11 December 2014

Polly Checkland Harding

Introducing our Advent Calendar – the eleventh post in a cultural countdown to Christmas. Today: Light art and a snow show.

A brand new light art festival pilots in Piccadilly Gardens today: organised by Curated Place, Enlighten Manchester is just a taster of a bigger event in 2015, but already has artists such as Ulf Pederson (one of the founders of Durham’s Lumiere festival) involved. Expect large-scale projections, light-based artworks and more. What better way to stave off the early dark of winter? Piccadilly Gardens, 11-13 Dec, 4.30pm-8pm; 14 Dec, 4.30-6pm, free.

Do more. Running until 13 December, Slava’s Snowshow at The Lowry feels like an nearly-at-the-end-of-the-week kind of treat. It’s brilliantly bonkers, a clown’s approach to Christmas that manages to be touching as well as spectacular. Don’t forget to drop into Booths for foodie goodies while you’re at The Quays. Slava’s Snowshow, The Lowry. Tickets from £18.

Image by Jonathan Schofield.
Spotlight on

Walking Tours in Manchester by Jonathan Schofield

Presenting the best walking tours in Manchester for history buffs, culture enthusiasts, and those looking to scratch beneath the surface of the city.

Take me there

Culture Guides

portrait of Lorsung in a dark shirt with dark hair and dark round glasses
Literature Events in the North

We've got laughs and we've got leftfield on the live literature radar this month. Something for everyone, from poets playing with form to short story writers looking long.

Sextile
Music in the North

Open air clubs, new festivals and long-awaited gigs. The North West's live music scene is heating up this spring. 

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in the North

Eclectic as ever. You'll find inventive reworkings, world-class contemporary dance and Greater Manchester's inaugural Improv Festival in our guide.

Classical Music in the North

Read our latest highlights from the live classical music offer in Manchester and the North, taking in a number of the region's most cherished orchestral forces and venues.

Laura Ellen Bacon, Into Being, 2025. Photo © India Hobson, courtesy Yorkshire Sculpture Park
Exhibitions in the North

Willow weaving, textile collages, digital arts and ecology - all this and more in our exhibition top picks this month

Three men sit next to each other. One's head is bandaged, one holds a torch and one wears a sleepmask.
Cinema in the North

Live scores, midnight movies and the latest from Wes Anderson are just some of our upcoming film highlights.