Library Live

North West Mixtape
2022-05-30 17:00 - 19:00 UTC | 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 recordings preserved during the project with live performances from two local artists. Gary Fisher and Freda Wallace will use and rework archive extracts from Kirkby Local History Society and Women Cotton Mill Workers recordings (respectively) to form new, live pieces of sound art. Gary Fisher is a sound artist and experimental composer whose work explores sound through processes of inquiry and experimentation with objects, actions, words, places, and technologies. Freda Wallace is a multi-disciplinary artist, one strand of which allows her to create industrial soundscapes using sewing machines.
Free – drop in – please consider making a donation if you can either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library
https://northwestsoundheritage.org/
You can find out more about the national Unlocking Our Sound Heritage project at the British Library’s website. Unlocking Our Sound Heritage is supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
https://www.bl.uk/projects/unlocking-our-sound-heritage

Confucius Institute Talk: The portrayal of gay characters in Chinese cinema
2022-05-24 18:00 - 19:00 | 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:
MaoHui Deng is Lecturer in Film Studies at the University of Manchester. His research is interested in the ways in which film about dementia and ageing can further and/or complicate our understanding of time in cinema, gerontology and the wider society. His essay, ‘Singapore as Non-Place: National Cinema through the Lens of Temporal Heterogeneity’, published in Asian Cinema, was awarded the Best Doctoral Student Article by the British Association of Film, Television and Screen Studies in 2021. His monograph, Ageing, Dementia and Time in Film: Temporal Performances will be published by Edinburgh University Press in January 2023.
Free – booking required

Living Library: Domestic Violence
2022-05-20 12:00 - 17:00
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, SICK! Festival has been working with SafeLives and local organisations to create a Living Library.
Living Library – Domestic Violence gives you an opportunity to meet people who have survived domestic violence, those who campaign against it, people who help survivors to rebuild their lives and others who help perpetrators change their behaviour. Visitors to the Living Library have 15 minutes for frank, open conversation, to listen, ask questions and reflect.
SafeLives is a UK-wide charity dedicated to ending domestic abuse, for everyone and for good. SafeLives work with organisations across the UK to transform the response to domestic abuse.
Free – please drop in

FIND OUT MORE: Allie Crewe – I Am

Devolved Vision: Granada TV and the Future of British TV
2022-05-18 16:00 - 17:30 | 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. Granada produced many path-breaking programmes, including Coronation Street, World In Action, Brideshead Revisited, The Jewel In The Crown, Seven Up and Disappearing World.
Today’s television landscape looks very different: the number of TV channels has proliferated, global broadcasters, streaming services and social media compete for audiences and public broadcasters face significant political threats, as do those in the devolved nations. In response, the BBC and Channel 4 have made strategic investments outside London to show that they reflect the whole of the country by creating outposts in Bristol, Salford and Leeds, and at the same time, small, independent programme makers are producing some of the most exciting and innovative TV.
Hannah Barker, Professor of British History at The University of Manchester and Director of the John Rylands Research Institute will introduce the event.
This roundtable discussion, ‘Devolved Vision: Granada TV and the Future of British TV’, asks: Will be ever see another Granada TV? What is the future for British TV?
Dorothy Byrne is President of Murray Edward College, Cambridge. She began her television career at Granada as a producer on World in Action and became Head of News and Current Affairs at Channel 4 in 2003, before moving to a role as Editor-at-Large for the company until recently. She was made a Fellow of The Royal Television Society for her Outstanding Contribution to Television and won the RTS Journalism award for Outstanding Contribution to Television Journalism. She is the author of Trust Me, I’m Not A Politician: A Simple Guide to Saving Democracy, and an alumna of the University of Manchester.
David Olusoga OBE is a historian, writer, broadcaster, presenter and film-maker from Newcastle-upon-Tyne, now based in Bristol. His recent work includes the multi-series A House Through Time, Our NHS: A Hidden History, and the BAFTA award-winning Britain’s Forgotten Slave Owners. He is Professor of Public History at the University of Manchester and recently appeared as an expert witness in the trail of the ‘Colston four’.
Liza Williams is the BAFTA award-winning television film-maker responsible for the critically acclaimed BBC series The Yorkshire Ripper Files: A Very British Crime Story. She has an impressive track record as a producer and director of programmes including Catching A Predator (BBC 2) Stacey Dooley Investigates and Panorama. An alumna of the University of Manchester, she still lives and works in the city.
This event marks the return of the Granada TV Archive to Manchester as part of the British Pop Archive at the John Ryland’s Research Institute and Library.
The British Pop Archive is a national collection dedicated to the preservation and research of popular culture. The collection will launch on 19 May 2022 with an exhibition featuring highlights from the collection.
Photo: Historic shot of Granada credit Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, m06286 791.41, Granada Television, Offices, 1960 H. Milligan
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Northern Publishers' Fair
2022-05-14 11:30 - 16:00 | 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 Press, Saraband, Carcanet, Harper North
Free – for more info and to register to attend please visit our Eventbrite page

