As monsters take over Manchester again this Halloween, Cathedral Gardens is preparing to play host to an invasion of ice-skating spooks on its biggest ever outdoor ice rink.
Between 22 and 31 October, Scare Skate will see Halloween fans and fear-loving families take to the ice. The spooktacular rink will be complete with Halloween-themed music and lighting, whilst a band of ghoulish skating monsters will join skaters on the ice every hour! With fancy dress encouraged, the brand-new event will bring frightfully good fun to half term festivities.
The magic of the Cathedral Gardens ice rink will be turned on its head for its Halloween-themed opening week. Skating by starlight under the cover of the rink’s roof, the enchanting arena will take on a spooky and supersized edge, meaning you can skate in any weather and enjoy the atmosphere.
This year’s venue will be nearly double the size of previous years which means more space for skating, more fun and even more memories made.
Rob Derry, ice director at Arena, which coordinates the event, says: “There’s a real buzz around Halloween in Manchester. The city is a major destination for anyone looking to get into the spooky spirit thanks to Monsters in the City, an amazing spectacle that brings larger than life fun and fear.
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“Scare Skate offers something brand new: an exciting, active, and creative activity, in a breath-taking setting, that brings chills and thrills for families, friends and colleagues looking to celebrate the season. We’re hoping to see as many people in fancy dress as possible.
“We’ve pulled out all the stops to provide a bigger rink for our customers so they can enjoy more room to skate. The ice rink will be nearly double the size of previous years so there will also be more room to pull off showstopping moves … or stumble towards a barrier for balance! We think this will be our best year yet.”
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Tickets for Scare Skate are available now, with prices starting at £13 for adults and £11 for children, with discounted family and season tickets also available.
From 1 November to 3 January, except for Christmas Day, Skate Manchester will be open daily. After Halloween, the rink will take on the magic of Christmas, providing the perfect activity for festive get-togethers.
Science and Industry Museum announces new major exhibition taking visitors on an ‘epic space adventure’
Emily Sergeant
A major new exhibition taking visitors on an ‘epic space adventure’ is making its world premiere in Manchester next year.
Horrible Science: Cosmic Chaos will invite visitors to explore our wondrous Solar System when it launches at the Science and Industry Museum next February.
Fresh off-the-back of the new BBC Children’s and Education TV show, Horrible Science, the ‘thrilling’ new exhibition will encourage visitors to ‘do science the horrible way’, and join both scientists and supervillains to unveil the secrets of space.
The new exhibition will propel families up into space where mystery, intrigue, and rocket-loads of silly and surprising science await. You’ll get to venture through a series of cosmic zones, walk in the shoes of astronauts, explore the life-giving energy of the sun, marvel at mysterious moons, and discover far-off weird worlds.
Left teetering on the edge of our Solar System, explorers will then find themselves staring into the dark depths of space, on the lookout for any extra-terrestrial life that could be staring back.
Whether its sniffing astronauts’ smelly socks, dancing on an alien disco planet, feeling the tremors from a mysterious moonquake, or launching a space rocket, organisers say this new adventure will engage all the senses in a truly immersive experience.
This is the first time Horrible Science has been brought to life as a major exhibition.
The Science and Industry Museum has announced a new major exhibition taking visitors on an ‘epic space adventure’ / Credit: BBC | Science Museum Group
Visitors will get to see familiar characters from the BBC series – like Dr Big Brain, in particular – on their mission to find out more about our fascinating Solar System through interactive experiments, playful challenges, and sensory exploration.
The exhibition is being developed by the Science and Industry Museum in collaboration with producers of the Horrible Science TV show, BBC Children’s and Education, and Lion Television, together with Scholastic, who are publishers of the much-loved Horrible Science book series by Nick Arnold and illustrated by Tony De Saulles.
‘Unmissable’ objects from the Science Museum Group’s world-class space collection will also be on show when the exhibition premieres.
Horrible Science: Cosmic Chaos will open at the Science and Industry Museum in Manchester on 13 February 2026 for an 11-month run before heading down to London, and tickets are now on sale priced at £10 – with family discounts available, and under-threes going free.
Manchester Cathedral to host charity Christmas carols service to raise money for local NHS hospitals
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Cathedral will be hosting a charity Christmas carols service to raise money for our local NHS hospitals.
Organised by Manchester NHS Foundation Trust Charity and now in its twelfth year, Christmas Carols in the City will take place in the spectacular surroundings of Manchester Cathedral in a couple of weeks time, and it’s sounding set to be an enchanting experience for the whole family to be involved with this festive season.
The Grade I-listed Manchester Cathedral is one of our city’s most unique buildings, with the Gothic architecture truly being a thing to behold.
Christmas Carols in the City is being described as a ‘great way’ to start the festive season in style.
Hosted by Hits Radio’s Mike Toolan and sponsored by PG Tips, performances on the night will come from local Manchester choirs.
The event is family-friendly and festive fun for everyone, all while raising funds for the Foundation Trust’s family of NHS Manchester hospitals.
Every penny raised from this year’s event will help to build and run a MediCinema on the Oxford Road hospital campus, which will aim to bring the ‘therapeutic magic of the movies’ to patients of all ages cared for by hospitals such as Manchester Royal Infirmary, Saint Mary’s Hospital, Manchester Royal Eye Hospital, and Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.
Manchester Cathedral is hosting a charity Christmas carols service to raise money for our local NHS hospitals / Credit: Supplied
With room for wheelchairs, hospital beds, and medical equipment, and supported by dedicated nurses and trained volunteers, the new MediCinema will offer 260 screenings a year of the latest releases, alongside much loved film favourites.
In recognition of the MediCinema Appeal, Christmas Carols in the City will feature some much-loved Christmas movie classics at this year’s concert too.
Christmas Carols in the City will return to Manchester Cathedral for 2025 on Tuesday 11 December, with doors opening from 7pm and tickets now on sale.
The Manc -
9th September 2021 
