Art & Culture

Manchester Museum unrecognisable after £15m transformation

It's finally ready to reopen.

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 16th February 2023

Manchester Museum is finally ready to reopen to the public after an ambitious £15m transformation project.

The cultural institution has expanded into a modern new two-storey extension, with new exhibition spaces and inclusive facilities added into the space.

Manchester Museum, which is part of the University of Manchester, will officially reopen this weekend after an 18-month refurbishment.

New spaces inside include a brand new Exhibition Hall, which will open with the blockbuster exhibition Golden Mummies of Egypt.

Visitors can get unparalleled access to more than 100 objects and eight mummies in a UK debut.

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The new extension also includes the South Asia Gallery (a partnership with the British Museum), which will be the UK’s first permanent space to explore the lived experience of South Asian diaspora communities.

The new extension at Manchester Museum. Credit: The Manc Group
The South Asia Gallery at Manchester Museum. Credit: The Manc Group
The South Asia Gallery at Manchester Museum. Credit: The Manc Group
The new exhibition hall at Manchester Museum
The new exhibition hall at Manchester Museum. Credit: The Manc Group

Purcell has designed the extension, cladding it in green-glazed terracotta tiles, paying homage to craftsmanship as well as Victorian and Edwardian period buildings in Manchester.

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Manchester Museum first opened in 1890 and is one of the largest university museums in the country, housed inside a neo-Gothic building designed by Alfred Waterhouse.

Inside its doors, the popular attraction has more than 4.5 million objects from natural sciences and human cultures.

April the dinosaur near the Fossils gallery at Manchester Museum. Credit: The Manc Group
The shop at Manchester Museum. Credit: The Manc Group

One of the most immediate differences that’s resulted from the £15m transformation is the new accessible entrance straight off Oxford Road, which brings visitors straight into a stunning new gift shop.

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There’s a new dinosaur in town too, joining the museum’s legendary T-Rex Stan.

April the Tenontosaurus has taken up her place in the former entrance, beside the Fossils Gallery – she dates back to the Cretaceous period and was found in Montana, USA.

Other new features include a Changing Places toilet, prayer room, quiet room, picnic area and therapy room.

Esme Ward, Museum Director of Manchester Museum, says: “The reopening marks a huge moment in Manchester Museum’s rich history as we open our doors following a major transformation.

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“We have extended the building, making room for more joy and learning and evolving into the Museum Manchester needs. Beautiful new galleries and exhibitions will showcase the best of the Museum’s historic collections, as well as addressing the urgencies of the present day and highlighting the complexities of our world.

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“We have also listened to advocates with lived experience, and inclusive new spaces and features are incorporated throughout. We are delighted to welcome our visitors back.”

To find out more about the project and upcoming exhibitions, visit: manchester.ac.uk/museum

Featured image: The Manc Group

Art & Culture

James Morrison is BACK with new music and coming to a beautiful Manchester venue

Danny Jones Danny Jones James Morrison Manchester tickets 2025

Noughties favourite James Morrison is back with his first new album in six years and is putting on a small handful of special shows in a select few cities to celebrate, with Manchester being one of them, and tickets are going on sale next week.

With five records to his name over the course of a career spanning more than 20 years, it may have been a while since we’ve heard his instantly recognisable and raspy vocals, but he’s making his return later this year with his sixth studio LP and this limited run of live performances.

The Rugby-born singer-songwriter, acoustic guitarist and one-time regular in the pop charts enjoyed a successful period in the 2000s, even collaborating with the likes of Nelly Furtado, Demi Lovato, Olly Murs, Kelly Clarkson and more.

Having just announced his latest project, Fight Another Day, which is scheduled for release this autumn, we’re looking forward to seeing him not just back on stage but at a truly beloved and beautiful Manc music space.

Morrison, now 40, said of his latest music: “When I leaned into how I was feeling, that’s when the songs started coming. I started writing about what I was going through. My own struggles with myself. Every day being a bit of a battle. Trying to eke the light out after what felt like darkness for ages.

“I’m really proud of the album in terms of the creative, sonic elements and how I dealt with truthful stuff. But also it’s an album of songs that hopefully make you feel better and make you nod your head and stamp your feet and singalong.”

“It just sums up what the record is. It’s about reminding yourself what’s good. About convincing yourself you’ve got enough strength to keep the fight going”, he went on to add.

