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‘Winter Island’ returns to Escape to Freight for more festive fun this November

They really are bringing everything to the table this Christmas.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 14th October 2022

Escape to Freight Island is bringing its highly popular Winter Island back to Manchester this November, just in time to get you in the mood for the approaching holiday season.

Landing at Depot Mayfield‘s premier event space and cargo park on 12 November, this year’s Winter Island promises everything from DJs, live entertainment and Massaoke, to Christmas workshops, pop-up markets and all the festive food you could hope for.

With the hordes of people gathering for the Christmas markets scattered around the city centre, escaping to Freight’s Winter Island where you can find plenty more than just food and drink stalls might be the one for you.

Credit: Escape to Freight Island – Winter Island

Live entertainment and fun for all the family

As well as live music from the likes of Norman Jay MBE, Greg Wilson, the AMC Gospel Choir and more, the winter markets also include dedicated family sections complete with grottos for the kids, a pantomime and cinema club as well as the ever magical Christmas tree forest.

They’re even showing the Festival of Football next door to make sure you don’t miss a minute of the 2022 World Cup. What more could you ask for?

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Oh yeah, and there’s all this food and drink to be scoffed from some of the best local and independent traders. There is some serious deliciousness on show here.

Food glorious food (and drink)

Great North Pie Co.
Northern Soul Grilled Cheese

From Manchester favourites like Northern Soul grilled cheese and the award-winning Great North Pie Co. to Ancoats chocolatiers Cocoa Cabana, who will be letting you create your own boozy hot chocolate (the best kind), there’s so much to tickle your festive fancies.

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And, of course, no winter festival is complete without a Mulled Wine Barrell Bar serving everything from the classics to a special hot Vimto, not mention a brand new Freight Island Tap Room with a healthy selection of beers and a Grey Goose sponsored Après Bar for you lot feeling all posh this Christmas.

Something for everyone

Seriously, they’ve got pretty much everything on here – you can even buy homewares, specially printed t-shirts and handcrafted jewellery from Wonderhaus, all made right in front of you. Ever wanted to take an art or candle-making class from an expert? This is your chance.

Better still, if you’re looking for a seasonal space to book out for corporate events or just for a little work’s night out, you can also book Winter Island tickets for groups as big as 2,000 people at a time. That’s the Christmas do sorted then!

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How to book Winter Island tickets

Winter Island is open Wednesday-Sunday starting from Saturday 12 November, before it opens for a full seven days a week from Wednesday 7 December, concluding on Friday 30 December.

Opening hours are 4pm-11pm Monday to Thursday, 4pm-1am on Fridays; 12pm-1am on Saturdays and 12pm-10pm on Sundays.

While the special festive space is obviously closed on Christmas and Boxing Day, there will be a special New Year’s Eve event announced soon.

Booking in advance is recommended to secure your preferred dates and times for a table, especially if booking for several people. Walk-ups are available but will be subject to availability.

Book now HERE

Featured Image — Supplied

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Three Little Words and Seven Brothers Brewery are moving into Kampus this summer

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant

This week, Manchester’s waterside neighbourhood Kampus has revealed that two of Manchester’s best-loved indie drinks producers will be moving in over the summer.

Manchester Gin’s bar and distillery Three Little Words will be taking over the infamous bungalow, whilst Ancoats’ favourite Seven Brothers Brewery will temporarily move into the neighbourhood’s red-brick Minshull Warehouse – previously tipped to house a new taproom from Cloudwater.

This summer, the brewery – first founded in Salford nine years ago by the McAvoy brothers – will open the doors to the warehouse serving up their popular family beers alongside a few Kampus specials.

With seating inside and out, once the warmer nights arrive drinkers can once again enjoy the Manchester neighbourhood’s canalside beer garden.

Image: Three Little Words
Image: Seven Brothers

Set to open officially from the long Easter weekend, for the first time tables and chairs will be nestled throughout the giant tree ferns and palms, with visitors able to sample the delights of the impressive foodie community – including Nell’s, Pollen, Great North Pie, The Beeswing wine bar and Yum Cha.

Elsewhere, in the Bungalow popular local gin distillers and cocktail pros Three Little Words will serve up a sleek cocktail menu – all made up from their portfolio of multi-award-winning spirits from The Spirit of Manchester Distillery.

First opened in 2019 by Seb & Jen Heeley-Wiggins, the founders of Manchester Gin, luxurious cocktail bar Three Little Words has since won awards for its signature menu of innovative cocktails.

Both will kick-start on Friday 7 April, with an Easter Weekender of booze, beats and eats in store – with Nell’s Pizza also joined by guest DJs throughout the weekend.

The season is a major moment for Kampus, the first year when the neighbourhood will have a full force of eclectic independent operators fully trading.