Narratives of Covid: Loss, Dying, Death and Grief during Covid-19
2022-05-09 18:00 - 19:30 | 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 is a collection of narrative responses in the form of essays, poems, and reflections from Open University students, staff, and alumni across the UK and beyond are brought together, to document a powerful reflection of the impact of COVID on individuals and wider society.
Although the book started primarily as a way of collating narratives from across the UK and beyond, what has emerged is much more than just some words on a page. This edited collection captures a moment in time, highlighting some of the many different experiences that arose from individual circumstances. The experiences shared here resonate beyond The Open University and the UK. Collectively, it provides an important space for alternative voices and shared grief, while simultaneously allowing readers to process emotions related to the impact the pandemic has had on many.
Free – please consider making a donation if you can either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

Polish Heritage Days Exhibition
2022-05-09 08:00 - 2022-06-30 17:00 | 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 General of the Republic of Poland in Manchester, Polish Centre Wilno Manchester and Artists from Silesian University Art Institute we’re bringing a Polish Poster Exhibition to the Central Library in Manchester. The theme of this year’s PHD and the poster exhibition is the 130th anniversary of the birth of three Polish generals: Władysław Anders, Stanisław Maczek and Stanisław Sosabowski who made a significant contribution to the victory of the Allies during World War II and to the strengthening of the Polish community in Great Britain.

Polish Heritage Days to coroczny festiwal organizowany i prowadzony pod patronatem Ambasady RP w Londynie. Ideą Polish Heritage Days jest promowanie i celebrowanie polskiej kultury, dziedzictwa minionych pokoleń oraz polskiego wkładu w życie kulturalne, gospodarcze i społeczne Wielkiej Brytanii.

Wraz z Konsulatem Generalnym RP w Manchesterze, Polskim Centrum Wilno w Manchesterze oraz Artystami z Instytut Sztuk Plastycznych Uniwersytetu Śląskiego przywozimy do Biblioteki Centralnej w Manchesterze wystawę plakatu polskiego. Tematem tegorocznej wystawy jest 130. rocznica urodzin trzech polskich generałów: Władysława Andersa, Stanisława Maczka i Stanisława Sosabowskiego, , którzy wnieśli znaczący wkład w zwycięstwo aliantów podczas II wojny światowej i we wzmocnienie polskiej społeczności w Wielkiej Brytanii.

Free – drop in – please consider making a donation if you can either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

Queen Elizabeth II and Manchester Exhibition
2022-05-05 08:00 - 2022-06-30 17:00 | 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 Manchester. In addition to the photographic display, we are showing video clips of her visits to Greater Manchester. These clips, lasting approximately 25 minutes long, have been put compiled by Manchester Metropolitan University’s North West Film Archive, who are one of the Archives+ partners based at Central Library.
Free – drop in – please consider making a donation if you can either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

Crime Central: A New Crime Club at Central Library!
2022-04-28 18:00 - 20:00 | 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 signings, the chance to ask questions and more – while bringing a crime fiction buzz back to this great northern city.
Thursday 28 April 6pm. Hosted by Rob Parker.
‘Can writing murder ever really be ‘cosy’? With Janice Hallett, Jonathan Whitelaw and Sean Coleman!
Rob Parker is a married father of three, who lives in Warrington, UK. The author of the Ben Bracken thrillers, Crook’s Hollow and the Audible bestseller Far From The Tree, he enjoys a rural life, writing horrible things between school runs. He spends a lot of time in schools across the North, encouraging literacy, story-telling and creative-writing, and somehow squeezes in time to co-host the For Your Reconsideration film podcast, appear regularly on The Blood Brothers Crime Podcast and the Really, 007! Podcast, and is a member of the Northern Crime Syndicate.
Janice Hallett studied English at UCL and worked as a magazine editor, winning two awards for journalism. After gaining an MA in Screenwriting at Royal Holloway, she co-wrote the feature film Retreat. Her debut novel, The Appeal, was a Sunday Times bestseller, the Sunday Times crime book of the year, and shortlisted for Waterstones book of the year. Her second novel, The Twyford Code, is a Times and Sunday Times bestseller.
Jonathan Whitelaw is an author, award-winning journalist and broadcaster. After working on the frontline of Scottish politics, he moved into journalism. Subjects he has covered have varied from breaking news, the arts, culture and sport to fashion, music and even radioactive waste — with everything in between. His work has appeared in The Sun, Daily Mail, Scotsman, STV and The Scots Magazine as well as numerous international newspapers and websites. He’s also a regular reviewer on the BBC – specifically for arts reviews on The Afternoon Show on BBC Radio Scotland.
Sean Coleman began his writing career as a scriptwriter for Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Online. Since then he has written and produced shows for MSN, O2, Sony Pictures International, Fox, the BBC and Channel 4, for which he has won multiple awards. He is also the founder and Publishing Director of Red Dog Press, and is the author of the Alex Ripley mysteries, and the Soho Noir series, writing as T.S. Hunter. Sean lives with his girlfriend and family (including the Red Dogs) on the edge of the Peak District, where they often head out on epic walks.
DATE FOR YOUR DIARY
The next ‘Crime Central’ event will be on Thursday 26 May 6pm. ‘Past, Present, Future’. How ‘time’ in our books is so important, and how we can play with it. More details about the authors attending very soon!