Having helped co-produce the entire thing with the likes of two-time Ivor Novello winner, Eg White; Daniel Merriweather, Connor Reeves and Andy Platt (Young Gun Silver Fox), fingers crossed it’s everything fans are hoping for.

As for the gig venue itself, the ‘Broken Strings’ and ‘You Give Me Something’ singer will be coming to Manchester’s grand Bridgewater Hall in September.

bridgewater hall manchester
bridgewater hall concerts
A historic and truly iconic place. (Credit: The Manc Group)

With just three other shows confirmed – Birmingham, Symphony Hall on 23 September, Glasgow, SEC Armadillo (24 Sep) and a night at the London Paladium (28 Sep) – Manchester can count itself lucky to have been chosen for these intimate evenings.

As for the album itself, Fight Another Day is due to drop on 3 October and is available for pre-save/pre-order right now; those who do so will gain access to the pre-sale window, which opens at will open at 10am next Wednesday, 4 June.

General admission to see James Morrison in Manchester city centre goes live at the same time on the following Friday (6 June); you can get ready to grab your tickets HERE.

Meanwhile, for those unaware of the venue itself, find out more down below.

@the.manc The Bridgewater Hall is one of Manchester’s most intriguing music venues, balancing on more than 300 isolation bearings to allow in next-to-no external vibrations. Did you know about this engineering marvel? @bridgewaterhall @BBC Sounds #themanc #manchester #bridgewaterhall #mcr ♬ Nutcracker: Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairly(845241) – ogsogs

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Featured Images — Stian Schløsser Møller (via WikiCommons)/Tom Oxley (supplied)/Audio North

Art & Culture

A historic Stockport pub has officially become a listed building

Danny Jones Danny Jones The Angel Inn pub Stockport made a grade II listed building

The Angel Inn pub in Stockport has officially become the thriving Greater Manchester borough’s latest listed building.

Being granted Grade II-listed status following an extensive visit and survey by Historic England (HE), Stockport Market Place’s Angel Inn may have had a lick of paint amidst the ‘Old Town Revival’ over the last decade or so, but the pub itself was erected back in the 16th century.

Reopened as one of the area’s most beloved boozers back in 2018, whilst still maintaining key fixtures and that feeling of authenticity, it harks back to the town’s Cheshire roots and taps into a deep vein of local culture.

The assessment, which was completed earlier this month, means that Angel Inn has been recognised as having special architectural or historic significance – i.e. the definition of a listed building.

Writing in a post on social media, the government-backed English heritage organisation detailed that while the inn predates the Early Modern/post-medieval period, the Angel‘s frame is comprised of wood from the 15th century.

But it gets even more interesting than that…

As well as being one of a select few surviving, traditional wattle-and-daub structures in the UK – nearby Bramall Hall being another (and a technique that had died out by the 18th century) – a close inspection of the internal floorboards unearthed something truly fascinating.

It just so happens that tests by HE proved that one particular plank of flooring “was cut from a tree alive in 1086, the year the Domesday Book was completed: the oldest government record held in The National Archives, commissioned by William the Conqueror.

How bloody cool is that?

It’s also worth noting that it’s genuinely a brilliant boozer and one of the most popular watering holes you’ll find in the town centre, promising a cosy interior, an intimate little outdoor area out back and serving plenty of regional ales.

angel inn stockport listed building status
You only have to glance at the exterior to clue into its age, let alone what there is to be found inside.
how old is angel inn stockport?
Way back when.
Credit: Historic England (handout)/Stockport Archives

Although they say it’s likely that the floorboard in question was originally cut for an earlier building situated in the same location, it still goes to show how old this particular North West settlement is.

“The name ‘Angel Inn’ dates from as early as 1769, though the site’s hospitality roots extend further, with references to “Cotterell’s inn” used for sequestrators’ meetings in the 1640s, who met to organise the confiscation of property of supporters of King Charles I during The English Civil War”, HE went on to add.

Angel Inn is one of only a handful of venues like this in Greater Manchester and Cheshire; safe to say a lot of time, effort and money are being put into preserving these links to the past.

You’ll find Exhibit B just down the road.

Stockport Council secure in funding £1.6 million to help fix the roof of historic Bramall Hall
The ultimate example of ‘SK is Cheshire, not Greater Manchester.’

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group/Historic England (handout)/Stockport Archives

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