Manchester is getting ready for a city-wide Pride celebration this month.
Of course, we all know Manchester Village Pride will be returning for 2026 over the August bank holiday weekend, but aside from the official festivities around the Village, an extensive new Pride Fringe event has been announced – with a programme featuring everything from a film festival and shopping events, to live performances, family-friendly celebrations, and more.
Alongside comedy, club nights, exhibitions, and walking tours, venues across Manchester will also come together for a month-long celebration.
You can expect an exciting mix of LGBTQIA+ arts, culture, live entertainment, family events, food, drink and shopping experiences, giving visitors even more reasons to make a weekend – or even a week – of it.
Many of these events will be raising vital funds for local LGBT charities, and on top of that, the city’s hotels will also be joining in the celebrations with dedicated Pride packages, parties, free gifts, and discounts this month.
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Manchester has announced its first-ever Pride Fringe event with community celebrations all over the city / Credit: Jason Lock Photography (Supplied)
Pride Fringe will be led by the return of the week-long SCENE Festival.
Back for its third year and kicking off from Thursday 20 August, SCENE will be bringing together some of the biggest names in TV, film, and queer culture for eight days of screenings, panels, live comedy, parties and premieres across 10 Manchester venues – and this year, it’s the festival’s most star-studded programme to date.
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Some of the other highlights on the programme include a selection of Pride-themed walking tours and guided trails.
At the forefront of this is a a guided walking tour led by local playwright and tour guide, Chris Hoyle of What’s The Story?, exploring the stories that have shaped Manchester’s LGBTQ+ community.
From Victorian drag balls and the birth of Canal Street, to the Campaign for Homosexual Equality and the city’s iconic Pride Parade, the tour uncovers the people, places, and moments that have helped make Manchester one of the world’s leading LGBTQ+ cities.
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Manchester Arndale and Afflecks will also be hosting their own Pride-themed shopping events and workshops, while Aviva Studios, The Refuge, Freight Island, Kampus, and Fairfield Social Club are among the dozen independent venues throwing their own parties.
Families can also head to places like Manchester Central Library and Great Northern Warehouse for storytimes, craft sessions, entertainment, and other child-friendly events.
Pride Fringe will be running from Thursday 20 August, right through to 1 September in some cases, and you can find a full list of events here.
Featured Image – Supplied
Manchester
Manchester’s biggest comedy festival returns this week and you can STILL get tickets
Emily Sergeant
Manchester’s most popular comedy festival is back this week, and there’s still time to get tickets if you’re up for a laugh.
That’s right – Laughterama is back in Manchester from today (2 September), and will once again be taking over the iconic Castlefield Bowl in the heart of the city centre for five days of fun.
Thousands of comedy lovers attend Laughterama each year to enjoy countless sell-out stand-up sets, and this year will be no different, as festivalgoers are in for an ‘explosive series of shows‘ from some of the hottest names on the comedy circuit.
Jack Dee, Nick Mohammed, Sara Pascoe, Fern Brady, and Chris McCausland are just some of the famous names on this year’s jam-packed lineup.
They’ll be joined by other big names like Michelle De Swarte, Stewart Lee, Nina Conti, Ivo Graham, Ellis James, and Harriett Kemsley when they all take to the Castlefield Bowl stage over the five-day festival from Wednesday 2 – Sunday 6 September.
Some of the other names you can expect are BAFTA nominee Rose Matafeo, stand-up marvel Sarah Keyworth, Plebs and Friday Night Dinner star Tom Rosenthal, and podcast hero John Robbins.
It wouldn’t be Laughterama without some newcomers and breakthrough stars, of course, and on the lineup this year are viral sensation Vittorio Angelone, fast-rising talents Kiran Saggu and Jen Nolan, and BBC New Comedy Award finalist Evaldas Karosas.
Laughterama returns to Manchester later this week, and you still / Credit: Matt Eachus | Supplied
And aside from the comedy, as always, you can expect the very-best eats from Manchester’s street food scene will also be on site to tuck into, as well as an exciting selection of bars serving signature beers, cocktails, and more.
Laughterama 2026 is landing at Castlefield Bowl this week from Wednesday 2 – Sunday 6 September, with tickets now on sale at £29 per person.
There are worse ways to spend a day than sitting around drinking wine – but at The Manchester Wine School, you can actually come away knowing what you’re talking about too.
The team here can talk you through the very basics up to the finer points of wine, so you can impress at your next dinner party or confidently pick up the heavy wine list on a date.
If you’re wondering what it’s like to go back to school as an adult, where the main subject is wine, let us fill you in (and fill your glass, while we’re at it).
We headed along to take on the WSET Level 1 Award in Wines, a one-day introduction to the world of wine designed specifically for people with little-to-no previous knowledge. So, thankfully, there’s absolutely no expectation that you’ll arrive knowing your Chardonnay from your Chablis.
The day takes you right back to basics, starting with how grapes are grown and what actually happens during the winemaking process. You learn how different climates affect grapes, how white, red and rosé wines are produced, and why all those little differences eventually have such a big impact on what ends up in your glass.
Then, obviously, comes the fun bit – drinking wine the tasting and pairing.
Rather than simply deciding whether you like something or not, you’re taught how to properly taste wine, looking at its appearance before moving onto aromas, sweetness, acidity, tannins, alcohol, body and flavours. Suddenly, swirling your glass and having a good sniff feels considerably less pretentious when you actually know what you’re looking for.
You’ll also get familiar with some of the big-name grapes – think Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir – as well as wines like Champagne, Prosecco, Rioja, Chianti and Port.
There’s even a section on food pairing, explaining how things like sweetness, salt, acidity, fat and chilli can completely change the way a wine tastes.
It’s informative without feeling intimidating, and genuinely fascinating even if you’ve never taken wine particularly seriously before.
The day finishes with a 30-question multiple-choice exam, with 70% needed to pass – meaning you can leave not only considerably more knowledgeable about wine, but potentially with an internationally recognised WSET qualification under your belt too.
Whether you’re looking to gain knowledge to enhance your career or just want to have a fun afternoon finding a bit more out about what you do and don’t like, this is the course for you.
Emily Sergeant -
13th August 2026 
