A brand-new comedy festival is set to arrive in Manchester this week, and there’s some seriously famous names gearing up to bring the laughs.
Laughterama is an all-new five-night festival that’s set to combine a packed lineup of some of comedy’s multi-talented names, with a handful of the city’s best-loved bars and traders from right across the street food scene.
A new venture from the sibling team behind a series of successful comedy festivals running annually across London and the South, comedy fans heading on down to Castlefield Bowl for Laughterama 2022 this week can expect a mix of the biggest names in stand-up to take to the same stage as some of the brightest new talents.
James Acaster, Aisling Bea, and Rosie Jones are just some of the famous names on the lineup.
Laughterama is taking over Castlefield Bowl in Manchester city centre from Wednesday 21 – Sunday 25 September 2022, and it’s promising to be “a seriously good time in the heart of the city”.
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Here’s everything you need to know.
The lineup for the brand-new Laughterama 2022 festival / Credit: Laughterama
Lineup & Stage Times
The Laughterama 2022 lineup is absolutely packed with heavy-hitting names and upcoming top talent set to make the people of Manchester laugh across the five-day festival.
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Here’s the lineup and stage times for each day of the festival:
Wednesday
Festival opens at 6pm and show begins at 7:30pm.
David O’Doherty
Rose Matafeo
Lou Sanders
Josh Jones
Daniel Kitson
Thursday
Festival opens at 6pm and show begins at 7:30pm.
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Nish Kumar
Simon Amstell
Amy Gledhill
Mike Wozniak
Catherine Bohart
The unflinchingly funny Jamali Maddix will be taking to the Castlefield Bowl stage / Credit: SuppliedThe “comic shooting to fame” Celya Ab, and the joyous Rosie Jones are on the lineup / Credit: SuppliedThe hilarious Kiri Pritchard-McLean will also be making an appearance / Credit: Supplied
Friday
Festival opens at 6pm and show begins at 7:30pm.
Milton Jones
Reginald D Hunter
Hannah Platt
Stephen Bailey
Kiri Pritchard-McLean
Saturday
Festival opens at 2pm and show begins at 3pm.
Phil Wang
Aisling Bea
Fatiha El Ghorri
Rhys James
Ian Smith
Festival opens at 6pm and show begins at 7:30pm.
Josh Widdicombe
Ivo Graham
Tadiwa Mahlunge
Esther Manito
John Robins
Sunday
Festival opens at 3pm and show begins at 4pm.
Dylan Moran
Tim Key
Fern Brady
Huge Davies
Maisie Adam
Festival opens at 6pm and show begins at 7:30pm.
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James Acaster
Josh Pugh
Celya AB
Rosie Jones
John Robins
You can find out more about the full Laughterama 2022 lineup here.
Some seriously famous names are gearing up to bring the laughs at Laughterama 2022 / Credit: Supplied
Food & Drink Traders
As well as catching some uproarious stand up sets, those heading to Laughterama 2022 will also get to feast on some of Manchester’s best street food throughout the event.
Alongside some established food favourites, the festival has also booked up and comer Thief Street, Mexican taco truck Nina’s, top-end kebab kitchen Eat Like a Greek, and beloved bagel company Triple Bagels.
Meanwhile, those with a sweet tooth will be catered to with pancakes from Eat Dutch Lekker or a range of sugary treats from Ravenous Fudge.
Festivalgoers will get to feast on some of Manchester’s best street food throughout the event / Credit: Supplied
Here’s the full lineup of traders:
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T’arricrii
Eat Like a Greek
Eat Dutch Lekker
Triple Bagels
Thief Street
Ravenous Fudge
Mi & Pho
Nina’s Taco Truck
Find out more about all the food and drink traders at Laughterama 2022 here.
How to get to Laughterama 2022
Laughterama 2022 is taking over Castlefield Bowl in Manchester city centre.
