We’ve officially waved goodbye to 2023, and welcomed a new year with open arms.
2024 is already well underway now, and while many see January as a month of rest and relaxation following the hustle and bustle of the festive season, the Greater Manchester social calendar still has a wide range of events and activities you can be getting up to over the next couple of weeks.
If you’re finding it a bit tricky to pick what to do though, luckily, we’ve chosen a few of the best bits for another edition of our ‘what’s on‘ guide this week.
Here’s some of our recommendations.
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Power UP
Science and Industry Museum
Monday 8 January – onwards
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Power UP / Credit: Science Museum Group
Did you know there’s a huge gaming event currently happening in Manchester?
With more than 160 consoles and hundreds of games to play, Power UP is back for more in 2024 down at the Science and Industry Museum, and it’s taking ticket-holders on a journey through five decades of gaming every weekend.
There’s everything from retro arcade games, to state-of-the-art virtual reality, and so much more to get stuck into, and each ticket includes unlimited play all day.
Turtle Feeding Experience / Credit: SEA LIFE Manchester
Fancy coming face to flipper with magnificent giant green sea turtles as you join them for a lunch date you’ll never forget?
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This is your chance to feed “Manchester’s friendliest and hungriest residents”, Ernie and Cammie the green sea turtles, as the SEA LIFE Manchester ‘Turtle Feeding Experience’ is a 15-minute feed with a knowledgeable trained Aquarist educating you about diets, habitats, and more.
You’ll then be able to explore all the other amazing creatures cared for in the centre before and after your feeding experience too.
Back by popular demand, The Black Friar’s ‘Pie Festival’ is returning for 2024.
There’s nothing that sounds more inviting on a cold January evening than a lovely warming pie, right? So when we heard that The Black Friar’s now-annual Pie Festival is making a 2024 comeback, we have no shame in admitting we did a little dance.
Now entering its third edition, the restaurant is bringing back the parade of meat and gravy, sweet and savoury, and all things pie and pastry-encrusted – with something for everyone on the menu.
Best of all, not only are there some enticing flavours on offer, but they’re also only £10 each.
‘Disco Bingo’ is one of GRUB’s best-loved events, and this week, it’s taking a foray into the all-singing, all-dancing world of musical theatre.
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If you find yourself at a loose end this Friday night, you might fancy nipping down to GRUB, as the Cheetham Hill-based street food market and social hub is hosting a musicals-themed edition of ‘Disco Bingo’, and it’ll be combining all your favourite musicals bangers with lyric challenges, karaoke, guess the intro, bottomless brunch, and classic bingo hall vibes.
There’s loads of exciting prizes up for grabs too.
Tickets will set you back £6 for ‘standard’ and £25 for ‘bottomless’, so you can find out more and grab yours here.
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Stockport Vinyl Record Fair
The Guildhall
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Sunday 14 January
Stockport Vinyl Record Fair / Credit: Facebook
The first Stockport Vinyl Record Fair of 2024 is happening this weekend.
Taking place inside the Greater Manchester town’s Guildhall several times a year, the Stockport Vinyl Record Fair is a celebration of all things vinyl, and is known for being a fantastic event for music fans, but more-specifically, music fans.
You’ll want to get yourself down to Stockport Guildhall this Sunday from 10am – 4pm if you want to see tonnes of traders with vinyl records and CDs in abundance.
Fancy making the most of all the January dining deals on offer over these next couple of weeks?
The time has come again for Manchester’s restaurants and bars to slash their prices in a bid to entice customers to keep eating and drinking out all throughout January, and that means hundreds of places are offering up half-price scran, added freebies, or two-for-one offers this month.
There’s loads of offers beyond Manchester city centre too, as suburban gems are getting in on the action in 2024.
So whether you’re looking for a date night for less, an affordable family dinner, or a cheap eat after work with your mates, we’ve got you covered.
Read our massive round-up of January dining deals here.
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Reckon a trip to the theatre could be 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.
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 in 2023.
And 2024 is set to be absolutely no different.
10 of the best theatre shows to see in Greater Manchester in 2024 / Credit: ATG Tickets
Our region’s theatre events calendar is already jam-packed with award-winning musicals, family-friendly plays, inventive dance productions, and so much more in 2024, so we’ve rounded up 10 of the best shows to see and grab tickets for this year.
Did you also know that Manchester’s just been named one of the best places to visit in the UK in 2024?
Yes, that’s right.
Just like last year, Manchester once again been named one of the best UK cities to visit in 2024 by Time Out, thanks to some huge cultural openings last year – with our city having been praised for being a ‘cultural banquet’.
Local favourites like Mackie Mayor, Idle Hands, and Queer Lit have all been given shout outs, while the massive openings and reopenings like Aviva Studios, Manchester Museum, and The Snug earned us some cool points too.
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Find out more about why Manchester’s been given the honour here.
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Featured Image – Science Museum Group | The Manc Group | GRUB
What's On
The best Oktoberfest events in Manchester where you can drink steins, toss pretzels, and dance on tables
Daisy Jackson
September is the month where beer fever grips Europe, as the annual Oktoberfest celebrations get underway in Germany.
