October half term is here once again, and that means there’ll be plenty of parents across Greater Manchester on the look-out for activities to occupy the kids.
Half term is the time most kids look forward to but most parents, carers, and guardians tend to dread, as it usually means having to search around for various different ways to keep the youngsters entertained, educated, and engaged, all while making sure they’re still enjoying themselves – which is, undoubtedly, a real task.
But this year, with the rising cost of living crisis continuing to make its impact felt nationwide, and more families struggling with their finances than ever before, finding ways to pass the time over half term is trickier than ever as many are looking to keep things on a budget.
Luckily, the bustling city of Manchester and everything it has to offer has got you covered.
From family-friendly art exhibitions and educational festivals, to exploring a brand-new city centre park, a whole host of Halloween activities, and so much more, there’s lots of things to do in our city over half term for free of charge.
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Here’s a round-up of just 10 things you could be getting up to this week.
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Pokémon: Art Through the Ages
Trafford Centre
A Pokémon art trail and treasure hunt-style event has taken over the Trafford Centre for the next couple of weeks, and it’s absolutely free to get involved with.
‘Pokémon: Art Through the Ages’ gives fans of all ages – but especially little Mancs – the chance to discover hidden art of the 151 Pokémon that were originally discovered in the Kanto region through an interactive trail, which event organisers say showcases “a wide variety of artistic techniques and styles” from across the ages.
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There’s cave paintings, stained glass, and more for families and Pokémon fans to enjoy free of charge.
Manchester Science Festival / Credit: Science Museum Trust
Manchester Science Festival has made a glorious return for 2022, with events for all ages taking place at the Science and Industry Museum and other venues across the city for free.
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This year’s event is celebrating science through immersive performances, interactive activities, and after-hours amusement, with highlights across the festival – including a headline exhibition Turn It Up: The Power of Music, a nocturnal nature tour, and a chance to meet people who already work in STEM careers, including experts from festival sponsors Amazon.
The museum’s 1830 Warehouse will be a hive of futuristic activity throughout the festival, showcasing new technologies, hands-on experiments, and the chance to play Rock, Paper, Scissors against a prosthetic counterpart.
Families can also plant and take home their own saplings as City of Trees show the role that trees play in helping to reduce the effects of the climate crisis, and can chat to the Lancashire Wildlife Trust to learn about how to keep nature in their neighbourhoods.
You can find out about everything happening at this year’s Manchester Science Festival here.
Halloween in the City & MCR Monsters
Manchester City Centre
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MCR Monsters / Credit: CityCo & Manchester BID
Looking for some free Halloween-themed activities this half term? Well you’ll want to keep your eyes peeled, as the iconic MCR Monsters are back once again.
Just as they have been doing for the past couple of years now, a while host of giant inflatable monsters have started looming and creeping over buildings across the city centre this week to transform some of our most well-known landmarks with tentacles and googly eyes and pointy teeth for a FREE monsters trail that kids absolutely love.
And this year, the trail is bigger than ever before, with 14 monsters to spot around town.
The MCR Monsters are part of this year’s Halloween in the City celebrations, where families are encouraged to don their best fancy dress and join in.
Some of the free events to look forward to this weekend include the Monsters Rock! Party Procession, with stilt walkers, monster puppets, and a five-piece band mingling with shoppers weaving through Manchester Arndale and Market Street, and the Creepy Carnival made up of a carousel, helter skelter, street food, and circus performers sprawling across New Cathedral Street.
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You can find out more about Halloween in the City 2022 here.
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People’s History Museum
Manchester
People’s History Museum / Credit: People’s History Museum
The People’s History Museum is one of the best places to take the kids for some education fun for free this half term.
The award-winning museum in the heart of Manchester city centre has got a wide range of exhibitions and activities happening throughout the week at its several galleries and event spaces – including a 2022 Banner Exhibition, which gives you the chance to come face to face with the handiwork of the people who fought for the rights we have today, and play some banner bingo too.
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You can also see The Manchester Agronaught, check out the dedicated exhibitions for Black History Month 2022, and so much more.
You can find out more about what’s happening at the People’s History Museum this half term here.
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Mayfield Park
Castlefield
Have you had the chance to visit Manchester‘s first new park in the heart of the city centre for more than 100 years yet? This half term couldn’t be a more ideal time to see it for yourself.
