TED x NorthernQuarter at The Stoller Hall

Creative Tourist

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TED x NorthernQuarter

The Stoller Hall, Manchester
11 September 2026

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

Jsky, courtesy of Roland Dransfield.
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An impressionist, a virality strategist, and an actual rocket scientist will share a stage this September, as TEDxNorthernQuarter brings a day of talks to The Stoller Hall, following its debut at Gorilla in 2025. An independently organised event licensed under the TED banner, it features 16 speakers across six often wildly different subject areas, one of which is Manchester itself.

Plucked from the worlds of business, technology, culture, science, creativity and social impact, this Manchester cohort includes rocket scientist Dr Rajan Bedi, a 25-year veteran of the global space industry; Julian Brown, innovator of a microwave pyrolysis reactor that converts waste plastic into fuel; Funmi Oluwajana, a restorative dentistry consultant who also competes as a professional bodybuilder; and Edidiong Ishola, a perinatal mental health specialist.

TED x Northern Quarter Speakers
TED x Northern Quarter

Elsewhere on the bill, TV personality and Social PR chief Scott Thomas and gaming content creator Josh Strife Hayes are joined by virality strategist Vicky Owens and impressionist Jess Robinson. The two most distinctly Mancunian contributions come from David Scott, author of Mancunians and Caroline Aherne: Rebel in Disguise, and Aimie, founder of the much-loved Manchester brand Feel Good Club.

It’s an odd cross-section, but that’s long been the TED format, now well into its second decade of worldwide appreciation.

Doors open at 9.30am, with performances and a community celebration once the talks wrap. Tickets range from £74 to £97, with a 10% discount available using the code TEDXNQ1.

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