Library Live

Manchester Central Library Fun Palace
2024-10-05 10:30 - 16:00 UTC
Manchester Central Library will join hundreds of Fun Palaces nationally and internationally set to explode with free and fun activities for all. Join us on Saturday, 5 October, and master new skills from your neighbours, share hobbies with friends old and new, and celebrate the passions and enthusiasms of all of us!
10.30am-4pm: Informal Bookbinding Workshops (Ground Floor)
Learn bookbinding with this free engaging workshop delivered by the National Society of Bookbinders for their 50th anniversary! Free, just drop in. More info here.
11.30am-12 noon: Ukrainian Storytime
Привіт! Join our new Ukrainian storytelling session led by one of our amazing volunteers! Learn new words, listen to stories in Ukrainian and English and have fun! Suitable for children aged 4 to 7.
2-4pm: Crafty Palaces
Drop in and have a go at learning a new craft with the support of our local artists. Try finger knitting with Simone, learn how to weave using scrap fabrics with Nayna from Street Style Surgery, and much more! All ages welcome!
2-3.30pm: Lego Club
Join our regular Lego Club for a Fun Palaces special! Pick your favourite bricks and let your imagination run wild: what will your fun palace look like? Suitable for ages 4 and above.
Free – 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

Fun Palaces is an ongoing national and international campaign, nurturing and supporting the potential and positivity of sharing people’s enthusiasms, passions and skills with their own local community. Fun Palaces has an annual weekend of events each October, although Fun Palaces can also happen at any time of year.
During the weekend of celebration, check out what’s happening elsewhere on X/Instagram: #FunPalaces | @FunPalaces. www.funpalaces.co.uk

Yuan Yang
2024-10-06 14:00 - 15:30 | Performance Space
UNFORTUNATELY, THIS EVENT IS NOW CANCELLED
Yuan Yang is no longer able to travel to Manchester due to her new parliamentary commitments and constituency obligations and is very sorry to miss the opportunity to meet our audience.
Quaytickets will be in touch with all existing ticket holders to offer a refund.
In Private Revolutions: Coming of Age in a New China, British-Chinese journalist Yuan Yang tells the fascinating story of modern China through the lives of four ordinary women. Leiya, born in a patriarchal rural village, bluffs her way onto the factory floor; June sets herself a goal to attend university rather than raise pigs; Siyue rebels against her teachers and then remakes the education system for others, and Sam becomes an activist while her peers are disappearing from the streets.
Yuan Yang was born in China and returned there as an adult as a correspondent for the Financial Times. After the mass expulsion of journalists from China in 2020, she was one of the few journalists writing in English left in the country. She now lives in London and is the Labour MP for Earley and Woodley. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival and supported by Library Live.
Image credit: Inigo Blake
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, visit the MLF website or phone 0161 876 2015

Lindsey Hilsum
2024-10-06 16:30 - 18:00 | Performance Space
‘I was standing outside an apartment block that had been split apart by a missile. The words of a poem came to me when I could no longer find my own.’
In the four decades she’s spent as a foreign correspondent, Lindsey Hilsum has always carried a book of poetry with her. Poetry has helped her to make sense of the world and acted ‘as a vaccination against despair’. In this special event, Lindsey will reflect on some of the poems collected in her captivating new book I Brought the War with Me and discuss her career, during which she has interviewed the warlords of Bosnia and Sudan, met child soldiers in Uganda and given testimony about the genocide in Rwanda.
Lindsey is Channel 4 News’ International Editor. Her book, In Extremis: the Life of War Correspondent Marie Colvin, won the James Tait Black Prize for biography. She has covered the major conflicts and refugee movements of the past three decades, including Syria, Mali, Iraq, and Kosovo and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. She has won many awards, including the Royal Television Society Journalist of the Year and the Royal Geographical Society Patron’s Medal. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with the Centre for New Writing and Creative Manchester. Supported by Library Live.
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Asako Yuzuki
2024-10-07 08:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
PLEASE NOTE THIS EVENT HAS CHANGED VENUE FROM WATERSTONES DEANSGATE TO CENTRAL LIBRARY

