It’s time to wave goodbye to March, and say hello to another new month.
With Spring officially here and April arriving this week, new beginnings are all around and there’s a lot to celebrate, so we’ve cherry-picked a few of the best things happening and to put together another fresh edition of our ‘what’s on’ guide for the city of Manchester and beyond.
As always, some of the events we’re going to mention here are completely free, which is great for those looking to keep things on the cheaper side, while others will set you back a few pounds, and many will need to be booked in advance.
Here’s our top picks.
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The Chocolate Factory
Trafford Centre
Monday 28 March – onwards
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Credit: The Chocolate Factory
An immersive chocolate factory experience has opened at the Trafford Centre this month, and it’s ready to make all your “sweetest dreams come true”.
After enjoying success in Madrid, Barcelona, and London, The Chocolate Factory has now made its way over to us in Manchester, and it’s described as being a “theatrical candy-themed experience” where you’ll get to explore a variety of colourful rooms, take some magical selfies, and most-importantly, satisfy your sugar cravings and eat some delicious sweets.
Set on the ground floor of the iconic shopping centre, The Chocolate Factory lets you take a trip through different worlds, with every room “filled with new discoveries”.
Did you see that a massive new attraction has opened in the heart of Manchester city centre, and it’s giving visitors the chance to take on The Cube?
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Spread over two floors and spanning 4,000 sq metres, Urban Playground has taken over a row of units that once housed Arcadia shops Burton, Miss Selfridge, Evans and Dorothy Perkins, and inside, there’s a high-tech mini golf experience, and the first UK branch of burger restaurant The Butcher.
ITV’s The Cube has also been brought to life at Urban Playground, with teams of four taking on deceptively-simple tasks inside the high-pressure confines of the familiar perspex box, with games like taking on obstacles blindfolded and collecting balls in a set time window.
Tickets for ‘The Cube Live’ range from £30 to £45, and you can find out more here.
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Heaton Hall Tours
Manchester
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Monday 28 March – onwards
Credit: Heaton Hall
The latest phase of £5 million repair works to the historic Heaton Hall have now officially been completed, and tours have started back up.
Standing as one of a very few Grade I listed buildings nationally, and designed in 1772 by esteemed architect James Wyatt, Heaton Hall is undoubtedly one of the North West’s most important heritage assets, yet despite this, has remained on Historic England’s ‘At Risk’ list for many years.
To help preserve the building, Heaton Hall received key funding support from Historic England and Manchester City Council to ensure the building is protected in the future and to complete essential maintenance works.
These maintenance works and ongoing repairs were started over three years ago, and have now been completed to help protect the architectural gem for future generations.
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You can find more information and book a tour of Heaton Hall here.
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Stand Up for Ukraine
Frog & Bucket Comedy Club
Tuesday 29 March
Credit: Frog & Bucket
Legendary city centre comedy club Frog & Bucket has helped launch the careers of many well-known comedians and emerging talents over the years, but now, some of the North’s biggest and best names are coming together for one-night only to raise worthy funds for those affected by the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
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Stand Up for Ukraine will feature sets by Sarah Millican, Johnny Vegas, Jonathan Mayor, Daliso Chaponda, Nina Gilligan, Daisy Earl, Mick Ferry.
All funds will go to The Red Cross, and you can grab tickets here.
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Les Miserables
The Lowry Theatre
Tuesday 29 March – onwards
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Credit: The Lowry Theatre
It’s undoubtedly one of the most famous and beloved musicals of all time, and now, Cameron Mackintosh’s critically-acclaimed production of Boublil and Schönberg’s Les Miserables is arriving at The Lowry Theatre in Salford this week.
This brilliant new staging has taken the world by storm and has been hailed “Les Mis for the 21st Century”.
With scenery inspired by the paintings of Victor Hugo, the magnificent Les Mis score includes the songs, I Dreamed a Dream, On My Own, Bring Him Home, One Day More, Stars, and many more.
Didsbury’s very-own cookery school Food Sorcery is hosting a Vegan Cooking Class this week, and it’s dedicated to curries.
