Trafford Centre‘s ‘spooktacular’ Spookfest is back for another year of festive fright and family fun.
The massive shopping centre and leisure centre’s annual Halloween build-up event is one of the biggest anywhere in Greater Manchester and promises more creepy activities than ever.
From seasonal-themed food, drink and face-painting, to special movie screenings, circus shows and live performances, the second half of October will be dedicated to everyone’s favourite horror-filled holiday.
Spooktacular Big Top Circus Returns: 14-30 October
The creepiness kicks off with the return of the beloved Gandeys Circus, which arrives with a brand-new Halloween Spooktacular Big Top show.
The specially selected international cast of skeletons, vampires, jack-o’lanterns and Circus Artistes have been brought together for an action-packed extravaganza.
Just like the circus, the funfair is back and bigger than ever. As well as classics like the ghoulish ghost train and haunted house, new additions include the new Mach 5: an adrenaline-pumping ride that spins speedily at soaring heights of 55m above the ground. That’s more than enough to put the fright in us!
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But don’t worry, it’s not all scares; there’s plenty of fun for the little ones as well, with flying elephants, mini-chairs, tea cups, the dedicated Kidzone and much, much more. Spookfest has something for people of all ages.
Entry tickets to the funfair and rides area are priced at just £2.50 per person at an online discounted rate, but they can be purchased on the door if need be.
If you’re looking for something a little less pulse-raising but still fun for all the family, there are a number of seasonal films playing across the rest of the month. Here’s what you can catch:
15 October, 2pm:Toy Story of Terror
22 October, 2pm:The Nightmare Before Christmas
29 October, 2pm:Coco
Moreover, the screenings are free to anyone who purchases a fairground wristband, both of which can be pre-booked online before you arrive.
Costume characters and face painting: 15– 30 October
For even more to keep the little ones entertained, there’ll be a whole host of Halloween heroes appearing on the weekends and throughout half-term at the Trafford Centre.
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Performers will be doing shows and greeting visitors between 2-4pm. Face painting will also be available from 1.30pm–5.30pm on 15, 16 and 22–30 October.
Sat 15 Oct: Maleficent and Aurora
Sun 16 Oct: Jack Skellington
Sat 22 Oct: Jack Skellington
Sun 23 Oct: Maleficent and Scooby Doo
Mon 24 Oct: Batman and Maleficent
Tues 25 Oct: Aurora and Maleficent
Weds 26 Oct: Scooby Doo and Maleficent
Thurs 27 Oct: Jack Skellington
Fri 28 Oct: Batman and Maleficent
Sat 29 Oct: Scooby Doo and Maleficent
Sun 30 Oct: Jack Skellington
And for those looking for scarier Halloween vibes, there’ll be plenty more frightening folk walking around the premises throughout Spookfest.
Credit: Trafford Centre
Pumpkin Tower Installation
Last but not least, Spookfest 2022 will christen the Trafford Centre’s striking new Pumpkin Tower feature, the first ever in the North West and one of the collect new additions to the popular annual event.
The Pumpkin Tower will boast 250 pumpkins and jack o’lanterns and reaches a full five metres into the air — two big Christmas trees worth. This is definitely one to get a snap of with the kids.
Visit the Spookfest ’22 page on the Trafford Centre’s website HERE for all information on everything they have on offer this year as well as how to get tickets for each event.
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They’re kicking off Halloween this year and we’re absolutely here for it.
A music festival is coming to a Manchester skate park
Danny Jones
With the sun starting to shine more consistently and the music festival season well and truly on its way, we’ll admit we weren’t expecting to see an event taking place on a Manchester skate park, of all places.
Projekts Skatepark, the long-standing skating hub and cultural hotspot located under Macunian Way, is set to host the fourth edition of the unapologetically named ‘Metlchester’.
Starting out life as little more than a small Oldham Street takeover, the city centre festival is returning for this year, bringing plenty of alternative music, skate vibes, bevs and more.
