If there’s one thing we know for sure it’s that none of us would be lucky enough to be on this planet were it not for our mums, and we think the least they deserve is for things to be made easy, comfortable and, ideally, free wherever possible when it comes to Mother’s Dayherein Manchester.
Now, we don’t live in a perfect so unfortunately not everyone Manc mum is going to be able swan into their favourite place and expect a complimentary this and a gratis that.
However, there are guite a few places in Manchester city centre doing the right things and giving away some free stuff for Mother’s Day 2025, so we thought we’d round them up for you and, more importantly, the person who helped bring you into the world.
Let’s get into, shall we?
Six freebies mums can score in Manchester this Mother’s Day
Albert’s Schloss – Deansgate
What better to begin than with a top-notch breakfast spot? Albert’s Schloss on Peter St is not only one of the best places to start or end a day out but they also do brilliant early morning offerings. Plus, this Mother’s Day, you can wash down your Bavarian brekkie with a free spritz, because why the hell not?
And since you’ve started as you mean to go on, we’d say the only thing better than an early drink (and a free one at that) is a second one, so it’s a good job one of the newest additions to Manchester, The Trading Route, is offering a free cocktail to mums this Mother’s Day.
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Best of all, the new S. John’s beer and food hall is located just down the road from the main Deansgate strip and is just next to Spinningfields, so it’s a short walk from Schloss. You can book HERE.
Speaking of which, if your and/or your mum resisted the urge to grab another bite at Trading Route (we wouldn’t blame them if they did), you could then head from St. John’s to Spinningfields and grab some a sophisticated bit of brunch as you grab your next freebie.
Habibi on Hardman Boulevard is giving away a complimentary luxury gift from home, body and beauty brand, Rituals, to those who book ahead. Consider that killing two gift-shaped birds with one stone.
Now, we’re not necessarily expecting you stop at every single place on this list – unless your feeling extravagant or your mum really is that mega that she deserves all of this and more – but you’d be a fool not to grab yourself a margarita on the house from any Nell’s location.
Besides, it wouldn’t be the worst thing to grab a slice to further line your stomach.
However, if mum hasn’t had a nibble in a hot minute then why not take her back in the direction you came from to beloved Polish restaurant, Platzki, who as well as serving an incredible main menu are also offering a free cheesecake or apple pie to all maternal diners this Mother’s Day.
Open for walk-ins as always, of course, but you can reserve your table HERE.
Credit: The Manc Group
House of Fu – Central
And last but not least, what harm would another free marg do? That’s what on the cards over at House of Fu, which just so happens to be up there with some the best ramen in Manchester if there’s still any room in that well-treated tummy.
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Located on Portland Street, it’s also not too far from Picadilly, the bus station or St Peter’s Square tram stop when you and your mum are ready to call a day on this freebie parade… Or, you could always tie off the night with some karaoke downstairs. Now that’s how you put an end to a party.
We’d like to think that half a dozen options should just about do you and your mums in central Manchester, though we’re sure there’s plenty more free things to snap up this Mother’s Day.
The cynics might want you to believe that this date is just another annual observance created, or at least perpetuated by companies to sell cards, flowers, chocolate and son, but the truth is a special day that deserves to be celebrated properly.
In fact, the truth is that Mothering Sunday started nearly 120 years ago over in Philadelphia, when a woman named Anna Jarvis wanted to honour her mother who spent her life gathering groups to promote female friendship and health during a memorial service at her late mother’s church.
We think that’s wonderful and whatever your relationship with the mother figure in your life, we reckon it’s a sentiment and motivation worth sustaining much more than just once a year.
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Much love to all our mums from The Manc, and sorry if we were ever a pain – hopefully a few drinks makes up for it.
Manc music legends James announced MASSIVE hometown show
Danny Jones
Greater Manchester music legends James have just revealed a massive hometown show here in the city centre as part of a landmark domestic arena tour.
Daisy bucket hats at the ready.
James is arguably the epitome of what it is to be the understated, underdog British band; they’ve gone about the business of making quality music somewhat quietly for several decades now, but they’ve had a fresh wave of interest over the past year or so
Having opened up for the likes of Catfish and the Bottlemen’s comeback shows, not to mention playing multiple big festival slots in recent months alone, they’ve now announced a huge run of UK arena shows – and nowhere does a James crowd quite like us Mancs.
