Can you believe January is already drawing to a close?
While the first few weeks of the year can often seem a little on the quiet side, the events calendar across Greater Manchester is really starting to fill up now with all sorts of different activities to be getting up to this week, so once again, we’ve cherry-picked a few of the best bits for another edition of our ‘what’s on‘ guide.
As always, some of the events we’re going to mention are completely free, while others will set you back a few pounds, and many will need to be booked in advance.
It’s Chinese New Year 2023, and as always, Manchester has a whole week of celebrations lined up to mark the occasion.
After the city’s annual celebrations for Chinese New Year – also known as Lunar New Year or the Spring Festival – have been on a slightly smaller scale over the past couple of years due to COVID restrictions, the festival is back in full swing in 2023.
Thousands of red lanterns are already adorning the city’s streets, and visitors can also expect the chance to take in some spectacular live performances, feast on authentic street food, and a make the most of a funfair.
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Find out about the celebrations lined up for Chinese New Year 2023 in Manchester here.
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PUSH Festival 2023
HOME MCR
Monday 23 January – Saturday 18 February
PUSH Festival 2023 / Credit: HOME MCR
PUSH Festival has returned for HOME MCR’s annual celebration of North West creative talent.
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Over four weeks, HOME’s stages, screens, and spaces are being dedicated to showcasing fantastic works from around the region, as well as offering opportunities for creatives to meet industry professionals, share ideas and inspiration, and develop their skills.
This year’s festival is showcasing newly-commissioned works across a range of art forms, including theatre, digital work, visual arts, and cinema.
The festival also includes a series of workshops and other artist development opportunities.
In what is undeniably the stuff of dreams for cheese lovers, you can now take part in a cheese and wine crawl around Manchester city centre.
Manchester is city that’s packed with culture.
But if you don’t fancy seeing the sights through one of the more typical tours, The Manchester Cheese Crawl will take you around some of the cheesiest spots the city has to offer for two hours of non-stop cheese-related fun – including everything from blue cheese tasting, to cheese quizzes, competitions, and more.
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Tickets cost just £25 each, and include cheese samples, optional bread and crackers, and some red wine to complement.
Fancy making the most of all the January deals, discounts, and offers in Manchester’s cafes, bars, and restaurants?
January is typically a time when many vow to change their eating habits, but even the most committed dieter should be tempted by these Manchester restaurant deals, discounts and offers.
Whether you are starting a new diet, ditching alcohol, or trying out Veganuary, that’s no reason to stay at home.
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Not when you’ve got January dining (and drinking) offers floating around like this.
January Dining Deals / Credit: The Manc Group | Evelyn’s | Ramona & The Firehouse
From half-price burgers to burritos, small plates, Sunday roasts, and more, we’ve rounded up some of the best Manchester January restaurant deals to take advantage of in 2023.
This is your last chance to head on down to Backyard Cinema.
The huge immersive cinema event first opened in October and was only meant to stay in town for 10 weeks, but has added screenings all the way through to this Wednesday 25 January.
Its January dates will come with a January deal price tag too – screenings on Wednesday and Thursday will be half price, while Friday, Saturday and Sunday screenings will be charged at the current off-peak price.
Film fans will be able to see new blockbusters like Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Avatar: The Way of Water, and Matilda the Musical on the big screen, all while they watch from custom-made beanbag chairs.
Winter at the Science and Industry Museum / Credit: Science Museum Group
Exhibitions that explore the power of music, and give you the chance to try out an interactive “hands on” gaming experience are just some of the activities on offer at the Science and Industry Museum this winter.
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The award-winning museum is invites people to discover 250 years of innovations and ideas that started life in Manchester and went on to change the world. Standout exhibition, Turn It Up: The power of music, is a world-first event giving those curious the chance to explore the science of music’s mysterious hold over us through a series of “immersive musical experiences and interactive activities” at a specially-commissioned ‘musical playground’.
There’s also still time to head on down and check out the stand-out interactive gaming experience, Power UP, and so much more.
Find out more about what’s on at the Science and Industry Museum here.
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Is a trip to the theatre on the cards this year?
Greater Manchester has firmly earned itself a spot as a place for world-renowned touring theatre productions to make a stop off at.
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While the past couple of years amid and post-pandemic may have hit the theatre pretty hard, it’s a beloved industry that has now well and truly bounced-back – with the region’s three main theatres, Palace Theatre Manchester, Opera House Manchester, and The Lowry, all having welcomed some absolute show-stopping productions last year.
Theatre Shows 2023 / Credit: ATG Tickets
And 2023 is set to be absolutely no different – with award-winning musicals, family-friendly plays, inventive dance productions, and more on the agenda.
You can read our round-up of the best productions in 2023 here.
