The full lineup for the Manchester Food and Drink Festival (MFDF) has been revealed – and it sounds amazing.
Taking place down at the festival hub in Cathedral Gardens, MFDF will run from 16 – 27 September. As ever, the hub will be free to enter with some special events and feasts requiring tickets to be purchased on top.
Highlights of this year’s programme include a mammoth chippy tea feast, an Oktoberfest takeover from Albert’s Schloss, a wine and fizz festival at Halle St Peters, and an ultimate night of pub grub feasting from The Bull and Bear’s Tom Kerridge (the only UK chef to ever win two Michelin stars at a pub, thank you very much).
Elsewhere, an artisan food market will feature some of Manchester’s finest local producers, hosting two separate line-ups across each weekend.
And of course, there will also be an amazing range of street food traders popping up at intervals throughout the duration of the festival.
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Other happenings at the festival include a four-day MFDF street food trailer takeover with chefs from Evuna and Tast Catala; a fundraising kitchen from anti-food poverty enterprise Eat Well MCR; and a gaggle of street food chalets hosted by sponsors Just Eat and filled with their top restaurant partners.
There’ll also be live entertainment from local bands like Mr. Wilson’s Second Liners and The Lottery Winners over on the City Life stage.
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One of the street food traders confirmed for this year’s Manchester Food and Drink festival lineup / Image: The Hanoi 75
MFDF also has its own street food kitchen trailer on-site, which will be taken over by some of the city’s best-loved restaurants and chefs over a four-day period: including Evuna, Jackie Kearney and Tast Catala.
Headline sponsor Just Eat will install restaurant partners La Bandera, Vertigo, JJ’s Vish and Chips and Peck n Yard inside street food chalets.
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And Meatless Farm will also be in attendance throughout the festival, serving up a full burger menu alongside samples of their excellent vegan cooking products.
An artisan food market will also feature some of the region’s best independent food and drink producers, makers and businesses, bringing down guests like Ancoats’ community bakery Companio, Chorlton Cheesemongers and HM Pasties to name just a few.
Bars, meanwhile, will include a Manchester Beer Bar celebrating locally-brewed ales, beer and cider, a gin and tonic bar from Franklin and Sons, and a Truly Hard Seltzer bar from alcoholic sparkling water brand Truly.
Manchester’s biggest chippy tea feast is coming to MFDF this September – with boozy ice cream for dessert.
Manchester’s biggest chippy tea feast
Manchester’s best-loved restaurants, chefs, chip shops and food traders will be coming together on 22nd September in what’s being dubbed “Manchester’s biggest chippy tea”.
One of Manchester’s best traditional chippies, Anchors of Didsbury, will join Hip Hop Chip Shop, JJ Vish and Chips, acclaimed Ancoats fish restaurant Street Urchin and Stockport’s Lord of the Pies for the event in serving their own take on this classic Northern staple.
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For dessert, there’ll be boozy ice cream courtesy of ‘A Few Scoops’ who will be bringing their special pink Tuk Tuk ‘Jolene’ to the Hub serving up the perfect chippy tea boozy finale.
As this is expected to be very busy, a limited number of tables are available for pre-booking here.
The ultimate pub grub feast, with a live music sound track
Tom Kerridge’s The Bull and Bear is hosting a one night pub grub style takeover at the festival hub, creating their own take on street food with a special three-course meal.
Designed especially for the festival, think potted Loch Duart salmon with apple jelly and cucumber chutney; followed by braised beef and blue cheese pie with English mustard mash and Seven Brothers ale gravy; finished off with a pudding of banana custard, dates, pistachio, and honeycomb.
A live music soundtrack will provide the perfect accompanying ‘pub at the hub’ atmosphere, and Manchester beer bar will be on hand with a selection of local craft beer to bring that proper pub variety.
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Tickets cost £55 per person and can be booked here.
A Schlosstoberfest takeover feast in July, with brats, pretzels and lederhosen
Albert’s Schloss will be taking over the MFDF street kitchen on the evening of Thursday 23 July with Bavarian street food and lively entertainment from their brilliant house dancers and musicians.
Expect brats, pretzels and lederhosen a-plenty, plus German other street food favorites like mayonnaise loaded fries.
