The city centre is set to be home to some brand new boutique accommodation as the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel opens its doors at the start of next month.
Kimpton Hotels & Restaurants – the leading global boutique luxury brand from IHG – will open its Kimpton Clocktower Hotel on Thursday 1st October.
It’s the brand’s fourth and final hotel to open in the UK, joining sites in London, Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Kimpton Clocktower Hotel is a magnificent, terracotta Grade II listed building, with a history dating back to 1890 when it first opened as The Refuge Assurance Company headquarters. The grand clock tower at the centre of its striking Victorian architecture is an unmistakable landmark on Manchester’s skyline.
All 270 loft-style bedrooms – including 11 suites – were designed to make the most of the stunning, double and triple-height ceilings. Other original, period features – including glazed bricks, tiles and faience, stained glass and carved wooden staircases – meet contemporary fittings and interiors, such as the three-metre-tall bronze horse by artist Sophie Dickens, which sits in the lobby and is a piece that denotes a horse-and-carriage ‘turning circle’ that once stood on the spot.
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Guest rooms offer an homage to Manchester’s iconic music scene, with vinyl records of the city’s most iconic bands – from the Stone Roses and Oasis, to Elbow and Take That – available to play on record players in each room.
Each room borrows design inspiration from the spirited and renowned Manchester party and music scene, with vibrant, bespoke textiles designed by Timorous Beasties, which incorporate the iconic Manchester worker bee and bold contemporary graphic prints adorning the walls.
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Hotel guests will enjoy Kimpton’s signature perks such as in-room yoga mats and the ‘Forgot It? We’ve Got It!’ service offering important guest essentials.
Free tuck boxes of treats in all rooms – as well as fresh milk and mineral water in the fridge – make for a relaxing in-room experience, and guests can also expect the brand’s industry-leading pet-friendly attitude and an approachable luxury experience fuelled by a hotel team who is committed to delivering heartfelt care and personal service in surprising ways.
Those wanting to make human connections can meet fellow visitors across social distanced tables at the nightly Kimpton Social Hour to bond over hosted drinks from 5-6pm at The Winter Garden – an interior glasshouse within The Refuge, which is a dining room and public bar set in a 10,000 square foot of space.
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IHG / Kimpton Clocktower Hotel
A 10-minute walk from Manchester Piccadilly Station, Kimpton Clocktower Hotel is located in the heart of the city, opposite Oxford Road Station. Visible from all around thanks to its clock tower, it is less than five minutes by foot from the world-famous LGBTQ area of Canal Street, and close to the city centre’s shopping areas and department stores.
For those looking to explore Manchester on two wheels, Kimpton-branded bikes are available for hire free-of-charge.
Destination bar and restaurant, The Refuge by Volta, serves globally inspired small plates, craft beers and cocktails curated by the award-winning team from Volta and has a uniquely curated programme of events and happenings.
The hotel also offers 17 meeting rooms – featuring charming Edwardian detailing alongside 21st century technology – with capacity from four to 1,000, thanks to the largest ballroom in a hotel in the north west of England.
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Johan Scheepers – General Manager at Kimpton Clocktower Hotel – said: “Kimpton Clocktower Hotel is the latest addition to the global Kimpton brand. Each Kimpton hotel is an escape from the ordinary, and Kimpton Clocktower Hotel will offer a real ‘wow’ factor stay with a warm Mancunian welcome.
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“Kimpton continues on its incredible expansion across the globe with the opening of Kimpton Clocktower Hotel marking our fourth opening in the UK.
The Kimpton brand is rooted in human heartfelt connections and we look forward to welcoming guests and locals in a city world renowned for its warmth, charm and exuberance.”
Double rooms at Kimpton Clocktower Hotel start from £120 (inc VAT, Service Charge and Full English Breakfast).
Bookings are now available via the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel website here.
The safety and wellbeing of guests and colleagues amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is of top priority, so the newly-introduced IHG Clean Promise giving guests extra reassurance and you can find out more at kimptonhotels.com/Clean
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Microdot exhibit for BRITs 2026: the artwork of Oasis, Verve and more up in Manchester Piccadilly
Danny Jones
If you’ve passed through Manchester Piccadilly of late, you might have noticed two things: one, it’s really quiet, and two, there’s loads of cool Britpop merch and memorabilia on display, including original Oasis, The Verve, Inspiral Carpets art and more – all courtesy of Microdot.