‘There are two things that I can simply not tolerate: feminists and margarine.’
A Japanese bestseller, Butter is the story of gourmet cook and serial killer Manako Kajii. Convicted of seducing lonely businessmen with her cooking and killing them for their money, Manako is incarcerated in Tokyo Detention Centre, refusing visitors. That is until journalist Rika Machida writes to her asking for her beef stew recipe and Manako can’t resist. Rika thinks she’s about to get the biggest scoop of her career but when she begins taking Manako’s cooking advice it seems Rika’s life is about to change in ways she never expected. Funny, feminist and absolutely mouthwatering, Butter is inspired by the real-life case of ‘The Konkatsu Killer’.
Asako Yuzuki is a novelist and short story writer. Her story ‘Forget Me, Not Blue’ won the All Yomimono Award for New Writers. Her novel Nile Perch Women’s Club won the Yamamoto Shūgorō Prize. Several of her books (including Butter) have been nominated for the Naoki Prize and many have been adapted for radio, film and television.
Hosted by Caroline Magennis, Associate Professor in Contemporary Literature at the University of Salford and author of Harpy: A Manifesto for Childfree Women. Presented in partnership with The Japan Foundation and 4th Estate.
Supported by Library Live
Book tickets: 0161 876 2015, ‘Book Now’ below or MLF website

Paula Hawkins
2024-10-08 19:00 - 20:30
‘Reminiscent of du Maurier and extremely hard to put down. The Blue Hour is destined to be a big hit.’ Mick Herron
When a bone at the centre of a famous sculpture is identified as human, the life the recently deceased artist Vanessa Chapman led with her companion Grace on the remote tidal island of Eris comes under scrutiny. What happened to Vanessa’s husband who vanished without trace twenty years ago? Paula Hawkins’ thrilling new novel The Blue Hour asks questions about the ways in which female artists and their work are framed in a world dominated by male critics and dealers.
Paula Hawkins is the international bestselling author of three novels, Into the Water, A Slow Fire Burning and The Girl on the Train. The latter has sold more than 23 million copies worldwide, broke the UK record for weeks at number one in the bestseller list and was turned into a hit film starring Emily Blunt. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival and supported by Library Live.
Image credit: Phoebe Grigor
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Rumaan Alam in Conversation
2024-10-10 08:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
‘This is what governs all of life. We agree to rules. Most of us. There are some, though, you know, who do not obey, who are not asked to observe them.’
When Brooke Orr starts a new job at the Asher and Carole Jaffee Foundation, helping an 80-year-old billionaire to give away his vast fortune, she has good intentions. But a glimpse of the lifestyles of the 1% leads to Brooke wanting more for herself. A decision that can only lead to destruction. Rumaan Alam joins us to discuss his fantastic, insightful new novel Entitlement, as well as the Netflix adaptation of his gripping international bestseller Leave the World Behind starring Mahershala Ali and Julia Roberts.
Rumaan Alam is the international bestselling and critically acclaimed author of three novels. His last, Leave the World Behind, was a Barack Obama Summer Reading Pick, a Waterstones Fiction Book of the Month, a finalist for the National Book Awards for Fiction and was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival and supported by Library Live.
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Lord of the Flies with Aimee de Jongh
2024-10-12 08:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
70 years after the publication of William Golding’s story of a group of British schoolboys who descend into savagery after being stranded on a desert island, Aimee de Jongh has created a stunning, first ever graphic novel version of Lord of the Flies. Aimee joins us to discuss her experience of adapting the book, her work as an illustrator and how Golding’s tale has inspired other writers.
Aimee de Jongh is a renowned graphic novelist and animator from the Netherlands. Her debut, The Return of the Honey Buzzard, won the Prix Saint-Michel and was adapted into a live-action film. Her second graphic novel, Days of Sand, was an international bestseller and nominated for two Eisner awards. Hosted by Kate Feld. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with Manchester UNESCO City of Literature, Lakes International Comic Arts Festival and New Dutch Writing. Supported by Library Live.
Image credit: Bob Bruyn
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