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Pasta Making Cookery Class
Food Sorcery
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Tuesday 24 January
Pasta Making Cookery Class / Credit: Food Sorcery
Didsbury’s very-own cookery school, Food Sorcery, is hosting a cookery workshop that’s dedicated to all things pasta this Wednesday.
During this three-hour class, you can learn everything about how to make Italy’s staple food by hand, from how to mix and knead pasta dough – both beetroot-infused and standard egg pasta – to various different rolling techniques, filling, and shaping, all before the chef will demonstrate some sauces to go with it.
So roll your sleeves up and get ready to mix, knead, bash, squash, and shape the dough into spaghetti, farfalle, ravioli, and so much more.
You can find out more information, and book your place here.
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The Classic Rock Show 2023
The Lowry
Wednesday 25 January
The Classic Rock Show 2023 / Credit: The Lowry
The Classic Rock Show is back for one night only at The Lowry this Wednesday
Celebrating the very best of classic rock, the show will be aying tribute to its favourite rock heroes CRS thunders through legendary performances from the likes of Led Zeppelin, Dire Straits, The Who, Eric Clapton, AC/DC, Queen, The Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, and many more.
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Performed with note-for-note precision, bringing the original iconic and era defining recordings back to life on stage, with an amazing sound and light show to match.
A lot of us will already have our New Year’s resolutions picked out and lined up.
But if you’re really up for a test this year, then how do you fancy taking a freezing cold dip all in the name of raising funds for a worthy cause next month?
One of Manchester‘s most iconic and longest-standing charities, We Love MCR Charity, is hoping to get hearts racing with an exhilarating cold water immersion dip in Sale Water Park near Valentine’s Day this year, and you can now stick your name down to take part.
We Love MCR Charity Valentine’s Dip / Credit: WLMC
Daredevil Mancs taking part will be raising funds for the 25-year-old charity’s work supporting ambitious communities and young people across our region.
We’re Electric – Celebrating the best of Manchester
Manchester City Centre
Thursday 26 January
We’re Electric – Celebrating the best of Manchester / Credit: Clockwise
Flexible workspace operator, Clockwise, is hosting its ‘We’re Electric’ this week – a day of free workshops and events to shine light on some of the small independent businesses that call Manchester home, while also celebrating the launch of Clockwise Manchester, just off Portland Street, in the heart of the city centre.
Running from 1pm-6pm this Thursday, Northern Flower will be hosting a terrarium workshop, renowned Manchester brewers, Track Brewery, will be hosting its ever-popular beer tasting event, and expert fitness instructor, Barry’s, will be there to get hearts pounding with a free fitness class.
Whether you’re after a day celebrating Manchester’s best businesses, or are looking to grow your own, there is something for all to enjoy.
Morning Yoga Flow / Credit: Manchester Art Gallery
Fancy getting exclusive access to Manchester Art Gallery before it opens to the public with this hour-long morning yoga session?
With all levels welcome, and eco-friendly mats provided, this Morning Yoga Flow class is delivered by Kamila – who focuses on a modern approach to teaching and is passionate about creating a safe and welcoming space for her students.
Following the session, breakfast will be served in the Gallery Café and features a range of healthy dishes prepared by our chefs, including vegan and gluten-free options.
Tickets are £25 each, and you can find out more and book your place here.
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Greater Manchester’s gigs and festival scene is absolutely thriving in 2023, want to get in on the action?
There’s absolutely no stopping the music industry in 2023, with some of the world’s biggest names playing some of the world’s bigger gigs right here in Greater Manchester.
Venues from the AO Arena to Heaton Park to the Etihad Stadium are filling up with amazing live shows in the coming 12 months, and just looking at how busy June will be (again) is enough to make your head spin.
The best gigs and festivals in Greater Manchester 2023
For a lot of the bands heading out on tour this year, it’s their first big run of live dates since pre-COVID, and if those ticket sales have been anything to go by, audiences are absolutely desperate to get back to live music.
You can read our round-up list of the biggest gigs in 2023 here.
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Featured Image – Chinese New Year | The Lowry | The Manc Group
What's On
The Manchester restaurant serving up the ‘world’s hottest curry’ for just a few days
Danny Jones
City centre favourite Zouk is serving up ‘the world’s hottest curry’ again to celebrate National Chilli Day next week.
The popular tea bar and grill located on Chester Street just off Oxford Road is slap bang in the middle of student central and has hordes of patrons lining up day in, day out, to taste their incredible Indian and Pakistani cuisine.
Now, to celebrate every spicy-food lover’s favourite day, Zouk is putting on special, limited-time-only menu to cater to all you heat freaks and speaking collectively on The Manc‘s behalf (several of us having tried it), it’s no joke.
