Strike a pose, let's get to it! The brilliant author Matt Cain will be launching the paperback of his bestselling novel 'The Madonna of Bolton' at Central Library! Join us for a celebratory evening as Matt talks to LGBT arts producer (and Madonna fan) Barry Priest about his latest novel and how his own life […]
Come and get creative with artist Emma Martin as we celebrate the Made in Manchester poem by creating an artwork sculpture. The soon-to-be-launched poem is inspired by all things Manchester and has been written in dozens of community languages. Emma has used this to work with over 2700 children from 9 schools to make some […]
To celebrate the Get Creative Festival, join us for an afternoon of inter-generational family activities. Why not share some of your skills or have a go at creating vintage inspired crafts. Bring all the family for a chance to create something fantastic together. Suitable for all ages Free-please drop in
Visit our art installation which was commissioned to celebrate the multilingual poem ‘Made in Manchester’. Local artist, Emma Martin worked with nine schools to create this artwork, with around 200 pupils creating colourful portraits of classmates onto the multiple-language verses of the Made in Manchester poem. These portraits were cut and reformed into a finished art […]
Browse and buy books from a range of exciting new poets and authors from over 10 publishers including, Carcanet, Comma Press, and Fly on the Wall Press. Meet friendly independent publishers from the north producing cracking books. Free - please drop in
THIS EVENT HAS NOW SOLD OUT Simon Armitage presents a new collection of poems, Sandettie Light Vessel Automatic. Book launch followed by book signing. Celebrated as ‘the most popular and prolific British poet of his generation’ (The Times) and ‘the first poet of serious artistic intent since Philip Larkin to have achieved popularity’ (Sean O’Brien), […]
Join us for a wonderful, unique event showcasing best-selling authors Lindsey Kelk, Paige Toon and Louise Pentland in a discussion of their dazzling new fiction. Lindsey Kelk is an author, journalist and former UK children's book editor and columnist for Marie Claire. Her previous books have sold over one million copies worldwide. Famed for her […]
Students from The Manchester College’s UAL Diploma in Foundation Studies Art and Design were given random Dewey numbers (the most widely used method for classifying books in libraries) from Central Library’s collection. Their brief was to use the book as a starting point to develop a body of research, work and outcomes in response to […]
Whose knowledge matters when we represent the city? Who decides what land to protect or destroy, whose heritage to celebrate, whose stories to tell and who gets ‘seen’ in the visual and spatial record of the city? This exhibition presents a series of counter-maps to explore different histories and residents’ knowledge from across Greater Manchester. […]
An exhibition sharing the story of the German Revolution 1918 and reclaiming the voices of the female revolutionaries who have, until now, been hidden from the official narrative. In November 1918, Germany erupted with a revolution which led to the establishment of the first democracy on German soil, the end of oppressive censorship, and the […]
Hidden’ is an ongoing series of photographic tableaux by internationally acclaimed Artist and a Founder of ‘Rock Against Racism’, Red Saunders The Hidden Project shines photographic light on great moments in the long struggle of working people for democracy and social justice. The aim of the project, through reimagining those events, is to reproduce important […]
Manchester Histories are delighted to welcome Billy Bragg to open the commemorations of Peterloo 2019. Songwriter, musician and activist Billy Bragg will be in conversation with writer and broadcaster Dave Haslam, with an introduction from Young Identity, Manchester’s young spoken word collective. At a time when opinion trumps facts and truth is treated as nothing more than […]
From dedicated performance spaces to stairwells, screens, nooks and domes, Central Library might directly inspire your next event or intervention. Contact us to arrange a tour.
