Art & Culture

New photography exhibition showcases hidden stories of people who live and work along the River Irk

The exhibition has been created by various community groups and aims to showcase the hidden stories of those who live and work along the River Irk

Olivia Stringer Olivia Stringer - 21st May 2021

A new community photography exhibition showcasing the hidden stories of people who live and work along the River Irk has opened this week across various locations in North Manchester. 

The exhibition is the product of The People’s River Project – delivered by Manchester Histories and funded by Manchester City Council through their Neighbourhood Investment Fund and Economic Regeneration Fund.

The project is inspired by German socialist philosopher Friedrich Engels who wrote about the River Irk in his 1845 essay ‘The Condition of the Working Class in England’, based on his experiences in Manchester.

During the project, artist and photographer Liz Wewiora worked with various groups including Friends of Angel Meadow and the no.93 wellbeing centre through online and socially distanced workshops to create three exhibits.

Photography, poetry and cyanotype prints are on display in two outdoor exhibitions, one in Queen’s Park in Harpurhey and another in St Michael’s flags in Angel Meadows Park until June 20. 

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There is also a permanent exhibition of the work created by users of the no.93 wellbeing centre in the art and therapy rooms.

The photographs and poetry reflect the Irk Valley’s ever-changing landscape, exploring ideas of personal journeys, community, nature and regeneration. 

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The cyanotype process acts as a reminder of both the surrounding nature and the local industrial history which has shaped the Irk Valley from Engel’s period to today.

The project also features a digital walking trail around the Irk valley, which can be followed using the Love Exploring App.

The trail will guide you around the Irk valley whilst you listen to stories about the local area, shared by members of the community groups. 

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To access the trail download the Love Exploring App and search ‘Irk Valley Heritage Trail’. 

More info is available online.

Featured image: Art Rabbit

Art & Culture

Manchester has been ranked one of the ‘most influential cities’ in Europe

Danny Jones Danny Jones Manchester named one of the most influential cities in Europe

As per a development that we’d consider so obvious it’s barely worth writing about (even though we are), Manchester has been ranked one of the most influential cities in Europe.

In other news, water is still very much wet.

While there’s plenty of it here in Greater Manchester, given our standard rainy forecasts, when it comes to anything besides the weather, we deliver in spades.

Let’s be honest: we know it, you do too, and apparently so do plenty of other folks – and there’s some concrete statistics to back it up.

chanel show northern quarter manchester
vogue show manchester
Case in point – First Chanel, now Vogue… (Credit: The Manc Group)

You’ll find all manner of surveys, polls and studies diving into how Manchester ranks across various categories, but knowing we boast nods such as ‘the original industrial city’, the place that helped split the atom and the place that the first modern computer was born, we know all about our global impact.

With that in mind, when we saw that Sixt had recently named us as one of the most influential cities in all of Europe, we couldn’t ignore the well-deserved pat on the back.

That’s right, although you might not associate the car rental company with this sort of stuff, as part of their new exclusive ‘Sixt Ride’ offering (think a posh taxi service), they looked into which cities have the most luxuries, tourist attractions and other cultural bonuses to their name.

Per their recent research, Manchester city centre didn’t just break into the top 100 but found itself among the 30 most influential cities in Europe.

You can see the full rankings table down below.

#CityCountry*Fortune 500 CompaniesFashion weeksFilm FestivalsInternational Airports5-Star HotelsHigh End/Luxury Shopping areasMichelin Restaurants
1ParisFrance10677212211134
2LondonUnited Kingdom1232413182581
3MilanItaly1452329522
4RomeItaly2097265421
5StockholmSweden0314212213
6MadridSpain5038142229
7ZurichSwitzerland6010112418
8MunichGermany5010116417
9BerlinGermany1176140221
10HamburgGermany1016217316
11AmsterdamNetherlands4024129130
12CopenhagenDenmark1212112220
13BarcelonaSpain0045147131
14LisbonPortugal1038149120
15AthensGreece0041152212
16ViennaAustria1024124314
17BucharestRomania002221220
18WarsawPoland002221713
19GlasgowUnited Kingdom00172422
20LyonFrance00927016
21PragueCzechia001616012
22BrusselsBelgium0018114129
23OsloNorway01816111
24ManchesterUnited Kingdom00201732
25BudapestHungary001612417
26DublinIreland201611106
27NaplesItaly003415022
28PortoPortugal008128010
29TurinItaly102114010
30SofiaBulgaria002211410
31HelsinkiFinland00511015
32BelgradeSerbia00321901
33MarseilleFrance00514012
34BirminghamUnited Kingdom00121406
35MinskBelarus00111000

Read it and weep; we Mancs landed 24th on the leaderboard, just behind Norway’s capital, Oslo, and ever so slightly ahead of Budapest in Hungary.

