The Corn Exchange is transforming from a food hall, bar and leisure venue to a festive gift shop for one week only and there are some serious gems on offer.
While the cornerstone of Exchange Square is best known for its numerous restaurants, bars and leisure sites, the likes of Salvi’s have been selling produce and pantry items from its glamorous shopfront for some time now.
With that in mind, the rest of the courtyard is joining in for a limited time only this holiday season, with various restaurants offering festive specials and vouchers, not to mention a new pop-up Christmas gift shop courtesy of Forever Manchester.
Here’s how you’ll find it and everything else the Corn Exchange has on offer this week:
The popular Manchester-themed gift and tourist shop that stocks everything from custom prints by local artists, to hand-crafted jewellery and everything in between, this place specialises in all things Manc.
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Setting up a satellite shop from the Cross Street site, their new festive pop-up at the back of the Corn Exchange on Cathedral Gardens stocks iconic Stanley Chow coasters, posters and porcelain, Joy Division-inspired themes by Bee Mancunian, books, tote bags and much, much more.
As alluded to already, Salvi’s Corn Exchange site has always stocked plenty of fresh produce, pantry items and seasonal items. Better still, there have plenty of great stocking fillers available.
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Whether it’s a limited edition Dolce & Gabbana panettone, festive hampers full of the best olive oil, pasta, and vinegar or even just a nice bottle of wine, they’ll make a perfect addition to your Christmas shopping.
The Corn Exchange isn’t all about bars and restaurants, there are also plenty of activities to get stuck into all year round and one of those is a Manc favourite: Sixes Cricket.
With vouchers starting from £25, you can help give the gift of a virtual cricket game or day at the batting cages, or simply put some money towards the food and drink. It’s a good day out and better than the bog-standard socks and deodorant set we know you’re debating as you do every year.
Another popular activity in this leisure venue are the escape rooms courtesy of Escape Hunt Manchester. It’s sure to have you arguing with friends and family but it’s also a bloody good laugh.
Like with Sixes, you can grab gift vouchers starting from £20 for those still left to cross out on your Christmas shopping list — just remember, they may invite you along, so make sure it’s someone you can tolerate in small spaces for a prolonged period of time.
This one is for beauty fans and those whole like a bit of glamour in their life. The Charlotte Tilbury Masterclass hosted in Banyan Bar & Kitchen is a limited-time-only experience on 3 January and 24 January, so you’ll have to be quick.
This one will set you back £55 but that figure not only includes a taste of some of the most high-end make-up on the market, but it also includes welcome drinks, food, a gift bag and £30 voucher for the recipient to spend on the evening as they see fit. We all deserve a posh night every now and again.
Just next door, popular Indian street food chain Mowgli isn’t just serving up some absolutely sensational dishes, they’re also giving you the tools to make them yourself.
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The Mowgli Cook Books have been flying off the shelves ever since they were first published and you can give your loved ones the secrets to this wonderful food for Christmas at a discount. Might buy one for ourselves while we’re at it.
One of the things we love about Mowgli is their fun-sized tiffin boxes and if you’re looking for something a neat little package to take away and hand gift someone with a sweet tooth this Christmas, you won’t go far wrong with Croyaki Tea.
This bubble tea and dessert bar has become a cult favourite in Manchester and, lucky for you, you can grab a box of their colourful and flavoursome macarons for just £9. That’s pudding for Christmas day sorted, though we wouldn’t encourage sharing — these little guys are too good.
Last but certainly by no means least, another one of our city-centre favourites: Tampopo. The Pan Asian spot specialising in street food is packed virtually all week round across its multiple Manchester sites, but you can get exclusive access behind the scenes this Christmas.
You can even play it safe and simply buy vouchers for their in-house hotel Roomzzz and the Corn Exchange in general; they once again start from £20 but you can set the amount yourself.
Check out the full list of what the Corn Exchange Christmas gift shop has to offer HERE.
And remember, the Forever Manchester gift shop pop-up is only there until Sunday, 18 December, so be sure to stop there while you still can.
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience is returning to Manchester next month
Daisy Jackson
One of the world’s silliest and most-loved experiences is returning to Manchester this year, offering people the chance to step inside the world of Fawlty Towers.
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience sees immersive theatre blend with a three-course dinner, bringing Britain’s most infamous hotel to life.
Fans of the hit 1970s comedy will enjoy two hours of mayhem led by Basil, Sybil and Manuel, all while tucking into a delicious era-appropriate meal.
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience has become an immersive dining phenomenon, scooping awards and selling out venues across the globe since launching almost 30 years ago.
