What's on near Middlewood Locks
In the centenary year of the 1926 General Strike, People’s History Museum traces a century of industrial action and collective resistance.
Free entry
The Science and Industry Museum is going galactic this Easter, turning the spring holidays into an adventure through space, science and silliness.
Free entry
This world-premiere exhibition offers a hands-on journey through the Solar System, making complex science tangible, playful and participatory.
From £10.00
In 1830, the world’s first fully operational, steam-powered passenger railway opened between Liverpool and Manchester. Take a closer look at this breakthrough moment.
From £20.00
Factory Spotlight hands the mic to After the Applause for a free live edition celebrating the launch of season two of the Manchester podcast.
Free entry
Creativity is taking centre stage at Aviva Studios. Black Creative Trailblazers host Sip and Paint, an evening dedicated to colour, culture and community.
From £8.00
This April at Aviva Studios, Manchester’s dancefloor gets a queer makeover with Street Symphony x Red Rodeo Club.
Free entry
A major new dance work brings Sinéad O’Connor’s uncompromising voice back into the room, responding to a life lived against the grain.
From £10.00Where to go near Middlewood Locks
Caustic Coastal is a gallery, artist studios and independent art label based in Salford, working as a curatorial platform for artists.
A former cotton spinning mill, Islington Mill in Manchester now houses artists’ studios, galleries, a recording studio, a nightclub, cafe and B&B.
Part of Salford Makers, 7 Spot is a 360 square foot ceramics studio offering classes and workshops as well as studio space for members.
Salford Makers are a collective of artists, designers, educators and makers based at Islington Mill in Salford.
Taste the ultimate in authentic Italian cuisine at Vero Moderno.
A great little cafe where you’ll find good food and excellent Jazz.
Small, perfectly formed, the newly-reopened New Oxford packs a real-ale punch.
This warehouse located behind Islington Mill is being brought into creative use by Manchester’s underground music scene.
This Chapel Street gallery and tea room hosts 8-12 week long exhibitions giving emerging artists a chance to showcase their work.
One of Salford’s finest churches and also, unusually, a live music venue
Factory Square is a huge beer garden, on the banks of the River Irwell, with top-quality drinks and street food selections.
This old school pub not only offers a great selection of drinks and food, but also live music nights and a lively atmosphere.
Manchester District Guides
Culture Guides
Spring has sprung a wealth of great exhibitions in the North West, from intimate photographic shows to huge installations.
Closer, riskier, more immediate. Our small-scale theatre picks stretch from unsettling fables about nationhood to the inner workings of a mind trying to hold itself together.
Our latest music picks spotlight a new underground Manchester scene gaining national attention, alongside jazz, contemporary classical and more.
Spring is here, so sign yourself up for some much-missed al fresco dining at these highly recommended (and mostly new) Manchester restaurants.
Whether you’re after storybook theatre, museum wanderings or illusion-bending play spaces, there’s plenty to keep curiosity ticking through winter and beyond.
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.
Step away from the usual. Tours and activities that spark curiosity, inspire creativity and offer something refreshingly different.