Manchester‘s new ‘sky park’ on Castlefield Viaduct is reopening next weekend after being closed for maintenance over the winter.
The New York-inspired elevated urban park on the giant Grade II-listed 330-metre steel viaduct opened to the public as part of a pilot project to gauge opinion back in July 2022, but has been closed since December to allow time for the team of National Trust gardeners, volunteers, and community partners to prune, plant, and create new and exciting areas.
Over 10,000 visitors got to explore part of the structure and find out more about the viaduct’s heritage and the city’s long relationship with plants and trees when it opened last summer.
But closing the attraction was necessary to the tie up the finishing touches.
Manchester’s new ‘sky park’ on Castlefield Viaduct is reopening to the public next weekend / Credit: National Trust
On top of National Trust gardeners and volunteers working to add a variety of seasonal planting displays created by, four plots on the viaduct have also been handed over to local community groups and partner organisations to create their own unique gardens for visitors to enjoy.
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Hulme Community Garden Centre and Sow the City are two of the groups who will be revealing their gardens when the viaduct reopens to the public on Saturday 18 February.
According to the National Trust, Hulme Community Garden Centre have created an urban forest garden to inspire viaduct visitors to create ‘layered’ planting that optimises precious growing areas.
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The garden is aiming to both benefit personal wellbeing and the local environment.
Sow the City, on the other hand, has been working with Hubbub to bring a sensory nature garden complete with a pond – which is a first for the industrial viaduct.
Featuring wildlife habitats and bee-friendly planting, Sow the City’s ‘In Our Nature Garden’ is hoping to encourage a connection between people and nature, with design drawing inspiration from the latest research in environmental psychology that indicates that the closer a person’s relationship is with nature, the more likely they are to care for wildlife and the wider environment.
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The group says the aim of the garden is to give those living in Manchester city centre the opportunity to escape the hustle and bustle through tranquil sights, earthy smells, and an immersive audio recording that can be downloaded as part of the nature experience.
These two new areas of the viaduct will join the existing ‘partner plots’ by City of Trees and Castlefield Forum.
The New York-inspired elevated urban park has been closed for maintenance over the winter / Credit: National Trust
Officially reopening on Saturday 18 February, entry onto the structure will remain free while the National Trust team test a new way to welcome visitors.
A booking system will stay in place for guided walk visits between 11am to 12:30pm, but unlike last time it was open, those wanting to explore the viaduct at their own pace after 1pm can now just turn up on the day without needing to book.
“We’re looking forward to welcoming visitors back onto the viaduct to see what we and our partners have been up to,” Rebecca Alexander, Visitor Operations and Experience Manager at Castlefield Viaduct said ahead of the park’s opening next weekend.
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“In our first four months of opening, the viaduct proved very popular and many of our time slots to visit were fully booked.
“By introducing a new way for visitors to explore the viaduct at their own leisure, we hope that even more people will benefit from this green space in the heart of Manchester and support us in shaping its future.”
The National Trust says there are also plans to host events throughout the spring and summer – including new family tours both on and off the viaduct, yoga, planting events, lunch-hour talks on weekdays, and community-led plays.
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.
Featured Images — Peaks and Pubs (supplied)/The Manc Group
What's On
A live Shaun the Sheep stage show and circus is coming to Manchester
Danny Jones
Brace yourselves, because one of the best fun-for-all-ages events is coming to Manchester: the official Shaun the Sheep stage and circus show is coming to Factory International.
This isn’t just one to keep the children entertained; we already know plenty of big kids who grew up on Shaun, Shirley, and the rest of the sheep are already thinking about grabbing tickets.
Created by Nick Park, the same man responsible for Wallace and Gromit, this live stage production and incredibly practical circus show of the beloved British cartoon is already critically acclaimed.
Now set to make its full European debut right here in our city, Shaun the Sheep’s Circus Show teams up with leading performance company Circa to bring the TV show to life this winter.
‘It’s gonna be un-BAAA-leivable’.
Conceived not only by the award-winning minds at Aardman Animation, but the experienced performers at Circa, this ‘in the flesh’ (and wool) interpretation of the slapstick CBBC classic will not only delight younger audiences, but bring plenty of energy to keep the adults entertained too.
Promising a “live circus performance, simultaneously blurring the lines between movement, dance, theatre and circus for a visual spectacle packed with wit”, you can expect acrobatics and circus skills.
Stunts will include the likes of tumbling, juggling, aerial hoop, aerial silks, trapeze, Spanish web and Chinese pole, just to name a few.
And, of course, there’ll be plenty of Aardman’s signature heartwarming comedy in W&G, Chicken Run, Arthur Christmas, Flushed Away and more.
Naturally, all the usual suspects will be on show to: Shaun, Bitzer, The Farmer and the rest of the Flock – and yes, in case the trailer didn’t give it away, they are people who are not just dressed up as adorable real-life lambs but bouncing, flipping and flying all over the stage.
Coming to Aviva Studios this festive period, it’ll be taking place in The Hall: one of the venue’s largest and most dynamic rooms, with the state-of-the-art building famously able to alter the size of individual stages and spaces depending on the event.
John McGrath, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Factory International, said: “We’re thrilled to be working with Circa and Aardman to present the European premiere of this fun-filled show at our home in Aviva Studios.
“Circa presents award-winning circus performances to audiences across the globe, and their collaboration with Aardman Studios creates a unique offering for families, circus fans and everyone who loves Shaun the Sheep“
Running from Tuesday, 11 December 2025 until Sunday, 4 January 2026, they’ve also ensured affordable admission from just £10; you can grab your tickets now.
Emily Sergeant -
10th February 2023 