In the years since, it’s welcomed more than one million guests, celebrated 13 years of its West End residency in London, and hosted celebrations for 50 years of the original BBC sitcom Fawlty Towers.
And now it’s Manchester’s turn, with the event returning to our city between 3 and 15 February.
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience is returning to ManchesterThe event is hosted by actors playing Basil, Sybil and ManuelAround 70% of the action is improvisedGuests are served a three-course 70s-inspired meal during the Faulty Towers experienceCredit: Rosie Powell
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience will be taking over the Voco hotel on Portland Street for a limited run, starring Aaron Millard as ‘Basil’, Rebecca Norris as ‘Sybil’, and Simon Hourihan as ‘Manuel’.
You can definitely expect two hours of theatre, chaos, and a 70s-inspired three-course meal, but with around 70% of the performances completely improvised, we can’t tell you much more than that…
Producer Jared Harford said: “It’s such a joy to be bringing Basil and the team back to Manchester. After such an incredible 2025 celebrating 50 years of Fawlty Towers, we can’t wait to continue sharing the laughter, chaos and community spirit that make this show so special.”
Faulty Towers The Dining Experience in Manchester:
Tuesday 3 February to Sunday 15 February
Tuesday to Saturday – doors open 6.45pm, seating and show starts 7.30pm
Saturday and Sunday – doors open 12.45pm, seating and show starts 1.30pm
Ticket prices, all including three-course meal and two hour immersive experience:
Tuesday to Thursday dinner, and Saturday or Sunday lunch – £67.50 pp (including fees) Friday or Saturday dinner £71.50 pp (including fees). Bookings can be made via the box office on (+44) 020 3700 3138 or online at www.faultytowersdining.com
Autotrader and viral food brand SpudBros are opening their first jacket potato drive-thru
Daisy Jackson
Autotrader has teamed up with SpudBros, the UK’s viral jacket potato trader, to open the first jacket potato drive-thru in Manchester.
The UK’s largest automotive marketplace is working with the SpudBros duo on the new Autotater drive-thru, where the duo will be handing out free jacket spuds – and which can also value your car in less than 10 seconds.
You’ll be able to visit the one-of-a-kind drive-thru for one day only next month, picking up a baked potato from an exclusive menu that includes the Autotater (a twist on a classic loaded spud) and the Curry In A Hurry (SpudBros’ signature garlic chicken curry).
You’ll also be able to tune into the Spud FM radio with SpudBros co-founders Jacob and Harley. Autotrader and SpudBros have teamed up for the drive-thru experience off the back of new research that has shown 44% of UK drivers have no idea what their car is actually worth.
The same research has also revealed that half of those surveyed are unsure how to determine the value of their car.
So now Mancs will be able to have their car instantly valued in less than 10 seconds, by Autotrader’s award-winning valuation service*, simply by visiting the Autotater drive-thru on 12 February.
Autotrader will be dishing out free valuations, to help ensure car owners don’t get small potatoes for their car and are empowered to choose when it’s the right time to sell.
Autotrader and viral food brand SpudBros are opening their first jacket potato drive-thru
This will be the first drive-thru for SpudBros, a brand which grew a traditional jacket potato van into a national sensation, finding viral fame on TikTok.
With a cult following of more than 4.8m people on TikTok and Instagram, the pair are now bringing their trademark energy offline for a drive-thru window with free spuds.
Erin Baker, Editorial Director at Autotrader said: “We know no one loves admin, which is why we want to make it easier and quicker for people to find out the true value of their car, in under 10 seconds.
“There’s something fun about that moment of surprise when you finally see what your car is really worth. Once you have that information, you can decide what to do next – whether that’s selling, upgrading or simply showing off to your mates.”
Jacob and Harley Nelson, the founders of SpudBros commented: “This is a big one for us. We’ve fed people across the country and even internationally, and Manchester is one of our most requested visits, so this is a really exciting opportunity.
“We love doing things that get people talking, and we also love cars, so teaming up with fellow Northern brand Autotrader lets us serve up something new that we feel passionately about – a free spud, a car valuation, and telling the story through social media.”
The Autotrader drive-thru will open in Manchester on 12 February, at Depot Mayfield. Tickets will be available through a draw on the Autotrader website for a limited time only.
To be in with a chance to get on the guestlist and for more details on the event, head HERE, and to join the millions who value their car free with Autotrader, visit HERE.
You can also follow @autotraderuk on Instagram for the latest updates.
*Highly Commended Winner of the 2025 Car Dealer Power Award in the Used Car Valuations category.