Film Fridays
2026-08-28 13:00 - 16:00 UTC | Performance Space
Unleash the musical theatre kid in you with this programme of music-themed films! Watch a family classic on the library’s huge screen, get involved in music-themed crafts and find out how you can take part in this year’s Summer Reading Challenge. Suitable for children up to 12 years old.
Free entry, just drop in.
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Music Q&A: Tony Fletcher - 'When UK Punk Went Pop 1980-84'
2026-09-15 18:00 - 19:30
This September, the acclaimed music journalist, industry head, and broadcaster Tony Fletcher will be discussing his brand new book ‘When Pop Went Punk 1980-84’ with a special in-conversation event at Central Library.
Before authoring eleven books, including best selling biographies of Who drummer Keith Moon, R.E.M. and the Smiths, Tony Fletcher was a teenaged music magazine publisher in his native England. But, with a degree of industry that sounds absolutely exhausting, he also ran a record label, interviewed rock stars, led a band, promoted concerts, worked as an on-air TV interviewer — and still found time for romance.
Fletcher chronicled the early days of his life and career in his previous work, ‘Boy About Town’ (2013) but had enough extraordinary experiences left over for this new colourful and engaging memoir: ‘When Pop Went Punk 1980-84’.
1980–’84 was an explosive time in British rock, as the disruptive energy of bands like the Clash and Sex Pistols gave way to more sophisticated and chart-friendly genres and bands. Fletcher was on the front lines, running a record label with the Jam’s Paul Weller, attending all the important concerts and meeting the top acts, many of whom became MTV regulars: Madness, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Wham!, Echo & the Bunnymen, Killing Joke, Adam and the Ants, the Smiths and more. Then there’s the time he interviewed Paul McCartney…
Tony’s new book ‘When Pop Went Punk 1980-84’ is a coming-of-age story, the tale of a naïve young man in a cultural whirlwind who learns some hard lessons about business, journalism, love and sex – all the while trying to get his own band a record deal.
Opening-up about the book and his whirlwind career in music, Tony will be chatting to Louder Than War journalist Iain Key about his extraordinary life. Appearing in-person at the Henry Watson Music Library of Central Library, catch them in-conversation on Tuesday 15 September.
Tickets are donations based – just pay-what-you-can!
Get yours here:
Music Q&A: Tony Fletcher – ‘When UK Punk Went Pop 1980-84’ Tickets, Tuesday, September 15 • 6 PM – 7:30 PM | Eventbrite
All donations go to Manchester Libraries to support future activities.

Manchester Literature Festival presents Emily St. John Mandel
2026-10-10 19:00 - 20:30 | Performance Space
Bestselling Canadian author Emily St. John Mandel joins us to discuss her electrifying new novel Exit Party – exploring parallel worlds, political unrest and blurred realities.
In a near-future Los Angeles emerging from conflict, Ari Walker and her friend Gloria are going to a party. But the party becomes the site of something inexplicable, drawing Ari into a mystery that will haunt her across decades and continents. Elegant, suspenseful and emotionally charged, Exit Party explores memory, freedom, art and the fragile boundaries between realities.
Emily St. John Mandel blends literary fiction with speculative suspense in the unforgettable style that made Station Eleven an international success. Hosted by Andrew McMillan.
Emily St. John Mandel is the internationally acclaimed author of seven novels, including The Glass Hotel, Sea of Tranquility and Station Eleven, winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award and adapted into a celebrated television series on HBO Max. Her work has been translated into 34 languages.
A Manchester Literature Festival event.
Tickets £12 / £10
A Manchester Literature Festival event supported by Library Live.
Booking tickets here or ‘Book Now’ below
