What's on

Digital Home Movie Day

Archives+ Ground Floor

  Home Movie Day is an annual worldwide celebration of family films – the North West Film Archive is looking for those more recent home movies which were ‘born digital’ and might be trapped in an old device.  Bring us your gadgets, cards and phones and our experts will do their best to retrieve your […]

Family Learning Festival: Animation Workshop

Start your adventure here! This practical workshop introduces parents and children to the wonderful world of animation, and shows how to work together to create basic stop frame animation. What is the Family Learning Festival? It's a national celebration to mark and inspire a love of learning in family life. It takes place in October […]

Science@Central

Central Library is a mysterious, secret-filled place. Who knows what hidden knowledge lies between the pages of its many books? Read up on the spirit of scientific investigation and come find out for yourself, discovering how science has affected the story-lined corridors of Manchester Central Library over the centuries. Get elbow deep in moonrocks and […]

Creepy Crypt Halloween Activity

Darken the doors of Central Library for our spooky Halloween event. Dare to visit the creepy crypt and take part in a ghastly game, hear chilling rhymes from the creature in the corner and then take part in the trick or treat trail with your carefully crafted goody bag. Suitable for families No need to […]

Harry Potter: A History of Magic Live Screenings

Performance Space

SORRY, THESE EVENTS ARE NOW BOOKED UP. Journey to where magic and myth began! Have you ever wanted to delve into Divination, ponder the peculiarities of Potions and discover enchanting creatures? Now you can. Watch lecturers at the British Library unveil rare books, manuscripts and magical objects from the British Library's collection, capturing the traditions […]

WORD CENTRAL open mic poetry & spoken word

Performance Space

WORD CENTRAL is back on Wednesday 1st November at Central Library. 6pm - 8pm , free entry This month's special guest is poet Mark Mace Smith Glastonbury Festival Poetry Slam Winner 2008, BBC MediaCity Poet in Residence 2011-2015, and author of A Fruit Filled with Bitter Ashes. All open mic slots are already filled, but if you want […]

War Memories

Performance Space

With the endorsement of WarGen, Manchester Central Library together with one of its volunteer groups, the Manchester Indie Film Makers Group (MIFMG), are presenting a single performance of War Memories, a production written by the MIFMG using film and written material from the published WarGen pages on the internet. WarGen is currently uploading film and transcriptions of the experiences of […]

Made In Manchester: The Ups & Downs of Freelancing

These days many careers in the ever-growing Creative Industries are freelance. Hear from our experienced panel as they discuss how to survive as a freelancer, make the most of opportunities, and stand out in the new "gig economy". Featuring Tom Clarke from The Sharp Project, Alison Surtees from the Manchester Music Digital Archive and Pip Rustage, photographer. […]

Homeless Film Festival Screening – Mr Stink

Performance Space

Join us for a screening of the film Mr Stink. The film is presented by the Homeless Film Festival which is a registered charity and the world's biggest festival dedicated to using film screenings, special events and film making workshops as a way of highlighting and tackling homeless issues. Free - to book email homelessfilmfestival@gmail.com

Hidden Histories, Hidden Historians

Archives+ Ground Floor

Manchester Histories presents Hidden Histories, Hidden Historians, a Heritage Lottery Fund supported exhibition. Five groups from across Greater Manchester have explored their own hidden histories to create a multi-media exhibition that includes archive photography, historical research, video and oral histories. Free - just drop in

Jennifer Egan

Performance Space

Acclaimed American author Jennifer Egan makes a rare UK visit to talk about her forthcoming novel, Manhattan Beach – her first foray into historical fiction. Set during the Depression and then the war, it tells the story of Anna Kerrigan, a navy diver making her own way at a transformative time for women; in a […]

£10

Gordon Brown: A Life in Politics

Performance Space

This event is sold out The former Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, will talk about a remarkable 40 years on the political frontline. Join us for this landmark event to celebrate the release of his forthcoming memoir, My Life, Our Times, which reflects candidly on an extraordinary career; from New Labour's 1997 landslide electoral victory, to the 2008 global […]