More names are set to join too. Red Light will lift the curtain on the insta-friendly Little David Street LGTBQ+ cocktail den, with the opening date to be revealed in the coming weeks, whilst taqueria and mezcaleria Madre is currently fitting out its space ready to bring its take on Mexican goodness to Manchester.

Read more: Rio Ferdinand is helping change young lives with community programmes in Oldham and Salford

Seb Heeley-Wiggins, Master Distiller & Co-Owner The Spirit of Manchester Distillery & Three Little Words, said: “We’ve got such a loyal following and we’ve been on the hunt for a spot where people could enjoy our cocktails in a beautiful outdoor setting … spritzes in the sunshine. 

“Kampus absolutely fits that bill and will be an incredible summer posting for our team. We’ll be bringing our signature menu as well as some seasonal creations unique to Kampus.

“There’s so much going at the neighbourhood that we’ll be in good company. We’ve already got celebrations planned throughout the summer months, where we’ll be collaborating with incredible brands and creatives, and we’ve got a big surprise in store for next month. We just need a long, hot summer now.”

Read more: Police are working to bring ‘murder mastermind’ John Belfield back to Manchester after drugs arrest abroad

Keith McAvoy, CEO for Seven Brothers, said: “We’ve been big fans of Kampus for a while so we jumped at the chance to put on a summer-long party and create a new beerhouse here. The historic setting is stunning and we know we’ll create, hands down, the best beer garden in Manchester.

“We’re a family run business, born here in Greater Manchester. Our Kampus run is a fitting celebration for how far the brewery has come with the incredible support of every person who’s ever enjoyed a SEVEN BRO7HERS pint.

“We’ll be in good company with our brilliant independent neighbours and encourage everyone to come spend summer with us.”

Seven Brothers will be open Thursday to Sunday every week all summer, whilst Three Little Words will open Wednesday to Sunday.

Featured image – Kampus

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Huge line-up revealed for Leeds International Festival of Ideas

Sophie Smith Sophie Smith

The 2023 line-up for Leeds International Festival of Ideas has been released, and it’s all taking place in a brand new venue.

The huge event will bring together some of the most thought-provoking speakers of our time and is well worth the trip across to our neighbouring city.

Taking over the Leeds Playhouse will be a diverse programme and educational discussions, The Hoot reports.

Giving a glimpse of what we’re in store for this year, LIFI has announced the first of its highly-anticipated speakers.

Best-selling author and mental health campaigner Ruby Wax will be bringing  her unique brand of humour to the festival as she takes the audience on her journey to address the importance of mental wellness.

Ruby Wax portrait.
Ruby Wax is “thrilled to be a part of the line-up”. / Image: Supplied

The author, performer and activist is excited about joining the festival: “Leeds International Festival of ideas 2023 looks really exciting and I’m thrilled to be part of the line-up this year. I can’t wait to visit Leeds again and take audiences on my journey to mindfulness.”

Steven Bartlett, perhaps most notably known as the podcaster Diary of a CEO, co-Founder of Social Chain, and also as an investor on Dragon’s Den, amongst other business endeavours, will be taking to the stag to share an insight into ‘how he spots the next big thing’.

Steven Bartlett portrait.
Steven Bartlett will be telling Leeds how he ‘spots the next big thing’. / Image: Supplied

Bringing an insight into representation and inclusivity in the media, reality TV star and LGBTQ+ activist Bimini, will also be a key speaker at the International Festival of Ideas.

And this is just the beginning.

The four day festival promises to host a programme of panels and keynotes which focus on topics such as grief, political systems, womxn’s health inequalities and self-sufficiency, among others from Wednesday 27 September – Saturday 30 September 2023.

Bimini portrait.
Bimini is bringing a wealth of knowledge to LIFI23. / Image: Supplied

And what better venue than the Leeds Playhouse?

The award-winning cultural hub was recently recognised at the UK Theatre Awards as the Most Welcoming Theatre in 2022. With a mission to seek out the best companies and artists to create inspirational theatre in the heart of Yorkshire, Leeds Internationals Festival of Ideas, will be joining the long list of exciting productions, festivals and events that Leeds Playhouse have hosted over the past 50 years.

Martin Dickson, Leeds International Festival of Ideas has commented: “We are thrilled with the programme we are bringing to the city for LIFI23, built on the outstanding success of last year, we think it is our strongest speaker line-up yet.

“We’re also hugely excited to be presenting the festival at the incredible Leeds Playhouse, on of the most famous theatre venue in the city, a privilege and an honour.

“LIFI23 will once again address some of the most important social issues affecting us all, taking them on over 4 inspirational days across 11 events and shining an outspoken light on Leeds, projecting the city once again as a bold, innovative thought-leading city.”

The full lineups and tickets will be available from Tuesday 4 April but in the meantime those wanting to grab tickets are encouraged to visit the Leeds International Festival of Ideas website to sign up for announcements and ticket updates.

Read more

Featured image – The Hoot Leeds

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