Events
Lightopia
From Thursday 25th November
It’s here and it’s bigger and brighter than EVER! Yep, Lightopia in Heaton Park is back and they’ve added loads more pretty lights to the already very busy experience. This year the never-before-seen illuminated trail will feature magical and multi-sensory interactive lights, lanterns and installations, illustrating a story of an imaginative and fantasy festive world. There’s also the introduction of ‘Dine in the Light’, a brand-new dining experience in the park’s woodland where you tuck into a 3-course meal in their Dining Domes – surrounded by lanterns.
Christmas City: Immersive Drive-Thru Cinema
From Friday 26th November
Kicking the festive film season off this Thursday with ‘The Holiday’ is Christmas City – a fully immersive drive-in cinema over near the Trafford Centre. There’s not just a screen, but a full festive experience complete with Santa, Elves, festive food and drinks, Christmas karaoke and even a Candy Cane Forest! For the rest of the week there’s also Home Alone, The Polar Express, Elf, Bad Santa and more.
Christmas Wreath Making Workshop
Thursday 25th November
The Refuge are bringing back their Christmas Wreath Making Workshop this week – headed up by their in-house florists, Giraffe Flowers. The cost of £70 includes all the materials and guided expertise to make a showstopper of a Christmas Wreath to hang proudly upon your door – and there’s a festive cocktail and mince pie included too.
Music & Clubs
HOMOELECTRIC at Hidden
Saturday 27th November
After the huge success of HOMOBLOC a couple of weeks back, Homoelectric will be heading to Hidden for more of the same – and they’ve invited Blasha & Alatt, who have been turning heads on the house and techno scene across Europe. Also joining them will be Homoelectric virgins Joshua James and Nimmo alongside resident DJs.
Skittles, 8 Gold Rings & Untold Orchestra at The Blues Kitchen
Thursday 25th November
Razor-sharp lyricist Skittles, and powerhouse live band 8 Gold Rings, are getting together with the Untold Orchestra for a very special show this week. Levelz main man Skittles will be reimagining a collection of Manchester hip-hop favourites from albums like Poor With £100 Trainers plus other Levelz classics. One of the most switched on and talented rappers in both his Manchester hometown and Britain as a whole, this one-off partnership will be one to remember.
Craig Charles Funk & Soul Show at Escape to Freight Island
Sunday 28th November
The legendary Craig Charles will be bringing his infamous Funk & Soul radio show to Escape to Freight Island. Their outdoor bit has been transformed into a winter and Christmas wonderland – complete with bratwurst, mulled wine, Northern Soul Grilled Cheese, hog roasts and inside – a proper Ice Rink in the sky. It’s great – and with the addition of Craig Charles’ top tunes – sure to be a top top night.
Arts & Culture
Orbit Festival 2021 @ HOME
From Thursday 25th November
HOME’s annual festival celebrating extraordinary, award-winning, international artists, is set to disrupt the Manchester theatre scene once again this Autumn. One of the city’s most exciting theatre festivals, this year’s shows will combine live and digital work, with an online performance of Figs in Wigs’ Astrology Bingo as well as live performances from the theatre including Two Destination Language’s beautiful, flower-filled storm of emotion Near Gone, Xavier De Sousa’s durational performance REGNANT and Sleepwalk Collective and Christopher Brett Bailey’s Psychodrama.
The Wiz
From Wednesday 24th November
For anyone who has seen ‘The Wiz’, the 1978 musical fantasy starring Diana Ross, Richard Pryor and Michael Jackson (as the Scarecrow no less) – well, this theatre production at Hope Mill will definitely be MUCH better than that train crash of a film. I promise. This is the first new new UK production of The Wiz: The Super Soul Musical “Wonderful Wizard of Oz” in 10 years – and will be taking it right back to it’s Tony Award winning roots.
The Queer House: Pink Lemonade
Tuesday 23rd – Saturday 27th November
After a sell-out run at Edinburgh Fringe 2019 and a revival at the Bush Theatre early in September, Mika Onyx Johnson’s long-awaited smash hit debut comes to Contact Theatre. Just when Mika was starting to feel at home in their own body, they find themselves caught between Simmi who’s sweet like sugar but ain’t a lesbian and Token Toni who loves a bitta bashment and only dates black and brown butches – how can they catch a break when straight women are like junk food?
BLKDOG @ The Lowry
Tuesday 23rd November
BLKDOG is Botis Seva’s beautifully brutal commentary on how the youth of today are coping in a world not built for them. In an emotionally charged Hip Hop dance performance, BLKDOG reveals the vicious connection of how self-discovery leads to self-destruction. Through haunting childhood memories and adult life traumas, how do we fight through our vices to find a sense of peace. BLKDOG searches for coping mechanisms in the ultimate hunt for acceptance.
A Walk for Engels 201st Birthday
Sunday 28th November
Retrace the steps of two of the most formidable figures in history: Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels with this FREE walk with local “political animal” Ed Glinert to celebrate the 201st birthday of Friedrich Engels. Engels spent the best part of twenty-five years of his life working as a cotton spinner and merchant in Manchester and Salford, and later (with his better-known sidekick, Karl Marx) helped create a new philosophy that would do away with the hated capitalism system of the bosses and the money men. This walk will take you through this interesting history, an entertaining, enthralling, wild and witty tour which details Engels’s and Marx’s sojourns in Manchester.
Food & Drink
Mary-Ellen McTague: Supper Club at the Warehouse
Friday 26th November
Ducie Street Warehouse will host its first ‘Supper Club at the Warehouse’ event this Friday, showcasing an exciting menu collaboration from the warehouse’s award-winning Head Chef Andrew Green and acclaimed Chef Mary-Ellen McTague of The Creameries, in Chorlton and co-founder of the Eat Well MCR collective. The menu will showcase the best of local and independent producers, with a seasonal theme running throughout the dishes, a nod to this festive time of year.
Chocolate Truffle Making at Cocoa Cabana
Friday 26th November
Join Cocoa Cabana in Ancoats for a chocolate-filled evening where you learn how to make your very own truffles. A great Christmas present, you’ll make your own box of 16 truffles to take away – and whether you give them away to someone or scoff them all yourself on the bus home – that’s entirely up to you. The price also includes a complimentary cocktail upon arrival.
FREE Kebabs at Döner Shack
Thursday 25th November
There’s a new kebab joint opening up in the Arndale Centre next Monday, and to celebrate this auspicious event, they’ll be giving away FREE ones this Thursday between 11am-3pm for anyone who wants one. They’re called Döner Shack and I’ve heard that they’re very good Berlin-style beauties. So if you’ve got time in your lunch hour – get on down.
Pasta Masterclass at The Pasta Factory
Sunday 28th November
During this class you will make two different types of dough using semola and “00” flour, eggs and natural ingredients to make it colourful. You will get to try different tools and, of course, get to grips with the Pasta machine. You will then create different shapes of pasta and discover the intricacies of matching them with the classical Italian sauces.
Northern Vegan Festival
Sunday 28th November
This Sunday there’ll be more than 80 fantastic stalls running throughout the day at Bowlers Exhibition Centre, for the Northern Vegan Festival. There’ll be loads of vegan essential items, dishes, recipes and treats and 100% of the proceeds will go directly to animal welfare charities.