That’s according to this study by Sixt, anyway.

As you can see, to identify the ‘most influential European cities’, they broke down how the 35 most populous cities on the continent and here UK (barring Russia and Ukraine) and what noteworthy cultural touchstones they possess.

For instance, did you hear that our very own Warehouse Project recently found itself breaking into the top half of the best nightclubs on the entire planet?

Going on to analyse everything from the number of Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the city, their connections to film, fashion, fine-dining and more, they found that Paris, London and Milan were the most influential (no surprises there), but we’re glad to be keeping such good company.

After all, in the last couple of years alone, Manchester city centre has welcomed the Metiers D’art fashion show, opened one of the biggest indoor entertainment venues in all of Europe, and still takes eternal credit for giving the world Oasis and, therefore, the Live ’25 reunion. Again, you’re welcome.

What do you make of Sixt’s study, and do you agree with their findings on the whole?

It goes without saying that we’d probably put ourselves higher on the list if anything, but then again, maybe we’re getting too used to being told how brilliant it is to live in this region.

Greater Manchester town named one of Britain’s ‘happiest’ places to live in 2026

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Featured Images — Anthony Parkes (via Geograph)/The Manc Group

Art & Culture

A candlelit Queen tribute concert is returning to Manchester

Danny Jones Danny Jones Queen by Candlelight Manchester tickets

Yes, you read that right: a candlelit concert dedicated to the one and only Queen, with a spectacular West End Cast and a talented live rock band, is coming to Manchester city centre in January.

In fact, it’s coming home, as this wonderful event started right here in 0161 back in 2021.

Concerts by Candlelight themselves host concerts up and down the country at various points throughout the year, but their much-loved ‘Queen by Candlelight‘ special knows all about lighting up Manc venues.

Having since gone on to become an internationally acclaimed live concert experience, we’re glad we still get to see the ‘Princes of the Universe’ on our doorstep.

candlelit concerts manchester queen tribute show
concerts by candlelight queen night
queen by candlelight
Credit: Concerts by Candlelight (supplied)

With the likes of Bridgewater Hall and the magical Manchester Monastery all having played host to the promotion on many ocassions, this time Queen by Candlelight is coming to the legendary Manchester Opera House in the new year.

One of our most historic and legendary theatres, it’s only fitting, really, that they be chosen to welcome a night of equally iconic tunes.

But it’s worth reminding more casual fans that these aren’t just British rock and pop anthems; Queen‘s discography is one that still has global recognition to this day.

That’s why this specific show has been taken to virtually every corner of the world, with the incredibly talented cast of singers and musicians delighting audiences in Dubai, Australia, New Zealand and New York, to domestic crowds here in town and down in London’s West End.

‘Queenies’ or ‘Darlings’, as Freddie Mercury used to call them, can expect all the big hits, from ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘We Are The Champions’, to ‘It’s a Kind of Magic’ and ‘Who Wants to Live Forever’ and plenty more from the back catalogue.

Here’s a glimpse of what’s in store this coming January:

With tickets already flying out fast, we really would recommend securing your seats early before they inevitably sell out.

To quote the promoters themselves, “this spectacular celebration of Queen’s biggest hits is guaranteed to rock you.”

Coming to the Manchester Opera House on Tuesday, 6 January, you can book your tickets for Queen by Candlelight right HERE.

And if you’ve never been to one of their candlelit events before, you only need to see how much of a ball we had at their country event earlier this year to find out how much fun they are…

@the.manc

Looking for your next date night? Candlelight Concerts are back. 🕯️ It’s the perfect experience to get ready for the winter season.

♬ original sound – The Manc

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

Featured Images — Concerts by Candlelight (supplied)

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