A wholesome day full of animal cuddles, tractor rides, food markets, and more is back in Cheshire next month.
While Bruntwood SciTech’s Alderley Park may be known as a unique place where world-leading science, innovation, and stylish living come all come together throughout the rest of the year, the Cheshire destination is getting taken over by a hugely-popular event for all the family for one day only this spring.
The adorable event – which was formerly known as ‘Farm Weekend’, but has been rebranded as ‘Spring Fest’ this year – has proven to be a massive success over the past few years, with families from all across Greater Manchester and the North West making their way to Macclesfield for some wholesome springtime fun.
And now, it’s back once again on Saturday 27 April.
Spring Fest returns next month with lamb cuddles, tractor rides, and more / Credit: Alderley Park
Spring Fest is set to be a chance to celebrate the magic of spring and everything that it means for wildlife, animals, and nature, and festivalgoers will be able to immerse themselves in countryside life and new beginnings right at the heart of Alderley Park’s scenic estate.
You can expect a jam-packed day full of different outdoor family-friendly activities, performances, markets, and lots of local food and drink.
To coincide with Bruntwood SciTech’s 10 year anniversary of acquiring Alderley Park this year, the 2024 event will include live music from Cheshire-based band The Roaming Empire, plus a live DJ to get attendees into the Saturday spirit, while other new activities include a woodland trail treasure hunts for curious kids, exciting off-road adventures with mini Rovers, alongside educational and interactive farming pop-ups.
There’ll be something for everyone to enjoy at the wholesome event / Credit: Supplied
The Alderley Park farm is home to 250 ewes and around 400 lambs, and this year, visitors will be able to admire the flock in the lambing shed, as well as pet other animals from the farm, and take tours of the whole site by tractor.
There’ll also be falconry displays, donkey rides, and spring crafts, while independent street food brands and bars will be popping up for a full festival experience.
Tickets to Spring Fest 2024 have officially gone on sale for £8 each this morning, with children under three going free and a 50p donation from each ticket going to charity.
Tickets are on sale now for £8 each / Credit: Jody Hartley (via Alderley Park)
“We’re delighted to launch Spring Fest this April, and can’t wait to bring our most inspiring programme yet to the community,” commented Daniel Bourne, who is the Director of Asset Management at Bruntwood SciTech, as tickets went on sale today.
“As we celebrate 10 years of the transformation of Alderley Park, we thought it the perfect time to evolve our Farm Weekend event and pack in even more reasons to love spring and all that it embodies, as nature is at the heart of what we do at Alderley Park and we’re delighted to throw open our gates to the community to experience the joy of the park”.
Spring Fest 2024 is happening down at Alderley Park in Cheshire on Saturday 27 April, and you can grab your tickets for £8 each here.
Featured Image – Jody Hartley (via Alderley Park)
What's On
The best things to do in Greater Manchester this week | 4 – 10 August 2025
Emily Sergeant
August has arrived, and so has the summer.
Schools across Greater Manchester are now out for the summer holidays, and that means the fun is just getting started, so there’s plenty happening this week to celebrate – from festivals, and themed events, to new foodie openings, family fun, and loads more.
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.
___
The Cat That Slept for a Thousand Years
Manchester Museum
Monday 4 August – onwards
The Cat That Slept for a Thousand Years / Credit: Supplied
You can step into the fantastical imaginary world of The Cat That Slept for a Thousand Years this summer.
This world-premiere exhibition, created in collaboration with robotics studio Air Giants, invites you to experience a playful blend of education, theatre, and dreamscape – and it’s unlike anything you’ve ever seen at Manchester Museum before.
Once you’ve met the 10-meter long sleepy cat, you’ll then find a series of fun, free, cat-inspired activities at the Museum throughout the summer, including an augmented reality trail.
The Science and Industry Museum has got a spectacular summer holiday programme packed with all sorts of things to be getting up to, making it one of the best places to escape the hustle and bustle with your little ones in the city centre this summer.
With events running up until 31 August, whether it’s disco dancing around a giant brain, unveiling the science behind optical illusions, or journeying through a giant ear canal, there’s something for everyone during the museum’s ‘sense-sational’ summer.
Loads To Do / Credit: Artem Kniaz | Yan Krukau (via Unsplash & Pexels)
Thousands of free activities have been planned by Manchester City Council ready for local families to take part in this summer.
A many parents, carers, and guardians will likely be looking for ways to keep the kids entertained for six whole weeks before the new term starts, the Councilhas relaunched its popular Holiday Activity and Food programme (HAF) to help keep little Mancs active during the summer break.