Free to enter, walk-ins welcome.
The CityLife stage is a regular fixture at MFDF and always hosts great local artists
What’s happening at the CityLife music stage?
Featuring a curated line-up of Manchester’s best local bands and musicians, The CityLife stage always brings a great selection of local talent to MFDF. This year looks set to be no different.
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The festival will kick off with live music from Mr. Wilson’s Second Liners on Thursday 16.
Friday 17 will see local indie-pop band The Lottery Winners take to the stage. Hailing from Leigh, they will be performing an acoustic preview ahead of their first Manchester Live gig at the Ritz on 25 September.
Sunday 19 and Sunday 26 September will bring the Flat Cap Brass, then on Sunday 19,Fine Lines will play exquisite roots infused Americana with echoes of Dylan and The Band.
What about the app?
For the very first time the entire programme of what’s happening will be available via a brand new MFDF App – bringing the Festival to your fingertips like never before.
App users will be able to browse the full festival programme, reserve a table at the Festival Hub and vote in the MFDF awards too. The app can be downloaded by IOS users here or at this link for Android users.
As part of this year’s Manchester Food and Drink festival, there is also a number of fringe events taking place around the city. To find out more and for full details, head to their website here.
The 24th Manchester Food and Drink Festival will take place this year from 16 – 27 September, 2021.
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Gig guide | Lady Gaga at Co-op Live – tickets, times, setlist and more for ‘The Mayhem Ball’
Thomas Melia
Pop champion Lady Gaga is heading to the notable Manchester music venue, Co-op Live, for two nights of her spellbinding ‘Mayhem Ball’ this October.
Little Monsters, “It’s time to cast your spell tonight” as ‘Mother Monster’, a.k.a. 14-time Grammy-winning singing sensation, Lady Gaga, is treating us lucky lot here in Manchester to not just one but TWO theatrical performances.
This pop mastermind has soundtracked many over the past two decades, and her latest LP, Mayhem, continues this streak with the success of its enchanting and harsh-pop lead single, ‘Abracadabra.’
Gaga has cultivated a worldwide following thanks to hits like ‘Poker Face’, ‘Telephone’, ‘Bad Romance’ and ‘Die With a Smile’, which will all receive a huge reception when across the two nights at Co-op Live.
Lady Gaga is playing Co-op Live in Manchester twice on 7 and 8 October as part of her Mayhem Ball tour / Credit: Supplied
Most recently, the US vocalist found her hit ‘Bloody Mary’ trending alongside the coming-of-age Netflix series Wednesday, which led to her creating ‘The Dead Dance’ for the show’s second season.
Now we’re ready to see our much-loved monster in the flesh
Lady Gaga at Co-op Live, Manchester – all you need to know
Lady Gaga UK tour dates
Mon 29 September – London, UK – The O2
Tue 30 September – London, UK – The O2
Thu 2 October – London, UK – The O2
Sat 4 October – London, UK – The O2
Tue 7 October – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Wed 8 October – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Lady Gaga tickets for Co-op Live gig
If you want to see this ‘Perfect Celebrity’ through your own eyes, you’ll have to act fast, as there’s only a handful of seats left to witness the star in action. Get ready to ‘Just Dance’ the night away with tickets HERE.
After avoiding all the ‘Paparazzi’? Then why not treat yourself to exclusive tickets in one of Co-op Live’s luxury boxes on Tuesday 7 October and enjoy premium seats, a dining experience and more HERE.
‘The Mayhem Ball’ marks pop heavyweight Lady Gaga’s first time returning to Manchester in over 10 whole years (Credit: Supplied)
What are the stage times for Lady Gaga in Manchester?
Co-op Live has a strict curfew of 11pm, meaning that Mother Monster won’t get the opportunity to ‘Marry The Night’ – however, this does mean fans can get an early night.
There is no official support act listed for any date across her UK tour, with doors set to open from 6:30pm and no start time for the show, but her London dates did kick off around 8:30pm.
How to get to Co-op Live
Tram
For those of you heading to Co-op Live, you’ll be glad to know it’s right next door to a rather famous big blue stadium and its integrated Metrolink stop.
