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You can still grab tickets to Manchester’s new comedy festival next month – with James Acaster, Aisling Bea, and more on the lineup

LAUGHTERAMA is an all-new five-night festival coming to Castlefield Bowl.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 23rd August 2022

James Acaster, Aisling Bea, and Rosie Jones are among the heavy-hitting names set to bring the laughs at a brand-new comedy festival in Manchester next month.

And you’ve still got time to grab tickets.

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Taking over Castlefield Bowl in the heart of Manchester city centre from 21-25 September 2022, LAUGHTERAMA is an all-new five-night festival that combines a packed lineup of some of comedy’s most famous and multi-talented names, alongside a first-class selection at the bars and some of the city’s best street-food traders.

LAUGHTERAMA is a new venture from the sibling team behind a series of successful comedy festivals that run annually across London and the South, and comedy fans in Manchester can expect a mix of the biggest names in stand-up to take to the same stage alongside some of the brightest new talents.

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Now, with less than a month to go, tickets are selling fast and it’s gearing up to be “a seriously good time in the heart of the city”.

Some of the other names on the talented lineup include the legendary Dylan Moran, Taskmaster’s Phil Wang, observational master and star of The Last Leg Josh Widdicombe, the inimitable Daniel Kitson, and so many more.

The lineup for the inaugural LAUGHTERAMA / Credit: LAUGHTERAMA

Edinburgh Comedy Award-winner Rose Matafeo will also be performing, as well as one-liner king Milton Jones, lo-fi hero David O’Doherty, the Mash Report’s Nish Kumar, Mock The Week’s whipsmart wordsmith Rhys James, and the hilarious Kiri Pritchard-McLean on the lineup too.

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Homegrown Manchester talents Stephen Bailey, and Josh Jones will also make appearances.

Alongside a lineup of local names, a handful of fast-rising newcomers on the comedy circuit will also perform, including Fatiha El-Ghorri, Huge Davies, and Celya Ab – who’s been branded the “comic shooting to fame”.

Read more: James Acaster, Aisling Bea, and more to bring the laughs at new Manchester comedy festival

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Many of the acts delighting the critics at this month’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival are also set to appear on the Castlefield Bowl stage, such as Amy Gledhill with her four-star reviewed “cartoonish flair”.

Rounding-out the jam-packed Laughterama 2022 lineup is the unflinchingly funny Jamali Maddix, podcast and rollerskate aficionado Lou Sanders, and finally, the incredible Tim Key – who is currently riding high from his critically-lauded Fringe show.

LAUGHTERAMA is an all-new five-night comedy festival coming to Castlefield Bowl next month / Credit: Supplied

For the last fifteen years, sibling duo Will Briggs and Cass Randolph have been bringing a blend of comedy programming in boutique-festival settings to sell-out crowds, and the pair are now looking forward to arriving right here in Manchester next month.

“We’ve been dreaming of bringing this festival to Manchester for a long time now,” Will said.

“The city should absolutely have a stand-out event showcasing the wealth of comedy talent around at the moment [as] there’s a golden age for comedy right now, with so many platforms to enjoy amazing content. 

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“Many of our acts have their own TV or podcast series, but nothing beats live, and we can’t wait to put these acts in front of a Manchester crowd – we already know the shows are going to be electric.”

The “comic shooting to fame” Celya Ab, and the joyous Rosie Jones are on the lineup / Credit: Supplied

LAUGHTERAMA 2022 has partnered with used car dealer heycar for this year’s event, with the company’s Chief Commercial Officer Karen Hilton already singing the praises of the “truly world-class” lineup.

“It’s shaping up to be an incredible feel-good summer,” Karen said. 

“We have so much laughter to catch up on after the last few years and I can’t think of a better way to do it as the lineup is truly world-class and we’re particularly looking forward to seeing the incredible James Acaster, and my personal favourite, Aisling Bea in action.

“heycar is honoured to be sponsoring this incredible event and we can’t wait to see everyone in Manchester this September.”

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The unflinchingly funny Jamali Maddix will be taking to the Castlefield Bowl stage / Credit: Supplied
The hilarious Kiri Pritchard-McLean will also be making an appearance / Credit: Supplied

LAUGHTERAMA 2022 is landing at Castlefield Bowl from Wednesday 21 – Sunday 25 September, with tickets now on sale at £25 per person.

You can grab yours on the Laughterama website before they sell out here.

Featured Image – Supplied

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A new NYC-style pizza bar is opening in Warrington’s Time Square

The Manc The Manc

A new New York-style pizza bar is opening next month in Warrington’s very own £142 million Time Square development.

Called Parlour, it will serve up its NYC-style pizzas by the slice and as huge 22-inch pies from 11.30am every day.

As well as time-honoured favourites like margarita and pepperoni, Parlour’s pizza options will also a range of specials including a bee-themed pizza with chilli honey and a ‘controversial’ option with a Dr Pepper BBQ sauce.

Elsewhere, look out for The Controversial (tomato, mozzarella, pineapple and roast ham finished with rocket, parmesan and a Dr Pepper sauce), the Club Med (tomato, feta, spiced chicken, red onion) and the Vegan Deluxe (tomato, vegan’duja, courgette ribbons, Roquito pepper pearls, red onion, evoo and vegan parmesan.)

