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16 giant inflatable monsters are now looming over Manchester – here’s where to find them

Halloween is back in the city.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 25th October 2023

Halloween has returned to city once again… and this year, even more giant inflatable monsters than ever before have taken to the streets.

It’s been a long time coming, but spooky season is now officially here in Manchester.

Returning for its eighth year, Halloween in the City – which is organised by Manchester BID and CityCo, and is the country’s biggest Halloween celebration – is back for some more frightful fun this week, and just as it’s always been known and loved for, the family-friendly festival will be filling the city centre with things that go bump in the night.

Thousands of families are expected to head into the city wearing their spookiest costumes for the two-day FREE event taking place this weekend.

With the celebrations set to begin at 10am on both days, there’s a jam-packed lineup of events and activities for everyone to get stuck into – including the Monsters Rock! Music Festival, Walk the Plank’s legendary Monster Party Procession, and so much more.

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If you’re looking to get in on the action early though, then you’ll be pleased – or frightened – to find out that the iconic MCR Monsters have already arrived.

They’re now looming over the city’s rooftops in greater numbers than ever before.

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Created by artists Filthy Luker and Pedro Estrellas, the colourful collection of giant inflatable monsters have invaded the city centre from today right up until Halloween itself next Tuesday (31 October), so for those who dare to stay in the city as night falls, popular landmarks and buildings will be turning a ghoulish green to help make a Manchester a terrifyingly good place to be this Halloween.

16 giant inflatable monsters are now looming over Manchester / Credit: The Manc Group

There’s a total of 16 monsters to spot at more than a dozen locations, and here’s where you’ll need to head on down to to find them.

  1. Manchester Arndale, Exchange Square – Above Next, M4 3AJ
  2. Selfridges Exchange Square, M3 1BD
  3. Exchange Square (28 & 29 October only) – Festival Entrance, M3 1BD
  4. Exchange Square (28 & 29 October only) – Music Stage, M3 1BD
  5. Corn Exchange Manchester – Inside Exchange Square, M4 3TR
  6. Harvey Nichols, New Cathedral Street, M1 1AD
  7. New Cathedral Street (28 & 29 October only) – Near Ted Baker M1 1AD
  8. The Royal Exchange Manchester, St Ann’s Square, M2 7DH
  9. Castlefield Viaduct, Duke Street, M3 4PU
  10. AO Arena, Victoria Station Approach, Hunts Bank, M3 1AR
  11. AO Arena, Victoria Station Approach, Hunts Bank, M3 1AR
  12. New Century Hall, Miller Street, M4 4AH
  13. New Victoria, Corporation Street, M4 4DZ
  14. KAMPUS Aytoun Street, M1 3GL
  15. The Church, Chorlton Street, M1 3HN
  16. Depot Mayfield, Baring Street, M1 2PY

As mentioned, the MCR Monsters are part of the wider annual Halloween in the City celebrations.

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Organised by Manchester BID on behalf of retailers, restaurants, and businesses in the city centre, the two-day event includes a fancy dress challenge, a monster procession, a monster music festival, and so much more.

They’re part of the annual ‘Halloween in the City’ celebrations / Credit: The Manc Group

The ‘Monsters Rock! Music Festival’ will take over New Cathedral Street, St Ann’s Square, Market Street and Exchange Square, with live bands, DJs, rides, circus acts and even monster portaloos, while Walk the Plank’s popular ‘Monsters Rock Out Procession’ is back by popular demand after 2022’s success.

The frighteningly-good carnival will feature giant puppet monsters, stilt walkers, and a live band partying their way through Manchester Arndale and Market Street.

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Thousands of families are also expected to take part in the ‘Team Trick vs Team Treat Challenge’, where you can win points for your team, and you’ll even be able to take to the ice on a spooky outdoor ice rink too, as Scare Skate returns to Cathedral Gardens for another year.

Find out more about everything happening for Halloween in the City 2023 here.

Featured Image – The Manc Group

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The incredible new lantern trail around a northern theme park with Yorkshire pudding wraps, boozy hot chocolates, and more

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Land of Lights Gulliver's World

Yorkshire pudding wraps and boozy hot chocolates are just some of the festive treats on offer at an incredible new lantern trail.

In case you haven’t heard, Land of Lights has now opened at Gulliver’s World in Warrington, and it’s transformed the much-loved North West theme park into an immersive winter wonderland for the Christmas season – with 12 “vivid dreamworlds” full of dozens of gigantic lanterns inspired by animals, mega monuments, and wonders of the natural world to marvel at.

As the sun goes down and the nights draw in, visitors are now able to explore an amazing array of light installations as they walk all around the park.

More than 7,000 individual lanterns and hundreds of thousands of LED lights create the spectacle.