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It’s been a long journey to get here, but Mayfield Park has become a reality, and it’s now open for the public to enjoy.
Over the last 18 months, the vast and mostly-derelict former industrial site next to Piccadilly Station has been transformed into what project developers are calling a “stunning, accessible, and varied” green space for everyone who visits the city centre to make the most of.
Mayfield Park / Credit: Studio Egret West
As well as being a green oasis full of fresh blooms and beautifully-landscaped river walkways, there’s also a big play area for kids with a huge slide as the centrepiece.
Windows of Youth Creativity – We Made It / Credit: Wild In Art
Windows of Youth Creativity – We Made It is the latest exhibition by Wild In Art.
It will see 10 large windows and spaces transformed at prominent Manchester venues as part of a project commissioned by Manchester City Council to showcase creative disciplines such as photography, illustration, dance, sculpture, street art, mosaic, poetry and model making.
Taking place across the city, the trail will include giant robots at the Science and Industry Museum, photographs taken by young people living in East Manchester at the National Football Museum, a special installation at the Royal Exchange, and coral beds and mosaic sea creatures created by young people with special educational needs at the Town Hall Annex.
The project will celebrate youth creativity, and the diverse communities that live across the city.
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You can find out more about the exhibition and art trail here.
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Welcome Wednesday
Victoria Baths
Welcome Wednesday / Credit: Victoria Baths
Victoria Baths’ popular Welcome Wednesday event is being given a family friendly transformation for the half term this week, and a wide range of free activities will be on offer to entertain families throughout the day.
You can take part in a Stained Glass Window Workshop inspired by all the brightly-coloured patterned windows that are one of the amazing features of Victoria Baths, and have a go at making your own stained glass-style window decoration to take home, or visit the colouring station to do some creative drawing and the toy station so the little ones can spend some time playing.
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There’s also the chance to take free guided tours around the historic building and learn more about some of its quirky features.
Entry to Victoria Baths is free on Welcome Wednesdays, but donations are welcome – which all help to maintain the building for the community.
Halloween Spooktacular / Credit: New Century | The Manc Group
If you’re still in the mood for some more frightening free fun, then Manchester’s beautifully-restored new social destination, New Century, is hosting its very-own Halloween Spooktacular event this Sunday 30 October, and there’s a full day of themed events and activities for little Mancs planned to take over the whole space.
Free family fun events will be hosted both in the hall upstairs and downstairs kitchens – including frightful face painting, a bogey man bouncy castle, a photobooth, spooky workshops from the NOMA team, and plenty of food and drink available.
The upstairs space will also be transformed into a ‘Hellish Halloween Hall’ for the occasion, complete with a spooky light show courtesy of the iconic disco ceiling.
You can find out more about Halloween Spooktacular at New Century here.
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Power UP
Science and Industry Museum
Power UP / Credit: Science Museum Group
A huge gaming event has returned to Manchester, and it’s free for everyone to get stuck into.
With more than 160 consoles and hundreds of games to play, Power UP is back at the Science and Industry Museum for the first time in three years, and in case you haven’t heard, it’s been taking people on a journey through five decades of gaming – with everything from retro arcade games, to state-of-the-art virtual reality, and so much more.
Power UP is taking place every day throughout October half term, and each weekend all the way through to December 2023 – with each free ticket including unlimited play all day.
Looking for even more things to do in Greater Manchester this week? You can read our full ‘what’s on’ events round up here.
Featured Image – HalloweenMCR | Science Museum Group | People’s History Museum
What's On
The best things to do in Greater Manchester this week | 2 – 8 February 2026
Emily Sergeant
Hello February, it’s nice to see you.
A new month is here, the days are getting lighter, and spring is on the horizon, so of course, we’re really not short of exciting activities and events to be getting up to right across Greater Manchester – with everything from 360° walk-through projection shows and pie festivals happening this week.
Finding it a bit tricky to pick what to do though? No worries. We’ve chosen a few of the highlights for another edition of our ‘what’s on‘ guide.
Both free things and those that’ll set you back a few pennies are featured.
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The Festival of Pie 2026
The Black Friar
Monday 2 – 28 February
The Festival of Pie 2026 / Credit: The Manc Group
Did someone say £10 pie? The Festival of Pie is back at The Black Friar is Salford, and in case you didn’t know, that means delicious handmade pies are yours for a bargain price all month long.
