What's on

MIRO Chamber Ensemble

Henry Watson Music Library

Join us for an intimate performance by a Manchester International Roots Orchestra chamber ensemble in the Hentry Watson Music Library on the First Floor of Central Library. The Manchester International Roots Orchestra (MIRO) is a unique ensemble of musicians with roots from across the world including students from the RNCM. Our repertoire skilfully combines diverse musical influences […]

Crime Central: A New Crime Club at Central Library!

Performance Space

Crime Central is a new monthly event at Manchester Central Library, featuring the best and brightest crime writing talent both locally and from around the country. Showcasing blockbuster bestsellers, emerging talent and industry insiders, Crime Central will share the real story of what goes on in the crime world. There’ll be giveaways, audience interaction, book […]

£5

Queen Elizabeth II and Manchester Exhibition

Archives+ Ground Floor

This June marks the 70th year anniversary that Queen Elizabeth II has been on the throne. To celebrate this, we host an exhibition to celebrate her life so far, and her links to Manchester. This fascinating photographic and video exhibition celebrates the Queen’s life. Included are several photographs of visits the Queen has made to […]

Polish Heritage Days Exhibition

First Floor Exhibition Hall

The Polish Heritage Days is an annual festival organised and run under the patronage of the Polish Embassy in London. The idea behind Polish Heritage Days is to promote and celebrate Polish culture, heritage of past generations, and Polish contribution to the cultural, economic, and social life of the United Kingdom. Together with the Consulate […]

Narratives of Covid: Loss, Dying, Death and Grief during Covid-19

Performance Space

How have you experienced loss and grief during COVID-19? The pandemic has brought loss, death, and change to everyday life on a global scale. Join us for an evening of reflection and discussion as we share Narratives of COVID and question what it means to live and die during the pandemic. About the book: it […]

Northern Publishers’ Fair

Performance Space

Drop in, chat about books, buy way too many, and find your new favourite people at our annual Northern Publishers' Fair, organised by Fly on the Wall Press! Publishers so far: Bluemoose Books, TTA Press, Stairwell Books, Manchester University Press, UCLAN Publishing, Confingo Publishing, Fly on the Wall Press, Comma Press, Crocus Books (CommonWord), Flapjack […]

Devolved Vision: Granada TV and the Future of British TV

Performance Space

Granada TV has a very significant place in British television history and still holds a powerful place in the cultural memory of northerners. Once described as the ‘greatest television company in the world’, it was founded by Sidney Bernstein in 1954 and began broadcasting to the North in May 1956, when independent television was born. […]

Living Library: Domestic Violence

Every year, over two million people in the UK experience domestic abuse. None of them should have to wait until they’re in crisis before we pay attention. We need to see the whole person, the whole family and the whole society if we are to truly see the whole picture. Alongside Allie Crewe’s powerful exhibition, I Am, […]

Confucius Institute Talk: The portrayal of gay characters in Chinese cinema

Performance Space

This talk will introduce the audience to the changing representations of gay characters in films from mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The films that will be explored include, but are not limited to, East Palace, West Palace (Zhang Yuan, 1996), Happy Together (Wong Kar-wai, 1997), and The River (Tsai Ming-liang, 1997). About the speaker: […]

North West Mixtape

Performance Space

Join us for this closing event 'North West Mixtape' in which selections of archive audio from the Unlocking Our Sound Heritage project are celebrated. We've spent the last three years digitising, cataloguing and clearing the rights for over 4000 recordings from archives across the North West region. This event pairs an audio-visual showreel of key […]

Word Central

Performance Space

WORD CENTRAL RETURNS TUESDAY 31 MAY 2022 James Hartnell is a poet, newspaper columnist and writer who has been published globally. He is presently editor of Current Accounts, the international magazine of Bank Street Writers, and is a regular contributor to Worktown Words, the writing arm of Live from Worktown, a major community project in […]

Shadow Girl

Shadow Girl is a new adventure story about a girl called Sabrina, who has a vivid imagination. It is a playful and adventurous show about friendship, growing up and discovering what it means to be brave. Sabrina is growing up fast, but her parents haven’t noticed yet. Feeling invisible and alone, Sabrina hastily forms a […]