The tradition has spilled way beyond its native Bavaria in recent years, and cities across the world host their own Oktoberfest celebrations – including Manchester, naturally.
As you might expect, our city’s own Bavarian Bier Palace, Albert’s Schloss, is going big on the festivities for the coming weeks.
But there are plenty of other venues throwing open their doors, pouring steins, and getting the bratwursts going.
Here are some of the best Oktoberfest celebrations in Manchester for 2026.
Albert’s Schloss
Manchester Bavarian bier palace Albert’s Schloss will pull out all the stops for Oktoberfest. Credit: Supplied
Oktoberfest is back at Albert’s Schloss Manchester, and it’s bigger than ever.
From 19 September to 25 October, the Bier Palace will serve up five weeks of, Bavarian feasting, live entertainment, and Munich’s Big Six biers – the only venue in only venue in Manchester pouring all six official Oktoberfest biers.
You can also dig in to a proper Bavarian feast with Schweinshaxe, currywurst, paprika roasted half chicken and new slow cooked beef goulash.
No ticket is required, so grab a stein and join the celebrations.
Freight Island
Freight Island’s huge Oktoberfest celebration is back in Manchester
This one will be Manchester’s biggest Oktoberfest celebration, inspired by the world’s biggest beer festival.
Taking place over a whopping eight days from 1-4 October, and 8-11 October, Freight Island will feature great beer, and entertainment including live music, comedy, drag performances, DJs, and immersive entertainment.
As for drinks there’ll be Paulaner Oktoberfest, Hacker-Pschorr Gold and Steigl Grapefruit on the menu, alongside party kegs and specialty cocktails.
And on each Sunday, children can enjoy arts and crafts, shadow puppet making and a Brothers Grimm-inspired trail.
Society Manchester’s Oktoberfest includes a menu of Bavarian specials from their food traders. Credit: The Manc Group / Supplied
The Manchester food hall with a seriously impressive beer range will be ranging a stein this September, transforming its waterside venue into a Bavarian-inspired celebration.
There’ll be live performances from The Bavarian Trumps, who’ll be bringing oompah beats from classic Bavarian tunes to pop favourites with a German twist.
Society’s many food traders will all be putting their on spin on Oktoberfest classics, like a bratwurst bao dog, a pretzel special burger, and loaded currywurst hash browns.
Everything will kick off on 24 September, with your £10 deposit for a table including a stein of one of Society’s exclusive Oktoberfest specials.
Lawn Club
Lawn Club will host an Oktoberfest bottomless brunch in Manchester. Credit: Supplied
When Oktoberfest and bottomless brunch collides, it could only be Lawn Club.
The Spinningfields venue will be getting into the spirit of the Bavarian celebrations with a month-long menu of food and drink specials like frankfurters, currywurst-loaded fries, a German pulled pork bun, and giant pretzels.
The Oktoberfest-themed bottomless brunch features one main and one side dish, plus 90 minutes of themed entertainment and bottomless drinks, where guests are encouraged to dance on the tables.
Council announces return of FREE firework displays in Manchester parks
Emily Sergeant
The skies over Manchester will light up once again, as free firework displays are set to return to several of the city’s parks.
You may remember that major fireworks events throughout the city had been paused following the COVID-19 pandemic, due to funding challenges, with Manchester City Council choosing to invest in a range of other community-focused events across throughout the autumn season instead, rather than one-off firework celebrations.
But now, once this November rolls around, all of that is set to change.
That’s because, on Saturday 7 November, free fireworks events will return to Heaton Park, Wythenshawe Park, and Platt Fields Park.
First up, there will be a reduced-noise, low-impact display at 5pm for families and SEND audiences, and a main fireworks display then to follow a little later at 8pm.
The Council has announced the return of free firework displays in Manchester parks / Credit: Unsplash
Each of the three parks will host lantern making workshops in the weeks leading up to the events too, with family-friendly lantern parades taking place ahead of the 8pm firework shows.
The Council says that the return of the free fireworks events reflects residents’ recent feedback about what they want to see in their community and how they want funding to be distributed.
“It’s a chance, at the start of the shorter days and beginning of the dark winter months, to come together and resume a much-loved annual tradition as well as enjoying an evening of safe entertainment and spectacular fireworks displays,” Manchester City Council said in a statement.
Councillor Basat Sheikh, who is the Executive Member for Neighbourhoods, added: “We are delighted to announce and welcome the return of our much-loved fireworks celebrations.
It’s the first time they’ve returned since the COVID-19 pandemic / Credit: Elisha Terada (via Unsplash)
“Our parks should be shared spaces that create opportunities for Manchester people to gather, which is why bringing back the fireworks displays was top of our agenda. And we also recognise the importance of community which is why we will also continue to invest in a wide range of activities in our parks throughout the year.
“The return of these events is a wonderful opportunity for families and communities to create lasting memories and enjoy the long-standing tradition of fireworks in our parks in a safe way.”
Emily Sergeant -
5th January 2024 