MIRO Chamber Ensemble
2022-04-28 15:00 - 16:00 | 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 from haunting Eastern European melodies, to the delicate textures of Middle Eastern percussion and vocals; through to soulful Sufi chants of South Asia, joyful African gospel – embracing rap, hip-hop, classical music and jazz along the way.
Free – please drop in

Word Central
2022-04-26 18:00 - 19:45 | Performance Space
Manchester Libraries and Flapjack Press present
Word Central Open Mic Night
Hosted by Tony Curry
Featuring special guest Steph Lonsdale!
Here’s some more biog information from Steph –

I was born in Salford, in the North West of England in 1981. I live in Manchester and work in Salford, having lived for nine years in Liverpool. I love Manchester and Liverpool equally although I still have mixed feelings about Salford. I am teacher and a mother of two children, I am also a bit of a bitch, but only when it is strictly necessary.
I read my poems out loud occasionally although mostly I like to hide behind a screen. Most of my writing is observational which probably shows a great lack of imagination. I can also be found in the Whalley Range and Chorlton areas of Manchester generally hanging around and looking pretentious; most often whilst being judged by my children.

Book your open mic slot from noon on Tues 12th April via mail@flapjackpress.co.uk
NB Open mic slots are 3 minutes per performer
Performance slots are allocated on a ‘first come first served’ basis from the stated booking day
If they are already filled you will be offered a space on the reserve list
FREE EVENT – EVERYONE WELCOME!

Do the Write Thing: Creative Writing Workshops
2022-04-20 18:00 - 2022-05-25 18:00 | Chief Librarian’s Office

Cracking Crafts
2022-04-06 14:00 - 15:00 | Lower Ground Floor Link
Pop in to Central Library for cracking creativity. Make some spring and Easter themed crafts to celebrate the start of spring.
Suitable for families with children under 12.
Free – just drop in – to help keep our activities free in the future please consider making a donation, either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

A Northern Life – it's not all about Margaret
2022-04-04 08:00 - 2022-07-02 17:00 | First Floor Display Cases
Welcome to the wonderful world of local artist Lorraine Rudyard. Lorraine creates three-dimensional sculptures using recycled materials and vintage finds. Her work is colourful, humorous, warm and engaging, and reflects her Northern upbringing.
Free – just drop in – to help keep our activities free in the future please consider making a donation, either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

150 years of the Together Trust
2022-04-04 08:00 - 2022-06-30 17:00 | Wolfson Reading Room
The exhibition tells the story of the Together Trust’s 150-year history in Manchester and the north west. It charts the development of this disability charity from its origins as a 12-bed homeless boys’ refuge in Manchester city centre, to an organisation championing and caring for thousands of people in the region today. The exhibition features in both The Wolfson Reading Room on the First Floor and in the Archives+ interactive exhibition on the Ground Floor
Free – just drop in – to help keep our activities free in the future please consider making a donation, either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

WORD CENTRAL Open Mic Night
2022-03-22 18:00 - 19:45 | Performance Space
Open Mic Poetry and Spoken Word hosted by Tony Curry.
Presented by Flapjack Press & Manchester Libraries.
Next event: Tues 22nd March, 6.00pm (doors 5.30pm) with special guest Mantz Yorke.
Mantz Yorke trained as a scientist, gaining a degree in industrial metallurgy before taking up a career in teaching. Later, he switched to educational research. Now retired, he has been able to spend more time writing poetry that reflects his interest in science and human behaviour as well as his enjoyment of, and concern for, the natural environment. His poems have been published widely, both in the UK and internationally, and his collections Voyager and Dark Matters are published by Dempsey & Windle.
Book your open mic slot from noon on Tues 8th March via mail@flapjackpress.co.uk.
N.B. Open mic slots are 3 minutes per performer. Performance slots are allocated on a ‘first come first served’ basis from the stated booking day. If they are already filled you will be offered a space on the reserve list.
You can catch up with our lockdown live streams and special guests’ sets on Word Central’s Facebook page. Word Central Facebook Group | Twitter: @WordCentralMcr | Library Live flapjackpress.co.uk/pages/word-centra

Murder Mystery Night
2022-03-18 19:00 - 21:00 | Performance Space
SOLD OUT
Manchester Libraries Crime Festival
After Dark Entertainment present: An Invitation to Murder
Will you find a body in the library?
When famous golden age detectives are invited to a remote mansion by a reclusive author they get more than they bargained for as he reveals that one of them is the mysterious thief ‘The Falcon’. Before he can reveal which one of them it is, he ends up dead.
Can you play detective and uncover the truth before it’s too late. Questions the suspects and discover which of these super sleuths is really a super villain?

