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Cultural Calendar 2025

Creative Tourist

From anniversary festivals to world premiere performances, there’s a lot for the culturally curious to look forward to in 2025. To help you fill those new calendars, we’ve asked our editors to select their highlights from the events announced so far.

There’s a bit of everything here, from blockbuster theatre shows to family-friendly picks, world-class exhibitions, performances from internationally-acclaimed musicians, live literature showcases and cinematic treasures to delight the most discerning film buff.

Want more? You can keep up-to-the-minute with what’s happening across Manchester and the North with our specialist Cinema, Exhibitions, Theatre, Literature, Music, Family and Tours & Activities guides. You can also follow us on all the usual socials (Twitter, Facebook and Instagram) and subscribe to our mailing list to get this kind of thing in your inbox every Friday lunchtime.

Our top picks

Helen Chadwick: Life Pleasures at the Hepworth Wakefield

Helen Chadwick: Life Pleasures at The Hepworth Wakefield, West Yorkshire, Until 27 October 2025, From £0.00 - Book now

The Hepworth Wakefield’s retrospective of artist Helen Chadwick’s work showcases a range of her sculptures, installations and photographs, charting her career and enduring contribution to contemporary art.

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Helen Chadwick posing with a sculpture called Piss Flowers taken during the exhibition Helen Chadwick: Effluvia, held at the Serpentine Gallery, London, in 1994
Helen Chadwick with Piss Flowers from the exhibition Helen Chadwick: Effluvia, Serpentine Gallery, 1994 Photo: Kippa Matthews © Kippa Matthews

Liverpool Biennial 2025 – BEDROCK

Liverpool Biennial 2025, Until 14 September 2025, Free entry - Visit now

Liverpool Biennial in 2025 is back for its 13th edition with 30 artists and collectives presenting work around the leading theme of ‘bedrock’.

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Katarzyna Perlak, Broken Hearts Hotel, 2021. Photography by Hicham Gardaf
Hicham Gardaf

Manchester International Festival

Manchester International Festival 2025 at Aviva Studios, Manchester, 3–20 July 2025 - Book now

Manchester will once again become the world’s stage this summer, with Manchester International Festival filling venues and spaces across the city with some of the world’s most exciting creative talent.

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A Single Man at Aviva Studios (Manchester International Festival)
Christopher Isherwood’s A Single Man at Aviva Studios. Image courtesy of Rick Guest.

Quadrophenia: A Mod Ballet at The Lowry

Quadrophenia, a Mod Ballet at Lowry, Manchester, 15–19 July 2025, From £23.00 - Book now

An explosive new dance production heads to The Lowry, bringing a whole new dimension to The Who’s iconic rock album.

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Image courtesy of Johan Persson.

Elizabeth Gaskell’s House 10 Year Anniversary

Elizabeth Gaskell's House 10 Year Anniversary at Elizabeth Gaskell’s House, Manchester and online, Until 4 October 2025, From £0.00 - Book now

Throughout 2025, Elizabeth Gaskell’s House is celebrating its tenth anniversary, having first opened to the public a decade ago. From a close brush with dereliction to being awarded official accredited museum status in August 2024, it’s been an important decade in the almost 200-year history of the building, once home to North and South author Elizabeth Gaskell.

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Drawing Room with 10 year anniversary branding
Elizabeth Gaskell's House

Grimmfest 2025 at Odeon Great Northern

Grimmfest at Odeon Great Northern, Manchester, 9–12 October 2025, From £15.99 - Book now

Manchester’s foremost genre film festival continues to champion the best new horror cinema from around the world. Early ticket packages are on sale now but won’t last long.

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The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at The Lowry

The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe at Lowry, Manchester, 3 December 2025–11 January 2026, From £19 - Book now

Looking towards the end of 2025, we can’t wait to step through the magic wardrobe and into the snowy, wintry world of Narnia, where an incredible adventure awaits! 

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The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe at The Lowry
Photo courtesy of Brinkhoff Moegenburg

Seasonal Guides

Festival-goers at Green Island
Festivals

Here’s our guide to the best summer festivals with experiences taking place in a field or on the streets near you.
The Jungle Book at Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre
Open Air Theatre in Manchester and the North

Open air theatre shows are happening across the north over the next few months – we’ve collated our top picks into a neat guide for you.

Summer Holidays: the best things to do with kids
Summer Holidays: the best things to do with kids

Check out our definitive and regularly updated guide of things to do with the family over the summer holidays.
Outdoor Art in the North

Our guide to the North’s outdoor art, which has a special relationship to community, cultural heritage and the landscape it’s situated in.
Outdoor Activities

Get out and about with our guide to interesting, unusual and distinctly cultural outdoor events and outdoor activities.
FaleSaSacred House
Visual Arts at MIF25

From indigenous wisdom in paint and performance to immersive sound installations, MIF25 returns with a unique visual arts programme.
Father’s Day in Manchester and the North

This year’s Father’s Day is Sunday 15 June. Get out and about and spend some quality time with the old man in Manchester.

Destinations

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

Theatre in Manchester
Theatre in the North

Summer signals theatre festivals, world premieres and open-air spectacle - from MIF25 to comedy, outdoor circus and beyond, here’s what we’re looking forward to.

Cloudwater Production One
Tours and Activities in the North

Go forth with wild abandon to dance the pavements, dabble with the paint and down the pints in this month's tours and activities guide.

Star Nhà Ease
Cinema in the North

July's cinema highlights include spotlights on international cinema, a new cult classic, plus a visit from one of our favourite directors.

Harry Baker
Literature Events in the North

From environmental to experimental, our poetry and prose picks from around the North are focused on the unusual and the fun.

Exhibitions in the North

Captivating, urgent and intimate - we bring you our top exhibition picks, with even more art festivals, artist-led shows and new venues.

Helena Hauff
Music in the North

Shape-shifting bands, scorched-earth techno, and off-grid festivals. Our latest music picks catch the live scene at its most urgent, inventive and alive.