X-Factor winner Alexandra Burke, and local comedian Ben Nickeless are among the names starring in this year’s festive pantomime at Manchester Opera House.
Promising theatre fans “everything you could wish for in a panto”, a festive production of Aladdin is coming to Manchester city centre next month, and will see Alexandra Burke make her pantomime debut as The Spirit of The Ring, joined by local comedian Ben Nickless as Aladdin’s hapless brother Wishee Washee.
Alexandra Burke may already be a household name in the UK – having sold over five million records with chart-toppers such as Bad Boys, Broken Heals, and Hallelujah – but she has now also established herself as one of the UK’s most sought-after West End leading ladies after starring in The Bodyguard, Sister Act, Chess, Chicago, and is currently The Narrator in Michael Harrison’s production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat at The London Palladium.
Rochdale-born comedian Ben Nickless started his working life playing the comedy clubs in the North West, before his career took off in 2006 when he performed his own style of comedy and impressions on the BBC television series Let Me Entertain You alongside Brian Conley and Christine Bleakley, winning his episode.
Ben returns to the Opera House panto, after having already played Muddles in Snow White and Buttons in Cinderella.
Speaking ahead of the panto’s arrival in Manchester, Michael Harrison – Chief Executive of Crossroads Pantomimes – said: “I’m absolutely delighted that Alexandra has agreed to join us in panto this year [as] she’s a first-class performer and her stunning vocals are going to add a whole new dimension to this year’s show.
“Coupled with the quick-wit of the talented Ben Nickless, Manchester audiences are in for a real treat this Christmas.”
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Sheena Wrigley – Theatre Director for the Palace and Opera House Theatres – said: “After having to wait a little longer than usual for the fabulous pantomime to return to the Opera House, this year feels even more special for us all and we cannot wait to see families and friends enjoying the magic once more.
“There’s already a real buzz in the air and adding a truly special performer like Alexandra to the mix only adds to the excitement for this year – it can’t come quick enough.”
Aladdin runs at Manchester Opera House from Saturday 11 December 2021 to Sunday 2 January 2022 / Credit: Visit Manchester / Palace and Opera
Further casting will be announced later in the year.
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Aladdin is produced by the world’s biggest pantomime producer, Crossroads Pantomimes, and audiences can expect it to feature spectacular special effects, live music, beautiful costumes and stunning sets.
Aladdin runs at Manchester Opera House from Saturday 11 December 2021 to Sunday 2 January 2022.
Tickets prices start at £13, and you can grab yours here.
Featured Image – Palace and Opera
Kids & Family
The best things to do in Greater Manchester this week | 27 October – 2 November 2025
Emily Sergeant
We’ve made it – it’s spooky season’s spookiest week of them all.
Can you believe we’re leaving October behind this week? It may be the holiday of the dead, but Greater Manchester really comes alive around Halloween, and 2025 is absolutely no different as there’s loads to do this week – especially as schools across the region are now broken up for October half term too.
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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MCR Monsters 2025
Manchester City Centre
Monday 27 – Friday 31 October
MCR Monsters / Credit: CityCo & Manchester BID
The MCR Monsters are back once again, and you’ve got the rest of this week to get yourselves out there to find them all.
Part of the annual wider ‘Halloween in the City’ events lineup, just as they have been doing for the past few years now, giant inflatable monsters will be 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 trail.
There’s dozens of monsters to spot around town this year, so make sure to keep your eyes peeled and your wits about you.
Find out where all the monsters will be this year here.
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Pumpkin Lanterns
Manchester City Centre
Monday 27 – Friday 31 October
Pumpkin Lanterns / Credit: CityCo / Manchester BID
Have you noticed that Manchester’s adorable little pumpkin lanterns have already started popping up around the city?
If you’re looking to get in the mood for Halloween, but want to keep things a little on the cheaper side this week, then you need look no further than up above in the city centre as the annual decorative pumpkin lanterns are back once again.
Going on a little tour to see the lanterns in the trees in St Ann’s Square, Market Street, and beyond is the perfect activity for all the family, easy to plan, and great for pictures – and it’s free too.
Halloween Ghost Trains / Credit: East Lancashire Railway
East Lancashire Railway’s popular Halloween Ghost Trains are back this week.