My Beautiful Voice with Joseph Coelho
2024-10-12 10:30 - 11:15
Join us for an exciting and heartwarming event as we welcome the Waterstones Children’s Laureate: 2022 – 2024, Joseph Coelho! This award-winning performance poet, playwright, and children’s author is ready to enchant us with his captivating storytelling and poetry.
Get ready for a delightful journey into the world of Joseph’s wonderful picture book, My Beautiful Voice. This story follows a little girl who discovers her courage through the magic of poetry. Together, we’ll have fun guessing poetic riddles, pulling funny poetry faces, and learning how to find our own bravery through poetry. But that’s not all! Joseph will also treat us to lively readings from his collection Smile Out Loud: 25 Happy Poems. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with Manchester Poetry Library. Supported by Library Live.
Suitable for age 3-5 years. (All children must be accompanied by an adult)
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Spooky Poems Aloud with Joseph Coelho
2024-10-12 13:00 - 13:45 | Performance Space
Prepare to jump into the SPOOKY, spellbinding world of spoken word poetry, with your guide: Joseph Coelho. In this interactive session with the Waterstones Children’s Laureate, you’ll be thrilled (and maybe even a litttttle scared) by performances from Joseph as he brings you his latest poetry compendium, Spooky Poems Aloud: 25 Poems to Frighten and Delight.
Get ready to have your funny bones tickled as we create poetry together and learn how to recite it loudly, softly, and even in ghostly whispers. Then join us on the Spooky Poems Aloud Activity Trail and craft activity for children created by community artist Emma Martin. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with Manchester Poetry Library. Supported by Library Live.
Suitable for age 5-10 years. (All children must be accompanied by an adult)
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Joe Boyd
2024-10-14 19:00 | Performance Space
“New technologies may divert our attention, but music created in the moment can still be found where it always has been, in the feet, fingers, voices and spirits of musicians in every corner of the world.”
Legendary music producer Joe Boyd (White Bicycle: Making Music in the 1960s) invites you to open your ‘minds and ears to a wider, richer musical world’ via his engrossing book And the Roots of Rhythm Remain: A Journey Through Global Music. Joe follows the circular flows of musical influence across history and the globe, discovering why so many artists ended up in prison because of their music, how Afrobeat began with a subscription to an American jazz magazine, and why Frank Sinatra owed his career to a French tango singer from Buenos Aires.
Joe is a record producer and writer. Over the course of his 60-year career, he has produced Pink Floyd, Nick Drake, R.E.M., Fairport Convention, ¡Cubanismo!, Toots and the Maytals, Toumani Diabaté and Taj Mahal, amongst many others. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with the Centre for New Writing and Creative Manchester. Supported by Library Live.
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Susanna Clarke: My Life in Books
2024-10-15 08:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
THIS EVENT IS NOW SOLD OUT.
‘Some stories sink down into your bones.’
Award-winning novelist Susanna Clarke (Piranesi) joins us to discuss how writing and reading have shaped her life. From her worldwide bestseller Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, which celebrates its twentieth anniversary this year, to her enchanting new story The Wood at Midwinter. Discover the writers who’ve inspired Susannah to become such a magical storyteller including Ursula Le Guin, Jorge Luis Borges, Charles Dickens and Kate Bush.
‘One of our great living authors’ (New York Magazine), Susanna lives and writes in Derbyshire. She is the author of two novels and a short story collection. Her debut novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell was longlisted for the Booker Prize and won British Book Awards Newcomer of the Year, the Hugo Award and the World Fantasy Award. Her last novel, Piranesi, won the Women’s Prize for Fiction and was shortlisted for the Costa Novel of the Year Award. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival and supported by Library Live.
Image credit: Sarah Lee
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Andrew O’Hagan & Dave Haslam
2024-10-16 08:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
‘Andrew O’Hagan has made more than a great book – he has made a social miracle.’ Joshua Cohen