The handcrafted pizzas will be complemented by an eclectic menu of small plates ranging from tater tots and sticky sausages to mac n’ cheese alongside a range of delicious salads and healthy options. 

As for drinks, Parlour will stock a range of independently-brewed craft beers and cocktails.

Think craft beers from Manchester favourite Shindigger as well as Liverpool’s Love Lane Brewery and specialty cocktails celebrating a host of locally-made spirits.

You’ll also find classics like the espresso martini and mojito served alongside twists on favourites like the spiced Pornstar, watermelon and black pepper margarita and the Bridge Street zombie, which consists of three rums, balanced with pineapple, orange, guava, passionfruit and lime finished with a drizzle of absinthe.

Elsewhere, weekly ‘Bloody Mary Sundays’ will see Parlour working with the Warrington Market and sourcing different ingredients to create a different Bloody Mary each week. 

Elsewhere, look out for The Controversial (tomato, mozzarella, pineapple, and roast ham, finished with rocket, parmesan and a Dr Pepper bbq sauce; Club Med – Tomato sauce, feta, spiced chicken, tomato, red onion and Vegan Deluxe – Tomato sauce, vegan’duja, courgette ribbons, Roquito pepper pearls, red onion, evoo and vegan parmesan.

James Wrigley, Director of Parlour Bar + Eatery, said “It’s not long now until we open our doors and welcome the Warrington community to Parlour.

“We think it will perfectly complement everything that’s going on at Time Square, adding another layer of buzz to an already thriving destination. We’ve been working hard to ensure that we’ve got the food and drink right – it’s a real labour of love and we can’t wait for guests to come and enjoy it.”

Parlour will open its doors on 7 October at Time Square in Warrington.

Feature image – Supplied

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Intro, the 90s Manchester menswear store that survived the IRA bomb

The Manc The Manc

With a glut of new luxury menswear stores opening in Manchester city it’s easy to overlook what we already have.

In the past few years, Manchester’s welcomed the likes of KershKicks, KickGame, Sneaker63, Yards Store, Clints Inc and, more recently, END. Clothing, significantly upping its premium menswear game.

Whilst it’s been a long time coming, right now it feels like there are endless options for male shoppers looking for some luxury. But for those who knew where to look, there have always been a few reliable gems.

We’re talking about INTRO a local family-run clothing store that’s been dressing well-heeled Mancs ever since the nineties.

A fixture in the city centre for three generations, the business was originally started by the late Irvin Grant in 1980s in the Royal Exchange under the name Zico. 

The first floor of INTRO clothing on Deansgate. / Image: The Manc Group
Image: Supplied

Named after the famous 80s Brazilian footballer Arthur Antunes Coimbra, better known as Zico, the store became something of a go-to in the eighties and early nineties for fashionable gents – until the bomb hit, anyway.

After many happy years, the storefront was forced to relocate after it was nearly destroyed by the devastating 1996 IRA Bomb, which famously left little more than a bright red Market Street post box standing in its wake.

Fortunately, Irvin had already opened a second store, INTRO, with the same philosophy six years earlier. This meant that when disaster struck his sought after collections of exclusive, premium menswear were able to relocate to INTRO.

Sadly Irvin passed away from cancer earlier this year, so now the family legacy is being carried on by his sons Oliver and Adam.

They tell us: “Basically dad originally went to work for his dad in the late 1960s at his shop called Just in Fashion just off Market street.

“At the time, the store also carried the same philosophy of showcasing brands you couldn’t find anywhere else, in those days it was Levi’s flared jeans and Ben Sherman shirts!

“His mum also owned a shoe company specialising in handmade leather shoes from Portugal which celebrities like Tom Jones would wear.”

Image: Supplied
mage: Supplied

“We’ve always tried to stick with the same philosophy which continues to this: keeping it exclusive, and something you can’t find everywhere else, and that’s what we’ll always be like.”

“We’re not going to do commercial labels, we’re about being different a bit European […] We do things differently.”

“So from the 80s he had a shop called Zico then he opened a shop called INTRO in 1990, because Zico was at the Royal Exchange.

“We had two shops at the time, INTRO and Zico, and 1996 when the bomb went off Zico got hit hard and it affected business so Zico was written off, so that was the end of that in 96. But INTRO continued, yeah. and like I say 1990 established and hopefully we’ll continue.”

Read more: The hidden Manchester sneaker store selling £10k Air Jordans and rare Yeezys

Image: Supplied
Image: Supplied

Since 2000 you’ll find INTRO on Deansgate on the front of the Barton Arcade. Thirty-two years on, it’s still going strong and stocking some of the most sought-after exclusive luxury menswear brands on the market.

Inside, you’ll find clothing and accessories from brands such as Thom Krom, Transit, Hannes Roether, Danile Fiesoli, Tramarossa, Herno, Limitato, Off The Rails, PT Torino, Vision of Super, Cote & Ciel, Goti and many more.

Split across two floors, a quick dig into the rails reveals graphic t-shirts, sweatpants, hoodies, luxury trainers and rows upon rows of designer jeans.

Elsewhere, for those after more business-appropriate attire, you’ll find a mix of smart suit jackets and tailored but casual sports coats, jackets and overshirts, perfect for taking busy city lads from day to night.

As well as having a physical shop on Deansgate, INTRO also has an online store where shoppers can browse at leisure online. To find out more and visit Intro’s website, click here.

Feature image – The Manc Group

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