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Britain is getting its first drive-thru horror maze – and it’s only an hour away

FestEvil is a live-action show that sees drivers steer through a series of famous horror scenes, with a traffic light system in place to guide vehicles around the maze.

The Manc The Manc - 9th September 2020

A drive-thru horror maze is landing in Britain for the first time – and it’s only an hour away from Manchester.

FestEvil is a live-action show that sees guests steer their way through a series of famous horror scenes – with a traffic light system in place to guide vehicles around the pitch-black maze.

Ghastly figures descend on each car as guests trundle through a blood-soaked, hellish landscape.

Given the gruesome nature of several scenarios, the attraction comes with a big red warning sticker recommending all visitors should be at least 16 years old (although it is up to parents’ discretion).

According to promoters FestEvil, which arrives just before Halloween, has been designed to “scare the hell out of you from the comfort of your own car.”

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The horror maze is being set up near an industrial estate in Wrexham, North Wales.

Sam Foulkes, Managing Director at Cyclone Events Management, assured that all the necessary precautions were being taken to guarantee guests’ safety.

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“This new innovative way to do a Halloween event is not only safe for our customers who remain in their cars throughout the whole experience but it’s also extremely safe for our staff,” he stated.

“The event has been hugely popular on social media and we cannot thank everyone enough for their support during these unprecedented times.”

Foulkes added: “This type of drive-thru event is extremely popular in the USA and to be able to bring that to the UK is fantastic.

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“We look forward to opening the gates of hell and welcoming our first victims”.

The horror maze is open from October 16 to November 1 with slots available daily from 6pm until 10pm.

Tickets must be purchased in advance.

Sales go live online at 9am on Friday (11 September).

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Stockport’s dedicated live music festival for people with complex needs is back for 2026

Danny Jones Danny Jones Live music festival for disabled people and complex needs Stockport

A music festival designed specifically for people with complex needs and learning difficulties is returning to Stockport for 2026.

Marking more than half a decade of this important push for accessibility across the local and live entertainment sector, we couldn’t be prouder to hear stuff like this coming out of Greater Manchester.

Created by the Stopfordian-born charity, Pure Innovations – which has various arms, from their multiple cafes across the region, to Pure College in the town centre, events like this and more – this particular initiative is celebrating its sixth edition this year.

But it certainly doesn’t run itself, and it takes a lot of time and effort, not to mention truly admirable levels of commitment from volunteers, to put this thing on; with that in mind, we’re doing our little bit.

Whether it be helping spread the word, getting involved with sponsorship, volunteering yourselves, or offering other kinds of contributions on the day, it all goes a long way.

The organisation as a whole has been around for more than two decades now, and some of us and you may know it well (this particular writer used to work there as a teen, in fact), and their now annual ‘Access Festival’ has become a much-anticipated date on the calendar for so many.

Emily, who has overseen the festival’s growth for more than five years now, said in a statement to The Manc, “After going to a festival a few years ago, I realised that it wasn’t just the music that stayed with me; it was everything around it.”

She went on to add: “The excitement beforehand, choosing what to wear, planning the day, and then sharing photos and memories afterwards. It made me realise that many of the people we support at Pure had never had that experience.

“Access Festival is a space where everyone feels comfortable, included and able to enjoy themselves. For most people, going out to a gig or a festival is no big deal, but for many of our clients, this is the highlight of their year, a chance to connect and simply enjoy live music.”

Highlighting the charity’s long-standing commitment to ensuring that people with learning difficulties, autism and other disabilities are not denied access to everyday experiences, they’re now calling on fellow nearby businesses to help bring the festival to life.

We spoke to Emily and the rest of the team when we visited Pure’s in-house kitchen, bakery and workshop earlier this year – safe to say this is the kind of stuff that warms the cockles.

Taking place at Stockport’s Guildhall, the one-day festival is a powerful example of the difference Pure can make in their clients’ lives, supporting them to live full, independent and connected lives, with several securing paid employment thanks to skills and support gained during their time with the team.

Designed specifically for adults with learning disabilities, autism and other complex needs, the Access Festival creates a space where people can enjoy live music, socialise and celebrate in a way that works for them, something lots are sadly still routinely excluded from.

With live music, DJs, not to mention plenty of singing and dancing, karaoke, raffles, plenty of food and drink, not to mention serving as a key social outlet, it matters way more to many of these attendees, carers, families and local organisations than you’ll probably ever know.

It’s grown from a small passionate project hosting around 30 people to a heartwarming local event that now welcomes more than 300 guests every year, and it’s only getting bigger and better as time goes on.

Whether you want to help out or go along for yourselves, you can register for Access Fest 2026 on Friday, July 17, right HERE.

disabled festival stockport
access fest 2026
pure innovations events
live music festivals in stockport
Credit: Pure Innovations (supplied)

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Featured Images — Pure Innovations (supplied)

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Music charity launches exclusive giveaway after naming Liam Gallagher as newest ambassador

Danny Jones Danny Jones Liam Gallagher adidas spezials Oasis merch giveaway

A local grassroots music charity is holding a special giveaway of exclusive Oasis x adidas Originals merch to celebrate Liam Gallagher becoming their latest ambassador.

The legendary British frontman and global rock icon is no stranger to teaming up with charities, but this latest project is seeing him focus on his hometown and the Manc music scene more than ever.

Brighter Sound, who are based right here in Manchester city centre, announced the one and only Liam Gallagher as their latest collaborator on Monday, 1 June, but that’s not all.

As mentioned above, they’re also holding a prize draw to raise funds for the cause, with some special kicks up for grabs – and they’re a model that became collectors’ items almost instantly.

The local music development organisation, which has been helping support young artists and aspiring creatives for more than two and a half decades at this point, revealed Liam would be teaming up not only to help promote fellow Mancunians in and around the music industry.

But there’s still much more to it than that.

With this special fundraising initiative also on the table – as are a limited edition pair of his sold-out adidas Achille SPZL trainers (including the extremely rare and highly sought-after Japanese-exclusive version) as part of the giveaway – this marks a commitment to supporting up-and-coming talent.

All proceeds from the charitable prize draw will go towards a crucial pot of money that will then go directly towards backing rising musicians across the region.

In case you haven’t seen the shoes in question, both Liam and his elder sibling Noel teamed up with adidas Originals during the Oasis Live ’25 merch boom and reunion tour phenomenon as a whole, each creating their own special ‘Spezial’ design. You can see more of them down below.

Adidas drop Liam and Noel Gallagher SPZL trainers
They obviously flew off the shelves rather quickly.

Speaking in an official statement, the 53-year-old said of the fresh partnership: “I’m honoured to be an Ambassador for Brighter Sound and support the new generation of creatives launch their music projects. We need more help for the arts, especially for the working class.”

Getting to work in and around his native territory across Greater Manchester will no doubt be an added bonus for the Burnage-born Gallagher brother.

He’s no stranger to non-profit work either, by the way, as he now famously backs animal charities abroad after rescuing and adopting a stray dog turned famous furry friend called Buttons.

As for Brighter Sound, the organisation’s director, Kate Lowes, added: “It’s a real honour to be working with Liam and his team on this special prize draw, and to welcome him as an ambassador for Brighter Sound. Manchester is an incredible place for music – and Liam and Oasis are a huge part of that story.

“This partnership reflects a shared commitment to making sure that more amazing talent continues to grow from the city and find its place on the world stage.”

For anyone looking to enter the prize draw and help support Brighter Sound’s work across Greater Manchester, you can do so right HERE.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Brighter Sound (supplied)/Jonnysmirth (via Wikimedia Commons)

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