Always proving to be top of the Halloween bucket list for people looking for ‘loads of spooktacular fun’ once the scariest time of year rolls around, those brave enough at lending the Monster Squad a helping hand at banishing ghosts and ghouls will be whisked away on a haunted steam engine through the atmospheric Greater Manchester countryside.
You’ll get to meet lots of ‘oddballs and curios’ along the way, including Count Brian the vampire, Veronica the witch, Zombie Bob, and the mad Dr Frankenburger as you board the rain ride of a lifetime.
What could be more cute and autumnal than rummaging around in a field in the October sunshine, hunting for your perfect pumpkin? Nothing, if you ask us.
If you’re liking the sound of that, then good news, as Kenyon Hall Farm’s annual Pumpkin Festival has officially kicked off and they’ve got THOUSANDS to choose from.
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As well as the fields full of pumpkins, there’s loads of seasonal items in the award-winning farm shop too (alongside masses of fresh produce), like tattoo transfers for your pumpkins, gonks, keyrings, and more.
And don’t forget to stop off at the cafe for their seasonal pumpkin specials.
Feeling brave? Scare City has returned to the North West with yet another ‘immersive’ horror experience in the lead up to Halloween.
Taking over the grounds of the abandoned Camelot Theme Park for ‘another year of terror’, just as it has done for the past four years, this year’s event features a selection of terrifying zones to weave your way through – some familiar, some brand new.
Tickets are now available to book at £29.50 for standard entry, or £44.50 for the ‘Gold Entry’ (both plus a booking free).
Find out more and grab tickets to this year’s event here.
Dare you enter the haunted Big Top? Gandeys Circus is back at the Trafford Centre, and is bringing along with it a brand-new spine-chilling and action-packed Halloween Spooktacular.
This legendary show will be filled with frights, delights, and dazzling sights for the whole family.
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Prepare for jaw-dropping thrill acts that will leave you gasping, grand production numbers bursting with eerie enchantment, and of course, plenty of laughter and screams along the way, as this is Halloween entertainment like you’ve never seen before.
Want to know what other Halloween-themed events are happening at the Trafford Centre throughout this spooky season?
Spooky season is here, and the Trafford Centre announced its lineup of Halloween activities to get stuck into, and from creepy crafts, to hair-raising rides and eerie evening entertainment, there’s something for every brave soul.
A Halloween trail has returned Quarry Bank Mill for one of the region’s most hauntingly beautiful seasonal events.
Returning for a second year, after proving to be an unforgettable experience for all ages in 2024, this year’s Halloween at Quarry Bank again features spooky light installations, a mesmerising laser garden, and a thrilling fire show, as well as live performances, and seasonal food and drink.
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Fog will swirl through the paths around the grounds, as glowing demon eyes watch over passers-by and giant skeletons loom over twisted trees, and if you’re brave enough, the trail then heads inside the mill itself.
The Night Market UK 2025 / Credit: @kt_perspecitve
The Night Market UK is making its grand return to Manchester this Friday.
Taking over the beautiful Grade II-listed Victoria Baths this Halloween, there’ll be everything from vintage sellers and independent makers, to cocktails, beers, and street food – plus live DJs, art installations and performances.
The former swimming pool, sports hall, and surrounding balconies will be taken over by more than 100 traders for the very-special event.
This Halloween weekend, Salón Madre over at KAMPUS is swapping out spooky for soulful as it celebrates the true spirit of Día de los Muertos – a vibrant tribute to life, laughter, and the legends we’ve loved and lost.
Highlights include free pool, £9 cocktails, DJs, and free tarot readings, all set against the colourful backdrop of Madre’s signature mischief. And for those who love a good costume, the best dressed guest will win an entire year of free tacos (T&Cs apply).
So, whether you’re in it for the spirits or the spiritual, Salón Madre’s Día de los Muertos celebration promises to be a weekend to remember.
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NEW OPENING – Horse & Jockey
Chorlton Green
When we heard that the centuries-old Horse & Jockey pub was going to be given a new lease of life by the team behind The Black Friar in Salford, we breathed a sigh of relief, as we’re in a world where pubs are closing daily and keeping these community cornerstones afloat is increasingly challenging
But this beauty on Chorlton Green is safe for now.
The team have kept all the amazing bones of the building and added even more charm, as well as a bring-you-to-tears menu of pub grub.
NEW OPENING – Power Hall / Credit: Science Museum Group
It’s been a long time coming, but the Science and Industry Museum has started welcoming visitors back inside one of the UK’s most significant industrial heritage buildings – the Power Hall.