Vegan cooking opens the door to a vast array of dishes, cooking styles, techniques, and most-importantly, fantastic flavours, but because it’s such an huge area of cookery, it can become a little daunting, which is why Food Sorcery is giving you the chance to look at three different curries from around the world during this class, Sri Lankan, Japanese, and Indian, to give you a wealth of knowledge to enjoy a delicious plant based diet.
During the class, you’ll get to enjoy the food you create as you cook it, or take the leftovers home with you afterwards, and you’ll also get each of the recipes emailed to you too.
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You can book your place on the class for £85pp here.
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Camelot Rises
Chorley
Thursday 31 March – Sunday 3 April
28 Days Later, The Hills Have Eyes, and A Quiet Place 2 are just some of the chilling films showing at the North West’s newest immersive drive-in cinema this week.
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Northern kids of the 80s, 90s, and 00s will get the chance to revisit their youth and return to the legendary medieval-themed Camelot Theme Park in Chorley, which sadly closed for good back in 2012 and has been largely abandoned and derelict ever since.
This is an experience like no other though.
Hosted by Park N Party – the team also behind sell-out seasonal drive-in events SecretCity, ScareCity, and ChristmasCity – visitors in up to 300 cars get to park up and watch a series of horror films across 12 weeks at ‘Camelot Rises’, but only after they have survived a terrifying one-mile journey through what has been described as a “zombie-infested wasteland”.
You can find out more about Camelot Rises and grab tickets here.
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Moxy Muzik w/ Darius Syrossian
Joshua Brooks
Friday 1 April
Rossko & Manda Moor / Credit: Joshua Brooks
City centre bar, restaurant, nightlife destination, and live music venue Joshua Brooks is welcoming popular Greater Manchester-based DJ Darius Syrossian for a special three-hour set, supported by special guests Madvilla, and Jordan Masters, as well as a bar hosted by Mike Lavercombe & Friends.
You must be over 18 to attend, with ticket prices starting at £14.
Heaton Park has revealed a new trio of scenic lakeside dining domes, and it’s perfect for those looking for a unique afternoon tea experience in Manchester.
Situated in Manchester’s largest park with stunning views of the lake and gardens, not to mention the Grade-I listed Heaton Hall close at hand, the domes are private and heated to ensure maximum comfort, and they offer an extra special afternoon tea experience surrounded by nature.
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There’s a seasonal menu that features a number of different afternoon tea options, including vegan options too, all for £23.95 per person.
Manchester’s largest street food fair GRUB – which is currently based at the Red Bank Project just outside of the city centre in Cheetham Hill – is hosting an East & Southeast Asian Food Fair this weekend, and it’s set to be a popular one.
With food traders Little Yellow Rice Co, Osaka Local, Oi Dumplings, Korean Grub Club, and Amai Desserts all lined up, not only will there be a wide range of delicious street food and desserts to try out, but local Southeast Asian gin slingers Tarsier will also be there all weekend to provide perfect serves and cocktails.
The event is free to attend, and you can find more information and grab tickets here.
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Totally Roarsome
Arley Hall
Saturday 2 & Sunday 3 April
Credit: Totally Roarsome
One of the North West’s most-popular outdoor events has reopened near Manchester, and it’s an ideal day out for families this month.
For the past two years, Totally Roarsome has taken the region by storm and has seen visitors flock from far and wide after it opened in untouched woodland following the initial lifting of lockdown restrictions in mid-2020, before returning after popular demand for the Easter half term in 2021.
And now, it’s found a new home for 2022’s event at Arley Hall in Cheshire.
There’ll be more than 200 individual dinosaur models making up the woodland trail this year, with tickets priced at £8.95 and already selling fast.
Coronation Street: The Tour has returned after a two-year hiatus this month to give you the chance to see the hidden world of the nation’s most-famous cobbles that lies behind the camera at the external sets at MediaCityUK in Salford.
Following in the footsteps of all your favourite characters, during each 90-minute tour, fans of the show will get to walk around all the famous sets of the Rovers Return, Roys Rolls, Underworld, and The Kabin, and so much more, and tour guides will share all the secrets of the show while they take you around locations of iconic moments from the soap.