Scottish author Andrew O’Hagan joins us to discuss his gripping new state-of-the-nation novel Caledonian Road with host Dave Haslam. Art historian and celebrated critic Campbell Flynn is beguiled by his provocative student Milo Mangasha who leads him to question everything he thinks about the world. Set against a backdrop of disgraced peers, human traffickers, rappers and a disgruntled sitting tenant, the novel asks questions about wealth, capitalism, the climate crisis and if it’s time for a new world order.
Andrew is a novelist and editor-at-large of the London Review of Books. Three of his novels – Our Fathers, Be Near Me and The Illuminations – were nominated for the Booker Prize. His previous novel, Mayflies, was a Guardian, Sunday Times and Financial Times Book of the Year and was made into an award-winning BBC TV drama starring Martin Compston and Tony Curran.
Dave Haslam is an author, broadcaster and DJ. His books include Life After Dark; Sonic Youth Slept on My Floor; Manchester, England and the Art Decades series. Sponsored by The Edwardian Manchester. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with the Centre for New Writing and Creative Manchester. Supported by Library Live.
Image credit: Christina Jansen
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Migration, Identity and History - Talk
2024-10-16 17:30 - 19:00 | Lwr Ground Floor – Manchester Histories Hub
To what extent through history has British identity been influenced by migration? An event with speakers, short film screening and discussion.
Speakers from the Migration Stories North West project will explore the nature of migrant identity throughout British history and the intersections between the history of migration and issues at the forefront of Black history. There will be an opportunity for open discussion about various perspectives, including questions such as:
· Why are stories of individuals so important for retelling and understanding history?
· What is the social and cultural potential for understanding our history through the lens of migration?
· How did colonialism affect migration?
· Are the migratory roots of various historical figures often overlooked or kept hidden?
· What do the stories from the project tell us about migration and human rights?
Contributing speakers for Migration, Identity and History
Kooj Chuhan of Crossing Footprints will be chairing the Migration, Identity and History event, and there will be a number of contributing speakers including:
Louise Wong is a community development worker at Wai Yin Society and has been serving the Chinese community for decades. She presents the “Dragons Voice” program on Radio AllFM for the Chinese community. Louise co-produced “Crossing the Borders” Chinese oral history project archived at Ahmed Iqbal Ullah Resource Centre which received the Alan Ball Award. She was one of the volunteer researchers for the Migration Stories North West project, researching and producing the story of Jou Lim along with fellow researcher Yichao Shi.
is a Community Development Worker at the Wai Yin Chinese Community Centre in Manchester, and is also a presenter for the The Dragons Voice Radio show on All FM community radio. She was one of the team of volunteer researchers for the Migration Stories North West project in Greater Manchester, researching and producing the story of Jou Lim along with fellow researcher Yichao Shi.
Washington Alcott is a local researcher and teacher specialising in African and Caribbean perspectives. His work includes economic and social history, migration, environment, cultural identities, Pan Africanism and has been an active member of many progressive community and activist groups for decades. He recently contributed to the Guardian’s ‘Cotton Capital’ series.
Washington has been following the Migration Stories North West project in Greater Manchester since it began.
Alison Fisher has worked as a teacher of English as an Additional Language in Bury since 1995. Recently she has worked for Fair Futures developing projects both in schools and in their building in the centre of Bury. Fair Futures are a Community Interest Company working with children, young people and families to promote successful learning and reduce barriers to education. Alison co-delivered workshops at The Derby High School for the Migration Stories North West project in Manchester.
Migration, Identity and History is an event by Crossing Footprints presented within the context of Black History Month, in partnership with Manchester Histories. A part of the Migration Stories Exhibition on show at Manchester Central Library from 3 October.
Free – please drop in