From arts and crafts, to sporting events and plenty other physical activities, there is a whole host of entertaining things for everyone to get involved with, no matter your budget, making sure no one gets bored over the holidays.
A free open-air cinema has arrived Manchester city centre for the summer.
With a backdrop of the modern Manchester skyline, Screen on The Square the go-to hangout for Mancs this summer, as audiences can recline in deck chairs surrounded by one of the city’s best views, and watch everything from classic and family films, to music, sporting events, and so much more.
It’s launched down at New Jackson – Renaker’s world-class skyscraper district and thriving new neighbourhood that’s taken shape at the southern side of Manchester city centre.
Stories – Brought To Life / Credit: The Manc Group
A major new National Portrait Gallery exhibition has arrived in Salford.
The ground-breaking new experience by FRAMELESS Creative has opened at MediaCity, bringing some of the world’s most famous portraits to life like never before.
Stories – Brought to Life will explore the fascinating lives of these figures, who have shaped the UK’s history and culture all the way since the Tudor period, and will combine the highest quality digital projection, Hollywood-style visual effects, and the latest audio technology, along with specially created musical scores and creative narratives to shine a new light on each individual.
Visitors will be able to step inside iconic portraits including Grayson Perry, Nelson Mandela, Malala Yousafzai, Emmeline Pankhurst, Queen Elizabeth I, and William Shakespeare.
Music for the Senses / Credit: David Oates Photography
An all-new multi-sensory art exhibition has taken over the streets of the city centre this summer.
The new exhibition, which is titled Music for the Senses: an art arrangement for a musical city, is a collaboration between global art producer Wild in Art – the creators of the famous Bee in the City project – and Manchester City Council.
Chester Zoo’s much-loved Afterglow event is back this summer, and organisers say it’ll be ‘bigger and better’ than ever.
Returning to the UK’s biggest charity zoo by popular demand, Afterglow is already known and loved for offering visitors the rare opportunity to explore the zoo and its 37,000 animals after hours… and this time around, there will be ‘even more’ surprises to discover.
Animal lovers will get the unique chance to encounter some of the world’s most endangered species during golden hour – which, for many animals, is one of their most active periods.
Find out more and see if there’s last-minute tickets here.
___
Summer Fair 2025
Trafford Centre
Monday 4 – 31 August
Summer Fair 2025 / Credit: Trafford Centre
A beach, splash park, fairground rides, and loads more family fun has returned to the Trafford Centre for the summer.
After proving to be massively-popular over the past couple of years, with thousands of families travelling from across Greater Manchester and beyond to bask in the sunshine and make the most of all the fun and games, the Trafford Centre has welcomed back its Summer Fair for 2025.
And this year, the beloved event has got itself a new family activity zone, and it sounds set to be bigger and better than ever.
The best bit? Tickets will only set you back just £3 each.
The SmileyWorld® Art Trail / Credit: Scott Kershaw Photography
Stockport has transformed into a playful outdoor gallery this summer as a colourful new art trail has taken over the town.
Visitors should get ready to explore a full spectrum of emotions this summer, as the SmileyWorld® Art Trail is making its North West debut and taking over the town centre with a colourful collection of quirky, fun, and exciting sculptures, each reimagined by a different artist to reflect the full range of human emotions including joy, pride, surprise, anxiety, and lots more.
The trail is created by trailblazing global arts producer, Wild in Art, in partnership with Totally Stockport BID and SmileyWorld.
Cheshire Oaks has brought its popular The Great Summer Social event back for another year, and there’s currently loads to get involved with while schools are out.
Not only is there a bunch of retail offers and promotions to make the most of, as well as free family-friendly interactive activities to get involved with too, but there’s also a big wheel, a mini golf course, a big screen showing entertainment events, DJs blasting out tunes, and a wide variety of street food and drink vendors across the Designer Outlet.
Kargo on the Docks / Credit: Supplied | Mark Waugh
Kargo on the Docks is back for the summer.
MediaCity’s al fresco dining pop-up has taken over the waterfront and gardens once again with a fresh wave of local food traders and stunning artwork by Salford-based creatives, all as the sun shines down on Salford Quays this summer.
A handful of Greater Manchester’s most popular independents have set themselves up Quayside inside those signature re-imagined shipping containers.
Foodies can expect a menu packed with bold new flavours including Caribbean, Lebanese, Mexican, Ethiopian, and Pan-Asian dishes.
It really wasn’t that long ago that cult-favourite beauty retailer Sephora opened its doors in the Trafford Centre, but now the city centre’s getting in on the action too, as after the first site proved so successful, a brand-new Manchester Arndale store has just opened, and she’s stunning.