Crime Festival
2022-03-16 18:30 - 2022-03-17 20:00 | Performance Space
A CELEBRATION OF THE BEST CRIME WRITERS IN MANCHESTER
Wednesday 16th March – Cath Staincliffe, Joseph Knox and Karen Woods.
Thursday 17th March – Mandasue Heller, Alex Caan, Chris Simms and S J Watson.
Friday 18th March – After Dark Entertainment presents: ‘An Invitation to Murder’ Murder Mystery Night

Hosted by the brilliant author Rob Parker.
Rob Parker lives near Warrington, UK. The author of the Ben Bracken thrillers and the standalone post-Brexit country-noir Crook’s Hollow.
​Rob writes full time, as well as organising and attending various author events across the UK. Passionate about inspiring a love of the written word in young people, he spends a lot of time in schools across the North West, encouraging literacy, storytelling and creative-writing. ​He is also a co-host of the For Your Reconsideration film podcast, and a regular voice on the Blood Brothers crime book podcast.
​Here’s some more information about the authors appearing.

Cath Staincliffe
Cath was brought up in Bradford then moved to work as a community artist in Manchester where she now lives with her family.
Looking for Trouble, published in 1994, launched private eye Sal, a single parent struggling to juggle work and home, onto Manchester’s mean streets. Cath has published a further seven Sal Kilkenny mysteries.
Cath is also a scriptwriter, creator of ITV’s hit police drama, Blue Murder, she was also commissioned to write the Scott & Bailey books and writes for Danny Brocklehurst’s Stone detective drama.
She is now writing a series of stand-alone novels where ordinary families find themselves caught up in extraordinary events. Cath is a founder member of Murder Squad, a virtual collective of northern crime writers.

Joseph Knox
Joseph Knox was born and raised in and around Stoke-On-Trent and Manchester, where he worked in bars and bookshops before moving to London. He runs, writes and reads compulsively.
Sirens, his debut novel, was a Sunday Times bestseller, and his work has now been translated into 18 languages.
His latest novel ‘True Crime Story’ was published in 2021. The Times described it as ‘Scandalously entertaining…Knox is a fantastic writer. His ambitious fourth novel satirises and celebrates the true-crime genre with glee … by turns horrific and hilarious’ – Mark Sanderson.

Karen Woods
Karen was born and raised in the City Of Manchester and is proud to be a Mancunian! Being raised within an inner city area inspired Karen to take an unorthodox and very well received approach within her writing.
Karen left school without any formal qualifications and obtained her inspiration from attending an adult literacy course which was offered by her former employers.
Karen writes from the heart and always keeps it real to life, and she writes about subjects we can all relate too. Having lived a colourful life she uses her own experiences to write her books. Her fan base is growing every day and soon everyone will know the name Karen Woods.
Karen believes that everyone has the power to to change their lives around with self belief and determination. “Life doesn’t give. We have to take what we can.” .

Mandasue Heller
After moving to Manchester in the early 80’s, Mandasue immersed herself in the underground music scene. Forced by illness to temporarily quit singing in the 90’s, she turned her hand to writing, using the notorious Hulme Crescents, where she had spent her first 10 years in Manchester, as the backdrop.
Her first written piece concerned a real-life incident, when a man had broken into her house in the early hours and attacked her with a claw-hammer, fracturing her skull. But it was the psychological after-effects that affected her most deeply, and she hoped that writing about it would exorcise the hold it still had over her. The finished piece was too personal for anybody else to read, but she had enjoyed the process of writing, so decided to try her hand at fiction instead – and her first book, The Front, was snapped up by Hodder & Stoughton. She has written 13 books since then, and is currently working on the 14th.
Mother to 3 grown children, and grandmother of 3, Mandasue still lives in Manchester, and spends her time between books and family commitments locked away in the studio, writing and recording music albums.

