After a successful launch in 2023, the UK’s best-loved pregnancy, baby and parenting event, The Baby Show with Lidl GB, is heading back to Manchester Central this week, 7-9 June.
The enormous event will be a one-stop-shop for everything tiny human-related, from feeding equipment to car seats to baby-grows to buggies.
There’ll be live talks, a chance to meet brands from across the industry, and even a buggy testing track where you can put your new wheels through their paces on a range of terrains.
Exhibitors will be offering fantastic prices on products too, with those appearing at The Baby Show including MAM, Obaby, Venicci, iCandy, Cybex, Egg, BabyBjörn, Mamas & Papas, Maxi-Cosi and more.
Plus, a New Kids on the Block area will give start-ups, emerging businesses and boutique brands the opportunity to showcase their goods, such as MarBra, Baby Sensor, Ruffle + Romper and Bubble Tots.
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Over on the Live Talks Stage you can expect to hear insights from names like health and fitness expert and Baby2Body CEO Melinda Nicci; Jenni Dunman from Daisy First Aid; Lucy Shrimpton, founder of The Sleep Nanny; and Rober Titzer, infant researcher at The Infant Learning Company.
All talks across the three-day event will provide expert advice on subjects all new and expectant parents face, such as birth, sleep, feeding, child development, weaning, health and fitness, and what to buy, and will all be completely free of charge.
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There’ll be a buggy testing track at The Baby Show by Lidl GBParents and expectant parents can browse essential itemsThere’ll be loads of different brands taking part in The Baby Show with Lidl GBThe buggy testing track in actionCredit: Supplied
The Lupilu Changing Area, proudly sponsored by Lidl GB, will allow visitors to try out award-winning nappies and wipes for free – and the brand was recently crowned the Best Family Brand in the 2024 Loved By Parents awards.
There’ll be complimentary baby food, provided by Lupilu, in The Baby Feeding Café as well as bottle-warmers and microwaves, and a private area for those who wish to breastfeed in private.
Mallory Reynolds-Trout, show manager at The Baby Show with Lidl GB says:
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“Last year we launched the show in Manchester to huge crowds of new and expectant parents who travelled far and wide to shop for their impending arrivals – showing a huge appetite for more.
“The Baby Show is the biggest parenting event in the country, and we’re thrilled that it was such a big success in 2023 and this year it’ll be even bigger.
“We’ll have a buggy testing track, a stage where visitors can listen to expert advice, a baby feeding café and over 250 exhibitors showcasing their latest products, along with some great offers.”
We have 100 pairs of complimentary tickets* to give away to the show. Use code “MANCSCOMP” to claim yours now.
Visitors can also add-on a Baby Show goody bag for only £6, containing goodies worth over £75. For more information, visit www.thebabyshow.co.uk/manchester.
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*T&Cs apply. A £2 transaction fee is applied to every order.
Featured image: Supplied
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A dedicated anime, movie and gaming concert with a live orchestra is coming to Manchester
Danny Jones
Calling all self-proclaimed otakus, cinephiles and gamers: a huge concert experience will see dozens of musicians bring classic anime, film and gaming soundtracks and scores to life later this year, right here in Manchester.
The city is no stranger to events celebrating these beloved kinds of media, but you’ll struggle to find another bringing all of them together in one place.
Brought to us Mancs by KIN Music Entertainment, a locally founded arts, events and music label, this celebration of all things pop culture – and specifically, the music tied to it.
Entitled ‘The Kin & Fushigi Anime, Film & Videogame Orchestra’, this passionate collective serves as not only a platform for rising artists but also to hear some iconic sonic moments like never before.
KIN have created a large-scale live concert experience which will bring together a 25-piece pop orchestra made up of emerging professional performers and conservatoire graduates.
Aside from the impressive total of people behind this production to begin with, they also form an immersive hybrid orchestral and live band capable of bringing.
Speaking on the upcoming date, KIN Entertainment said in a statement: “We wanted to create the kind of live experience that many anime and videogame fans in Manchester have been waiting for — something cinematic, emotional and community-driven that brings these sound worlds to life with the energy of both an orchestra and a live band.”
Kin was founded by bassist, composer and ensemble performer Alejandro Urbina Diaz, who first brought his talents and wider interests over from Mexico to the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) here in the city centre at the age of 23.
Citing Manchester’s multiculturalism and cosmopolitan cultural fabric as a big part of his inspiration, he and his team have ended up carving out this niche for themselves, and now they’ll be playing this beloved music to Mancs at none other than the O2 Ritz.
Credit: KIN Music Entertainment (supplied via Academy Music Group Digital)
With new arrangements inspired by anime, cinematic and videogame culture, not to mention orchestral and even rock crossover twists – including both vocalist and rhythm sections, by the way – it’s set to be a highly unique experience that most will have never come across before.
This event itself is suitable for audiences aged 14+, although under-16s must be accompanied by an adult, and it’s taking place at the Ritz on Sunday, 26 July.
We’re not going to spoil any more details about the show for you, so which particular pieces of pop culture they reference will just have to be a surprise…
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied via AMG Digital)
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You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Manchester’s Deansgate
Daisy Jackson
There’s a brand-new menu of smokehouse-style BBQ dishes being served up on a sunny terrace on Deansgate.
Motley, the neighbourhood bar and restaurant on the corner of John Dalton Street, has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen.
That means they’ve got a whole load of new dishes, slow-cooked over hickory wood, that are bringing a taste of a Deep South BBQ to Manchester city centre.
The smokehouse-style meats are all seasoned in-house and cooked for hours, for a perfect fall-off-the-bone experience.
It might be an authentic American smokehouse menu, but it’s firmly British too, with most products locally sourced.
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Deansgate / Credit: The Manc Group
Motley are calling on local suppliers like Althams Butchers (established since 1856) for their meat, plus greengrocers R Noone and Son, and Cheshire Farm for their real dairy ice cream.
Signature dishes on the new menu at Motley include slow smoked brisket, seasoned in Motley’s signature rub before being slow-smoked for more than eight hours.
There’s also a beef short rib with a chimichurri sauce, and a pork belly strip that’s seasoned with sage and onion and finished with a panko breadcrumb crust.
And for the veggies, there’s a vegan smoked veg kebab with courgette, mushrooms, bell pepper, sweet corn and red onion drizzled with homemade BBQ sauce.
Motley has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen / Credit: The Manc Group
Prices across the board start from just £16, served with beef dripping fries, rainbow slaw, pickles and homemade beef gravy.
As for small plates, you can expect short rib bonbons, homemade corn bread, spicy chicken wings, bang bang cauliflower, mac and cheese, and frickles.
House favourites like steak, vegetable hash, salads, and burgers will remain on the Motley menu.
Victor Gonzalez, food and beverage manager at Motley, said: “Our new signature smoked dishes are all crafted and seasoned in-house then slow cooked for hours over hickory wood to create rich and smoky melt-in-your mouth flavours.
“From our slow-smoked brisket to our home-made sides, everything has been carefully crafted to bring an authentic taste of the deep south to Manchester and we can’t wait for guests to try it.”
Motley can be found at 2 John Dalton Street on the corner of Deansgate in the city centre.
Daisy Jackson -
4th June 2024 