You can see the lineup confirmed so far down below:
The 2025 edition of the festival, a.k.a. ‘Metlchester Vol. 4’, is taking place later this month.
Projekts has been catering to local boarders for the past two decades, and along with their on-site cafe and bar, the space has been put to use for several other special events – case and point, Meltchester Festival, which first started back in 2022.
Bringing a healthy dose of garage rock, post-punk and psych music to NQ from the outset, now it’s expanded, you can expect even more variety when it comes to genre this time around, as well as a well-stocked in-house bar and street food stalls.
Oh yeah, and of course there’ll be the usual merch and skate shop for you to browse.
As for the aforementioned tunes, while last year’s festival was headlined by Night Beats and Frankie & The Witch Fingers, topping the bill this year are Snapped Ankles, along with a mix of grassroots artists, including local duo, Slap Rash, who recently featured as one of our Manc artists of the month for April.
Projekts opened back in 2004Slap RashCredit: Supplied
Set in collaboration with Sour Grapes Records, an equally longstanding regional promoter with hundreds of successful events to their name, they make up part of the Greater Manchester Music Commission.
Serving up an exciting springtime event full of energy, from the skate culture to the performances themselves, this is the perfect appetiser ahead of a busy summer schedule as we approach festival season.
They also happen to be the event coordinators for local music venue Big Hands, where not only are current Sicilian traders Rizzo’s are based (also set to join the festival for the day) but where this year’s after party will be held, which is free for ticket holders, by the way.
Set to kick off from 12 noon on 17 May, with a pro skater session running until 2pm before the tunage, Metlchester sounds like a belter.
Featured Images — quantum bunny (via Flickr)/Supplied
What's On
Greater Manchester’s heritage railway is hosting a new vintage festival this late May bank holiday weekend
Emily Sergeant
Greater Manchester’s iconic heritage railway is taking a step back in time with its brand new vintage festival later this month.
After delighting families throughout the region with countless successful events over the past couple of years, the Greater Manchester public is now being invited down to East Lancashire Railway (ELR) this late May bank holiday for an unforgettable weekend of ‘soulful tunes’ and ‘timeless classics’ – with music, food, events, and costumes inspired by the 40s, 50s, 60s, and 70s.
The brand-new Vintage Vibesevents is shaping up to be even bigger and better than ever before, all to celebrate the best of years gone by.
Along with previously confirmed headliners including The Real Thing, The Barron Soul DJ, Northern Soul Train, and Sixties Mania, seven new acts are hitting the stages at Bury Bolton Street, Rawtenstall, Ramsbottom, and Heywood Stations along the ELR route.
Local radio personality, David Dockerty, will serve as MC for both days of the event on Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 May.
Acoustic specialists The Washboard Resonators, Motown marvel Jackie Marie, disco band Groovemental, and vocal trio Christopher and The Robins are just some of the music acts to perform across the two-day festival, while tribute act Masters of the Scene will round off the weekend in perfect sing-along fashion belting out all your favourite ABBA hits.
The fun doesn’t stop at the main stage either, as vintage entertainer Lilli Moore is set to perform at Heywood Station all afternoon on both days of the event, as is 1940s singer and entertainer Lancashire Belle at Rawtenstall on 24 May and Ramsbottom on 25 May.
A new vintage festival is coming to Greater Manchester this late May bank holiday weekend / Credit: ELR | Wikimedia Commons
So Retro will be hosting an incredible vintage fair with themed memorabilia, clothing, and vinyl records for sale all weekend.
ELR is also taking those vintage vibes to the sky too, and that’s because the iconic Lancaster bomber will be performing a thrilling flypast on the Saturday to wow spectators with a touch of history and nostalgia.
Vintage Vibes is taking place across the late May bank holiday weekend from Saturday 24 and Saturday 25 May, and you can find out more and get tickets starting from £13 each on the ELR website here.
Danny Jones -
14th October 2022 
