There’s not long to go before a new world-first exhibition giving curious crowds the chance to “travel like a poo” arrives in Manchester.
And tickets officially go on sale today.
While it may not sound like something you ever thought you’d get to experience, a new exhibition is set to have its world premiere at the Science and Industry Museum in the heart of Manchester city centre this summer, and families can “dive headfirst into the digestive system”.
The new blockbuster exhibition, Operation Ouch! Food, poo and you, is based on an award-winning CBBC children’s TV series and will see the show brought to life.
Today’s the day! Tickets for Operation Ouch! Food, Poo and You are out now 💩
Get ready for giggle-worthy grossness as you journey through the digestive system. From giant gnashers to the poo-duction line, you won't want to miss this adventure.
— Science and Industry Museum (@sim_manchester) April 19, 2023
Visitors can expect interactive experiences, amazing objects from the Science Museum Group’s collection, and appearances from world-renowned doctors who will be on hand to guide audiences through this “lively, interactive, and playful adventure to better understand our brilliant bodies”.
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It’s set to be “an unforgettable journey” of super-sized science and giggle-worthy gore.
For those who fancy it, the Museum is inviting people to head on down and “travel like a poo in a voyage” to discover where our food goes when we eat.
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From bowels to gallbladders, you’ll get the chance to explore the role of each organ in the digestive journey, figure out how food can fuel us, investigate the funniest bodily functions, and “goggle at glorious grossness” at this hands-on exploration of the science inside us.
Mancs can ‘travel like a poo’ at new Science and Industry Museum exhibition this summer / Credit: Science Museum Group
Sniff out the science of how food is broken down, protect the body from bugs by fighting off bad bacteria and step up to the poo-duction line to work together to help move waste through the large intestine and out the other end.
Set to take over the Science and Industry Museum’s Special Exhibitions Gallery from 21 July 2023 right through until May 2024, the Operation Ouch! Food, poo and you exhibition is being developed by the Science Museum Group, and produced in collaboration with BBC and 141 Productions – which are part of All3Media’s Objective Media Group.
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“I know, like me, that there are hundreds of children fascinated by the inner workings of the human body,” Dr Ronx from the CBBC show Operation Ouch! said of the upcoming exhibition.
“So it makes sense that we would dedicate a whole exhibition to the subject.
Tickets to the world-first exhibition are now on sale / Credit: Science Museum Group
“From saliva, boogey, bile and poo, adults and kids alike will be enjoyably disgusted and fascinated by this exhibition [and] we hope they will come away with encyclopaedic knowledge to show off to their friends.”
Tickets for the upcoming Operation Ouch! Food, poo and you exhibition are now on sale, and you can grab them from the Science and Industry Museum website here.
Featured Image – Science Museum Group
What's On
Manchester favourites hosting a heartwarming festive social for those alone this Christmas
Danny Jones
Beloved Manchester bar and cafe, Haunt, have announced that they will be hosting a special social to spread some much-needed seasonal cheer to those who are spending Christmas apart from their families and/or friends this year.
Wholesome stuff from a wholesome bunch.
That’s right, friendly neighbourhood ghosts Haunt will be putting on a little free shindig for the 2025 festive period in an effort not only to share the typical kindness with locals based in and around the city centre but to help create “a sense of community, no matter what your situation”.
Announcing the completely open-to-the-public Christmas Eve party over the weekend, the team are looking to provide those who might otherwise be lonely or struggle during the holidays with a warm, arms-wide welcome, plus plenty more.
Writing on their social media account this past Sunday, bar manager JJ said: “People, it’s time to connect this Christmas! We will be providing free coffee and sweet treats from 12-5pm on Christmas Eve, as well as some games and workshops.
“We’ve put a lot of work into this, so it would be amazing to see as many of you there as possible! Also need this to reach the people that need an event like this most, so please share and repost.
“As always, look out for your people, I wouldn’t be anywhere without mine – JJ xoxo”
Come on, who doesn’t love seeing heartwarming stuff like this on their feed, especially when it comes to a time of year where so many suffer quietly amid the majority having a good time?
This isn’t the first time they’ve held a pop-up that’s caught our attention in 2025, either; it was only last month that we were surprised to stumble on a mini padel court in the middle of the room.
Once again, there’ll be brews and fresh bakes, as well as plenty of other activities to keep people entertained on the night.
As described in their post, Christmas can be tough for a lot of people, and if they can make even just one person looking for some kindness and companionship feel better for a few hours this year, then they’ll have done above and beyond their job.
It goes without saying that we love seeing local businesses taking the social and community side of their work like this to heart and putting in serious effort to make a difference.
Well done to JJ, the Chosen Family support group, and everyone at Haunt for setting this up; if you know anyone who might be interested in coming along, please do pass on the information.
You can grab your free tickets via Eventbrite right HERE, and maybe we’ll see some of you there.
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Haunt (via Instagram)
What's On
The full lineup for the Strictly Live tour has been revealed
Danny Jones
Yes, ballroom lovers, it’s here: the full lineup of dancers for the ‘Strictly Come Dancing Live’ tour has finally and officially been revealed.
It feels like fans have been waiting ages to find out the entire roster for the Strictly Live tour next year, with only limited waves having been released thus far.
However, the patience has paid off, and we now know who’ll be starring both on the stage and on down on the floors of some of Britain’s most beloved venues, including our very own AO Arena.
You can see the latest raft of additions down below.
As you can see, the final four couples who complete the next Strictly Live tour lineup for 2026 are social media personality George Clarke, Emmerdale face Lewis Cope, former footballer Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, and another actor in Layton Williams.
This quality quartet will be paired up with Alexis Warr, Katya Jones, Lauren Oakley and Nikita Kuzmin, respectively; it has already been confirmed that much-loved trio Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke and Craig Revel Horwood will be returning as judges, with Janette Manrara remaining as host.
Strictly‘s still ongoing season – the 23rd in the show’s history – is due to conclude this weekend, following the final on Saturday night (20 December), and it remains to be seen which of the current cast will be crowned champion, with several of those above and below now signed up for the live tour.
The rest of the Strictly Live dancers for 2026 here:
Harry Aikines-Aryeetey aka ‘Nitro’
Alex Kingston
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
Balvinder Sopal
George Clarke
La Voix
Chris Robshaw
Ellie Goldstein
Thomas Skinner
Vicky Pattison
Stefan Dennis
Ross King
Karen Carney
Lewis Cope
Amber Davies
It isn’t guaranteed that each of these contestants will be taking part in EVERY single one of the tour dates, but either way, you’ve still got ‘The Professionals’ to come next spring, too.
The annual Strictly Come Dancing UK tour has become a firm fan favourite, not only among die-hard viewers of the BBC show but lovers of live entertainment in general.
Manchester, Leeds, Sheffield and others confirmed the dates for their live shows earlier this year, with the AO set to host the two days’ worth of moves across Saturday, 31 January and Sunday, 1 February.
Hosting both normal evening shows as well as matinee slots, it’s simply up to you at what time of day you fancy panto-booing Craig…
If you’re interested in securing tickets for the typically fabulous festivals, you can grab yours HERE.
Emily Sergeant -
19th April 2023 
