Manchester Museum will close after reaching the final phase of its ambitious transformation project to allow construction work to take place.
The iconic museum – which is part of the University of Manchester – first opened doors in 1890 and boasts a collection of about 4.5 million items from every continent, but for the past two years it’s been working towards an exciting new £13.5 million development.
Intended to become “more inclusive, imaginative and caring to the diverse communities it serves”, the hello future project involves a two-storey extension and several new galleries including a large Exhibition Hall, Belonging Gallery, the Lee Kai Hung Chinese Culture Gallery, and the South Asia Gallery.
The South Asia Gallery will be the first ever permanent exhibition space in the UK dedicated to exploring the stories, experiences, and contributions of South Asian communities.
hello future will transform and develop the museum to become more inclusive, imaginative and caring / Credit: Chris Bull / Manchester Museum The South Asia Gallery will be the first ever permanent exhibition space in the UK dedicated contributions of South Asian communities / Credit: Chris Bull / Manchester Museum
Esme Ward, Director of Manchester Museum, said: “hello future is a hugely important project that aims to build understanding between cultures and create a more sustainable world.
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“Once complete, visitors will experience exhibitions that tell new, powerful stories and engage with big ideas.
“We are excited to have reached the final stage of our transformation and I want to reassure our visitors that although our doors will temporarily close, we are still here for you [as] Manchester Museum exists beyond a building [and] throughout the closure, we will be holding pop-up events and outreach programmes, and our collections are all available to explore online.”
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She added: “We look forward to opening the doors to hello future in 2022 and welcoming visitors to a bigger, more imaginative and even more inclusive museum.”
As well as welcoming hello future, the £13.5 million transformation – which has been supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund, The University of Manchester, and the generosity of numerous philanthropic supporters – Manchester Museum will also gain an impressive new entrance, shop, café, and inclusive visitor facilities.
We're transforming & we need to temporarily close to the public from Sunday 29 August until late 2022 so that construction work can take place safely.
The museum will be closed to the public from 29 August until late 2022 – when it will emerge as “a museum for the 21st century”.
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The museum’s opening hours will be extended until 9pm on 26 and 27 August to give more people the chance to experience the collections before doors close, and there will also be some special performances to mark the occasion.
There’s a bottomless Rocky Horror singalong happening in Manchester this Halloween
Emily Sergeant
We all know Halloween is right around the corner, and there’s a little cinema in our city that’s celebrating the spooky season in style.
STAB Film Season is back and “bigger than ever” this year.
The much-loved frightening film event is taking over Manchester’s home of cult cinema, video games, and “cool nerdy events”, Cultplex – which is tucked away within the award-winning venue GRUB in Cheetham Hill – throughout October, and is first kicking things off by showing a full day of Wes Craven’s finest slasher satire, Scream, one after the other right up until midnight.
But one of the other stand-out showings on the packed lineup is a singalong screening of The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Oh, and did we forget to mention there’ll be bottomless drinks? Now we’re talking.
The Bottomless Rocky Horror Show is taking over GRUB and Cultplex this Halloween / Credit: GRUB
Taking place on the weekend before Halloween, with not one, not two, but three screenings of the classic 70s flick across both Friday 28 and Saturday 29 October, GRUB says this is your chance to dress the part, sing the night away in style, and be “chilled, thrilled, and fulfilled”.
Kicking-off in GRUB’s downstairs bar first, anyone who grabs tickets for one of the three screenings will be treated to bottomless fizz, mimosas, beer/cider, or non-alcoholic equivalents and soft drinks, for 90 minutes before the screening begins, all before you head on over to Cultplex and carry on sipping for another 100 minutes while the film’s on.
The Bottomless Rocky Horror Show is just one of the many events on GRUB’s Halloween Week lineup this year.
GRUB’s Halloween Week has so many activities for the whole family to get involved in / Credit: GRUB
If a singalong cinema isn’t quite your bag, then there’s so many other activities for the whole family to get involved in – with everything from pumpkin carving competitions and SFX makeup masterclasses, to Halloween life drawing sessions, Spooky Sip and Paint, a Weird History Walking Tour, a Freaky Family Fun Day, and so much more on the lineup just announced this week.
Plus, as this is all happening down at what is one of the UK’s biggest street food and social hubs, you can also expect to tuck into a wide range of street food and Halloween-themed drinks specials from local independent traders to tuck into.
There’ll also be lots of sweets and candy to satisfy your sugar cravings too.
Tickets to the Bottomless Rocky Horror Show screenings at GRUB on Friday 28 and Saturday 29 October will set you back £25 each, and are now on sale.
Find out more about what’s happening for GRUB’s Halloween Week here.
Featured Image – 20th Century Fox
Art & Culture
An adults-only ‘after hours’ event is happening at the Science and Industry Museum next week
Emily Sergeant
If you need an excuse to leave the little Mancs at home, then one of Manchester’s most visited museums might have just what you’re looking for.
Fancy releasing your inner child?
If you’re keen to play your way through 50 years of video games, embark on an adventure through the digestive system, or relax with a drink while discovering the small matter of the infinite vastness of the universe, then you’ll probably want to make your way down to the Science and Industry Museum next week.
With the nights drawing earlier than ever now autumn is here, this is your chance to explore the museum in a whole new light after the sun’s gone down.
Explore the museum after hours at our next adult-only, evening event on 5 Oct. 🎟️ https://t.co/GVUYI3D8UE
Play your way through 50 years of video games in Power Up, embark on a playful adventure through the digestive system in Operation Ouch! Food, Poo and You, experience a… pic.twitter.com/NRIqNp7tQi
It’s giving grown-ups a unique opportunity to make the most of all the museum’s best-loved exhibitions without the kids running around.
Kicking off from 6pm next Thursday 5 October, tickets to the one-off Museum After Hours event are now on sale, and include evening passes to the museum’s showstopping special exhibitions ‘Power Up’ and ‘Operation Ouch! Food, Poo and You’, as well as access to the popular Revolution Manchester, Textiles Gallery, and Experiment areas.
There’ll also be the chance to see Paul Miller’s MicroCosmic installation, as well as talk to the artist himself, and get involved with lots of drop-in activities too.
An adults-only ‘after hours’ event is happening at the Science and Industry Museum next week / Credit: Science Museum Group
Several exciting textile demonstrations will also be taking place throughout the evening.
And of course, because this is an adults-only event, the museum’s events bar will be popping up on the night, and will be serving up a wide range of wines, beers, and non-alcoholic drinks to wet your whistle while you’re looking around.
The Manc -
10th August 2021 
