Retro Bar Manchester
Ian Jones, Food and Drink EditorVisit now
Retro Bar Manchester
Longstanding alternative venue in the centre of Manchester with a basement space for live music, clubnights and comedy events.
Longstanding alternative venue in the centre of Manchester with a basement space for live music, clubnights and comedy events.
Quiet introspection and cathartic eruptions – the mysterious kids in the corner of the Brixton Windmill scene bring their new album Somersaults to YES.
From £17.45
Two songs in, Manchester’s MLEKO are already building a cult following, blending beauty and abrasion to devastating effect.
From £11.80
Jonathan Schofield’s new walking tour exploring the treasures and famous landmarks of Manchester’s Oxford road.
From £20.00
Fans of the world-famous and still-anonymous street artist Banksy, gather round. Spring 2026 sees The Mystery of Banksy – A Genius Mind take over Depot Mayfield.
From £22.00
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
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
Join Joe Feeley a Mancunian through and through, who guides you into Manchester’s two pillars of cultural excellence with his Rock and Goal tour.
From £9.99
Take a deeper look into Manchester Art Gallery’s collection with their regular, informative and fascinating gallery tours.
Free entry
The Crepe & Waffle House serves up a huge range of high quality sweet and savoury crepes and waffles.
Authentic Southern Spanish tapas available in an artisan gift box.
A budget hotel in central Manchester
Long-established Manchester bar and nightclub, Joshua Brooks is just off student hotspot Oxford Road. Open until 4am on the weekends with regular DJ-led club nights.
Long-lasting organisation with regular meetings and telescope sessions in the 1902 Godlee Observatory.
SEESAW is a co-working space, events venue and café.
Long-standing Japanese restaurant on Whitworth Street in Manchester with a pleasingly affordable menu.
Large bar/music venue on Sackville Street in Manchester city centre.
An eccentrically decorated place that cunningly offers homemade breakfasts, lunches and high teas alongside some stronger stuff for cocktail hour.
The apple in Now Wave’s eye, YES boasts four floors of live music and DJs, and offers food via two outlets. It also has a huge outdoor roof terrace!
Beer, cocktails and Asian street food at one of Manchester’s friendliest bars.
Our latest music picks spotlight a new underground Manchester scene gaining national attention, alongside jazz, contemporary classical and more.
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.
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.
Spring has sprung a wealth of great exhibitions in the North West, from intimate photographic shows to huge installations.
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.