Art & Culture

‘Top Secret’ cybersecurity exhibition launched for Science and Industry Museum’s grand reopening

A remarkable world of codebreaking, ciphers and secret communications.

Anna Willis Anna Willis - 30th April 2021

A major new cybersecurity exhibition with displays starring Alan Turing, Russian spies and code-breaking will mark the grand reopening of Manchester’s Science and Industry Museum in May.

Top Secret: From ciphers to cybersecurity will pore over a century’s worth of secret communications and intelligence in an exhibition containing over 100 objects from GCHQ and the Science Museum Group.

The Manchester exhibition will include, for the first time, objects related to Alan Turing and his team’s work intercepting German comms at Bletchley Park.

Visitors can also explore how Britain protected its skies during WWI, how codes were cracked in WWII, and the ways in which intelligence agencies foiled one of the most successful spy rings operating during the Cold War.

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The exhibition will also explore modern digital security – considering recent examples of major cyber hacks such as the WannaCry attack on the NHS.

M209-B Cipher Machine/Image: Science and Industry Museum

Jeremy Flemming, GCHQ Director, said: “At GCHQ we believe with the right mix of minds anything is possible.

“We hope Top Secret intrigues, excites and maybe even inspires the next generation of recruits from the area to consider a career with us.”

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Top Secret will be the first exhibition in the Science and Industry Museum’s new £5m Special Exhibition Gallery – which is set to host some of the biggest displays in the north over the coming months.

The showcase will also highlight the importance of science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) skills in regards to cybersecurity – taking a closer look at the skills required for a career in this field.

Top Secret: From ciphers to cybersecurity/Image: Science and Industry Museum

Sally MacDonald, Director of the Science and Industry Museum, said: “Our museum tells the stories of Manchester’s pioneering past and ideas that started here and went on to change the world. 

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“STEM skills have been at the heart of this innovation, and I’m delighted that we’re hosting Top Secret, which showcases the incredible heights that can be achieved through the application of these skills, at a time when the importance of STEM across the region is more important than ever.”

The Science and Industry Museum has been closed since November 5, but will spring back into life with Top Secret on May 19 .

The exhibition will run until August 31. 

Attendance is free but booking is required. You can grab a ticket online or by calling 033 0058 0058.

More information is available on the website .

Featured images: Science and Industry Museum

Art & Culture

INNSiDE North UK launch new intimate gig and event series — from inside a bedroom

Danny Jones Danny Jones INNSiDE Manchester bedroom gigs

INNSiDE North UK is launching an new series of intimate gigs hosted from a rather unorthodox location: inside a bedroom.

‘INNSiDE The Bedroom’ is the hotel chain’s first exclusive event series and will take place from within the confines of their hotel rooms located in Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle.

Hosted on select nights throughout the coming months, the series kicks off with a performance by Newcastle-based songwriter, Andrew Cushin, who has just come off a number of shows supporting the likes of Noel Gallagher and The Libertines.

Andrew will be taking over Gorilla on Whitworth Street for the second night of his upcoming UK tour and will be playing the first of these unique experiences at just before taking to the stage on 6 October.

Credit: Andrew Cushin

Better still, 10 people will have the chance to get tickets to watch this intimate gig first-hand, complete with full lighting and sound systems, at the four-star INNSiDE Manchester on First Street. Oh yeah, and The Manc will be filming the whole thing.

Not only will the Geordie be entertaining fans in the afternoon with an acoustic set, but the show will be followed by a meet and greet, with welcome drinks will also be offered to guests on arrival. What more could you ask for from a concert inside a bedroom?

Scott Brown, Director of Sales for the UK North arm, said: “We’re so excited to welcome Andrew Cushin to INNSiDE Manchester to kick off this fantastic new series.

He said INNSiDE, operated by Spanish hotel group Meliá, is all about “creating special experiences for our guests, from hosting wellness days to filling our bedrooms with flourishing houseplants, and now touring musicians!”

He added that the team “can’t wait to see Andrew in action and look forward to announcing further acts across [their] hotels” and neither can we, to be honest.

First Street has seen more events than ever following HOME cinema, theatre and gallery’s inaugural Festival this year, with live music playing a key part of the outdoor vibes throughout this summer.

While INNSiDE regularly has live music and DJs in the Open Living Lounge and downstairs lobby areas, this will be the first time the hotel has hosted an event like this in one of its bedrooms. It’s like a throwback to those lockdown livestream loads of musicians did during quarantine only with people in the room!

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The ‘INNSiDE The Bedroom’ series is designed to stay in keeping with INNSiDE by Meliá’s philosophy, ‘Stay Curious’, which promises to accommodate guests’ every need with considered comforts and inspiring experiences enriched with music, art and wellness.

As mentioned, the 10 lucky music fans will be able to win the chance to attend the exclusive gig at INNSiDE Manchester via a competition on Instagram, which will also include tickets to the Gorilla gig with Andrew Cushin later that evening, so keep an eye out!

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

Featured Image – INNSiDE North UK

Art & Culture

A huge Banksy art exhibit is coming to Media City next month

The Manc The Manc

Following several months of speculation, organisers behind touring exhibit The Art of Banksy have announced it will open at MediaCity this October.

Previously, reports had speculated that the exhibit would appear at First Street inside a purpose-built exhibition space, but now it appears the art show is heading to an entirely different location altogether.

Landing in Manchester on 21 October 2022, the exhibit will showcase 145 iconic Banksy pieces all amassed from private collections across the globe to create the world’s largest touring collection of Banksy artworks. 

Having travelled to Melbourne, Chicago, San Francisco, Sydney, Washington DC, Boston, Tel Aviv, Auckland, Toronto, Miami, Gothenburg and London, The Art of Banksy will soon arrive in the north of England.

Visitors will have the chance to experience the infamous artist’s most well-known works alongside those rarely seen by the public, all on loan from private collectors. 

Image: Supplied
Image: Supplied

The Art of Banksy, presented in association with Manchester theatre HOME, will feature a vast number authenticated Banksy works ranging from prints, canvases, limited-edition pieces, unique works and fascinating ephemera.

It represents a rare opportunity to see an overview of Banksy’s work from 2002 to 2017 in a purpose-built 1,200 square metre temporary structure in the heart of MediaCity, offering visitors the chance to view the artist’s work in a way not possible on the street or in any museum or gallery. 

Visitors can see the iconic artworks that brought the anonymous artist international acclaim, including Girl With Balloon (2002) in three different colour variations, Flower Thrower (2003), Rude Copper (2002), and Brace Yourself (2010) – a work which made headlines when Banksy gifted the painting to the band formerly known as ‘Exit Through the Gift Shop’ in exchange for the rights to their name. 

A recent poll ranked Girl with Balloon as the United Kingdom’s favourite piece of artwork while Time Magazine has previously included Banksy in its list of the world’s 100 most influential people alongside Barack Obama, Stella McCartney and Steve Jobs.

Image: Supplied
Image: Supplied

The iconoclastic artist’s history of pranks has also contributed to this reputation; they have performed powerful statement acts such as the secret installation of a shredder into Girl With Balloon to make the work self-destruct just moments after it was sold at auction for nearly $1.4 million 2018, transforming the work into Love in the Bin.  

Read more: Famous Lowry painting expected to sell for £8m at auction

The Art of Banksy is an exhibition for all ages – an unmissable show for culture lovers and indeed anyone who wants to learn more about the artist and what their work reveals today; the power of art to affect social change, inspire the public and lay bare the undercurrents of social issues with understated wit.

Please note that the exhibition is not curated or authorized by Banksy. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased via the website here.

Feature image – Supplied

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