Heaton Park is a bit of an icon in Manchester, the home of massive events like Parklife, gigs from Noel Gallagher, Courteeners and New Order, and outdoor events like Lightopia.
But while most of us Mancs will have spent some time here trudging through the mud, you won’t have experienced it like this before.
This October, thousands of mad adrenaline enthusiasts will be leaping, climbing, crawling, swinging and balancing their way around the Tough Mudder course – and readers of The Manc can get 20% off their entry price with discount code TOUGHMANC20.
Rather than donning wellies and dodging puddles, Tough Mudder participants will be deliberately diving face-first into the action. Literally.
Tough Mudder. Credit: Supplied
With obstacles including Everest, Arctic Enema, and Mudderhorn, tackled by up to 10,000 people on every course, it’s an absolute haven for fitness enthusiasts and adrenaline junkies alike.
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The world-famous obstacle course is going to up the ante even further this year, adding in water obstacles for the first time.
Tough Mudder is going to challenge participants to take on races of varying lengths and difficulty – there’s even a mini course geared towards children.
This year’s Manchester Tough Mudder will rock up to Heaton Park on 22 and 23 October and is the last event of the season.
There’ll be two different lengths to try – a 10km, with 20 obstacles; and a one mile, geared towards little runners.
Tough Mudder. Credit: Supplied
Matthew Brooke, managing director of Tough Mudder expressed his excitement: “Tough Mudder Manchester is always great fun – we’re excited to be back!
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“Perfect for newcomers and seasoned pros, this weekend of events is really made for everyone to try, so we welcome all to come down and get involved. We promise you won’t regret it.”
The Manc readers can take part for 20% less than the normal entry price with our exclusive discount code TOUGHMANC20, which is valid on all remaining 2022 Tough Mudder events.
This promotion is valid from September 1st, 2022 until December 31st, 2022 at 11:59PM BST. This offer is valid for all Tough Mudder UK 2022 5K, 10K, 15K, Lidl Mudder and Infinity events. Offer is not valid on any of the following: 2023 events, merchandise, multi-event bundles, race passes, spectators, training products, Toughest Mudder, or World’s Toughest Mudder. In order to receive the appropriate discount, promo code ‘TOUGHMANC20’ must be used at checkout. This promotion cannot be retroactively applied. This promotion cannot be combined with any other offer.
What's On
Manchester’s new real-life Pac-Man experience is coming soon and you can grab early bird tickets
Danny Jones
Manchester already boasts a whole host of interactive games bars and activity destinations to boast, but we feel pretty confident in saying that there are very places on the planet where you can find a place to play a real-life version of Pac-Man.
First announced back in October and now scheduled to debut in March 2025, the Pac-Man Live Experience is the newest addition to Manchester’s growing entertainment scene and it’s promising to be a popular one too.
This brand-new life-sized immersive experience plunges players into the nostalgic world of the iconic video game we all know and love, only instead of using joysticks on an old-school arcade machine, they’ll physically sprint, dodge, and chomp their way through a maze.
Although the launch itself is still a few months away, the team behind this ingenious idea are getting ready for the frenzy and putting early bird tickets on sale ahead of opening day.
Credit: Concept Image (supplied)
So how does it work?
Good question: participants can gear up in a PAC vest and step into the role of the instantly recognisable yellow chomper, collecting power pellets, dodging the classic ghost characters – BLINKY, PINKY, INKY, and CLYDE – and racking up points on their way to victory.
Guided through an epic 12-level adventure, players will be led by the ‘PAC-MASTER’: a lively gameshow host who serves as commentator and referee; players will also be accompanied by immersive in-game effects like sound bites, lighting, and haptic (vibration) feedback to elevate the experience. Cool, right?
The striking Arcade Arena will feature two massive PAC-MAN courts projected onto the floor, while dynamic visuals transform the walls, fully immersing participants in the retro arcade universe. There’s no need for headsets either, so players can embark on a multi-sensory adventure, seamlessly blending the real world with augmented reality.
Created by Tom Lionetti-Maguire, the CEO and Founder of Little Lion Entertainment – the same team behind The Crystal Maze Live Experience, Tomb Raider, and Chaos Karts to the likes of London and more recently Manchester –
The whole thing has been brought to life in partnership with Bandai Namco Entertainment, lending the proper licensing to make the experience feel both fun and authentic. It’s the real deal.
Credit: Supplied
Early bird tickets for Pac-Man Live Manchester
If you’re not sold on playing a human-sized, real-life game of Pac-Man in a huge augmented-reality arena right here in Manchester then we don’t know what to tell you, to be honest – all we know is that we’ll be first in line when it arrives.
The Pac-Man Live Experience comes to the Arcade Arena on 22 March next year in line with the game’s 40th anniversary, and they’re inviting players of all ages and providing engaging gameplay for younger participants while delivering a nostalgic throwback that parents and grandparents will cherish.
Better yet, if you book during the early bird window, you can access discount ticket prices from just £25 per person too.
Early bird tickets go on sale at 12 noon today (Thursday, 21 November) – you can grab yours HERE.
Blood Brothers at Palace Theatre, Manchester – a timeless classic
Greg James
Bill Kenwright’s production of Blood Brothers surpassed 10,000 performances in London’s West End making it one of only three musicals ever to achieve that monumental milestone – and now it’s visiting us here in Manchester.
“Oh Bright New Day”, Blood Brothers has just landed back at the Palace Theatre. This musical written by Willy Russell is a British piece of theatre that is a staple in the musical theatre tapestry of our country.
For anyone who is unfamiliar with this iconic story, it is an emotional tale of two twins who are separated at birth and grow up on opposite sides of the tracks, only to meet again with the most fateful of consequences.
The story’s central character, Mrs Johnston is the linchpin in this whole story and carries us through the show.
This role has been played by many superb women over the years including Mel C, Kiki Dee, Barbara Dickson and nearly all of the Nolan Sisters. This time, Mrs Johnston is performed by Vivienne Carlyle who provides a lovely maternal performance.
The other two lead roles are Mickey and Eddie, played by Sean Jones and Joe Sleight respectively.
These are really complex roles to play as the actors have to portray the characters from early school years to grown adults.
The cast of Blood Brothers in Manchester. Credit: Jack MerrimanSean Jones, Gemma Brodrick and Joe Slight in Blood Brothers in Manchester. Credit: Jack Merriman
Sean Jones has been playing the role of Mickey now for nearly 25 years and so he is no stranger to this character. And I must say, he still fantastically plays the part, even when playing young Mickey, and the show really takes off when he enters the stage.
Joe Sleight is someone who I had not seen in the role of Eddie before and he gave just as strong a performance as Jones. He offered a real contrast to his counterpart with a really beautiful, touching performance.
The whole ensemble did a gorgeous job of helping to carry these characters throughout the musical, showing a real flair for multi-roling and beautiful musicality in the group numbers too.
Something which elevates this already gripping story though is the music. There are many recurring musical motifs throughout the show that on the surface may come off as repetitive but they offer perspective on how things can evolve and change over time.
Of course the song though that everybody is perhaps familiar with is the power ballad, ‘Tell Me It’s Not True’. This is the climax of the show and what a climax it is. There’s not a dry eye in the house when we reach this point of the story, I can assure you!
So, whether you are returning to watch this show again, perhaps know the story from studying it in English GCSE or seeing it for the first time, it will always be an absolutely timeless classic.
Blood Brothers is on at the Palace Theatre in Manchester until Saturday 30 November. Tickets are available HERE.
Daisy Jackson -
7th September 2022 
