The Arts
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I think this is my third time seeing this brilliantly delicious Noel Coward play. First in this very theatre, the Royal Exchange, in 2011 BHM (before honorary manc) with Simon Robson and Imogen Stubbs). The second was in 2022 with Nigel Havers and Patricia Hodge (blog here). And my hat-trick was realised back at the…
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It’s already been a week of factual, fictional, frictional, emotional, experimental and exceptional big screen content in Manchester. A film-fest, if you will. And I surely have. As has been the case over the last few years, the selection at this year’s Manchester Film Festival has been rich and diverse and with various pulls on…
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Deliciously witty, sparky, tongue-in-cheek and coquettish. The Constant Wife is all of these things. Kara Tointon is all of these things. The dapper dialogue is all of these things. And I liked it very, very much. 1927. Constance is a very unhappy woman. “Nonsense” says her mother “she eats well, sleeps well, dresses well and…
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honorary manc Rounding up some happening highlights from Manchester and Salford Alfreda at The Lodge, Manchester We start straightaway and today – the weekend isn’t over until it’s over, and this one is no exception. Alt -pop phenomenon, Alfreda, is kicking off her tour tonight, March 15, in, where else, Manchester, at The Deaf Institute…
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Continuing the wonderful partnership that is English National Opera (ENO) with Greater Manchester, last night saw the first of two performances of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s comic production Così fan tutte. Now, readers, this translates to Thus Do All (Women). And in this context, what it is that all women supposedly do is not the best. Ferrando and…
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You couldn’t write it. But thank goodness someone did, both in terms of the original source and idea, and some 70-odd years later, when, in 2019, some clever creatives decided to turn an incredible tale into an art form. This production could have let the annals of history do the heavy lifting. It could have…
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honorary manc Rounding up some happening highlights from Manchester and Salford Manchester Jazz Festival Tickets go on sale this Friday 13 February for Manchester’s longest-running music festival, back this Summer for 10 days of jam-packed festival fun and musical vibes across the city this May! Manchester jazz festival (mjf2026) will take place between 15-24 May 2026 at venues and sites across Manchester, celebrating the latest up…
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Manchester:Unplugged debuted in September of last year, and in a beautiful, sweeping cinematic style, Each Manchester: Unplugged film blends intimate storytelling with a reimagined performance, exploring the sparks, setbacks and moments that turn an idea into a song. To quote me, in a previous blog post about the series, if you’re a Manc, a mancophile,…
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There is nothing finer than a good farce. And this was a fantastic farce. A bloody, violent, raucous ‘with references to drugs’ farce, but a great farce, with humour at the forefront. It’s New Year’s Eve in a quiet corner of Kent and a killer is in the house… We meet Jonny ‘The Cyclops’ –…
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I get excited everytime I ascend those stairs at Aviva. Not least because they’re sweeping and I enjoy a sweeping staircase. But because without fail I know now I’m going to be stepping into a space that’s going to transform into something exciting, engaging and immersive. With huge state-of-the-art projections and a revolutionary sound system, Bigger…
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Right, let’s get it over with. Oh no it isn’t and it’s behind you. I’m doing that for both my sake and yours, to remove any temptation to pepper the blog post with panto puns throughout, and so that we can get to the crux of the matter. Rumplestiltskin from The Big Tiny theatre company…
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It’s been an emotional week. I don’t think I’m alone in having an unconditional love for animals, whereas my love or actual like for humans is (with exceptions) deeply conditional. Having had more trips to the vet that one would like this week (although an amazing vet – shout-out to MCR vets on The Quays),…
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Where shall we start. I had a really lovely, enlightening, informative, heart-warming and entertaining afternoon last Friday in Stockport. Less a frequent flyer than I used to be, this was my first time at the impressive Stockroom, the shared community-focused space which offers up areas for reading, studying, meeting, coffee-drinking, eating, exhibitions and, that day,…
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I was sat next to a very nice lady at last night’s performance. She turned to me during the interval to ask how I was enjoying it so far. Really enjoying it, I said. I’ve never seen an opera by composer Benjamin Britten before. She responded that he is her favourite operatic composer. I can…
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It’s been a month of quiet contemplation. Not to go too deep on a Thursday and stray away from the task in hand, but seeing friends deal with losses and feeling their pain both personally and empathetically, leads to existential thoughts. There are both positives and negatives to this, the former being strength and resilience…
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Right I’m going to hang myself out to dry here. But it’s for the greater good. I don’t know why, I don’t know how. But I missed IDEAL the first time around…. Johnny Vegas stars as Moz, Manchester’s longest serving weed dealer, in a dope opera of epic proportions. Starring some of the hit BBC…
honorary manc 