Horrible Histories: Horrible Christmas

Shekina Rose, Families Editor

Book now

Horrible Christmas: Horrible Histories

The Bridgewater Hall, City Centre
26 December 2023

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Horrible Christmas: Horrible Histories at The Bridgewater Hall
Horrible Histories at the Bridgewater Hall
Book now

This festive season it’s time to learn about what Christmas is really all about, in a family celebration of Christmas the horrible way at Horrible Histories: Horrible Christmas at The Bridgewater Hall.

This is your chance to find out about all the true horrors of Christmas. Those facts about the special day that deep down you always wanted to know, but you were always too stuffed with joy and love and of course – turkey – to find out. Horrible Histories: Horrible Christmas will gladly and without any holding back provide all the foul and fearsome festive facts for you to take home and tell all your friends. Expect yucky yules, manky mince pies, stinky stockings and lots and lots of pooey presents…

This hair-raising, eye-opening, and quite frankly horrific adventure in Manchester will take you through the history of Christmas as it really was! You will learn about the vicious Victorian villains and the mean Medieval monks, the pukey Puritan parties and the terrible Tudor treats.

You will laugh in hysterics and you will cry out in disgust at this hilarious, moving, yet absolutely YUCKY performance for families with children aged 7 and up to enjoy together, just before the long-awaited truly terrible Christmas day itself arrives. Forget sparkles, festive lights and niceties – this show will be packed with blood and gore and Christmassy facts that make you groan and feel sicker than you do at the end of Christmas dinner!

Featuring some familiar guests: Charles Dickens, Oliver Cromwell, King Henry VIII and St Nicholas – can they they work together with one young but very brave boy to save Christmas from a crafty jolly man dressed in red…?

Celebrate Christmas the horrible way, at Horrible Histories: Horrible Christmas, at the Bridgewater Hall this December.

What's on at The Bridgewater Hall

Until
MusicCity Centre
The Hallé 2025-26 Season

The Hallé invites audiences to a year of classical masterpieces, world premieres and appearances by some electrifying artists and composers.

From £17

Where to go near Horrible Histories: Horrible Christmas

City Centre
Hotel
The Midland Hotel

With 312 luxurious bedrooms, the Grade II-listed Midland Hotel occupies one of the most beautiful and storied buildings in Manchester.

Manchester
Restaurant
Midland Tea Room

Dating back to 1903, Manchester’s stately Midland Hotel now has its own dedicated tea room. Expect traditional offerings in elegant surroundings.

Society Manchester
City Centre
Society Manchester

Society Manchester is a glorious indoor and outdoor space in the very heart of the city, with five street food vendors to choose from and a range of high-quality drinks.

Manchester
Restaurant
Friska

Latest branch of Friska, the independent healthy fast food chain.

Manchester
Restaurant
Don Giovanni

Traditional Italian restaurant, serving everything from pizza to steak. All this in a large modern venue with floor-to-ceiling windows.

Haunt MCR
Manchester
Bar or Pub
Haunt MCR

Haunt MCR is a speciality coffee shop and wine bar located on Manchester’s bustling Peter Street.

Manchester
Restaurant
Exhibition

Exhibition hosts three of the city’s most celebrated independent kitchens: Osma, Baratxuri, and Jaan by Another Hand.

City Centre
Restaurant
ONDA Pasta Bar

ONDA is a treat for the tastebuds. Long dark wood tables are shared by eager diners, as tapas-style plates of fresh pasta and other Italian dishes are ferried around the restaurant.

Manchester
Restaurant
Jaan

Serving up exceptional Persian cuisine, this new food concept from the team behind Another Hand is a must-try.

City Centre
Restaurant
Nudo Sushi Box

Nudo Sushi Box on Manchester’s Oxford Road specialises in freshly-prepared boxes of – you guessed it – sushi.

What's on: Families

Culture Guides

Music in the North

This week’s picks move from confrontational electronics and experimental pop to opera and Manchester’s grassroots R&B scene.

Textured portrait image of Jarman
Theatre in the North

Theatre across the North West splits between festive escape and sharp, urgent work exploring politics, power and resistance.

Food and Drink in the North

Hear ye, hear ye. Take some eating-out tips from our wintertime guide to food and drink in Manchester and the North.

A doll with makeup peeks out of a hanging wall of butter yellow fabric. Red and black threads descend and cascade around the doll.
Exhibitions in the North

This season, exhibitions across the North West feel attuned to the world beneath the world – the forces and stories shaping how we see, feel and imagine.

A performer in a bright red costume sits on a snowy stage set, holding a large snowball between their legs with a surprised expression. The colourful winter backdrop features snowflakes, hills, a snowman, and a traffic light with glowing lights.
Family things to do in the North

Whether you’re after storybook theatre, museum wanderings or illusion-bending play spaces, there’s plenty to keep curiosity ticking through winter and beyond.

A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
Cinema in the North

There's no shortage of great films out at the moment, whether you're looking for the latest blockbuster, that hot arthouse flick fresh from Cannes or a cosy classic.