What's On
A huge hot air balloon festival is coming to Manchester this summer
Up, up and away!
Manchester is all about festivals and now be prepared for a gravity defying one as a hot air balloon festival lands just in time for summer.
This lovely city is famed for its love of music, food, friends, good times and now… hot air balloons?
Visiting one of Manchester’s many popular parks, this festival is also stopping off at Nottingham and Wrexham before touching down here over summer.
‘The Balloons & Beats Festival’ is set to join ‘Bristol International Balloon Fiesta’ and ‘Midlands Air Festival’ as part of a series of popular hot air balloon festivals in 2025.
The event isn’t exclusive to Manchester either as it seems to be touring England and Wales with dates scheduled for Chepstow and ending its journey in Dorset.
Of course, us Mancs like the rest of the country have to consider the weather, as these events are all dependent on whether there are suitable flying conditions on each day.
Taking place in Platt Fields Park in Fallowfield, as well as lots of flying balloons providing a gorgeous canvas for the sky, the park grounds will be packed with fun activities to do as the day goes on.
There’s going to be a handful of food and drinks vendors, Punch and Judy shows, and even a BMX display, plus evening glow shows come nightfall.
Alongside the skyline entertainment from the air balloons themselves, anyone planning on going can expect to see more above ground attractions with aerial artistry too.
Expect lots of family fun with fairground rides, children’s characters and craft stalls, you’ll have never-ending fun.
Each of the Manchester dates have varying run times with the Friday 27 June taking place from 4pm to 11pm and Saturday 28 June starting from 12pm to 11pm.
With these dates continuing the party til late in the night, there will also be a chance to experience the hot air balloons in a whole new light with the evening glow shows.
Read more:
For a chance to see these lighter-than-air aircrafts in Platt Fields Park on 27 and 28 June, you can find tickets and more information HERE.
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Featured Image: Unsplash (Kyle Hinkson)
What's On
‘Breathtaking’ new 360° immersive dinosaurs exhibition to open in Manchester later this year
Emily Sergeant
A ‘breathtaking’ new immersive dinosaurs exhibition is set to open in Manchester later this year.
Fresh off the back of announcing its programme of events for the upcoming autumn-winter season last week, Factory International has now revealed that another new Lightroom experience will be arriving later this year, and it’s one any budding paleontologist will want to keep an eye on.
Prehistoric Planet: Discovering Dinosaurs blends iconic moments from Apple TV’s Emmy nominated Prehistoric Planet with never-before seen content.
It’s set to take audiences back in time to experience dinosaurs closer than ever before.
Narrated by critically acclaimed actor, Damian Lewis, the new 360° immersive experience is a celebration of our natural world told through captivating storytelling, breathtaking visuals, and groundbreaking technology, with visitors will be transported back in time, 66 million years ago, to experience dinosaurs up close.
Damian Lewis guides audiences through the fascinating role dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures have played in shaping our world – from Ammonites and Mosasaurs, to the Tyrannosaurus rex.
Lightroom’s state-of-the-art 360 projections will allow viewers to see these majestic animals at an awe-inspiring scale and travel alongside them through volcanoes, soaring skies and the deep sea.
As escapist as it is educational, audiences will not only experience some of the most beloved scenes from seasons one and two of Apple TV’s Prehistoric Planet, but they will also be immersed in exclusive extended CGI sequences and bespoke illustrations that bring the show to life in entirely new ways.
And to make it even better, the experience is set to an original score by multi-Academy Award winner Hans Zimmer, alongside Anže Rozman, and Kara Talve for Bleeding Fingers Music.
The experience joins the previously announced David Bowie: You’re Not Alone, which gives audiences insight into the creative mind and performances of one of the world’s most visionary artists.
Read more:
Prehistoric Planet: Discovering Dinosaurs opens at Aviva Studios, and tickets go on public sale tomorrow (Friday 26 June).
Featured Image – Supplied
What's On
Prestigious Edinburgh TV Festival to move to Manchester for first time in 50 years
Emily Sergeant
Greater Manchester will become the new host city for the TV Festival from 2027 onwards it was announced today.
For the first time in five decades, following an extensive consultation and competitive bidding process – which was launched in 2025 – the prestigious festival is set to move from its home in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh to our region from 2027 onwards, beating out other major northern cities like Newcastle in the process.
As part of a UK-wide strategic review into the event’s long-term future, the Festival’s board of directors say the review was undertaken in order to ‘examine how the TV Festival could continue to grow’ amid increasing challenges around accessibility, affordability, and sustainability across the television industry.
Greater Manchester‘s ‘successful and comprehensive’ bid included commitments around affordability, infrastructure, industry partnership, and long-term growth potential.
Plans include holding the Festival in locations in the newly developed St. John’s creative and cultural district.
“Greater Manchester presented a vision for the Festival that combined genuine creative ambition and future-facing energy with practical accessibility and affordability for delegates,” commented Campbell Glennie, who is the CEO of the TV Festival and The TV Foundation.
“This means we can radically reduce the costs associated with attending the Festival as well as the cost of passes.
“The city reflects the expanding ambition of the UK television industry, while still offering the scale, connectivity and unique cultural identity needed for an event of this significance – it gives us the strongest platform to grow the Festival’s reach and impact in the years ahead.”
Cllr Bev Craig, who is the Leader of Manchester City Council, said being chosen as TV Festival hosts is ‘brilliant news’ for Greater Manchester, adding: “It speaks to the growth, success and strength of our screen sector in the city region and the strong partnerships and talent we have here.”
Read more:
The final Edinburgh edition of the TV Festival will take place this August, and dates and further details for the TV Festival in 2027 will be shared later this year.
Featured Image – PickPik
Thomas Melia -
26th February 2025 