Our Town Hall – Portraits of a Workforce
2024-10-18 08:00 - 2025-06-28 17:00 | First Floor Exhibition Hall
Our latest first-floor exhibition comes courtesy of the team currently working on the Our Town Hall Project to repair, renovate and refurbish Manchester’s iconic Town Hall.
Extraordinarily little is known about the artisans who built the Town Hall between 1868 and 1877, and certainly no photographs exist.
But fast-forward 150 years and today’s skilled workers are no strangers to the lens of Manchester City Council photographer Barrie Leach. As well as physical progress, Barrie’s been capturing portraits of those working on the Town Hall since the beginning of the project to repair, restore and refurbish this much-loved building.
As well as modern construction workers and behind-the-scenes staff, there are some incredible heritage trades involved. Stonemasonry, mosaic making, stained glass repair and manufacture, horology: these are all crafts that would have been widespread in the 1870s but are now very much specialist – and rare – trades. They are, however, critical to our restoration project.
Alongside the words of the workers themselves, 30 large portraits and 60 contextual images show the pride this modern team has discovered in being able to lovingly restore, and give new life to, the work of the forgotten workforce who went before them.
Free – 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

creative:connection
2024-10-18 13:00 - 13:45 | Performance Space
In partnership with Create, disabled and non-disabled students from Manchester and Salford schools come together to create, build connections and break down barriers. Working with top class musicians they will write and perform original songs on the theme of JOY at this celebratory event presented by Manchester Literature Festival and supported by Library Live.
Email miriam@manchesterliteraturefestival.co.uk for more details and to reserve a ticket.
Tickets are FREE but advance booking is recommended

Daisy Johnson & Andrew Michael Hurley
2024-10-18 18:30 - 20:00 | Performance Space
Two masters of folk horror join us to discuss their chilling, atmospheric new books, both set in a single location over a significant period of time. The Hotel by Daisy Johnson begins with a hotel built on a possessed plot of land – its origins evident when a woman is accused of witchcraft – and ends with students disappearing whilst making a film. Barrowbeck by Andrew Michael Hurley begins when a group of marsh-folk are forced from their homes and find a new place to settle and ends in a near-future flood zone where humans and the climate catastrophe have ravaged the planet.
Daisy Johnson is the youngest ever author to be shortlisted for the Booker Prize with her debut novel Everything Under. She is the author of Fen and Sisters. Her debut play, Viola’s Room, was produced by immersive theatre company Punchdrunk and she was a writer on the play Robin/Red/Breast starring Maxine Peake. Andrew Michael Hurley is the author of three novels. The Loney won the Costa Best First Novel Award and the Book of the Year at the British Book Awards. Devil’s Day won the Encore Award. Starve Acre is soon to be released as a film starring Matt Smith and Morfydd Clark. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival and supported by Library Live.
Tickets: ‘Book Now ‘below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