Set up as part of the city’s own BRITs celebrations, along with a raft of other nationwide festivities, as the annual music award ceremony prepares to make its Manc debut at the Co-op Live this month, the showcase features special edition frames and more, all pride of place in the middle of the train station.
This collection, simply entitled ‘A Microdot Design’, is all done by the legendary Brian Cannon, the graphic designer and art director behind so much recognisable visual material within the genre.
We recently had the honour of speaking to the man himself in person ahead of Piccadilly’s temporary closure; you can see our interview with him right here:
The Wigan-born artist and visionary didn’t just make promotional materials for some of the biggest bands in the 1990s; he’s responsible for what has gone on to become some of the most familiar iconography in British music history.
With this pop-up exhibit available for a limited time only, we strongly urge you to go along and, for once, take your time rather than rushing around the station as you peruse the boards placed right near the main entrance.
Charting his work from circa 1990 up until now, it’s crazy to see just how many of Brian and Microdot’s fingerprints are all over so many different bands and artists.
From native names like Oasis, The Verve and the Inspirals, as mentioned, as well as the likes of Cast, Super Furry Animals, Suede and Ash, plus so many more, this guy has been nothing short of prolific over the past few decades.
Audio North took a little tour of the King Street South unit last year in the lead-up to Oasis Live ’25 reunion world tour, and we felt like kids in a Britpop sweetshop.
While this site has sadly since closed, shutting up shop back in July, Brian’s mini, modest, but nevertheless magic Microdot Boutique up in the Lake District is still standing.
Located in the popular North West town and tourist attraction, Kendal, it’s worth a trip there to see more of his portfolio alone.
Currently on display at Manchester Piccadilly ahead of the full 2026 BRITs Week and shindig at Co-op Live, it’s one of the best completely free things you can do in town at the moment – but the exhibition finishes on Sunday, 1 March, so make sure you don’t miss it.
Speaking of the BRIT Awards, if you’re wondering what else is on as 0161 gets ready welcome them for their two-year stint (at least), look no further…
Two brothers from Oldham are beating out the likes of Taylor Swift in the iTunes charts
Danny Jones
A pair of brothers from Oldham who simply go by Two Connors are now holding on to the top spot in one of the biggest iTunes charts, and they’re beating the likes of Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Bad Bunny and many more.
Stuff your global music stars, we’ll back a duo from Greater Manchester all day long.
Danny and Callum Connor, a couple of blokes from Oldham in their mid-30s, are currently number one in the iTunes singles charts with their latest song, ‘Familiar Faces’, but this isn’t the first time they’ve gone big with a release online.
Carving out their own little corner not only in the old Lancashire borough but a small pocket in the UK’s wider grime, drill, rap and hip-hop scene, they’ve only gotten bigger over the last 18 months or so.
After releasing their first two tracks back in 2024, Callum and Danny have been on a very gradual rise, but they quickly gained a cult local following in and around Oldham.
Writing about life and around the area, with high personal and anecdotal lyrics that feel like niche references and in-jokes specifically for‘Roughyed’ residents – it’s not just music by them but FOR them.
In addition to recording their own unique cover of ‘Bad Habits’ by Ed Sheeran, they also went fairly viral for releasing a music video featuring crowds of local children.
Putting their own chant-based chorus slant on ‘Hi Ho, Hi Ho, “It’s off to Work We Go”‘, written by Mitch Miller and The Sandpipers (yes, as in the main theme from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs), it was a fairly radio-friendly tune that was easy for kids and more to sing along with.
With various other natives getting involved in the music video, joining them on the town centre streets and lip-syncing the lyrics, it was circulated online all over Britain and beyond.
You can watch it in full down below.
Fast forward to February 2026, and not only have they grown their following across the region, but even further afield now, as it turns out; currently sitting ahead of ‘Opalite’ from worldwide smash-hit album, The Life of a Showgirl, who needs big label backing, eh?
Bringing smiles to even more Greater Mancs by quite literally shining the spotlight on ‘Familiar Faces’ and punters from nearby pubs such as The Up Stepps Inn and former nightclub Sruples, it is a real tribute to their homeland.
Only time will tell how long they’ll cling to that iTunes top spot, but with nearly 73,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and counting, they might be one of the biggest music names to come out of OL in some time.
In other big news over in Oldham, on the sporting side of things, RLFC are staring down yet more uncertainty, with local hero Bill Quinn also wrapping up his time at the club.
Emily Sergeant -
8th September 2020 