Details have been announced for our 2026 UK arena tour, and we’re delighted to be joined by very special guests @dovesmusicblog with tickets going on general sale this Friday at 9:30am. Access the ticket pre-sale on Wednesday via our official store: https://t.co/DwpGrAUESZ NBL x pic.twitter.com/A4CWVpCooL
Announced as part of the celebrations around their Nothing But Love ‘best of’ LP, which pulls tracks from James’ whopping 18 studio albums, the new run of UK arena shows in 2026 follows on from numerous noteworthy shows this calendar year.
In addition to the aforementioned outdoor gigs, like their stunning sold-out night at The Piece Hall in Halifax – not too far from frontman Tim Booth’s hometown in Yorkshire – the indie veterans also celebrated a huge landmark in 2025.
Surpassing the milestone of 40 years as a band, with a lineup that’s remained largely intact and only really grown in terms of live session players and touring bandmates.
The new “definitive” greatest hits record also includes two brand-new songs in ‘Wake Up Superman’ and ‘Hallelujah Anyhow’, both of which are produced by Leo Abrahams, who worked with the band on their long-awaited number one album Yummy in 2024 – a feat loooong overdue if you ask us.
As evidenced by the sheer amount of new material they continue to put out and the almost non-stop touring, they remain one of the most prolific artists in the country. FACT.
You can see the rest of James’ upcoming tour dates, including a healthy number of Northern stops in the likes of Liverpool, Leeds and more.
James UK arena tour dates 2026
Fri 2 Birmingham Utilita Arena
Sat 4 Leeds First Direct Bank Arena
Tues 7 Aberdeen P&J Live
Wed 8 Glasgow OVO Hydro
Fri 10 Newcastle Utilita Arena
Sat 11 Liverpool M&S Bank Arena
Mon 13 Cardiff Utilita Arena
Tues 14 Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
Fri 17 London The O2
Sat 18 Manchester Co-op Live
With James returning to Manchester for their Co-op Live arena debut next April, along with a sensational support slot from fellow local legends, Doves (I know, how lucky are you lot?!), you can bank on this one selling out quickly.
General admission goes on sale this Friday, 10 October at 9:30am, so you’d better be ready to grab yours in a flash.
You can find the ticket link HERE, and we’ll see you in the crowd for a good ol’ singalong.
Featured Images — Ehud Lazin/Press shots (supplied)
What's On
Electronic icons Kraftwerk announce first Manchester gig since 2017
Danny Jones
Pioneering German band Kraftwerk have announced their first UK tour since 2017, with fans having to wait almost a decade for another Manchester gig.
Thankfully, they’ll be heading back down the Autobahn and across the channel for a return to our shores soon enough with a long-awaited list of British and Irish live dates.
Kraftwerk remains one of the most groundbreaking groups in the electronic scene to this day, having paved the way for generations of new artists to keep experimenting with the genre in the 50+ years since their formation.
Heading back to Manchester early next year, die-hards will no doubt snap these tickets faster than you can say ‘Das Model’.
For anyone unaware of these veritable legends of electronica and the world of alternative/Euro-synth pop, Kraftwerk formed all the way back in 1970 and went on to shape the modern music industry, bridging the gap between music and the digital age.
Best known for tracks like ‘Computer Love’, ‘The Robots’, ‘Pocket Calculator’ and the aforementioned on named after the national motorway network, they spearheaded futurism in the musical landscape from the outset.
It seems only fitting, therefore, that their upcoming highly anticipated return to the UK comes as part of their ‘Multimedia’ tour.
While they have played a number of live shows all over the globe this year, including an extensive run in the US, next spring will be our domestic visit from Kraftwerk in nine long years.
Credit: Press shot (supplied)
You can see the full list of UK and Ireland tour dates – including a handful of Northern gigs – down below:
Spanning a total of 15 UK dates, as you can see, there will also be tickets to see Kraftwerk nearby in the likes of Liverpool and with our mates over in Sheffield.
Kraftwerk legend Ralf Hütter famously played a set inside our city’s velodrome at the National Cycling Centre for Manchester International Festival (MIF) back in 2009, and has collaborated with the event on multiple ocassions.
In fact, that very performance was seen as a turning point for MIF, so the Manc Kraftwerk connection speaks for itself; O2 members can obviously get pre-sale, but general admission tickets go live from 9am this Friday, 10 October.
Danny Jones -
29th March 2025 
