A three-week outdoor theatre festival will bring a jam-packed programme of arts and cultural events to Ancoats this summer.
Created by Manchester’s iconic Hope Mill Theatre in association with Electric Park, HOPE FEST will see musicals, comedy, live music, family shows, film screenings, one-off special community events and even a dog festival all arrive in the city’s sought-after suburb this July.
The festival – which has been made possible through a collaboration to champion post-COVID cultural arts in Manchester – has an ambition to bring a unique programme of community-centric events, and will take place inside a large sheltered tent that’s set to accommodate 250 people based beside New Islington Tram Station, just a stone’s throw away from the theatre itself.
To offer a wide range of local beers, spirits and good grub, the new pop-up summer venue will also include an onsite bar and an eating area with a BBQ.
So, what are some of the highlights on the lineup for this year’s event?
ADVERTISEMENT
Appearing in the festival will be comedians such as Jason Manford, Boothby Graffoe, Elf Lyons, Mike Newall and Vince Atta, with Kirk Jameson also directing a celebration of the history of musical theatre.
Touring stage shows include a revival of Stiles and Drewe’s Three Little Pigs The Musical, as well as Judy and Liza.
ADVERTISEMENT
There will also be film screenings of some classics, plus a tribute to Dolly Parton, and more.
HOPE FEST / Hope Mill Theatre / DaveDraws
That’s not all either, as Hope Mill Theatre is also launching a special ‘FANCOATS’ scheme, which offers ticket discounts to locals and will also invite them to a one-off residents gathering designed to bring the local community together.
Speaking ahead of the festival, William Whelton – Executive Director at Hope Mill Theatre – said: “After a year of closure and uncertainty, we have been working hard to bring together a festival of outdoor work in our local area [and] this is an opportunity for us to bring together our audiences in a new and exciting way, as well as engaging with a whole new audience.
ADVERTISEMENT
“The New Islington area and surrounding community has been our home for over five years now and has many diverse and creative residents.
— Hope Mill Theatre (@hopemilltheatr1) May 19, 2021
“With HOPE FEST, we also have a varied and diverse line up of arts and culture available, which offers a special opportunity for us to bring together the local community under one roof, or tent. It is important to us that HOPE FEST has something for everyone, whether it be a Sing A Long Frozen for families, music from Matt & Phreds a celebration of musical theatre, or a dog friendly event, this is an incredible opportunity for our organisation, in a very exciting phase for the New Islington and Electric Park area”.
“The pandemic had an immediate and substantial impact on the arts and cultural sector and is, unfortunately, likely to be the slowest in its recovery,” added Ben Cross, from Electric Park.
“And so, in that context, we’re immensely privileged and proud to play our part in supporting this incredible grassroots organisation at a time when it is needed most”.
HOPE FEST
HOPE FEST will take place from 16th July – 8th August 2021, and you can find more here.
Featured Image – HOPE FEST
Art & Culture
Britain has a new ‘favourite’ curry – and we’re absolutely ashamed of the nation…
Danny Jones
Chicken tikka masala is reportedly no longer Britain’s ‘favourite’ curry, and after finding out what has replaced it, we have decided you all need to be stopped.
Following a study carried out by Foodhub for National Curry Week (3–9 October), researchers found that one dish overtook tikka masala as the most ordered curry in the UK. It’s chicken korma, apparently.
We’re not mad, we’re just disappointed and deeply, deeply confused.
For years, chicken tikka masala has been not only Britain’s favourite curry but the UK’s national dish – it’s a classic created by Indian migrants to appeal to the nation’s palate and has done so successfully for decades. We defy anyone to turn their noses up at a chicken tikka.
Now, everyone is entitled to their opinion and we’re not necessarily saying korma is a fundamentally bad curry, but it’s hardly ahead of favourites like a jalfrezi, a rogan josh or Smithy’s beloved bhunas — or so we thought.
In fact, sod it, we side with Smithy’s take on korma:
Strong order, to be fair.
Emma Stockman, a spokesperson for the food delivery service, said, “It is clear that curry is a staple dish when it comes to the UK’s takeaway favourites”, and that their findings “did not disappoint”.
Which results are you reading, Emma?
As explained, the long-reigning number one, chicken tikka, has dropped to second behind korma and chicken madras rounds off the top three when it comes to Britain’s favourite curry.
Despite us Mancs boasting the world-famous ‘Curry Mile’, the stats also supposedly showed that Carlisle was the city that ordered the most curry anywhere in the UK, averaging out at 3.5 times a week.
Meanwhile, 0161 was given the nickname ‘Naanchester’ as we apparently order an average of two naan breads per curry compared to other regions, with plain naan being the favourite.
Just plain? Come on. If you’re ordering as vanilla as that, you’d better at least be going bottomless with the actual main event — cue Manc curry kings, Zouk:
If these numbers are to be trusted, this also begs the question as to what this means for the country’s national dish: having been chicken tikka for so long, is it now chicken korma?
Because, sorry, we’re just absolutely NOT having that…
Give it to the Sunday roast or fish and chips while you take a step back and look at what you’ve done.
Adored BBC show Peaky Blinders set for return to British for a ‘new generation’
Thomas Melia
The team behind beloved TV series Peaky Blinders have just announced it will be returning to our screens while welcoming some very new faces.
If there’s one thing us Brits love more than a cuppa, it’s a period TV drama, and when you throw generational heartthrob Cillian Murphy into the mix, you’re onto a winner.
This time, Peaky Blinders is gearing up to welcome a new era of Shelbys into the much-loved 20th-century programme that fans will definitely be looking forward to.
The latest announcement from the writer and creator of the show lets fans know they can expect to watch not one but two new series.
Each of the latest instalments will contain six brand new 60-minute episodes and is executive produced by Mr Thomas Shelby himself, Cillian Murphy, alongside a roster of notable industry talents.
An official press release from the BBC confirms these new segments of the show will be set in Britain, 1953, not long after WWII, and see the city of Birmingham undergoing a huge shift, turning to concrete and steel.
Throughout the course of the new seasons, this huge reconstruction becomes a battle, one of “unprecedented opportunity and danger: with the Shelby family right at its blood-soaked heart”.
The mastermind behind the cult classic British TV show, Steven Knight, reveals: “I’m Thrilled to be announcing this new chapter in the Peaky Blinders story.”
Peaky Blinders has gained a cult following, and this new chapter welcomes a whole new era of Shelbys (Credit: GoodFon)
Knight – who is also behind the upcoming Oasis reunion documentary – adds: “Once again it will be rooted in Birmingham and will tell the story of a city rising from the ashes of the Birmingham blitz. The new generation of Shelbys has now taken the wheel, and it will be one hell of a ride”.
The two new and highly anticipated series will be produced by Kudos, who are known for shows such as House of Guinness, Grantchester, as well as Garrison Drama, who have worked on Peaky Blinders series one to six AND the impending film.
It looks like we’ll be getting the feature-length movie before we get this series, and it remains to be seen how the two will knit together with the original show and exactly which characters will be involved on either front.
That being said, we’d be VERY surprised if you didn’t get to see a fair bit of the Peaky patriarch.
With the show having 12 years under its belt already, not to mention still amassing more fans, this very statement has definitely stood the test of time.
Tommy Shelby has become a staple on our screens over the last decade, thanks to the success of Peaky Blinders (Credit: BBC)
Emily Sergeant -
19th May 2021 