Pick from the classic meat and potato, or opt for something a little different like garlic, chicken and leek, mushroom keema and onion bhaji, and our personal favourite, the truffle dauphinoise. Plus, you can add sides like mash and peas for just £3.
The deal is available all day Monday and Tuesday, and 12pm-6.30pm Wednesday to Friday, so don’t miss out before it’s too late.
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LUMINISCENCE
Manchester Cathedral
Monday 2 February – 26 March
LUMINISCENCE / Credit: Supplied
Manchester Cathedral has been lit up with a ‘truly stunning’ new 360° walk-through projection show this winter.
Combining 360° video mapping, new orchestral arrangements of iconic songs, and a narrative story celebrating everything that makes Manchester and its residents so special, visitors are now invited to step into a ‘spellbinding fusion’ of light, sound, and storytelling.
LUMINISCENCE pays tribute to Manchester’s rich cultural heritage through specially arranged orchestral renditions of iconic anthems – with the setlist including songs by Oasis, The Verve, Joy Division, and Elbow, just to name a few.
A huge gaming event is happening in Manchester at the moment.
With more than 160 consoles and hundreds of games to play, Power UP at the Science and Industry takes ticket-holders on a journey through five decades of gaming, with everything from retro arcade games, to state-of-the-art virtual reality, and so much more.
Power UP is taking place each weekend only throughout this month, with each ticket including unlimited play all day.
L.S. Lowry’s iconic masterpiece ‘Going to the Match’ is being brought to life right before your eyes in this brand-new exhibition now open at The Lowry.
LOWRY 360 is an immersive experience forming part of the legendary The Lowry theatre’s 25th anniversary programme, and it means that, for the first time ever, you can see one of Manchester’s most famous paintings by, arguably, the city’s most famous artist come to life through sight and sound.
Better yet, after you’ve immersed yourself in this incredible experience, then you can then see the actual painting in the full gallery – Modern Life: The LS Lowry Exhibition.
Manchester’s swankiest postcode has a brand new resident, and just days after quietly opening its doors, it’s already looking pretty popular.
Kouba is a brand-new Lebanese spot serving everything from brunches and coffees, to Middle Eastern grills and shisha. It’s an all-day, beautiful restaurant with a menu of freshly-cooked, halal food, and it’s going to be absolutely rammed.
Looking to escape the elements and have your mind boggled this winter? Sounds like a trip to Museum of Illusions is on the cards then.
It’s time to let your competitive side out – get ready to experience the city’s most unique attraction like never before. Race through the vortex, create the best mirror image, and complete the brain gym the fastest to win the dazzling trophy at the end.
Whether you’re team building with your work lot, or taking your mates for a bit of healthy competition, it’s a great one to have a go at.
Horrible Histories – The Concert / Credit: BBC / Supplied
For the very first time, your favourite songs and characters from the BAFTA Award-winning CBBC TV series Horrible Histories will be appearing live (and dead) on stage in our city.
Taking to the Manchester Opera House stage, featuring a live band performing the sensational TV songs, including guest appearances from Charles II, Dick Turpin and a bunch of Vikings that we couldn’t stop barging through the stage door, this is one show you don’t want to miss.
A brand-new dessert spot has opened its doors (or should that be windows) in Ancoats this week, and there’s just one thing on the menu… tiramisu. Layr is a hole-in-the-wall for dessert, with three different tiramisu flavours on offer – pistachio, matcha, and classic.
These perfectly-portioned puds are all freshly-made, alcohol-free, and halal.
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Bubble Planet Experience
Depot Mayfield
Saturday 7 February – onwards
Manchester will welcome a ‘dreamlike world’ filled with giant colourful bubbles this week when Bubble Planet Experience arrives.
Bubble Planet Experience has already been visited by more than four million people in cities across the globe, but now it’s time for its first trip to Manchester, where it’ll pop up inside Depot Mayfield, and visitors will be able to explore 10 themed rooms, each one offering a different surreal landscape that will ‘blur the boundaries between dream and reality’.
Tim Burgess – Live and In Conversation / Credit: Supplied
Tim Burgess returns to AO Arena by popular demand, once again, for Q&A-Sides with Chris Hawkins.
Fans of the iconic musician are in for a treat, as you’ll be treated to an intimate evening of acoustic music and conversation.
This setting offers a unique opportunity for fans to connect with The Charlatans frontman, as he reflects on his storied career, musical inspirations, and personal anecdotes, so expect candid stories, unforgettable music, and more.