There’ll also be plenty of chances to get that all-important Corrie selfie too.
The full list of Greater Manchester Olympians representing Team GB at Paris 2024
Danny Jones
The Paris Olympics are nearly here and this year Greater Manchester happens to have eight athletes competing at the 2024 Summer Games.
It just so happens that eight is also the exact same number of local Olympians who brought home medals from Tokyo 2020, and we’re hoping these lot will help Team GB bring back a record number, with the previous competition seeing them match their all-time record (65) set at London 2012.
Honestly, there are few times in the year that we love as much as when the summer of sport fully kicks in and with the heartbreak of the Euros finally starting to drift, we can fully throw ourselves into the Olympics and get behind our Mancs flying the flag for 0161.
But who exactly is representing Greater Manchester at Paris 2024 and what events are they competing in? Look no further.
Greater Manchester’s 2024 Team GB athletes and their sports
Without further ado, let’s meet our local Olympic heroes:
Keely Hodgkinson – Wigan – Athletics
Starting out over in the home of the Latics, pie barms and The Verve, we have Wigan‘s very own Keely Hodgkinson: a two-time European champion who also recently broke the all-time British record in the 800m at the Diamond League in London on 20 July.
Born in Atherton, the 22-year-old middle-distance runner’s career is already off to a flyer and having already picked up the silver in her event at the last Olympics at just 19, we have every faith she’ll be bringing home the gold this time.
Aimee Pratt – Stockport – Athletics
Over to Stockport (don’t start with that Cheshire nonsense today, just be proud she’s from around here) and our 3000m steeplechase specialist, who already broke the national record twice in 2022 and produced the UK’s best-ever finish (7th) in the women’s event at the World Athletics Championships.
A long-standing member of Sale Harriers running club and a University of Manchester graduate, Aimee Pratt, 26, has got so much local backing behind her and has quickly gone from rising star to very much looking like she’s going to live up to the expectations of becoming ‘world-class’ as coaches predicted.
The third and final Manc representing us in athletics events is Bury-born and bred Hannah Kelly, 23, who is also a member of nearby Bolton United Harriers.
She was part of the crack team at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow that helped Great Britain reach a women’s 4x400m national record, picking up the bronze medal and will no doubt be looking to go on further in her Olympic debut.
Now into the world of combat sport and the incredible story of Trafford boxer Pat Brown’s journey to Paris 2024 who beat Poland’s Mateusz Bereznicki in a qualifier back in March and now finds himself heading to his first-ever appearance at the Olympics.
Coming through the ranks at his local clubs Moss Side Fire Station and Sale West ABC, the 24-year-old has gone through his fair share of challenges of late, losing his best friend and cousin shortly after sealing his place at the Games but now has more spirit and motivation behind him than ever.
Moving over to the world of cycling and there’s just one local name taking part in two-wheeled events this year: 28-year-old sensation, Charlotte Worthington, from just down the road in Chorlton.
One of the select few Team GB athletes who managed to pick up an Olympic gold at Tokyo 2020, the BMX star is not only ready to defend her title – becoming the first women’s champion freestyle park champion in history – but is looking to come back stronger than ever after some time out.
Insane stuff.
Anthony Harding – Ashton-under-Lyne – Diving
On to those wading through Paris waters in the name of Manchester, the first of two aquatic athletes competing at this year’s tournament is Antony Harding from Ashton-under-Lyne in Tameside.
Joining forces will Britain’s first-ever Olympic diving champion, Jack Laugher (who won the gold at Rio 2016), the duo have already brought home Commonwealth and European gold in the 3m synchro, as well as a pair of World Championship silver medals in the last two years. Is 2024 set for more gold?
And completing the water-bound Team GB athletes hailing from 0161 is multiple-gold medal-winner James Guy who, to use a phrase the kids are using, really is ‘that guy‘.
Another Bury native, the 27-year-old swimmer already has a big collection of gold medals in both the 200m and 4x200m freestyle at the Worlds, as well as silvers across multiple events over the past few years. With five Olympic medals in total to date, we’re desperate for him to add a gold to that list.
