Printworks has launched a virtual Mini Monsters Trail to help families celebrate the spooky season with plenty of treats and absolutely no tricks.
Just like everything else amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Halloween is gearing up to be a little different this year, but with the nights drawing in and the big day coming up this Saturday, you can still make the most out of October half term at Manchester’s “number one entertainment venue” this week.
Five mini monsters will be hidden across the Printworks’ website each day, and all you have to do is read the clues to find each monster, and you could then be entered into the “creepy competition”.
The Mini Monsters Trail is taking place from Monday 26th – Friday 30th October.
With a total of five daily trails to take part in throughout the week, there’s six chances for families to win “fang-tastic prizes”.
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Plus, if you manage to find the special Haunted Halloween Monster along the trail, then you’ll be entered into the “spookalicious grand prize draw” which could see you winning a £100 voucher to spend at a number of Printworks’ venues.
Join us on the Mini Monster Trail this Halloween as we're giving away over £350 worth of prizes! Tune in at midday Mon-Fri for Trail clues and find the monster to enter our daily draw! https://t.co/A70wkkDZ3Cpic.twitter.com/WPaxPnnxu2
You can catch the Printworks monster on its roof from 26th October – 1st November.
If you fancy joining in with the Mini Monsters Trail this week, then you can head on over to the Printworks website here for more information and to get started.
There’s plenty of other things happening at the city centre entertainment complex this week too.
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Vue
Vue will be showing all of the Halloween classics for both families and horror fans, and you can expect to catch the likes of Psycho, A Nightmare on Elm Street, and Hocus Pocus from just £4.99 a ticket throughout the month.
If you want a real scary experience, then you can’t really go wrong with an escape room, and when you play horror rooms Enigmista or Ritual at Escape Reality, you’ll get 50% off any other room for your next visit, but you’ll have to make out of this room in one piece first.
Don’t want to risk bumping into any vampires? Tee off before midday at Treetop Adventure Golf and you’ll be able to play a second course for free while the sun is still up.
Hard Rock Cafe is giving you a taste of Halloween this October with a special cocktail for the spooky season, and the kids will also be able to pay with a pumpkin too, so get carving.
Bring a carved pumpkin during October Half Term, and get a meal from the kid’s Roxtars Menu free of charge when you buy a main meal.
Leave the pumpkins at Hard Rock Cafe and carve out some time during October half term for bowling, because the offers at Manchester’s newest Tenpin venue include bowling and a drink from £9 per person, bowling and food for £13 per person, and bowling, food and drink from £15 per person.
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Frankie and Benny’s
Treat the little terrors to lunch, as kids eat free over October half term when you order a main meal.
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You can find out more about the Mini Monster’s Trail and get your first clue here.
What's On
Sounds From The Other City releases 2026 lineup with 100+ acts playing on 17 stages across Salford
Emily Sergeant
More than 100 exciting artists are set to perform on 17 stages dotted across Salford this spring.
In case you hadn’t heard, 2026 is the year Salford is celebrating 100 years since it was first declared its own city, and to celebrate such a monumental occasion, the popular Sounds From The Other City (SFTOC) festival has now released its full lineup ahead of its return on the early May Bank Holiday weekend.
Salford’s long-running independent festival of new music is known for its genre-spanning showcase of new artists from across the UK and beyond.
This year’s festival is curated by some of the most exciting promoters, record labels, radio stations, magazines, and tastemakers in the North.
Music lovers will get the chance to see artists in a wide range of independent venues and unconventional spaces across the city – with 17 stages around Chapel Street and The Crescent, from pubs and churches, to concert halls and galleries.
Artists announced today include the uncategorisable masked provocateur Lynks, South African ‘future ghetto funk’ trailblazer Moonchild Sanelly, Manchester-based artist jasmine.4.t, who has recently been named BBC 6 Music Artist of the Year 2025.
Other artists to look out for include Grey Lantern, FaT OuT, ambient pop artist Pollyfromthedirt, genre-straddling South London six-piece, Blue Bendy, South London trio ashnymph, and Manchester quartet Pyncher.
The Sounds From The Other City festival has released its 2026 lineup / Credit: Breige Cobane (Supplied)
One of the undeniable highlights of the lineup is that the spiritual home of the festival, Islington Mill, will be programmed day and night by the legendary Band on the Wall, multi-award-winning Reform Radio, Manchester’s infamous queer day-rave BENT, and the LGBTQ+ POC collective Swagga, with performances from Sorvina, Renee Stormz, and Chimpo.
“This year, we’re shining a spotlight on Salford’s independent venues and the selectors in the North who shape our programme,” commented Emma Thompson, Co-Director of From The Other, as the lineup was announced this week.
“Giving these organisations the space to showcase the artists they champion is vital, not just for discovering emerging talent, but to recognise how important these spaces are for our scene.”
Sounds From The Other City 2026 takes place on Sunday 3 May, and tickets go on sale this week – with Early Bird ticket access available to mailing list subscribers from tomorrow (Thursday 29 January) and the remaining tickets going on general sale from Friday 30 January.
Prices remain unchanged from 2025 with tiers at £30/35/40/45, and you can get tickets when they go live here.
Featured Image – Breige Cobane (Supplied)
What's On
Manchester’s legendary Dragon Parade returns next month to celebrate Chinese New Year 2026
Emily Sergeant
Manchester’s legendary Dragon Parade will make its way through the city centre once again next month.
As Manchester gets ready to celebrate Chinese New Year 2026 – which officially begins on Tuesday 17 February and runs through to Tuesday 3 March – and mark the ‘Year of the Horse’, the iconic Dragon Parade will be making its grand return to the streets of our city centre, and bringing a spectacular show of colour and light along with it.
In case you’re unfamiliar with what the Dragon Parade is all about, it’s the focal point of the city’s annual Lunar New Year celebrations – and it’s a real spectacle, to say the least.
The parade is known for attracting thousands of visitors from all across the region each year.
Manchester’s legendary Dragon Parade returns next month to celebrate Chinese New Year 2026 / Credit: Chinese NY Manchester (via X)
Celebrations officially kick off on Saturday 14 February this year, and as the headline of the festivities, the popular parade is set to take place the day after (Sunday 15 February).
Once again, organisers are expecting visitors in their thousands to turn out and watch as the famous 175ft Chinese dragon weaves its way through the city’s main shopping streets.
Official timings and plans for the parade are yet to be announced by the Council, but if previous years are anything to go by, it’ll likely kick off from around midday, starting on the junction of Oxford Street and George Street, and then make its way along Portland Street before concluding in Chinatown for a final performance on Princess Street.
Chinese New Year festivities will take place over a full weekend / Credit: Chinese NY Manchester (via X)
There’ll also be even more cultural celebrations and activities to get involved with throughout Lunar New Year over in Manchester’s popular Chinatown – with live stage performances, traditional lion and dragon dances, and loads of stalls serving up tasty and authentic street food.
And to top it all off, we’ll also soon see the return of Manchester’s famous traditional red lanterns dotted up above all around town too, adding colour to dark winter days.
As always, this year’s celebrations have been organised by the Federation of Chinese Associations of Manchester (FCAM), in partnership with Manchester Business Improvement District (BID) and Manchester City Council.
Featured Image – Chinese NY Manchester (via X) / CityCo
Emily Sergeant -
27th October 2020 