With the unique venue being in the heart of the Castlefield district, this means that the closest train station is Deansgate, the closest Metrolink stop is Deansgate-Castlefield, and there are several bus stops nearby – although, the venue is within walking distance from several of the city’s other major public transport stations.
There is no event parking, but there are many car parks in close proximity.
Festival organisers ask that all festivalgoers check tickets for information about the gate opening and show start times.
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You’re also asked to just bring one medium sized bag per person to the event, as this will greatly assist with security checks, and there are also set to be no cloakroom facilities at the festival either so personal belongings will need to be kept with you at all times.
You can plan your trip on the Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) website here.
Laughterama is taking over Castlefield Bowl in Manchester city centre / Credit: Supplied
Weather Forecast
As anyone who is familiar with Castlefield Bowl will know well, the venue is an open-air arena with the majority of seating uncovered, which means that all festivalgoers are advised to keep the classic Manchester weather in the front of their minds, and check the weather forecast ahead of time so that you dress accordingly.
Although it could be a little too early to tell, especially as weather is forever changing, at this point, it looks like we’re in for a mixed bag of weather conditions across the five days of the festival.
On Wednesday, you can expect a dry day with cloud cover and temperatures ranging from 11°C-20°C, and then on Thursday, some rain showers are expected, but Friday looks to see the sun poke through the clouds with temperatures in the region of 11°C-19°C.
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On Saturday, we’re in for another dry and cloudy day with highs of 19°C, and then to round-out the festival on Sunday, some showers are expected, once again with highs of 18°C / 19°C.
Find out full advanced weather forecasts for Manchester on the Met Office website here.
It’s promising to be “a seriously good time in the heart of the city” / Credit: Supplied
Tickets
Like the sounds of what you’ve heard? Fancy nipping down this week?
Given the immensely-talented lineup of comedy names at Laughterama 2022, and the fact that tickets have been on sale for a good couple of weeks now to popular demand, some of the events and days are unfortunately completely sold out, and there are only a limited number of tickets left on the days that are available.
Tickets will set you back just £25 each, and you can find out more about which shows on the lineup are still available to catch on the Laughterama website here.
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Featured Image – Lloyd Winters (via Supplied)
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JD to host exclusive Josh Baker set at massive World Cup watch party in Manchester
Danny Jones
JD x JB: The well-known British and Manchester-founded sports fashion brand is teaming up with local artist Josh Baker for an exclusive pop-up set at a massive World Cup screening in the city centre tonight.
The two Manchester icons are teaming up at an otherwise sold-out Castlefield Bowl, getting the matchday vibes going ahead of the England vs Argentina game this evening.
With all eyes on the semi-final, keeping nerves steady will be a tall task, but Baker will be helping play his part in getting the energy up ahead of kick-off.
No matter what happens with the scoreline, it’s set to be a proper party atmosphere beforehand.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Da0FDI3tp3I/?hl=en
Fresh off the plane from his White Isle residency over in Ibiza, the 30-year-old Manc musician will be taking to the stage from 6:15pm at none other than Castlefield Bowl, where nearly 9,000 people will be watching the big game.
In case you missed it, after wrapping up Sounds of the City ’26, the Bowl is now being taken over for Road to Victory’s outdoor fan zone.
Doors will be open from 5:30pm ahead of the 8pm kick-off, and you’ll want to get down there with plenty of time to make sure you get a good view of the action – and by that, we mean both the game and Josh’s exciting set.
Better still, not only are those at the venue in for a night of amazing music and incredible vibes, but they’ll be cheering on Thomas Tuchel’s men straight after, in a crucial clash that could see England reach a second consecutive final in the last two major tournaments.
There’ll be plenty of entertainment before, during and after the breaks.
We will, of course, be keeping our fingers crossed for you and the boys tonight; the only thing we’re certain of is that the man himself will deliver on the night.
We had the honour of chatting with JB ahead of the BRITs back in February, and he’s only looking to bigger and better things this year.