Read our full interview with Tim and get your last-minute tickets here.
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Featured Image – Supplied | The Manc Group
What's On
Manchester Pride WILL return for 2026, including the parade and party
Daisy Jackson
Manchester Pride will be returning to the city this summer, complete with the legendary parade, a party in the Gay Village, and the annual candlelit vigil.
The LGBTQ+ celebration’s future had been thrown into doubt following the collapse of the Manchester Pride Events Ltd company last year.
But now it’s been announced that the beloved event will return, delivered by a not-for-profit, Community Interest Company with a board of unpaid directors. t
Every pound of profit will go to supporting LGBTQ+ charities, grassroots organisations and community services.
Manchester Village Pride will have the backing of key partners including Manchester City Council, Marketing Manchester, Cityco and Equity, alongside LGBTQ+ organisations, charities and community stakeholders.
Plans are now in place for Pride to return over August Bank Holiday weekend again, between Friday 28 and Monday 31 August.
Over four days, Mancs will be able to gather together for the parade, the Village party, and the vigil, plus a vibrant Pride Fringe of arts, culture and nightlife events.
Manchester Village Party has received £120,000 from village venues, reflecting the determination of local LGBTQ+ businesses to safeguard Pride and ensure it remains rooted in the community which created it.
Carl Austin-Behan, one of the founding board members and spokesperson for Manchester Village Pride CIC, said: “Manchester Village Pride is built around a simple belief. Pride has a home – and that home is the Village – but Pride belongs to everyone.
“This is a really exciting time for our community. We have a chance to start again. 2026 is a year of rebuilding, reestablishing trust, reconnecting with Pride’s origins and reinforcing the role of the Village as the heart of the celebration.
“From 2027 onwards MVP plans to develop a wider programme of citywide activity around Pride.
“Bringing Pride home to the Village is about more than location. It is a commitment to responsibility: paying artists properly, funding community groups, supporting charities, protecting LGBTQ+ heritage – and building a sustainable future for Pride in Manchester.”
Deputy Council Leader Cllr Garry Bridges said: “Pride is vital for Manchester, as a symbol of our welcoming and inclusive city, a chance to celebrate our LGBTQ+ communities and to highlight injustices which still exist.
“The Council have always been clear that Pride must happen this year. Manchester Village Pride came to us with a strong and credible plan which we are happy to support. Who better to organise our city’s Pride than the people who work with our LGBTQ+ communities all year round?”
Rachel Bottomley, Managing Director of the LGBT Foundation, said: “We’re proud to stand alongside Manchester Village Pride as it rebuilds a celebration shaped by and for the community. This renewed focus on community and transparency is an opportunity to ensure LGBTQ+ people across Greater Manchester feel supported, represented, and empowered. We look forward to playing our part in continuing to spread hope and joy, with our Village Angels helping keep people safe over the Manchester Village Pride weekend.”
Darren Knight, Chief Executive of George House Trust, said: “George House Trust’s history is built on the passion and determination of Greater Manchester’s LGBTQ+ community. For the last 40 years, the August Bank Holiday weekend in Manchester has been about inclusion, voice and making life better for people! Everyone at George House Trust is proud to stand in solidarity to ensure that for 2026 and beyond, there’s no change in that.Pride has always been, and will always be, for everyone.
“It’s great to see this community response and we hope we see you at the vigil.”
Karen Lockney, Equity’s North West Official said: “Equity is delighted that Manchester Village Pride will be signing an Equity agreement – the first ever UK union agreement for a Pride event. Not only will this guarantee fair pay and professional industry standards for all performers, but it also provides the workers of a Manchester Village Pride with a meaningful dialogue and a say over the terms of their work.
“Pride events fight for the rights of the LGBT+ community and that must include workers’ rights. We hope other Pride organisations will follow Manchester Village Pride’s fantastic example. This is testament to the work of members of Equity’s Drag Network, staff, and Equity members in the Village and our Greater Manchester branch.
“We have consistently called for unionised terms and conditions for Pride, and this positive development will restore the trust of our members in the event. They can be confident they will be paid and treated fairly in future. These are exciting developments, part of giving Manchester the Pride it deserves. An Equity Pride agreement is something for which the city should be truly proud.”
Emily Sergeant -
22nd October 2022 