Head along the light blue or orange lines directly to the Etihad Campus or Ashton-under-Lyne, and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.
Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre until 1:00am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Bus
You can find the full list of bus routes HERE, with the one in closest proximity to the venue being the 53 bus, which runs from Cheetham Hill through to Higher Crumpsall, Old Trafford and Pendleton, leaving just a two-minute walk to Co-op Live. You also get free Bee Network travel with any valid event ticket.
Getting there by car and parking
If you’re driving, there is limited parking available at the venue, but this must be pre-booked ahead of time, and there are designated drop-off areas.
The postcode is M11 3DU, and you can follow the signs towards the wider Etihad Campus as you get closer; directions to the adjacent drop-off points will also be signposted.
Keep in mind that congestion on the roads close to the stadium is expected to gather around two hours prior to any event, so if you are travelling on the road, these are the suggested times they provide come event day, though estimates will obviously vary:
Alan Turing Way (both directions): plan an additional 20 minutes into any journey by road.
Hyde Road (eastbound): expect an additional 15 minutes to be added to your journey.
Mancunian Way (westbound): plan for an extra 10 minutes of travel time.
There are also three park-and-ride facilities near Co-op Live, but be advised that the Velopark and Holt Town stops will be closed post-event to help safely manage crowds:
Ashton West (Ashton line) – 184 spaces and 11 disabled spaces
Ladywell (Ashton-Eccles line) – 332 spaces and 22 disabled spaces
Walk/cycle
Lastly, Co-op Live is only a half-hour stroll from Manchester Piccadilly, and you could even walk along the canal all the way to the front door if you fancy taking the scenic route.
Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes on the Beryl app, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the bike all through an easy-to-use app. There are hire points just near the south-west corner of the Etihad Stadium on Ashton New Road.
For more information on all travel options, you can check out the enhanced journey planner.
Vigil to be held in Manchester for victims of Crumpsall synagogue attack
Danny Jones
A vigil is set to be held in solidarity with the local Jewish community and those affected by the horrific attack in Greater Manchester on Thursday.
Mancunians, Brits and people all over the world are continuing to pay tribute and offer words of kindness during another dark day for the city region, as the incident that took place at a synagogue in Crumpsall has now been confirmed as an act of terrorism.
Informing residents from around the ten boroughs of the vigil plans, those nearby, as well as those in and around central Manchester, are now being welcomed to pay their respects to the deceased and those who remain injured in hospital.
Greater Manchester stands together in solidarity with our Jewish community following the horrific incident at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue.
A vigil will be held today at 3pm (Friday 3 October) at the junction of Middleton Road and Crumpsall Lane (M8 5DS).
Writing on social media yesterday, Mayor Andy Burnham simply described the ordeal as a “vile attack on our Jewish community on its holiest day.”
He went on to state, “We condemn whoever is responsible and will do everything within our power to keep people safe.”
As for the person responsible, the suspect behind the attack has now been identified as 35-year-old Jihad Al-Shamie, who was a registered British citizen of Syrian descent.
Burnham signed off by adding: “We stand with GM’s Jewish community at this time and will work through the day to support them.”
Regarding the details of the vigil, the statement reads: “Greater Manchester stands together in solidarity with our Jewish community following the horrific incident at Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue”. Flowers, wreaths, as well as messages of love and support are already being in the area.
It continues: “A vigil will be held today at 3pm (Friday, 3 October) at the junction of Middleton Road and Crumpsall Lane (M8 5DS).”
While the Greater Mancunian Jewish community is still hurting as more details emerge from the ongoing investigation, the city and beyond are already uniting as they always do in the face of adversity.
Members of the Manchester Jewish Museum, Crumpsall’s neighbouring MJCC, and the wider Jewish Representative Council of Greater Manchester and the surrounding area are all expected to be in attendance, as well as notable political figures.
As reiterated by the Mayor’s office: “This is a space for reflection, support and unity. All are welcome to join as we honour those affected and show that hate has no place in our city region.”
For anyone considering going along to pay their respects and offer their support, please look out for each other, remain vigilant and stay safe.
Georgina Pellant -
8th July 2021 