The World’s Hottest Curry will be available for five days from Monday 24 to Friday 28 February, with a challenge on Thursday 27 February with prizes to anyone who can finish the fiery karahi.
The dishes
When it came to coming up with the world’s hottest curry, Zouk didn’t have to look far for inspiration, they simply picked the world’s hottest chilli: the Carolina Reaper Chilli.
Combining the 1,569,000 Scoville scorcher of a chilli with their much-loved and already spicy chicken karahi and vegetable karahi recipes, they knew they were on a winner. You might have to sign a waiver to eat it but that’s all part of the fun, right?
Typically prepared in a wok and cooked over hot flames with tomatoes, ginger, garlic, peppercorns and cumin to create the sauce base, the karahi originates from the Northwest region of Pakistan and has a great flavour. Depending on how brave you’re feeling, you can have it as a kebab or a full curry.
Credit: Supplied
That being said, this version does contain dried Carolina Reapers so you might not taste much beyond the heat of the sun after a few seconds. While the chilli is deemed suitable for human consumption, even Zouk’s chefs have admitted to struggling with the dish. Gulp. So, what can you win?
The challenge and prizes
Us Brits love a good curry and we already know that plenty of you won’t be able to resist the urge to take on the Reaper Challenge simply out of pride, so we might as well just tell you what you’ll have to eat in order to win the prizes.
Here’s what’s up for grabs:
Finish the full Carolina Reaper Curry (either chicken or veg) in one sitting (max eating time 30 minutes and no helping from companions), Zouk will give you the meal for free.
PLUS, a £50 Zouk Gift Card so you can come back at a later date to try their full menu (including some less omg-spicy options).
You’ll also get a Zouk Ice Cream Sunday to help cool off afterwards. Trust us, you’ll need it.
Issuing a statement for National Chilli Day and the Reaper Challenge, owner Tayub Amjad said: “Our food is usually more about flavour than heat but it’s National Chilli Day, and we know our customers love this challenge.
“For those who complete the challenge, you still have chance to come back and dine on us at a future date, so you will still get to experience the real Zouk too.”
What you thinking, Manchester? Are you up for taking on the world’s hottest curry?
The best things to do in Greater Manchester this week | 24 February – 2 March 2025
Emily Sergeant
Can you believe it’s March already at the end of this week?
Of course, February is a short month so it’s no wonder , but now that March there’s absolutely no shortage of things for the whole family to be getting up to in Greater Manchester throughout this week – both free things, and those that’ll set you back a few pennies too.
Finding it a bit tricky to pick what to do though?
We’ve chosen a few of the best bits for another edition of our ‘what’s on‘ guide, so here’s some of our recommendations.
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Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You
Science and Industry Museum
Monday 24 February – onwards
Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You / Credit: Science Museum Group
You can plunge headfirst into the incredible world of our senses at a new immersive museum exhibition that’s now arrived at the Science and Industry Museum.
Back by popular demand after a successful run over these past two years, but with a fresh new adventure lined up for 2025, Operation Ouch! is giving you the chance to journey through an ear canal covered in gooey wax, squeeze past sticky snot, and delve deeper into how our brains interpret the world.
Tickets to Operation Ouch! Brains, Bogies and You are now on sale, and visitors are being told to prepare themselves for an “epic exploration of the senses”.
NEW OPENING – Oxygen Activeplay / Credit: Jamie McPhilimey
A brand-new indoor activity park has now opened down at MediaCity/
Salford was chosen by Oxygen Activeplay as the location for its next venture, and the brand-new park has descended on Quayside MediaCity, just above bustling food hall Kargo MKT, following a £2.5 million investment – with state-of-the-art equipment and activities to help local families stay active whilst having fun at the same time.
The new park features more than 30 trampolines, a mega-air bag, a high ropes course, a ‘Rollglider’ aerial ride which flies over the facility, and Oxygen’s signature illuminated sensory experience ‘Excite Tunnel’, along with even more “epic” activities.
Freight Island’s Six Nations fanzone has returned for 2025.
The iconic international tournament is now underway, and so is Freight Island’s fantastic fan experience, providing an unparalleled level of excitement beyond being inside the stadium.
Already proving to be even bigger and better than last year, it’s the largest of its kind anywhere in the country, with everything from free pints and prosecco, live music, top-notch scran from Freight’s in-house vendors, and so much more.
Looking for other places to watch the Six Nations?
We’re absolutely spoiled for choice with places showing all the sporting action across Greater Manchester, so if you’re looking to get together with your mates, we’ve rounded up some of the best places to head to here.
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Bat Out Of Hell
Palace Theatre Manchester
Monday 24 February – Saturday 8 March 2025
Bat Out Of Hell / Credit: ATG Tickets
Bat Out Of Hell is back in our city this week.