Georgia Taylor-Brown – Droyslden – Triathlon
Last but certainly not least is Droyslden’s Georgia Taylor-Brown, who was born to be an Olympian after her mum and Dad swam and ran, respectively, but continues to chase her own story of greatness, having picked up silver on her Olympics debut at Tokyo 2020 – even whilst nursing an injury.
With two golds at the 2019 World Triathlon Mixed Relay Series and AJ Bell World Triathlon in Leeds as well, we already know the colour looks good on her. You can listen to her full interview about going for gold yet again on BBC Sounds HERE but, for now, we’ll admit that her talking about coping with missing her dog come race time has made us love her even more:
Passport ✅ Hotel ✅ Alfie the cavapoo 🥰@TeamGB triathlete Georgia Taylor-Brown from Droylsden on what she can't live without at the Olympics.
Fingers crossed out Greater Manchester Olympians will absolutely smash it at Paris 2024 and regardless of how many medals they come home with, we already know they’ll give it their all.
No matter what, they’ll be welcomed back with a lovely homecoming party over at the AO Arena and we already have a great place to watch the events too.
Best of luck to our Mancs and all of Team GB – now go and do us proud!
The best things to do in Greater Manchester this week | 29 July – 4 August 2024
Emily Sergeant
It feels like we’ve been saying this for weeks on end… but summer might actually be here now.
Although the weather’s been quite hit or miss as of late, now that little Mancs across our region have broken up for the school holidays, and August is arriving this week too, it’s hard to deny that the sunshine season is here.
Greater Manchester‘s social calendar is packed full of festivals, cultural celebrations, and wholesome family-friendly events especially for the summer too, but if you’re finding it a bit tricky to pick what to do, don’t worry, as we’ve chosen a few of the best bits for another edition of our ‘what’s on‘ guide.
Here’s some of our recommendations.
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Injecting Hope: The race for a COVID-19 vaccine
Science and Industry Museum
Monday 29 July – onwards
Injecting Hope: The race for a COVID-19 vaccine / Credit: Science Museum Group
More than 100 objects and stories collected during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic are now on display as part of a new exhibition at the Science and Industry Museum.
The groundbreaking new exhibition, titled Injecting Hope: The race for a COVID-19 vaccine, explores the worldwide effort to develop vaccines at pandemic speed, while uncovering the inspiring stories of scientists and innovators around the globe who collaborated to tackle the worldwide COVID-19 challenge along the way.
Manchester has been transformed into “a palaeontologist’s playground”.
Back by popular demand, dozens of life-sized animatronic dinosaurs have descended on the grounds of Heaton Park for the summer, and this means our region has become the closest thing to Jurassic Park in real life.
Dino fans of all ages have the chance to get up close and personal with around 40 of the big beasts over the next couple of weeks.
Did you see that a huge Batman experience has now swooped into Manchester?
Having taken over Depot Mayfield in the city centre, and offering fans a chance to see real jaw-dropping props and costumes from the actual Warner Bros. archives, this exclusive event brings the cinematic world of Batman to life.
Through a series of themed rooms, exhibitions, and a comic book and gaming area, Batman Unmasked is packed full of items from this iconic character’s film history.
The Trafford Centre’s massively-popular summer celebration is back, and tickets are only £2.50 each.
Back by popular demand for plenty of family fun, only this time with a new name, Bright Lights, Big Fun has seen a retro fairground and a massive 600sqm beach perfect for sunbathing and sandcastles pop up outside the Greater Manchester shopping centre, alongside a splash park with loads of water jets, and so much more.
There’s also a yummy selection of food and drink traders on site to take your pick from if you’re feeling peckish after getting stuck into some fun and games.
Find out more and get yourself some £2.50 tickets here.
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Wild
Manchester Museum
Monday 29 July – onwards
Wild / Credit: Manchester Museum
A groundbreaking new immersive exhibition exploring our relationship with the natural world is now open at Manchester Museum.
‘Wild’ look at how people are creating, rebuilding, and repairing connections with nature, and how the natural world has traditionally been presented and idealised through Western art, as well as looking at some unique approaches to environmental recovery too.