Alex Caan
Alex Caan has spent over a decade working in Information Systems Security for a number of government organisations, and is currently specialising in Terrorism Studies. A lifetime passion for writing was sparked by the encouraging words of an English Teacher in school, and eventually led to Alex successfully completing an MA in Creative Writing, and write Cut to the Bone.
Cut to the Bone has been a Kindle Number 1 bestseller, was picked as a WH Smith ‘Everyone’s Talking About’ book of the week, chosen as Sainsbury’s best of summer reads and was Angela Marson’s pick for crime novel recommendation of the year. Alex Caan was also a rising star on Amazon in 2016.
First To Die, the shocking sequel to Cut to the Bone, was released June 14th 2018.
His latest novel The Unbroken is out now.

Chris Simms
Chris Simms has worked in airports, nightclubs, post offices and telesales centres. Along with nominations for Crime Writers’ Association Daggers and the Theakston’s Crime Novel of the Year award for his novels and short stories, Chris was selected by Waterstones as one of their ’25 Authors for the Future’.
The idea for his debut novel, Outside the White Lines, came to him in the early hours of the morning while broken down on the hard shoulder of the M40.
His series of DI Spicer novels – psychological thrillers set very firmly in Manchester – follow the police detective’s fortunes as he pursues mad, bad and deadly individuals through the city’s ever-evolving landscape.
In October 2012, Scratch Deeper was launched – a new series featuring Detective Constable Iona Khan of Manchester Police’s Counter Terrorism Unit. This was followed-up by another DC Khan novel, A Price To Pay.
Dark Angel, the 9th DI Spicer novel was published in January 2021.

S J Watson
S J Watson’s first novel, Before I Go To Sleep, became a phenomenal international success and has now sold over 6,000,000 copies worldwide. It won the Crime Writers’ Association Award for Best Debut Novel and the Galaxy National Book Award for Crime Thriller of the Year and has been translated into more than 40 languages.
The film of the book, starring Nicole Kidman, Colin Firth and Mark Strong, and directed by Rowan Joffe, was released in September 2014. S J Watson’s second novel, Second Life, a psychological thriller, was published to acclaim in 2015. His new novel Final Cut is out now.

Okechukwu Nzelu - HERE AGAIN NOW Book Launch
2022-03-10 18:30 - 20:00 | Performance Space
Join us at Manchester Central Library for the launch of Okechukwu Nzelu’s new book HERE AGAIN NOW.

About this event

We’re delighted to be working with Blackwells Books to host the launch of Okechukwu Nzelu’s latest book HERE AGAIN NOW – a heart-breaking and immensely uplifting novel about lovers, fathers and sons which shows the power of family – both the one into which we are born and those we choose for ourselves. Okechukwu will be in conversation with Andrew McMillan.
About the book:
Achike Okoro feels like his life is coming together at last. His top-floor flat in Peckham is as close to home as he can imagine and after years of hard work, he’s about to get his break as an actor. He’s even persuaded his father, Chibuike, to move in with him, grateful to offer the man who raised him as a single parent a home of his own.
Between filming trips, Achike is snatching a few days in London with Ekene, his best friend of twenty years, the person who makes him feel whole. Achike can put the terrible things that happened behind him at last; everything is going to be alright. Maybe even better.
But after a magical night, when Achike and Ekene come within a hair’s breadth of admitting their feelings for each other, a devastating event rips all three men apart. In the aftermath, it is Ekene and Chibuike who must try to rebuild. And although they have never truly understood each other, grief may bring them both the peace and happiness they’ve been searching for…
About the author:
Okechukwu Nzelu is a writer and teacher. In 2015 he was the recipient of a New Writing North Award. In 2020 his debut novel, The Private Joys of Nnenna Maloney, won a Betty Trask Award and was shortlisted for the Betty Trask Prize, the Desmond Elliott Prize, and the Polari First Book Prize. He lives in Manchester and is a Lecturer in Creative Writing at the University of Lancaster.
This event is being held at Manchester Central Library.
Doors: 18.00, event starts: 18.30
Tickets are £3.00 or free when pre-ordering a copy of the book. HERE AGAIN NOW will also be available to purchase on the night and Okechukwu will be signing copies after the talk. If you would like a signed copy but cannot make the event, please contact Blackwell’s Books on 0161 274 3331 or manchester@blackwell.co.uk and we can arrange this for you.

Intro to art, Augmented Reality (AR) and NFTs in the Metaverse
2022-03-09 17:30 - 19:00 | Ground Floor Search Room
Virtual Lab are holding a talk on Wednesday as part of the Digital Festival. Join the dots between immersive technologies, blockchain and the metaverse in a talk by Dr Jessica Symons, Director of Visioning Lab and Research Fellow at the University of Manchester. The presentation combines insight from projects, research and networking across the immersive, NFT, Augmented/Virtual Reality and contemporary art spaces. After the talk, come along for drinks at HOME Manchester as part of the monthly Immersive Northwest get together. This is a great opportunity to exchange ideas with people working at the intersection of art and emerging technologies.
Free – please drop in