Power Hall: The Andrew Law Gallery is a free working gallery where visitors can immerse themselves in the sights, smells, and sounds of the engine-driven ideas and industry that started in Manchester and went on to change the world.
Officially having reopened a couple of weeks back, it’s the latest building to open as part of a multi-million-pound regeneration project currently taking place.
Did you see that Manchester’s libraries are set to become ‘warm spaces’ with free hot drinks and WiFi this winter?
After millions of local residents have visited the ‘stigma-free safe spaces’ to escape and take refuge from the cold each year since they were first introduced in 2022, Manchester City Council has decided to reintroduce its popular ‘Warm Welcome Spaces’ scheme once again this year.
All 22 of Manchester’s public libraries are, once again, taking part in the scheme this time around.
Designed to ‘provide support to people who need it’ over some of the most challenging months of the year when temperatures drop, the Council’s scheme is offering a range of different services – and they’re all for free of charge.
Free hot drinks, WiFi and internet access, data SIM cards, and newspapers are just some of the things people can make the most of inside these ‘warm spaces’, as well as get access to information, advice, and extra signposting to other support services they made need in the city.
Have you noticed any ‘street nipples’ popping up around Manchester in recent weeks?
Yes that’s right, we did say ‘street nipples’, you heard us correctly.
In case you weren’t aware, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and as a way of marking this hugely crucial event, pavement studs across major UK cities like Manchester have been transformed into nipples as part of a bold conversation-starting initiative from charity Breast Cancer UK.
Pavement studs often go unnoticed, just like the early signs of breast cancer – but this clever new campaign is already stopping people in their tracks.
Need a spot for breakfast? Manchester’s newest food hall has got you covered.
House of Social now does breakfast – and my lord, are you lot in for a treat with this one.
From Ok Taqueria, there’s breakfast burritos packed with jalapeño sausage patties and all manner of other breakfast items, there’s a taste of New York from Dough Religion in the form of pancake stacks and in-house bagels.
And last but not least, Burger and Beyond has the hangover cure sent from the heavens, with breakfast buns and the most PERFECT hash browns on the side.
Summer may be over, but guess what? Now that autumn is well and truly here, that means we get to wear layers, cosy up in our favourite places, and eat heartwarming plates piled high with all the major food groups.
Whether you want the likes of Banyan’s bottomless Yorkshire puddings bigger than your head, or swapping your meat out for a pie (you heard us), we’ve got something to suit everyone… you can even get dog roasts too, if you ask The Refuge nicely.
Check out our top 25 best places to head to for a perfect roast in Greater Manchester here.
Roast dinners / Credit: The Manc Group
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Does your sweet tooth needing satisfying instead? Look at these spooky bakes.
Manchester’s most creative bakery has delivered the goods again this autumn, with a whole menu of seasonal treats and spooky pastries.
Half Dozen Other’s Halloween-inspired specials include a pistachio choux bun with a wobbly brain inside, an adorable pumpkin and pecan danish, and cherry cookie pie complete with witchy marzipan finger on top.
And beyond that, this month’s menu features a pistachio twist on their sell-out honey toast twice-baked croissant, a blood orange pain au chocolat, and a vegan charcoal cookies and cream croissant.
Or how about crumble and custard doughnuts instead?
Now we’ve got your attention.
Of course we’re talking about Baby Mayhem – the tiny hatch in Ancoats that’s become famous locally for its ice cream doughnuts, but now they’ve gone all autumnal with a batch of new specials.
Treat yourself to a warm doughnut, filled with spiced apple and topped with crunchy crumble and custard, or grab a sharer full of dinky doughnuts with ice cream and your choice of sauce, served on top of either a Biscoff or Kinder milkshake.
Fans of their weird and wonderful spaghetti ice cream needn’t worry either, because that’s still on tap, along with different fruity flavours like cherry.
Chorlton’s Horse and Jockey is reintroduced to the suburbs after stunning transformation
Danny Jones
The much-loved Horse and Jockey in Chorlton is back open for business following a major and marvellous refurb, which has seen the heart and soul of the pub restored to its former glory.
Opening just in time for the bulk of cosy boozer season, we’re about to spend A LOT of time in here.