A Day in The Afterlife: Francesca Beard Workshop
2024-10-19 11:00 - 13:00 | Chief Librarian’s Office
Acclaimed poet and creative facilitator Francesca Beard will lead a workshop inspired by the work of cult writer Philip K Dick (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?). In this playful, hands-on session, participants will use poetic and improvisational story-telling techniques to create text that explores big philosophical questions such as ‘What does it mean to be human?’ and ‘How can we know what is real?’
Francesca Beard is a performance poet who has worked with audiences and artists in over 23 countries through her work with the British Council. She collaborates with communities and institutions to create public-facing experiences that ask challenging questions with kindness and good humour. She has been poet-in-residence at The Barbican, BBC White City, The Tower of London and the Natural History Museum. Her solo shows include Chinese Whispers, How to Survive A Post-Truth Apocalypse and Confabulation.
Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with Your Local Arena and supported by Library Live. Your Local Arena is a Lucy Hannah & Speaking Volumes co-production featuring BBC Arena’s film archive.
Image credit: Suzi Corker
Tickets FREE but advance booking is required
Tickets: ‘Book Now’ below, phone on 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Your Local Arena presents A Day in The Afterlife
2024-10-19 14:00 - 16:00 | Performance Space
Join us for a rare screening of the 1994 Arena documentary A Day in The Afterlife about cult author Philip K Dick (Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?). Afterwards, see writers Kate Feld, David Hartley and Irenosen Okojie discuss his speculative / science fiction and imagination. Poet Francesca Beard will also perform a new commission inspired by his work. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with Your Local Arena and supported by Library Live.
Your Local Arena is a unique project featuring iconic films from the archives of BBC TV’s Arena, the pioneering cultural documentary series. It includes new poems inspired by the Arena films and panels to explore the continuing relevance of the Arena archives today. The Your Local Arena concept was developed by Lucy Hannah and Speaking Volumes, with Arena’s award-winning director/editor Anthony Wall as creative consultant, and funded by Arts Council England.
David Hartley is a short story writer, performer, and researcher based in Manchester. He holds a PhD in Creative Writing from The University of Manchester where he looked at the interconnection of autism and the fantastical, with a particular focus on the film Blade Runner. He is the author of Incorcisms and Fauna, the latter of which was longlisted for the Edge Hill Prize in 2022. Most recently, he was writer-in-residence in Tartu, Estonia for the Prima Vista Literature Festival where he performed a four-hour immersive storytelling experience among a forest of tattooed Estonians.
Kate Feld is the author of the poetry and photography pamphlet Deeryard. Her writing has appeared in journals including The Stinging Fly, The Letters Page and Tolka and in The Art of Being Dangerous: Exploring Women and Danger Through Creative Expression. She lectures in Journalism at the University of Salford and lives in the hills north of Manchester.
Irenosen Okojie is a Nigerian British author whose work pushes the boundaries of form, language and ideas. Her novel, Butterfly Fish, and short story collections, Speak Gigantular and Nudibranch, have won and been nominated for multiple awards. She was a Contributing Editor for The White Review and co-presented the BBC’s Turn Up for The Books podcast, alongside Simon Savidge and Bastille frontman Dan Smith. She is the director and founder of Black to the Future, a multidisciplinary Afrofuturist festival. Her new novel is Curandera.
Francesca Beard is a poet who has worked with audiences and artists in over 23 countries through her work with the British Council. She has been poet-in-residence at The Barbican, BBC White City, The Tower of London, and the Natural History Museum. Her solo shows include Chinese Whispers, How to Survive A Post-Truth Apocalypse and Confabulation.
Tickets FREE but advance booking is required
‘Book Now’ below, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Mindfulness, Painting and Music Workshop
2024-10-24 13:00 - 15:00 | Performance Space
Get creative at our free craft activities inspired by Black History Month. Artist Tina Ramos Ekongo and musician Johanna Leung will help you do some mindful painting to music. This workshop is suitable for families and lasts two hours. All materials are provided.
Free – no booking required
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Half Term Science Special
2024-10-25 14:00 - 16:00 | Performance Space
Who said that science can’t be fun? Join our science-inspired activities for half term. You will make balloon rockets and find out how strong paper can be! Free, just drop in. Suitable for families.
Free – just drop in. For more information email angela.rawcliffe@manchester.gov.uk
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes or online

Half Term Family Fun Special!
2024-10-26 14:00 - 16:00
Looking for a fun Saturday activity for the whole family? Look no further. Join our engaging Saturday half-term session. Expect music, crafts, and lots of fun! Suitable for children of all ages.
Free – 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

Manchester Theatres Exhibition
2024-10-28 08:00 - 2025-01-31 17:00 | Lower Ground Floor Exhibition Space
Visit this latest exhibition showcasing items from our unique archive, including playbills, programmes, posters and other memorabilia, dating from the 18th century to the present day and documenting the vibrant history of theatre in Manchester.
Free – 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