International Women's Day: Songbird
2022-03-08 13:00 - 14:00 | Archives+ Ground Floor
Join us in the oculus area on the ground floor for this short concert by the RNCM Chamber Choir, in celebration of International Women’s Day. Inspired by birdsong, ‘Songbird’ is an all female composer programme. The programme will include works by Fanny Mendelssohn, Sarah Quartel and Roxanna Panufnik.
The RNCM Chamber Choir is an auditioned ensemble of 24 voices and is open to students of all Schools of Study. The Chamber Choir regularly participates in projects with the Hallé, recently as the semi-chorus in Berlioz’s Romeo and Juliet and alongside the chorus in Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. They also have a close relationship with the Edvard Grieg Kor, a professional vocal ensemble based in Bergen, Norway. In 2019 the Chamber Choir travelled to Bergen to perform Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms with the EGK and Bergen Philharmonic under the baton of Thierry Fischer. The choir benefits from the involvement of David Hill, the RNCM’s International Chair in Choral Conducting, who visits several times a year, and Stuart Overington, who directs the ensembles.
Free- please drop in

Feeding the Darkness
2022-02-25 13:00 - 15:00 | Performance Space
‘Art Thou in Darkness? Mind it not for if thou dost, it will fill thee more……’ – James Naylor (17th century Quaker)
‘Feeding the Darkness’ is a 65-minute immersive performance piece which demonstrates the stark impact of state-sanctioned torture on victims, perpetrators, families and those who collude in the ‘process’. It uses verbatim monologues, dramatic monologues based on true stories, duologues, poetry and testimonies. It portrays a wide range of experiences from those of the mother of Private Lynddie England (court-marshalled for her role in the abuse of Abu Ghraib detainees), to those of a Kurdish asylum seeker at an appeal tribunal.
‘Feeding the Darkness’ iterates the Quaker position on torture and encourages us to examine how the UN Convention Against Torture (1965) Article 1 is clearly being abused by UK and world-wide governments. This production is brought to you by Journeymen Theatre in collaboration with Freedom from Torture Manchester supporters, and commissioned by Q-CAT: Quaker Concern for the Abolition of Torture.
Freedom from Torture is a national charity providing specialist therapy and support for torture survivors, and campaigning for a world without torture. Survivors of torture are at the heart of our work.
The performance is not suitable for younger viewers due to the disturbing nature of the content. There will be a Q&A after performances
Free – please drop in

Breaking the News Exhibition and Archive Handling Sessions
2022-02-24 08:00 - 2022-08-21 17:00 | Archives+ Ground Floor
The news has the power to make or break elections, to change the course of history or to alter our perspective on the city and country we live in. We expect the news to speak truth to power, but can it ever really be objective? Is your news the same as everyone else’s? How do you use the news to navigate the world around you?
Central Library will be hosting a series of pop-up handling sessions tied in with the new Breaking the News Exhibition at the British Library.The sessions will be looking at how major local, regional and international events have been reported using the original newspapers and magazines from the time. Come and see how the major events of the last 200 years were reported.
How did local and national newspapers reflect the two World Wars and the struggle for Women’s Rights.
How did the Manchester Evening News report significant local events from the Munich Air Crash to the Manchester Blitz.
How does a newspaper’s own perspective (Socialist Worker, Gay Times, Private Eye affect the way it reports on the world).
The display runs from February 24th until August 21th 2022 and alongside the display panels we will be running regular weekly handling sessions. Dates for the handling sessions will be announced very soon.
Breaking the News: The Launch Debate will be live streamed from Leeds Central Library this Thursday 24th February at 7pm. You can register for this FREE event here.
The major new Breaking the News Exhibition will be at the British Library from 22 April to 21 August 2022.
#BreakingTheNews

