Our first full week of August is here, and there’s so much happening.
Not only have little Mancs across the region broken up for the school holidays, but the sunshine has even been showing its face over the past couple of weeks too, so it’s pretty hard to deny that summer is here now.
And Greater Manchester‘s social calendar is packed full of festivals, celebrations, and free wholesome family-friendly events to celebrate, but if you’re finding it a bit tricky to pick what to do, 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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Jurassic World: The Exhibition
Trafford Centre
Monday 5 August – onwards
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Jurassic World: The Exhibition / Credit: Supplied
A major Jurassic World exhibition that’s been mesmerising visitors all over the world has now arrived here in Greater Manchester for the summer.
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.
101 Dalmatians The Musical / Credit: Phil Tragen (via Supplied)
Beloved classic Disney film, 101 Dalmatians, has been turned into a spectacular musical production, and it’s currently on stage here in Manchester.
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With a book by Johnny McKnight, and music and lyrics composed and written by Douglas Hodge, this new musical comes from a stage adaptation by Zinnie Harris that has been reimagined from what was the critically-acclaimed Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre production back in 2022, and it stars Kym Marsh as Cruella De Vil.
The story is brought to life on stage with spectacular puppetry, show-stopping choreography, hilarious songs, and, of course, irresistible puppies.
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.
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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 5 August – onwards
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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.
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.
Did you see that Warburtons and Morrisons have teamed up to give away 100,000 crumpets for FREE this summer?
In a bid to help “alleviate holiday hunger” and ease the additional financial strain often put on parents, carers, and guardians when children are not at school, the supermarket chain and Boltonn-based bakery are relaunching their popular ‘Ask for Ellen’ initiative.
The ‘Ask for Ellen’ initiative is running throughout the summer / Credit: Morrisons | Warburtons
This means that anyone and everyone who ‘asks for Ellen’ at one of the 395 Morrisons cafes across the UK will be given toasted crumpets with a choice of topping, completely for free with “no questions asked”.
The offer will be available all day every day from 5-25 August, while stock lasts.
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.
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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.
Smash-hit live theatre show Bluey’s Big Play has made its way over to the UK from Down Under for the first time ever, and it’s currently on stage here in Greater Manchester to entertain local families for the summer.
Bluey’s Big Play is a brand-new stage adaptation of the BAFTA and Emmy award-winning Australian TV series on CBeebies and Disney+ that’s loved by millions of children worldwide.
The family-friendly show features brilliantly-created puppets, live actors, and iconic sets to give audiences of all ages the chance to see title character Bluey, her younger sister Bingo, and their parents Bandit and Chilli “as they’ve never seen them before”.
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 at the end of last month?
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.
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.
Slice Fest / Credit: FSC | Sarah Elizabeth (via Unsplash)
Fancy a slice of pizza? How about a slab of lasagne, and some tiramisu to finish things off on a sweeter note?
There’s a Slice Fest happening in Manchester this weekend.
Taking over the newly-opened social space, Fairfield Social Club over in the Green Quarter, this Saturday and Sunday, Slice Fest is a weekend-long celebration of the best food served in slices, and there’ll be a feast served by local independent traders, Pizza Mutt and Bonnie & Clyde Italian Street Food, as well as special Italian inspired cocktails.
A free festival with a lineup packed full of activities, workshops, live music, and more is happening again at HOME this weekend.
The independent arts venue in the heart of Manchester city centre is inviting families to the second 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.
Featured Image – HOME | Bluey | Science Museum 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 -
1st August 2024 