Word Central
2024-10-29 18:00 - 19:30 | Performance Space
Word Central Open Mic Poetry and Spoken Word.
Presented by Flapjack Press and Manchester Libraries. Hosted by Tony Curry with special guest Oliver James Lomax.
Tuesday 29th October, 6.00pm – 7.45pm. Doors open 5.40pm and free entry.
October’s special guest Oliver James Lomax is a poet, educator and trustee of Salford’s Working-Class Movement Library, whose poems are now taught in schools. He has published 5 collections including The Dandelion Clock and Burial of the Cameo (‘Dammed fine poems, full of emotional resonance and vivid imagery.’ Ian Rankin). Oliver has written poetry for film and television, and in 2019 released his first spoken word single, described by Tom Robinson (BBC 6 Music) as ‘An unholy hybrid of John Cooper Clarke and Mark E Smith.’ In 2023 he released his debut album, Working-Class Love Poem, which he is currently touring across the UK.
‘Poems that dance with originality and are tenderly unafraid of love and belonging.’ Mark Thomas
‘Beautifully written poems from a unique voice of integrity and spirit.’ Maxine Peake
Event host Tony Curry is a poet, playwright, and workshop facilitator who runs literature-in-the-community projects with a specific leaning towards mental health and wellbeing. His work has been exhibited at Manchester’s museum and art galleries, and his play, The Teddy Bear, was staged at Contact Theatre. Tony’s solo spoken word shows include Brit Boy, Complicit Relations, Moving and The Odyssey, performed at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre. In 2024 he will be touring his new show, Tall Tales for All Men, adapted from his collection Tall Tales for Tall Men Who Fall Well Short [Flapjack Press, 2012].
‘Tony’s words make great music for the mind. Modern, understandable, smart, real.’ Neil Bell
‘This is our poetry, these are our poems. They smell of home and friendship.’ Tony Walsh
Book your open mic slot from noon on Tuesday 15th October via mail@flapjackpress.co.uk.
N.B. Open mic slots are 3 minutes per performer – it is essential that you stay within this timeframe.
Performance slots are allocated on a ‘first come first served’ basis from the stated booking time. If they are already filled you will be offered a place on the reserve list.

Crime Central Halloween Special!
2024-10-31 18:00 - 19:30 | Performance Space
Rob Parker and Manchester Libraries invite you to a CRIME CENTRAL SPOOKTACULAR!!
With Jo Callaghan, Graeme Cumming and Steve Kedie!
Bringing the best from all over!
Featuring the best and brightest crime writing talent both locally and from around the country – the big names are all coming to Manchester!
Go behind the scenes!
Showcasing blockbuster bestsellers, emerging talent and industry insiders, Crime Central will share the real story of what goes on in the crime world.
Meet your favourite authors!
With giveaways, audience interaction, book signings, the chance to ask questions and more – while bringing a crime fiction buzz back to this great northern city

Greg Jenner- Totally Chaotic History: Roman Britain Gets Rowdy
2024-11-04 10:30 - 11:30
EVENT CANCELLED DUE TO UNFORESEEN CIRCUMSTANCES
Join ex-Horrible Histories historian and chart-topping You’re Dead to Me podcaster Greg Jenner, as he goes back in time to explore Roman Britain! You can expect myth-busting, quick-fire quizzes and to discover mind-boggling truths about everything from Roman gods and emperors to invasions and life in a fort! So, hold on tight because this isn’t your typical history lesson – get ready for a fact-packed, hilarious, and entertaining event! Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with Manchester Histories. Supported by Library Live.
FREE event for schools, booking essential
Email miriam@manchesterliteraturefestival.co.uk for more details.

