The Modernist

Creative Tourist

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The Modernist

58 Port Street, Manchester, M1 2EQ
0161 235 8469
  • Tuesday11:00am - 5:00pm
  • Wednesday11:00am - 5:00pm
  • Thursday11:00am - 5:00pm
  • Friday11:00am - 5:00pm
  • Saturday11:00am - 5:00pm

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

The Modernist shop
The Modernist
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The Modernist is a creative project dedicated to celebrating and engaging with 20th-century architecture and design, through publishing, events, exhibitions and creative collaborations. Their bricks and mortar shop opened in May 2019 in the Northern Quarter and is the only bookshop in Manchester specialising in architecture and design. With a focus on modernist architecture, graphics, typography, transport, furniture and product design, if you can’t make it in real life, you can always shop online. Alongside the books there’s also a specially selected range of modernist products from cushions to mugs and from chocolate to shiny spoons. It’s also #modernistHQ with the office upstairs, where the magazine is put together, plus there’s a library and a gallery and event space where regular exhibitions are held.

What's on at The Modernist

Brettel Blue
Until
ExhibitionsManchester
Black Country Type II at The Modernist

The Black Country. Not always the first place people associate with colour, design and typography – but Tom Hicks has spent years looking closely enough to challenge that.

Free entry

What's on near The Modernist

Brettel Blue
Until
ExhibitionsManchester
Black Country Type II at The Modernist

The Black Country. Not always the first place people associate with colour, design and typography – but Tom Hicks has spent years looking closely enough to challenge that.

Free entry
Mleko by Charlie Smith
MusicManchester
Mleko at YES Basement

Two songs in, Manchester’s MLEKO are already building a cult following, blending beauty and abrasion to devastating effect.

From £11.80
TheatreManchester
Troubled at HOME

A solo show where a Belfast childhood collides with adult life, balancing humour, care and the long shadow of political conflict.

TheatreManchester
Nation at HOME

Arriving from an acclaimed Edinburgh Fringe run, Nation is a dark, unsettling fable about nationhood and identity.

From £19.20
Until
TourCity Centre
The Oxford Road Tour

Jonathan Schofield’s new walking tour exploring the treasures and famous landmarks of Manchester’s Oxford road.

From £20.00
jonathan schofield giving tour
Manchester
The Kimpton Clocktower Tour

Explore the incredible history behind one of Britain’s grandest and most storied commercial buildings: Manchester’s Grade II listed Kimpton Clocktower Hotel.

From £25.00
Abel Selaocoe_Spring 2026_credit Phil Sharp_sq
Until
MusicManchester
Inspirational Artists at RNCM

The RNCM launches its second Inspirational Artists series, spotlighting a huge range of touring musicians and ensembles, each bringing something unique to the stage.

From £12.50

Where to go near The Modernist

Manchester
Restaurant
Zouk

Manchester has more than one top-tier Indian restaurant, but Zouk is right up there with the best, and counts Drake as a fan.

Bakchich
Manchester
Restaurant
Bakchich Manchester

Bakchich does excellent, reasonably priced Lebanese food – including sharwarma, pickles, meshawi grills and baklawa – in a beautifully tiled, high-ceilinged space.

Manchester
Bar or Pub
The Thirsty Scholar

Friendly pub under a railway arch serving vegetarian and vegan pub food, as well as hosting regular live music.

Manchester
Theatre
The Dancehouse

From its charming Art Deco interiors to a quirky, highly original creative arts output, our theatre is firmly established within the city’s famously vibrant cultural scene.

Manchester
Café or Coffee Shop
Burgess Cafe Bar
at IABF

Small but perfectly-formed café – which also serves as the in-house bookstore, stocking all manner of Burgess-related works, along with recordings of his music. It’s a welcoming space, with huge glass windows making for a bright, welcoming atmosphere.

Manchester
Restaurant
Firebird Hope

They claim to sell the ‘best chicken and vegan chicken sandwich in Manchester’ and they’re absolutely right.

Manchester
Restaurant
Ol Brewery Bar

A nano brewery and keg bar, Ol is a meeting of minds between Takk and Byrne The Cake brewery.

Culture Guides

Food and Drink in the North

It’s the early-May edition of the Food and Drink Guide and here's where to eat and drink while living out your warm-weather dreams.

a beach. red bricks are laid out in a spiral shape on the sand.
Exhibitions

We’ve got five new Manchester exhibitions this month, from thought-provoking photography to environmental art and community-led projects.

SILVERWINGKILLER - Press Image
Music

Our latest music picks spotlight a new underground Manchester scene gaining national attention, alongside jazz, contemporary classical and more.

Theatre

Theatre’s getting political this spring, with a run of new plays tracing how conflict plays out in individual lives.

Emily Lloyd-Saini as Grace in Space and Harrie Hayes as Lieutenant Strong in Horrible Science
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.