An all-new water park, funfair, beach, and giant 15sq m outdoor screen showing classic films and some of the summers biggest sporting events are all arriving at the Trafford Centre next month.
After what was a successful run back in 2021, and with the summer season now officially here, the UK’s third largest shopping centre has announced that its “most significant outdoor event to date” will start to arrive later this month, and offer a full lineup of family-friendly activities for everyone to enjoy throughout the day and into the night.
Summer Daze will span an impressive 2.5 acres of land, and will be located outside the Great Hall up until 4 September.
One of the new events arriving for 2022 is the Trafford Centre’s summer of sport – which is set to go live from 27 June – and it will give sports-lovers the chance to gain free to access to a fan zone to watch some of the summer’s biggest sporting events such as Wimbledon, Tour De France, UEFA Women’s EURO 2022, and the Athletics World Championships, all on a 15sq m giant outdoor screen.
Then, from 22 July, a further two big screens will arrive to show more live sports and a full lineup of classic films throughout the summer.
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The popular funfair will also return in all its glory from 22 July, with an exciting upgrade of rides – including one called ‘Sea Storm’, where you can ride the wave in individual cruisers – and complete with a 600sq m beach and brand-new 200sq m splash park, with multiple water jets for guaranteed family-friendly fun.
Summer Daze will span an impressive 2.5 acres of land, and will be located outside the Great Hall when it opens / Credit: Trafford Centre
Some former favourites from last year are also set to make a return too, including the log flume, bungee trampolines, wave swinger, water balls, pirate ship, and bumper boats.
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The centre also promises that a new outdoor food and beverage zone will be a part of the summer celebrations this year, and has confirmed that a lineup of outdoor live music acts will be announced in the coming weeks, so keep your eyes peeled.
Outdoor Screen Schedule
Wimbledon: 27 June – 10July
Tour De France: 1– 24July
UEFA Women’s EURO 2022: 6 – 31July
Athletics World Championships: 15 – 24 July
Commonwealth Games: 28 July – 8 August
European Championships Athletics: 11 – 21 August
Vuelta a España Cycling: 12 – 31 August
The Hundred: 1 – 3 September
Tour of Britain: 4 – 11 September
Rugby Sevens: 9 – 11 September
Details of the lineup of classic films are soon to follow.
“This is an incredibly exciting time for Trafford Centre, as our outdoor event sees a major refresh for summer 2022,” said Zoe Inman, Centre Director at Trafford Centre.
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“The giant experience offers a variety of activities and amusements for all ages to enjoy, the perfect opportunity for a family day out in the North West and we look forward to welcoming our existing loyal and new customers throughout the summer season for a new leisure experience”.
The Trafford Centre’s summer celebrations are returning after a successful run back in 2021 / Credit: Trafford Centre
Entry to Summer Daze is on a first come first served basis, and it will be open from 12pm daily.
Anyone with a fairground wristband will also have viewing access to one of the three big screens from the beach area, and the only element of the outdoor event which is available to pre-book is the fairground.
Find out more on the Trafford Centre website here.
Featured Image – Trafford Centre
What's On
Festive pop-up cafe filled with hundreds of dogs in Christmas jumpers is coming to Manchester
Emily Sergeant
Are you a dog person? Love seeing lots of little pups in the same place? Looking for your dog to make some four-legged friends?
Well you’re in luck, as the Pup Up Cafe is heading back out on a tour of the UK next month, and if the concept of the popular event wasn’t already flipping cute enough as it is, this time around, it’s a Christmas-themed edition, and it’s sounding set to be the perfect festive day out in the city with your fur baby.
If you’re looking to get in the Christmas spirit early, then both the ‘Jingle Paws’ all-breeds and dedicated ‘Dashing Dachshund’ pop up cafes – or we should say ‘pup up cafe’ – are returning to Manchester in late November.
The adorable events will be filling a popular city centre venue with loads of dogs to celebrate the most wonderful time of the year.
A festive pop-up cafe filled with hundreds of dogs in Christmas jumpers is coming to Manchester / Credit: Supplied
Last year, hundreds of different dogs visited the cafe to join in on the festive fun, and this year is expected to be no different, as the event organisers have secured a large city centre space for all the dogs to roam free.
Whether you’re a dog owner yourself, or just a big fan, everyone’s free to attend to mingle with many furry little friends, take part in a range of seasonal activities, and stock up on canine-related goodies as early Christmas presents.
There’ll be ball pits, toys, and tunnels for all the zoomies, while the pups themselves can enjoy unlimited dog treats and free puppuccinos.
With up to 50 dogs allowed per session, and festive fancy dress very much encouraged, each pup will get a Christmas present on arrival at the party, and will even have the chance to win some extra prizes if they’re the best dressed.
A dedicated photographer will be getting snaps of each session and there’ll be loads of Christmas props to use in the pictures.
So, if you fancy joining The Pup Up Cafe when it arrives in Manchester for Christmas on Sunday 23 November, then tickets will set you back £12 if you’re a dog owner, and £15 if you’re just a dog person who’s keen to go along for the fun anyway.
A local Manc content creator is looking to set a world record by running around Old Trafford
Danny Jones
A local content creator, who specialises in running/hiking content (and sandwiches), is looking to raise money and potentially set a world record by jogging around Old Trafford.
Oh, and by jogging, we mean running – for a really, REALLY long time…
If you’ve never come across his channel before, let us introduce you to local influencer and videographer Sam Matthew, a.k.a. ‘Peaks and Pubs‘.
Boasting plenty of fans on both Instagram and TikTok within the world of trail running, the outdoors community and beyond, he’s set to toastreaching a very specific achievement by “turning a milestone into a mission” and doing laps around Old Trafford, the home of Manchester United Football Club.
As explained in the video, he’s now surpassed 74,310 followers, i.e. the same capacity of supporters you can fit inside the Theatre of Dreams itself.
We know, it’s distance running and feats of endurance aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but they are a great way of raising money and awareness, not to mention possibly getting yourself in the official Guinness Book of World Records.
Explaining the challenge in the caption of the video, Sam writes: “There’s now enough of you lot following this daft account of mine on here to fill a stadium I’ve adored since I was a little boy. And that genuinely means so much to me.
“So why not celebrate the occasion by punishing my legs and raising money for good causes along the way? Donations are, of course, the aim, but I understand that not everybody is in the position to do that, so any engagement on this post is hugely appreciated.
“I mean it from the bottom of my heart that you lot genuinely make this all happen for me, and I couldn’t be more grateful that I get to do silly stuff like this on a random Wednesday [29 October]. Giving off pure ‘your unemployed friend on a Wednesday’ vibes, but I love it!”
Raising money for the club’s in-house Manchester United Foundation, which has already shown its support for the upcoming ultra-marathon distance event, they are also looking to generate crucial funds with the return of another annual charity event too.
The Foundation does some incredible work all year-round, if you’d rather swap running around Old Trafford for sleeping.
Once again, Sam will be kicking off the serious step-count from approximately 9am this Wednesday (28 Oct), he’s estimating it’ll take him around a whopping nine and a half hours, “with plenty of breaks for food and fluids”, thank god.
As the man behind most of the Bada Bing videos, we expect plenty of butties to fuel the running.
Furthermore, although he’s set to take on the distance solo for the morning, he’s invited as many people who fancy getting involved to come and join him for a lap or two from 12 noon onwards; hopefully, he’ll see the Guinness people popping along to see if he registers a world record while he’s at it, too.
We hope there are a few pints at the pub waiting for you at the end, as always, Sam.
Emily Sergeant -
24th June 2022 
