The details of the huge outdoor light show in Greater Manchester have been revealed as Lightwaves Festival prepares for its ninth year.
Installations this winter will include a huge, glowing slinky tumbling off the landmarks in Salford Quays, as well as fire sculptures, a giant heart-shaped glitterball, and a kaleidoscope of butterflies.
Lightwaves will take place across MediaCity and Salford Quays, transforming the waterways and spaces with dramatic light artworks.
The completely free event will take place this week and showcase both local and national artists.
The headline installation is audio-visual Navvies by Matthew Rosier, presented on the actual water and accompanied by an orchestral composition.
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Visitors will also be able to ‘walk’ through the waters of a digital river that will flow over the bridge, created by Manchester studio idontloveyouanymore, with the virtual water reacting to the movement of people.
LightstreamOnce We Were WaterButterfly ClusterMicroCosmic
The giant neon slinky (called End Over End) comes from Studio Vertigo, who will also create Our Beating Heart, a heart-shaped mirror ball made with more than 11,000 tiles that will slowly rotate.
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Garden of the Deep, by Diane Watson, will turn single-use plastic bottles into 1000 flowers, made with the help of local schools and community groups.
Local legends Walk the Plank will be back again with Roost, creating nature-based fire sculptures in the MediaCity garden.
Kin Visual
Lightstream by Flora Litchfield is going to use sound and colour to draw focus to water’s energy, and MicroCosmic by Paul Miller (a collaboration with the University of Salford) is an installation of video, sound and projection-mapped sculpture.
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Anne Bennett’s Butter Cluster will create a flock (or technically, a kaleidoscope) of butterflies in the night sky above your heads.
There’ll be retro-futuristic design with Normal, an ‘interactive light and sound installation with attitude’ by Monomatic.
The Royal Horticultural Society will get stuck in too, with RSH Bridgewater bringing a taste of its RHS Glow to Salford Quays with Connections.
Then there’s a permanent artwork too by Liz West – THROUGH No.4 will be a six-metre-long wak-through triangular corridor of light and colour.
Lightwaves Festival is totally free to visit with no tickets required.
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There’ll be the Quayside Festive Market running alongside too outside The Lowry.
Featured image: Supplied
Art & Culture
Horror film festival Grimmfest announces fear-filled return to Manchester next month
Emily Sergeant
Spooky season is just around the corner, and now a popular horror film has announced its return to Manchester next month.
Grimmfest, also known as Manchester’s International Festival of Fantastic Film, has confirmed its 2026 return dates, and has also announced its the full lineup – with four fear-filled days planned, showcasing the best in brand-new horror genre cinema.
You can expect some ferocious feature films, a savage selection of shorts, hair-raising horror classics back on the big screen, and more premieres than ever before.
Returning to Odeon Great Northern early next month, Grimmfest audiences will have an exclusive opportunity to see many of the films on the lineup long before their formal release – with both world, UK, and international premieres on the cards.
Some of the programme’s highlights this year include the UK premiere of Zachary Wigon’s darkly comedic period piece, Victorian Pyscho, shot in Ireland and starring big-name stars Maika Monroe, Jason Isaacs, Thomasin McKenzie, and Ruth Wilson.
Ángel Gómez Hernández’s Crawlers will also make its UK debut at the festival, and horror fans are also said to be eagerly awaiting Jason Lei Howden’s Deathgasm 2: Goremageddon – which is the highly anticipated follow-up to the beloved cult metal comedy-horror, Deathgasm.
There will also be an array of incredible short films screened throughout the festival, all in a huge range of styles, themes, and twisted sensibilities, proving that when it comes to Grimmfest, good things often come in small packages.
Grimmfest has announced its fear-filled return to Manchester next month / Credit: Grimmfest | Krists Luhaers (via Unsplash)
It’s not just new releases you can expect either, as some absolute horror classics are also set to return to the big screen for their anniversaries.
Respected guests from all around the world are set to descend on Manchester for the festival, and that include the film makers and actors from many of the selected films.
And of course there will be plenty of film introductions, Q&As, and signings for fans.
Grimmfest 2026 returns to Oden Great Northern from from 8 – 11 October, and you can see the full lineup and get tickets here.
Featured Image – Grimmfest (Supplied)
Art & Culture
Chester Zoo’s popular FREE Nature Fest returns this weekend with its biggest event yet
Emily Sergeant
A free festival helping people connect to nature is returning for its 10th anniversary, and organisers say it will be their biggest event yet.
Nature Fest is returning to Chester Zoo this weekend, and is set to explore the relationship between nature and wellbeing, with lots of new activities designed to help festivalgoers experience the benefits of connecting with the natural world
Around 4,000 people, and lots of families, are expected to attend across the weekend.
Visitors can take part in animal yoga sessions, relax in a zen den, and explore an interactive nature adventure based around the five pathways to nature connection, traveling along tunnels and through a tree along the way.
There will also be live music, puppetry, crafts, workshops and talks, alongside opportunities to discover how conservationists work to protect wildlife.
Chester Zoo’s popular Nature Fest returns this weekend with its biggest event yet / Credit: Chester Zoo
On top of that, the festival will feature stands from various nature organisations and community groups across the North West, talks and tips from nature professionals, and wildlife-friendly gardening sessions with the zoo’s schools team.
Chester Zoo has also teamed up with Outside Lives Ltd on the festival, giving visitors the chance to take part in other activities like crazy golf, den building, and willow weaving.
“We’re hoping our 10th Nature Fest will be the biggest yet,” commented Chris Ablett, who is the Community Volunteer Assistant Manager at Chester Zoo.
“Chester Zoo is well known for supporting conservation across the world but protecting nature here in the UK is just as important.
“We want people to know there are simple things they can do to help wildlife at home, and Nature Fest is a great way to link up with people and learn new skills you can put into practice in your community, all while enjoying a great day out.”
Chester Zoo’s Nature Fest returns for 2026 this weekend on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 September. It’s free to attend, parking is also free, and no booking is required.
Daisy Jackson -
29th November 2022 