Having been already enchanting families since it opened at few weeks back now, Land of Lights is a first-of-its-kind attraction for the area, and it’s arrived in Warrington after it was held for the first time ever at Gulliver’s Land down in Milton Keynes last year, and proved to be a smash-hit success that was visited by thousands.

The award-winning work of the Zigong Lantern Group – with more than 100 people involved in the production process, and it taking six months to design, manufacture, and artistically finish – Land of Lights seems to already be garnering rave reviews.

But those aren’t just down to all the show-stopping lanterns and light installations.

That’s because visitors also have the chance to tuck into a feast of festive-themed street food and drinks all throughout the festival too.

Yorkshire Pudding Wraps at Land of Lights at Gulliver's World
Yorkshire Pudding Wraps at Land of Lights at Gulliver’s World. Credit: The Manc Group
Toasted marshmallows at Land of Lights at Gulliver's World
Toasted marshmallows at Land of Lights at Gulliver’s World

As you make your way around the illuminated park, you can grab everything from freshly-made and generously-filled Yorkshire pudding wraps, and an impressive selection of handmade churros, to authentic German sausages and bratwursts, and a winter-warming lineup of tipples and soft drinks like mulled wine, beer, and boozy hot chocolates.

Not only that, but there’s also Lagado’s Restaurant & Grill located on site too, which offers up a wide range of sit-down meal options inside its warm restaurant on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays of the festival.

As we mentioned, the event looks to have been proving pretty popular in the short time since it’s opened, with positive reviews coming in thick and fast.

One glowing review reads: “We visited Land of Lights at Gulliver’s world, I have to say it’s breathtaking, much more than what I imagined, well worth the money, definitely recommended.

“Like stepping into a fairy tale, it’s an amazing experience. You have hot food and drink, different gadget shops during the trail, it’s an instant stress relief after a bad day. Parking is free.”

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Land of Lights is now open at Gulliver’s World in Warrington, and is running right through to 25 February 2024 – with tickets already on sale and prices starting from only £12.

Find out more and grab tickets here.

Featured image – The Manc Group

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You can win a luxury Manchester apartment worth £350k for just £4.99

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson You can win a luxury apartment in Manchester in a £4.99 competition.

We all know that Manchester’s property scene has gone wild in the last few years – so the chance to own your own furnished luxury apartment for only £4.99 sounds almost too good to be true. 

But it’s really happening, with a new competition where the top prize is a two-bedroom apartment right in the city centre. 

The stunning flat overlooking Angel Meadows, valued at £350k, could be yours for only £4.99. I know. Unreal. 

This InstaWin competition is going to allow one lucky winner to live mortgage-free in Manchester, with all the best bits of our brilliant city centre on the doorstep. 

If the winner doesn’t want the apartment, there’s a £250k cash alternative up for grabs, transferred directly into your bank. 

And 2,000 runners-up will receive prizes worth £170k in total, with top prizes of £10k tax-free cash. 

So back to that pad. Tucked in the beautiful new NOMA quarter, the flat is inside the Meadowside development, a short walk from Manchester landmarks and green space.

Inside the luxury Manchester flat you could win
Inside the luxury Manchester apartment you could win

You’ll be a 10-minute walk from Manchester Victoria and not much further from the Manchester Arndale, as well as cultural landmarks like Manchester Art Gallery and the Central Library. 

You’ll also have brilliant local pubs like The Marble Arch and The Angel right outside, and food hotspots like Mackie Mayor and Ramona just a short walk away. 

The dog-friendly apartments come with residents-only amenities including free tea and coffee in the lounge, a top-quality gym and yoga space. 

It’s within The Gate building in the £235m residential development of one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments. 

All apartments feature a video door entry system, a concierge service, CCTV, lockable bike storage and more.

Elite Competitions will also give you £10,000 worth of furniture. 

Communal space in the two-bedroom flat you could win
Communal space in the two-bedroom flat you could win
The gym at the Manchester apartment, which is off Angel Meadows
The gym at the Manchester apartment, which is off Angel Meadows

If the lucky winner chooses to rent out the flat, they can expect to bring in about £2,500 per month in rental income. 

Elite Competitions will cover all fees and stamp duty on the property. 

To be in with a chance to win the £350k apartment for only £4.99, you just need to purchase a ticket here. 

If your number(s) match any of the InstaWin prizes, you’ll become an InstaWinner, and will be entered into the main draw for the apartment. 

The more tickets you buy, the greater the chance you’ll have to win, and you can win more than one prize if multiple numbers match InstaWin prizes. 

You can have a maximum of 10,000 entries into the competition to win a Manchester apartment 

The draw takes place on Sunday 31 December at 3pm. 

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Find out more and enter the competition here. 

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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