Packed with all things skincare and beauty, there exclusive-to-Sephora brands in store, like Haus Labs by Lady Gaga, Rare Beauty, and many more.
NEW OPENING – Oop Stay Art Cafe / Credit: The Manc Group
A brand-new art cafe has opened up in Manchester where you can make your own phone case, paint a masterpiece, or craft an adorable Moru doll.
At Oop Stay Art Cafe in Chinatown, it’s all about switching off from the outside world and getting a little bit crafty, with seriously cute charms, patches and paints to play with.
Whether you’re building a phone case covered in miniature food charms or a claw clip plastered in flowers, you can do it with a matcha or an iced coffee – and leave with an adorable creation and a caffeine buzz.
There’s even a ‘messy room’ where you can whack on a rain coat and fling paint around to your heart’s content.
___
NEW OPENING – The Faraday
Northern Quarter
NEW OPENING – The Faraday / Credit: The Manc Group
As if the Northern Quarter wasn’t already one of the go-to spots for a pint in Manchester, a new pub has now opened its doors.
Set just off Stevenson Square, this brand-new boozer has a traditional-style pub upstairs and a haven of gaming downstairs, so think pints, performances, and pool – plus a banging happy hour and electric darts.
NEW OPENING – Dave’s Hot Chicken / Credit: The Manc Group
Say Drake, we hear that new chicken shop you’ve backed is opening in Manchester very soon.
That’s right – Drake-backed chicken brand, Dave’s Hot Chicken, is already known and loved across the pond, but now it’s arriving in Manchester and is setting up shop inside the Printworks in the heart of the city centre.
Once the Manchester location opens its doors, you can expect signature LA-style hot chicken with a full menu of seven heat levels.
Dave’s Hot Chicken in Manchester opens this month.
___
Featured Image – The Manc Group | Artem Kniaz
What's On
Britain’s beloved Bongo’s Bingo is coming to Kendal Calling for the very first time
Danny Jones
One of the UK’s biggest, silliest and best nights out, the almighty Bongo’s Bingo is making its festival debut at Kendal Calling 2025.
The crazy, comedy-driven mix of traditional bingo, dance-offs, rave intervals, crowd participation and all manner of shenanigans began over a decade ago, and has genuinely grown into a cultural phenomenon.
Be it a random weeknight or peak Friday-Saturday pint time, Bongo’s Bingo venues all over the country pack out with people ready to make a fool out of themselves in hopes of winning random prizes – even the completely pointless ones.
In case you’ve never seen it for yourselves before, here’s a little glimpse at the standard and frankly chronic level of chaos:
To be honest, this is still a pretty tame teaser trailer…
Sorry, why would you go to normal bingo when you can go to one where drinks and dancing are compulsory, and you can leave not just a life-sized Gary Barlow cut-out but even a Henry Hoover all in the same night?
Personally, we’ve been going to Bongo’s Bingo since pre-pandemic, as we’re sure lots of you also have; it’s now in over 50 locations, having recently tested the waters across the pond in the US, and they’re only planning to expand further this year.
Come 2026, we’re betting on them going well and truly global.
Founded by Jonny Lacey (a.k.a. ‘Jonny Bongo’ himself) and Joshua Burke back in April 2015, fast forward to the present day, and you’ll find a soul who hasn’t at least heard of the ridiculous bingo-themed party, if not experienced the madness for themselves.
With Kendal Calling promising plenty of other live entertainment and activities that quite literally cater to just about everyone, we think it’s the perfect place to make some noise and leave a mark, not to mention create another Northern stronghold.
Lowther Deer Park isn’t the only festival location on their list either: Bongo’s is also set to make a splash at BeatMasters Festival in Norwich and Oxford this summer. Speaking ahead of the festival debut, host Jimmy Sweets said, “Bongo’s Bingo is ready for Kendal Calling.
“We’re bringing the magic and mayhem for a special festival set this weekend, packed with bangers, classics, and hands-in-the-air madness as the UK’s most talked about night out comes to Cumbria.
“There’s nowhere else like Bongo’s Bingo to be immersed in pure escapism and nostalgia – this is going to be wild. Myself and Rich Furness are DJing back to back both nights, so come and get involved this Saturday and Sunday at The Soapbox. We can’t wait to see everyone.”
Bongo’s Bingo will be taking place this Saturday and Sunday, 2-3 August, from 11pm until gone half past midnight at The Soapbox tent. You can read our full Kendal Calling 2025 festival guide HERE, and we’ll see you in the fields – or at the very least in the bingo hall.
Just a glimpse of how nutty the audiences inside Albert Hall get on a regular basis. (Credit: Supplied)
Emily Sergeant -
1st March 2024 
