher brothers have buried the hatchet, guess someone’s got to keep the Manchester music feuding alive.
Yes, as per a high-profile source from Rough Trade, ‘Moz’ and Marr couldn’t settle on one key issue which would have seen the self-titled first Smiths LP re-released for their label and indie record store’s 50th anniversary.
Speaking on the German music podcast, Vinyl &…, one of Rough Trade’s European bosses revealed that aside from not exactly being chummy these days, the band’s two most famous members couldn’t agree on what the album artwork would be.
Whack on English subtitles to see what was said.
Yes, that really was the main sticking point, apparently.
Curt Keplin, who is the managing director for Rough Trade’s EU presence, said that The Smiths were a big part of their golden jubilee/half-century celebrations.
Sadly, The Smiths’ inaugural outing then had to be pulled from the plans at the last minute, with the ‘Smooth Operator’ herself, Sade, taking their place.
Initially set to fly the flag for the 1984 retrospective, Keplin said: “Actually, The Smiths were supposed to be included, but Johnny Marr and Morrissey couldn’t agree on how the packaging should look. So, things remain relatively difficult between those two.”
‘Difficult’ is probably putting it mildly, with Morrissey having long since accused his former bandmate, lead guitarist and co-songwriter turned solo artist, of controlling key rights that could see him tour as The Smiths without him.
He went on to add: “You first have to find an artist who is basically open to it and thinks it’s great and then gives us the rights – or rather, the label then says, ‘Ok, this is now being repressed in a different colour, in new packaging’, and so on and so forth.”
The anniversary stuff first began being compiled last summer, with 2026 being the start of a year-long schedule of limited edition vinyl releases and more – but unfortunately, The Smiths aren’t looking like they’ll be part of it.
While it may seem slightly petty to some, more than anything, it’s probably just symptomatic of the simmering resentment between the two that still remains.
However, fans of either or both have still been treated to Morrissey‘s latest and divisive drop, Make-Up Is a Lie, and Johnny Marr will be coming back to town for a massive homecoming gig at Castlefield Bowl.
Daisy Jackson -
6th March 2025 
