Events

  • I like to think that I have a fairly good grip on the entertainment zeitgeist. ‘Think’ and ‘fairly’ being the key words. As although I am aware of the theatre production The Play That Goes Wrong, I wasn’t aware of the television show ‘The Goes Wrong Show’, until asked by a friend whether it translated

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  • My Dad was a professional museum, which led to him being away on tour a fair bit when I was growing up. ‘Gigs and digs’ were oft heard words in our house. And it’s all very rock and roll and glamorous, isn’t it? Well like everything, dig (not always deep) below the surface and there

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  • 2020…events…pandemic…cancellations and so on and so forth. Stick a pin in that. It’s 2021, it’s the August bank holiday weekend and the Manchester Rum Festival is on! Bringing with it over 30 rum brands from around the world, this year’s festival takes place in the 4-star Mercure Hotel on Saturday 28 August, at the heart

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  • Only a few days earlier, I’d enjoyed the wonder that was the Damon Albarn gig, as part of the very special Manchester International Festival. Friday it was back to GMEX (am I being tedious refusing to get upto date with this? Such a mouthful) and the space had been transformed into a very different place.

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  • A few firsts for a Monday night. First day of leaving the house in 2 weeks after not quite managing to avoid COVID’s touch. First time at a live music gig since Supergrass, February 2020, because, you know… First time that Damon Albarn has played a gig in two years and he looked as insanely

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  • Unless you’re currently self-isolating like my good self (COVID got me good, got me real good), you can’t have failed to notice the billboard/bus stop takeover across Manchester City Centre of Jamaican trans duo, Kyym and Emani. Our presence is our resilience is the mantra of these strong fashion activists. The visually striking and uncompromising

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  • There were a few things that saved my sanity during the year of we dare not speak its name (although let’s be fair, its heir apparent promised so much but whilst the start left a lot to be desired, we’re slowly but surely seeing the light at the end of the tunnel). I thank the

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  • Remember that balmy day back in June 2018, when the socialising was anything but distant, substantial meals were for wimps masks were for gimps (it rhymes, I have no choice). And the mighty Sheds graced our tier-free little Castlefield Bowl in Manchester? I do, it was immense and now we can relive those blessed times

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  • It’s back. FilmFear returns to HOME this Hallowe’en and this year, slightly beyond, with an extended programme of chills, thrills and downright blood spills. Running from Wednesday 28 October to Thursday 5 November, Film4 and HOME have co-curated a line-up (coined Scream Now, Think Later) of modern genre classics that sink their teeth into politics,

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  • It feels like there’s precious little to look forward to or enjoy at the moment (yes Debbie Downer at your service), but much of what we have had to look forward to in Greater Manchester has been courtesy of the brilliant platform United We Stream. And so, this Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 October, Headstock

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  • It’s been a cruel cruel spring and summer for us all but you don’t need my take on all that’s going on, (if you do, I’ll create a bespoke ‘my take’ just for you – brace yourself…). I’ve missed the arts, the thrill of live theatre, music, performance, just life in general playing out without

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  • We’re sick of the C word. I know. And we’ve all got things and people we’re missing. Some are obviously more up the priority list but we mustn’t dismiss the little things in life that keep us going and, to put it bluntly, sane. I miss my family. That goes without saying, But we all

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  • Friday nights can get a bit samey, don’t you think? Don’t get me wrong, they definitely remain my favourite night of the week. Ever since my school days when even the best telly was on on a Friday when you got home – Scooby Doo was on on a Friday. Byker Grove was on on

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  • I’ve been to a basketball game and I really enjoyed it. A million ‘mehs’ sound out across the land by those who have been to a million games and don’t feel the need to advertise it. The point is (and there is a point) that I had to go to Brooklyn to do so. And

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  • It’s something we’ve known for a long time – there’s a lot of talent in our region but it’s not just the household names I’m talking about. Thanks to a project called The Twenty, people who dwell in the city of Salford will be provided with the exciting opportunity to turn their creativity into a

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  • Gourmet pizza restaurant Croma and I have two things in common. The first is that pizza is an incredibly important part of our lives. The second is that this year marks our 20th year living in Manchester! To celebrate, I’ll be justifying ever single trip out and drink drunk with ‘it’s my 20th anniversary’. For

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  • Whilst works, appreciation, opinions and afforded gravitas come in all shapes and sizes, art should be inclusive and HOME is bringing this ethos to life by celebrating the amazing talent of Greater Manchester. In the first region-wide exhibition of its type, HOME welcomed submissions from all across all 10 boroughs, for the inaugural Manchester Open

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  • I’m as guilty as the next person at taking our streets of Manchester and Salford for granted. Focused squarely on not tripping over my own feet (the great tumble of St Annes Square of 2003 – never forget), or striking out straight into the path of a tram, I, alongside many residents, workers and visitors

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  • 2020 heralds 75 years since the liberation of the Nazi death-camps. On Monday 27 January, Manchester Jewish Museum will mark Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD), with two premieres of musical and theatrical performances, staged at Manchester Central Library. Songs of Arrival During the afternoon, music by acclaimed Israeli composer Na’ama Zisser,the first to introduce cantorial music into

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  • I’m cough years old but a good pantomime won’t fail to touch even the most jaded, cynical, grown up of adults. And this was no exception. In fact, and at the risk of over-exuberance (although at the time of writing I’ve had a 12 hour cooling off period) I’d say this was the bar by which pantomimes

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