For those looking to go along for this special one-off, once again, tickets to the event are already sold out, so your only chance is to sign up for the waiting list HERE. Fingers crossed for you and a result at full-time!
Last but not least, keep your eyes peeled on the JD Sports Instagram page and their other socials for all other updates ahead of the huge night. We can feel it: it’s coming home…
Featured Images — Press shots (supplied via JD Sports)
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Meet the team that reimagined The Horse and Jockey into a gastropub masterpiece
Lydia Mastrolonardo
The Horse and Jockey is a historic neighbourhood pub that has forever been a cornerstone in the heart of Chorlton, with its iconic Tudor exterior and outdoor seating looking out onto The Green.
Since the team behind the well-known and loved The Black Friar and Leo + Roobs in Salford, headed by Managing Director Neil Burke and Executive Chef Ben Chaplin, reopened the pub in October 2025, we have since seen some significant changes.
Positioning themselves as Chorlton’s first-ever proper gastropub, they’ve expertly balanced maintaining the pub’s character and restoring the cosy indoors while catering for Manc foodies, with an ever-evolving menu consisting of fresh local produce as well as a wide selection of Joseph Holt award-winning beers.
Credit: Bigger Boat Hospitality
We’re not the only ones who have noticed the hard work these two have put in – the transformation has led to the Horse and Jockey being crowned as one of the best local boozers at the Pub and Bar Awards.
Today, we had a chance to talk with Ben, who is the mastermind behind their delicious dishes and makes it all possible…
For anyone who doesn’t know you, give us a little bit of background on your career as a chef thus far?
“I started in the kitchen when I was 15 and worked my way up through different kitchens. Ended up working for Aiden Byrne, who remains the youngest person ever to achieve a Michelin star at 22. I worked for him for about nine years, ran one of his pubs for him and helped develop Manchester House.”
“I then went off and worked as head chef at Australasia for two years and 20 Stories for another three years before meeting Neil. Together we opened The Black Friar in 2021, Leo + Roobs in 2024, now the Horse and Jockey and are 100% looking for more venues.”
How would you sum up the Manc food scene at the minute?
“Very diverse. Within the industry side of it, it’s difficult with a lot going on with VAT and wages, but there are some great venues doing some great food even just in Chorlton alone, and there is a lot of choice – I actually think it rivals London.”
This has become a staple of their annual calendar of events. See more from this year’s edition HERE.
We already know you’ve worked wonders bringing The Black Friar back to life and taking it beyond just a pub – what lessons have you taken from that experience to the Horse and Jockey?
“I think not just the Horse and Jockey but one of our values as a company for Bigger Boat is we are ‘yes people.’ So trying new things and not just saying no to something because we don’t want to do it, saying yes first and trying to find a way to achieve it.”
“It’s something that we don’t just do here, but we do it at the cafe, The Black Friar, and we’re going to do it going forward, opening more and more places.”
If you could describe how the approach is different between the two venues, what would you say?
“The spaces in The Black Friar allow us to do a lot more events; we obviously have a bigger outdoor area, so that leads to us being able to sell different areas for different events. We don’t have that as much here, and this is more of a neighbourhood, local pub, serving gastro-style food.
“The Black Friar we can go from events to weddings pretty seamlessly – we do a lot more there as there’s space for it and even more to come.”
They’ve even started doing a picnic basket offer. (Credit: The Manc Eats)
What is your favourite dish on the menu?
“We change the menu so often here (the Horse and Jockey) following the seasons, often changing a dish a week. However, right now my favourite is probably our lamb rump with a red pepper and harissa hummus with a hazelnut and sesame seed dhukka.”
And if you could sum up the food in three words, what would they be?
“Evolving, tasty and bold.”
These two truly know what they’re doing with these restorations, and we can’t wait to experience what else they take over in the future.
Don’t believe us? Go on down and try it for yourself.
You can read our full review of the food and drink from when they first reopened the gorgeous suburban, village-style spot down below.
Emily Sergeant -
20th September 2022 