The exhibition will also crucially look at how we can tackle the climate and biodiversity crisis by making the world more wild.
Did you see that John Rylands Library has been named one of the best free UK attractions families should visit this summer?
The historic Grade-I listed building on Deansgate in the heart of the city centre has claimed a coveted fourth spot on a new top 10 list, according to a new analysis of TripAdvisor ratings of free UK attractions.
With the summer break right around the corner now, 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 for six full weeks – especially ways that are Manchester weather-proof and don’t break the bank too much too.
In fact, internet searches for ‘free tourist attractions near me’ are said to have risen by +5000% over the past 30 days.
John Rylands houses one of the UK’s most unique collections of books and manuscripts, and was found to have an average five-star TripAdvisor rating of 75.2%, according to the study – with visitors describing it as “definitely worth the visit”.
Olympics 2024 – Official Team GB Fanzone / Credit: Team GB
Manchester is one of a handful on UK cities chosen by Team GB itself to host an official Olympics fanzone with a big screen this summer, and the best part of it all is, it’s absolutely free for everyone to enter and make the most of.
A big screen playing all the major sporting action and coverage highlights has been set up at The Lawn Club in Spinningfields.
This means that, for the next couple of weeks, sports lovers in the city centre are able to tuck into an all-day food and drinks lineup, all while they watch the Games surrounded by other equally-enthusiastic fans.
Cheshire Oaks has brought its popular The Great Summer Social event back for another year, and there’s currently loads to get involved with while schools are out.
Not only is there a bunch of retail offers and promotions to make the most of, as well as free family-friendly interactive activities to get involved with too, but there’s also a big wheel, a mini golf course, a big screen showing sporting events, DJs blasting out tunes, and a wide variety of street food and drink vendors across the Designer Outlet.
One of Greater Manchester’s best-loved outdoor dining concepts has returned for 2024, and there’s a proper tasty lineup of traders.
‘Kargo on the Docks’ – which is MediaCity‘s al fresco dining pop-up, in place of the former Box On The Docks – has had itself a bit of a “glow up” and has taken over the waterfront and gardens with a fresh wave of local food traders and stunning artwork by Salford-based creatives, all as the sun shines down on Salford Quays this summer.
Did you see that legendary pizzeria Rudy’s has opened its seventh Greater Manchester site over in Altrincham this past week?
NEW OPENING – Rudy’s Altrincham / Credit: The Manc Group
The wildly popular Manchester-born brand has taken over the former OneCentral food court in the heart of the town, and the new site’s been kitted out in classic Rudy’s style, filled with hanging plants, exposed brick, chalkboard menus, and colourful wooden tables.
And of course, the menu shows off classic Neapolitan pizzas.
Favourites include classics like Marinara, Margherita and Calabrese, plus more modern combos like triple pepperoni with burrata and hot honey, as well as rotating specials.
Greater Manchester just can’t get enough of dinosaurs, apparently, as A major Jurassic World exhibition that’s been mesmerising visitors all over the world is arriving here in Manchester for the summer from this Friday.
Based on the beloved blockbuster film franchise, this official award-winning experience is one of the fastest-selling exhibitions in history.
Manc visitors will be able to walk through the iconic Jurassic World gates, explore some richly-themed environments, and encounter a life-sized Brachiosaurus, Velociraptors, and the most fearsome dinosaur of all, the mighty Tyrannosaurus Rex.
A free festival with a lineup packed full of activities, workshops, live music, and more is coming to HOME this weekend.
The independent arts venue in the heart of Manchester city centre is inviting familie to the first of its two weekend-long festivals this Saturday and Sunday to get stuck into everything from interactive theatre and circus skills workshops, to dance, hands-on crafts, and so much more.
Everyone’s favourite little blue engine has once again made a long-awaited return to Greater Manchester for the summer.
The beloved Day Out With Thomas experience is said to be “a train ride like no other”.
Families will have the chance to hop onboard the East Lancashire Railway’s replica of the cult-classic blue train character when he returns this weekend for a 45-minute trip through the Greater Manchester countryside.