The UK’s most ‘ambitious and creative’ festival is set to return to Greater Manchester this summer.
That’s right, We Invented the Weekend is back for 2026, and Salford Quays and MediaCity will be buzzing with more than 200 free activities for two days this June as one of the UK’s most original and fun-filled festivals celebrating the most precious of commodities – our free time.
Visitors from across Greater Manchester, the North West, and beyond are invited to celebrate the weekend as the festival brings activities ranging from live music, interactive sports, and gardening, to team games, family fun, theatre, dance, creative crafting, workshops, talks, food and drink, wellbeing, and much more.
You can jump on a boat and sail across the Quays whilst enjoying the sound of Northern Soul, or if sport more is your thing, then you can sample everything from rock climbing, BMX, and football, to skateboarding, hula hooping, cycling, and more have on offer.
New for this summer’s festival is ‘Club Culture’ – a zone that’s dedicated to recognising Manchester’s rich contribution, both past and present, to electronic dance music, and is set to be a space packed with sets from outstanding local DJs.
It’ll also host curated DJ workshops and panel talks to give dance music lovers of all ages an opportunity to learn and get inspired.
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For quieter moments in-between all the action, there’s storytelling and in-depth talks for those who love discussing big ideas, and of course, The Lowry will be at the heart of the festival once again, and will be a host venue for many activities – from visual arts, to lively theatre performances.
We Invented The Weekend returns to Salford this summer / Credit: Mykola Romanovsky (Supplied)
“We Invented the Weekend is a truly unique summer celebration that brings together a huge variety of free activities all in one place, and we’re thrilled to bring it back for 2026,” commented Wayne Hemingway MBE, who is the co-founder of We Invented the Weekend festival.
“This festival is incredibly special because it recognises that we all love to do different things with our free time.
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“So come along, with your kids, with your friends, on your own, listen to music, join a debate, eat great food, take part in some sport or crafting, explore a weekend activity you may have always wished to try or sit back and watch the world go by – it’s up to you and best of all, it’s all completely free.”
We Invented The Weekend will take place on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 June in MediaCity and Salford Quays.
The full festival programme will be announced soon, so watch this space for more.
Featured Image – Mykola Romanovsky (Supplied)
What's On
Sacha Lord set to back local hospitality again with money behind the bar of Manchester pub
Danny Jones
Local figure Sacha Lord is once again looking to help support Greater Manchester’s food and drink scene once again this spring by putting a total of £2.5k behind the bar of one lucky pub.
Well, let’s be honest, we’re about to be the real lucky ones.
It’s far from the first time that the Night Time Economy Advisor has done this, having previously put sizeable sums towards shared tabs on a few occasions over the last few years.
Lining up his next handout for this coming early May bank holiday (perfect timing), it’s going to be a super and potentially very sloppy Sunday…
Tell me your favourite pub in Greater Manchester.
Bank Holiday Sunday 3rd May, I’ll be turning up and putting £2500 behind the bar.
Sharing the video above online earlier this week, the 54-year-old simply wrote, “Tell me your favourite pub in Greater Manchester. Bank Holiday Sunday, 3rd May, I’ll be turning up and putting £2500 behind the bar.”
The message is as straightforward as ever: “Support your local pub.”
Now obviously, the fact that people can reply with their go-to boozers and help influence the decision is one thing – something that has certainly always created an attraction each time he’s done this – but it’s also just a good way of marketing these watering holes to begin with.
Whether or not someone’s favourite public house tucked away in one of the 10 boroughs, or their bar of choice here in Manchester city centre, ends up being selected or not, it’s obviously great publicity having their names plastered on a notable social media account.
This is especially so when you see how much the post itself ends up being reshared and the overall exposure Lord ultimately lends them via creating such a big crowd discussion.
Confirming the chosen pub in a subsequent post, he said: “I asked you to choose a pub you wanted me to support. This Sunday, 4pm, I’ll be turning up at The Ape and Apple on John Dalton St, Manchester, and putting £2500 behind the bar.”
Here’s hoping we get proper beer garden weather over that long weekend – especially with that lovely refurbished outdoor terrace space up on the first floor of the Joseph Holt watering hole.
It’s also worth noting that the further support stunts like this have helped garner support for other regional businesses – in particular, indies that are battling the cost of living crisis and so many other challenges within the sector – has proved crucial for some places to stay open to begin with.
A good example is the Thirsty Korean, who teamed up with the Altrincham-born entrepreneur to cover hundreds of bills back in 2023, and has now been able to expand into a larger venue down the road from their original Chorlton location.
The obstacles facing the hospitality industry remain varied and numerous, but gestures like this can go a long way to helping prop up those who need it.
Which ones are you calling your favourites these days?
Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with FREE tacos and frozen margaritas at House of Social
Danny Jones
Manchester, get ready for a fine ol’ springtime fiesta, as city centre food hall, bar, and meeting place, House of Social, is hosting a special Cinco de Mayo celebration with tonnes of free tacos and frozen margaritas up for grabs.
Well, one of their wonderful in-house vendors will be sorting the scran and margs, but either way, you don’t want to miss this one.
Teaming up with local ‘Mexicali’ kitchen, OK Taqueria, the popular First Street neighbourhood hangout will be slinging lip-smacking cocktails, fresh tortillas packed with the good stuff, and serving up good vibes throughout the day.
We will warn you – the freebies will only be available for a limited time, but we still know where we’ll be for this year’s Hispanic holiday.
They made things pretty simple for Cinco de Mayo 2026; as the post read, they’re giving away “FREE build your own tacos from 12-2pm, along with a healthy supply of frozen margs this Tuesday 5 May, quipping: “Is it even a Tuesday without a free taco?”
And yes, if it’s only just clicked, the name does just mean the fifth day of May (honestly, it took us until our late teens to realise this).
Clarifying that the offer is strictly first-come, first-served – and once they run out, they are out – there’s not much else to tell you, really.
Just take their advice: “Get in early, get involved, get FED”.
OK Taqueria is one of five fabulous indie traders currently located inside House of Social (HoS), including the likes of Mughli, Choi Wan, Burger and Beyond, and Dough Religion, who recently gave us that viral and rather large chicken Caesar wrap.
Yes, it is as hefty and delicious as it looks.
But back to OK Taqueria, their fusion of smoky Mexican street snacks and the Californian food truck culture speaks for itself, and we can’t wait to fill our faces come lunchtime on 5 May, 2026.
Whilst you’re here, if you haven’t visited HoS yourself yet, you really need to tick it off your list; with a great selection of food and drinks, multiple floors and a lovely terrace with numerous benches, coverings and even outdoor heaters, it’s perfect for this time of year.
Emily Sergeant -
6th March 2026 