When Marianne and Britannia Meet - Exhibition
2024-11-06 08:00 - 2024-11-28 17:00 | First Floor
Signed in 1904, the Entente Cordiale brought to an end several decades of colonial rivalry between France and the UK.
This exhibition, marking the 120th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale, features extracts of great historical and symbolic significance from French and British archives, shedding unique light on the political and social repercussions of the agreement.
You will learn more about the conflicts between the United Kingdom and France at the end of the 19th century, and the negotiations and discussions that led to the appeasement of their rivalry and the historic rapprochement of these two powers.
Immerse yourself in an important moment in the relationship between France and the UK, and learn more about the French view-point on the events!
This exhibition is hosted at both Central Library (First Floor) and at Alliance Francaise de Manchester.
Exhibition curated by Charlotte Faucher (University of Bristol) and Guillaume Perissol (Institut Français du Royaume-Uni) and presented by the Institut Français du Royaume- Uni (IFRU) in partnership with the French Ministry for Europe, the UK Foreign Affairs’ Archives Department and the UK National Archives. Supported by Natixis CIB and the Friends of the French Institute Trust.
Free – 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

Richard Powers
2024-11-08 08:00 - 17:00 | Performance Space
Pulitzer Prize winner Richard Powers (The Overstory) makes a rare visit to the UK in support of his compelling new, Booker Prize-longlisted novel Playground. The tiny island of Makatea in French Polynesia unites four people: Evie, one of the first female divers, now in her 90s; Ina, an artist who creates large sculptures from the plastic destroying our oceans; and two friends: Todd, a programmer working with AI; and Rafi, a poet with strong, moral beliefs. The decision they must make about whether to allow floating cities in the Pacific will change their lives and impact the planet forever.
Richard is the author of 13 previous novels including The Overstory, which won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, and Bewilderment, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and longlisted for the National Book Award. He is a MacArthur Fellow and many of his books explore themes connected to science, technology and nature. Presented by Manchester Literature Festival in partnership with the Centre for New Writing and Creative Manchester. Supported by Library Live.
Image credit: Dean D. Dixon
Tickets: ‘Book Now’, phone 0161 876 2015 or visit the MLF website

Hey Duggee on Loop!
2024-11-11 10:00 - 2024-11-14 16:00 | Performance Space
Celebrate Hey Duggee’s tenth anniversary with ten specially selected episodes of the celebrated pre-school children’s animated television series, on a loop, as part of the Manchester Animation Festival.
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

French Film Club: Tout Simplement Noir
2024-11-18 17:45 - 19:45 | Performance Space
Join us and Alliance Française de Manchester for this month’s film, Tout Simplement Noir. JP, a 40-year-old failed actor, decides to organise the first big black protest march in France, but his often burlesque encounters with influential figures in the community and the interested support he receives from Fary mean he vacillates between the desire to be in the limelight and a genuine commitment to militancy…
Film in French with English subtitles. Certificate 15. All Alliance Française de Manchester cultural events are open and accessible to everyone. They are public events and under 18s remain the responsibility of their parent/guardian at all times.
Free – booking required via Alliance Francaise website
Please make a donation to support our Library Live cultural programme at one of our cash or contactless donation boxes in the venue, or online

AFTERNOON LECTURE: Space Exploration – how we’re transforming Albert Square
2024-11-21 13:00 - 14:15 | Performance Space
AFTERNOON LECTURE

Our Heritage Lectures shine a light on the work behind the scenes of the Our Town Hall Project.
One of the most obvious parts of the project will be the improvements to Albert Square. As well as pedestrianising almost all of it (just one section of road will remain, for the Metrolink tramlines) to create a 20% larger space, the work includes making all of the Town Hall’s entrances and exits accessible.
Prior to 2018, when we closed the building, only one of the many access points was available to anyone with reduced mobility.This lecture will be given jointly by Kevin Redhead and Matt Stirton from Planit, the project’s landscape architecture and urban design specialists, who are responsible for the work within the Town Hall’s public realm.

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