A Masterclass: Queer History
2022-02-24 08:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
When did the popular ‘GAY’ LGBT+/Human Rights Campaign really start?
1964 North-Western Homosexual Law Reform Committee
1966 Compton’s Cafeteria riot
1967 Passing of the Sexual Offences Act
1968 The Stonewall Riots
Earlier?
1958 Wolfenden Committee Report
1928 Publishing of The Well of Loneliness by Radclyffe ​
How about the ‘Gay’ Reform Movement of the 1830’s!?
Pioneering research by US Historian Charles Upchurch, whose specialist area is the first half of the 19th century, has uncovered a remarkable flowering of popular and parliamentary campaign for ‘Gay’ Reform. A flowering that has been hidden for nearly two hundred years. Involving leading politicians such as the Duke of Wellington, Robert Stewart (Viscount Castlereagh) the Poet Lord Byron and Prime Minster Peel together with a host of other campaigners both within and outside Parliament. His book “Beyond the Law” provides the compelling history in fascinating reform movement.
Chuck is flying into Manchester to deliver these remarkable findings, uncovered over years of pouring over the evidence held at various archives including the British Library. His new book ‘Beyond the Law’ sets out these remarkable findings.
This talk is hosted by the City of Manchester Libraries Service and coordinated with Schools Out(UK), LGBT HM & OTP of which Chuck is a Distinguished Academic Patron. Chuck will also be highlighting some of the problems and solutions involved in seeking out our “Queer” Past, largely hidden, denied and even still outlawed in many countries.
This will be followed by a Q&A session and the event will close by 5pm. Cllr Lee-Ann Igbon will be Chairing the event. Written questions are welcome – please email your questions to siobhan.o’connor@manchester.gov.uk The event commences promptly at 4pm on Thursday 24th February 2022, The Performance Space (Ground Floor) Manchester Central Library, St Peter’s Square.
For more information and to book a free in-person place, please email siobhan.o’connor@manchester.gov.uk
We also plan to live stream the event – book your free place for the virtual webinar via Eventbrite
“Upchurch offers amazing research, new discoveries, and fascinating stories of the people behind these legislative efforts, as well as rich discussions of the tragic persecutions of many men who had sex with men. – Anna Clark, [Professor of History at the University of Minnesota, and author of Alternative Histories of the Self: A Cultural History of Sexuality and Secrets, 1762–1917.]
“‘Beyond the Law’ is a very important book that will change our understanding of what happened before 1861 when the death penalty for sodomy in England was abolished.” – Prof. Jeffrey Weeks.

TO PARADISE - Hanya Yanagihara in conversation with Kamila Shamsie
2022-02-23 18:30 - 20:00 | Performance Space
Hanya Yanagihara, author of the million-copy bestseller A Little Life, introduces her incredible new novel TO PARADISE.

About this event

We’re thrilled to be welcoming Hanya Yanagihara, author of the modern classic A Little Life, to Manchester for one of just four UK dates celebrating the release of her phenomenal new book TO PARADISE – a bold, brilliant novel spanning three centuries and three different versions of the American experiment, about lovers, family, loss and the elusive promise of utopia. Hanya will be in conversation with Kamila Shamsie.
About the book:
In an alternate version of 1893 America, New York is part of the Free States, where people may live and love whomever they please (or so it seems). The fragile young scion of a distinguished family resists betrothal to a worthy suitor, drawn to a charming music teacher of no means. In a 1993 Manhattan besieged by the AIDS epidemic, a young Hawaiian man lives with his much older, wealthier partner, hiding his troubled childhood and the fate of his father. And in 2093, in a world riven by plagues and governed by totalitarian rule, a powerful scientist’s damaged granddaughter tries to navigate life without him – and solve the mystery of her husband’s disappearances.
These three sections are joined in an enthralling and ingenious symphony, as recurring notes and themes deepen and enrich one another: A townhouse in Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village; illness, and treatments that come at a terrible cost; wealth and squalor; the weak and the strong; race; the definition of family, and of nationhood; the dangerous righteousness of the powerful, and of revolutionaries; the longing to find a place in an earthly paradise, and the gradual realization that it can’t exist. What unites not just the characters, but these Americas, are their reckonings with the qualities that make us human: Fear. Love. Shame. Need. Loneliness.
To Paradise is a fin-de-siecle novel of marvellous literary effect, but above all it is a work of emotional genius. The great power of this remarkable novel is driven by Yanagihara’s understanding of the aching desire to protect those we love – partners, lovers, children, friends, family and even our fellow citizens – and the pain that ensues when we cannot.
This event is being held at Manchester Central Library in partnership with the Centre for New Writing.
Doors: 18.00, event starts: 18.30
Tickets are £10.00 or £25.00 including a copy of the book. TO PARADISE will also be available to purchase on the night and Hanya will be signing copies after the talk. If you would like a signed copy but cannot make the event, please contact us on 0161 274 3331 or manchester@blackwell.co.uk and we can arrange this for you.

International Mother Language Day
2022-02-21 13:00 - 15:00 | Performance Space
Communities across Manchester will come together to enjoy an afternoon of celebration for all the family. Sharing their stories, language, music, dance and food, it is sure to be a joyful gathering. Confirmed for this year are the Lithuanian Community, and the first time in our event history, members of both the Libyan and Moroccan Amazigh community will be joining together to share their cultural heritage with everyone.
Free – drop in event – please consider making a donation if you can either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library

David Gaffney 'Out of the Dark' Book Launch
2022-02-17 18:00 - 20:00 | Performance Space
A young man has rented a flat at the top of a high rise block in Birmingham where he watches the same video over and over again, an old British film noir called Out Of The Dark. This film holds some important information for him, something which will help him deal with his recent tragic events. But what is he looking for in this corny black and white B flick? Who is the mysterious woman who is bedridden after falling down the stairs? And why does a strange neighbour want to buy up all the garages on the street?