Are you ready ready for the ultimate rock experience? Bat Out Of Hell roars back to Manchester this week, with the iconic music of Jim Steinman and Meat Loaf once again taking over the iconic Palace Theatre stage, delivering an electrifying journey that will ignite your love for rock like never before along the way.
Described as being a ‘heart-pounding’ production, you can expect to see a stellar cast and a powerhouse eight-piece live band on stage.
Did you see that Chester Zoo is giving away more than 30,000 free tickets to kids this year?
The UK’s largest charity zoo is on a mission to help nature to “survive and thrive”.
And so, in a bid to do just that, has announced that it will once again be handing out tens of thousands of tickets to schoolchildren for completely free of charge, so that they can explore the zoo up close and learn all about the inspiring work the conservation charity does.
With the hopes of empowering as many youngsters as possible, and sparking their passion for saving species once again, the zoo has now opened the scheme back up for the 2025/26 season – with a whopping 33,000 tickets available for schools, nurseries, and colleges to claim.
Those who secure tickets will have the opportunity to visit the zoo between this November and February 2026.
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat / Credit: ATG Tickets | Tristram Kenton
Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat is back on stage in Manchester this week.
The beloved musical production actually started out as a concept album based off a small-scale school show, before it grew into what we know today.
Told entirely through song with the help of the narrator, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat follows the story of Jacob’s favourite son, Joseph, and features songs that have gone on to become musical theatre stapes, including ‘Any Dream Will Do’, ‘Close Every Door To Me’, ‘Jacob and Sons’, and ‘Go, Go, Go Joseph’.
It is, of course, the first major stage musical collaboration between theatre legends, Andrew Lloyd Weber and Tim Rice.
One of Manchester’s most iconic charities is bringing back one of its most iconic fundraising challenges next week.
Back to impress Mancs for a fourth time, the We Love MCR Sponsored Firewalk is returning to St Ann’s Square, and it’s sounding set to be bigger and better than ever, as the charity is upping the stakes by putting on not one, but two, lanes of fire for walkers to conquer… if they’re brave enough, that is.
To add to the already-scorching atmosphere, award-winning samba drummers Batala will also be back to set the scene with lively music.
A Taste of Altrincham Festival / Credit: Altrincham BID | The Manc Group
Ready for 10 days of food and drink showcasing everything Altrincham’s vibrant dining scene has to offer? A Taste of Altrincham kicks off this week.
This new celebration of food and drink – which has been organised by Altrincham BID – includes special offers, interactive demos, culinary classes and workshops, supper clubs, chef demonstrations, and of course, lots of tasty food to took into.
With downloadable offers and engaging activities, A Taste of Altrincham gives you the chance to explore new venues and cuisines, and enjoy Altrincham’s gastronomic landscape.
Greater Manchester’s iconic heritage railway is currently hosting one of the most unique fine dining experiences in the region.
Running on selected Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through the year, East Lancashire Railway’s ‘Red Rose Diners’ are described as being “the ultimate first class foodie experience”, as they start with a glass of fizz and stretch over an almost three-hour steam train journey through the Irwell Valley.
The experience includes a four-course dinner with complimentary sparkling wine, followed by tea or coffee and after-dinner chocolates.
After a successful first run last summer, where thousands attended as a diverse array of music, art, dance, and interactive workshops descended on the streets of Stretford, The StretFest is back again for 2025, and will be taking over the whole Trafford neighbourhood with loads of free events and activities to get involved with.
This new spring edition of the neighbourhood festival will spread across Stretford’s favourite venues and public spaces to celebrate ‘new beginnings’.
Free events will be at venues such as Stretford Public Hall, the Mall, Victoria Park, St Matthew’s Church, and Stretford Library, alongside loads of local independent businesses.
Did you see that one of Greater Manchester’s popular museums has been named the best free museum in the UK?
With the Easter holidays not far off, plenty of parents, carers, and guardians across Greater Manchester will likely be looking for a ways to keep the kids entertained and educated while schools are out, and without having to break the bank too.
Luckily enough, Bolton Museum has taken the top spot in a list of the best free museums and galleries to visit in the whole of the UK.
Bolton Museum has been crowned the best free museum to visit in the UK / Credit: Bolton Council
The museum – which is on the Grade II-listed Le Mans Crescent in the town centre, and dates back to 1852 – has been a part of the leisure and education of Boltonians for over 120 years, and is home to one of the largest regional Egyptology collections in the UK, made up of over 10,000 archaeological objects.
There’s also an extensive local history section, with 38,000 objects from the 17th to 20th century relating to Bolton.
Emily Sergeant -
20th January 2023 
