Culture Guides
Destination Guides
Seasonal Guides
Manchester’s most characterful, independent district is a jumbled network of streets to one side of Piccadilly Gardens – once home to busy textiles warehouses and even the occasional umbrella factory. Now, the red brick buildings with their New York-style fire escapes are regularly used in film sets, and the streets are bursting with independent cafés, shops, bars, and cultural hotspots.
The Northern Quarter has become a destination in its own right, with the laid-back, bohemian vibe during the day transforming at night into teeming pavements of people in search of good food, craft beer, pop-up events and live music.
When walking around, keep your eyes peeled for public art, including the sculptures of birds high on a wall on John Street (reflecting the area’s reputation in Victorian times as a ‘pets paradise’), the illuminated, 12 metre-tall Big Boys Toy on the top of the NCP car park, and the artistic graffiti on the outhouse in the middle of Stevenson Square.
Manchester Psych Fest, an all-day celebration of psychedelic music and art, returns in September 2021, following the postponement of 2020’s event.
The popular Northern Quarter community, Life Drawing Manchester, have migrated to zoom, opening up their classes to models and artists from all over the world.
Join the World of Music Choir to learn a mixture of traditional and modern tunes. With no previous experience necessary and an ethos of no judgement, it’s the most friendly introduction to group singing you could wish for.
CFCCA presents a two-person exhibition that challenges ideas of Britishness, belonging, identity and citizenship.
For his exhibition at CFCCA, Omid Asadi explores the diasporic experiences and domestic spaces of migrants.
Offering a contemporary take on the NYC art-rock of the late ’70s and early ’80s, Dublin 5-piece Silverback are performing live at The Castle.
As we learn to live with uncertainty now is a better time than ever to explore meditation, let the friendly community at Manchester Buddhist Centre help you on this journey.
The Medieval Quarter, or Cathedral Quarter as it is sometimes known, is one of the oldest parts of Manchester and home to some historic gems and cultural must-sees.
Burton Road is the heart of West Didsbury, a beautifully maintained leafy hubbub of shops,…
A laid-back mix of gift shops, independent outfitters, restaurants, pubs and parks, on a sunny weekend afternoon it’s heaving.
Follow Oxford Road South through the Curry Mile, along Wilmslow Road, past Platt Fields Park…
Chorlton is a left-leaning suburb a few miles south of Manchester’s city centre (and only…
As an area, Cheetham Hill gets a pretty bad rep. The foreboding architecture of Strangeways…