With an impressive culinary pedigree to boot, the ‘new and improved’ Horse and Jockey was always bound to be a hit with critics and natives alike, we just weren’t expecting them to knock it quite so far out of the park – or, in this case, Chorlton Green.
Giving the already gorgeous 200-year-old structure a new lick of paint and then some, the new Horse and Jockey looks set to reassert itself as one of the prettiest, cosiest and tastiest pubs you’ll find in central Manchester.
Benefitting from sitting just outside the city centre, you’ve still got plenty of footfall from those who have seen Chorlton become a foodie destination all of its own, and those who have lived there all their lives.
Yes, you’ll still find plenty of old boys sipping their well-deserved pints and dogs curling up on the carpets here.
Now boasting up to 82 covers outside in the familiar evergreen beer garden, with table service in the summer, you can see this being a go-to spot for grub and a reliable watering hole for all year-round.
It’s also worth noting that it’s a pretty roomy venue inside as well, with an entirely refurbished upstairs seating area and a dedicated private dining space now, too.
The Horse and Jockey is glistening once again ahead of reopening this month. (Credit: The Manc Group)
Other touches we especially liked are bringing Chorlton Pale Ale – which used to be brewed right here in the Jockey itself prior to Covid – back on draught. It may be made elsewhere nowadays, but we’re glad to see it being shipped back to and served out of its ancestral home.
And it just gets better.
As well as supporting the local art scene by sourcing works from Greater Manchester creatives, they really are aiming to make this a community cornerstone.
They’ve taken the holistic idea of a public house right back to its roots, providing not only a place to meet, eat and drink for regulars, but also a real social outlet right in the middle of the suburb.
It’s also about supporting and celebrating traditional British pubs and the Northern working-class culture that goes along with it.
There’s still a recognisable style and familiar feel to the Horse and Jockey refurb. (Credit: The Manc)
The majority of the furniture is even salvaged from the pubs we sadly lost up and down the country, not to mention other businesses that have unfortunately closed post-pandemic and the continuing struggles facing the industry.
We’re lucky to have people like this putting drinks in our hands and keeping our bellies full, so we’re glad that they’re doing what they can to pay homage to those who have come before them as well.
Perhaps most heartwarming is that not only have they kept pre-existing staff in post during the switch-over, but they’re all welcoming back familiar faces from the past. Once again, this is about championing the beauty of British pub culture in all of its facets.
This is a proper foodie pub at its core, boasting cosy vibes just in time for the colder months; they even restored three of the five original fires that used to burn through the autumn and winter back in the day.
Bookings are live already, and if you’ve tried the Sunday roast at The Black Friar, you expect this place to fill up just as quickly – we’d reserve our tables early if we were you…
The food offering is substantial, filling and full of flavour. (Credit: The Manc Eats)
This may be a big rebrand and transformation, but there are also still the same old Joseph Holt favourites on the taps for those who love the classic lineup, and they’ve even used their ‘Trailblazer’ stout glaze on one of their cheesecakes. Safe to say, they have our undivided attention with that one.
Owner Neil Burke, who formally acquired The Black Friar two years ago and now heads up the revamped Horse and Jockey, said of the reopening: “I have a personal history with the Horse & Jockey and it’s always held a special place in my heart.
“It’s such a beautiful building, but it hasn’t been shining the way it should in recent years. As a local myself, I felt Chorlton deserved a proper foodie pub – somewhere that delivers brilliant food in a setting that does justice to the building’s history.”
To top things off, they’ve got Michelin-trained head chef Paolo Bianchileading things in the kitchen.
“The Horse & Jockey is an iconic part of Chorlton’s history and I’m proud to be leading its kitchen with the brilliant Black Friar team”, says Bianchi. “After gaining years of experience in Paris, Dubai and London, it feels great to be rooted in Manchester, a city I’ve really fallen in love with.”
“My vision is simple, to serve British classics that people know and love, elevated with seasonal local ingredients, touches from my Italian heritage and international experience. The menu will be ever-changing, so guests can expect something fresh every time they visit.”
As for your job, it’s simple: expect great, hearty pub grub classics elevated to a gourmet level, with all the welcoming warmth of a traditional English pub.
This isn’t just a metropolitan boozer trying to be acountry-style pub; the Horse and Jockey is a Chorlton gem reborn. It opens on Monday, 20 October, and you can guarantee you’ll be seeing us there.
Emily Sergeant -
9th November 2021 
