It is a million miles from the roaring traffic of the Oxford Road visible from its windows

Victorian ephemera? Check. Artists’ books? Check. It may be small, but this is one Manchester museum that has more than a few treasures up its sleeve. Some things are kept hidden away. Kept behind closed…

It’s a nod to Liverpool’s literary past & its status as one of the world’s great port cities

After a £50m revamp, Liverpool’s historic venue chooses Light Night to mark its grand revival. At a time when many of us are forced to campaign against the closure of our local libraries, it’s refreshing…

People shouldn’t like everything. We need to provoke discussion.

The woman responsible for changing Manchester’s art scene opens up about life at the helm of two of its flagship galleries. Maria Balshaw is a busy woman. Our interview had to be scheduled several weeks…

It’s an apt setting for an event that could be seance or exorcism, funeral mass or rallying cry

Shelley’s epic poem, written in the wake of the Peterloo Massacre, gets a theatrical airing in the place that inspired it. From the first, Manchester International Festival has made good on its ambition to produce…

Let the haterz hate. These pies are good pies. These ales are good ales.

The city must surely have had its fill of new restaurant openings, right? Wrong, as this little beauty demonstrates. Artisan pies, craft beer and the Northern Quarter: some things just seem destined to be together….

Check its gigantic warehouse with vintage caravans & jaunty stuffed fox

It may not look it from the outside, but this is one of Liverpool’s best purveyors of food, booze and good times. The Baltic Triangle doesn’t look like much. Just a few back streets huddled…

It’s not a period piece. If it’s not relevant to now, what’s the point of putting it on now?

Olivier award-nominated actor Cush Jumbo talks to us about her role in Ibsen’s classic play – and her abiding affection for the Royal Exchange. It’s not uncommon to hear an actor gush about how “special”…