Out Of The Dark is an unsettling story of grief, obsession and duplicity told using a puzzle box of stories within stories that twist and turn at every opportunity. It is also about film noir itself and as the young man dissects the recurring motifs of his favourite film genre he reveals more about himself than he does about the movie. The edges of the film and real life begin to blur. Is he being pulled into a similar whirlpool of deceit, corruption and violence?

Praise for Out Of The Dark

‘A twisted and darkly funny neo-noir that somehow channels the restless spirits of both David Lynch and Shane Meadows while remaining intensely literary. In Out Of The Dark David Gaffney has produced a book with real propulsive energy, one that produces surprises on nearly every page.’ Stephen May, Costa prize shortlisted author of Life! Death! Prizes!

‘ Out Of The Dark is an ingenious, idiosyncratic and unnerving noir, in which Ballard meets Jim Thomson meets Mike Leigh in a high rise block next to a motorway in the Black Country. ‘ Luke Brown, editor, critic, and author of novels My Biggest Lie and Theft.

About David
David Gaffney was born and brought up in Cleator Moor, west Cumbria and now lives in Manchester. He is the author of the novels Never Never (2008) and All The Places I’ve Ever Lived ( 2017) plus the flash fiction and short story collections Sawn-Off Tales (2006), Aromabingo (2007), The Half-Life of Songs (2010) and More Sawn-Off Tales (2013). He has written articles for The Guardian, Sunday Times, Financial Times and Prospect magazine, and was a judge for the Bridport Prize. His graphic novel with Dan Berry, The Three Rooms In Valerie’s Head, was published in 2018 on Top Shelf, and David and Dan’s latest graphic novel Rivers is out now, also on Top Shelf. David’s new novel, Out Of The Dark, is out in January 2022.
The Guardian said: ‘One hundred and fifty words by Gaffney are more worthwhile than novels by a good many others.’

Also at the event we are delighted to present Melissa Wan reading her story Art Decade, from an exciting upcoming book from Confingo called Waiting For The Gift – an anthology of short stories influenced by David Bowie’s seminal seventies album, Low.

See www.davidgaffney.org for more

¡No Pasarán! – North West International Brigade Memorial Group
2022-02-12 11:30 - 16:00 | Performance Space
North West International Brigade Memorial Group invite you to join us for ¡No Pasarán!, a day of commemoration of those Greater Manchester men and women who fought against Franco, Hitler and Mussolini in the Spanish Civil War.
11.30- 1PM 85th anniversary commemoration of the battle of Jarama.
In February 1937 around 500 men of the British Battalion of the International Brigades went into their first military battle in defence of the Spanish Republican government at Jarama near Madrid. In the next three days over a third were killed and many were wounded but although driven from the field they re-grouped and stopped the Fascist attempt to cut the only supply road to Madrid and prevented the city from starving. In this battle 14 local men were killed.
To commemorate and celebrate this event there will be songs, poetry and prose from the period and an exhibition of the North West’s involvement in the Spanish Civil War.
Rob Hargreaves author of ‘Beyond Peterloo’ and forthcoming book on Oldham’s Clem Beckett a local speedway star, ‘Clem Beckett: motorcycle legend and war hero’, will speak about the death of Clem Beckett at Jarama.
The morning will end with the laying of wreaths at the memorial to the local International Brigaders in Central Library.
1-2 Break for Lunch.
2-4 ‘Lillian and Madge the stories of two remarkable women: resisting Fascism in Spain and World War II’
A lecture by Chris Hall author of ‘The Nurse who became a Spy’: Madge Addy’s war against fascism’
After the lecture there will be a chance to ask questions, buy a copy of Chris Hall’s book, speak to members of the North West International Brigades Group and look at the exhibition on the Spanish Civil War.
Find out more information about the International Brigade Memorial Group here.

Titanic: A Maritime Mistake?
2022-02-08 13:00 - 14:00 | Performance Space
A thrilling new take on the 1912 tragedy, as those tasked to keep the secret safe go on the run from an elite group of political figures.

When Lancashire author Alan Veale began research for his latest novel ‘The Titanic Document’, he built a story around the 1912 disaster.

They do say truth is stranger than fiction, and as the plot and characters developed, so too did Alan’s perception of historical events. Now he shares the surprising evidence he uncovered which points to a curious conclusion on how the great ship met her fate.
Join the author at this free afternoon event where he will present material from his research and also be reading from the novel.

Chinese New Year Celebration
2022-02-06 12:00 - 16:00
Help us celebrate the Year of the Tiger in Central Library on one of our special Sunday openings. Join in the fun as we offer themed family activities and crafts for everyone to enjoy

Free – drop in event – please consider making a donation if you can either online or at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in Central Library
