Exhibition: Alison Goldfrapp, Performer as Curator, The Lowry, Opens Saturday 19 October
Following on from her acclaimed sell-out performances at this year’s Manchester International Festival, Alison Goldfrapp returns to Manchester to launch a new exhibition at The Lowry. Showcasing a number of inspirations that have shaped her own artistic output, from film makers to photographers to painters, this exhibition will explore her interest in the darker side of folklore through works by 23 artists including contemporary British artist John Stezaker, Anglo-Mexican artist and novelist Leonora Carrington and Manchester’s early nineteenth century painter, Henry Liverseege.
FREE. More info here. #GoldfrappCurator
Whoever had glued her to the duvet was in for it
Food: North West Food Lovers Festival, EventCity, Trafford Centre, Friday 18 – Sunday 20 October
There’s been a lot of scoffing going on in Manchester over the past year: The hub at MIF (Manchester International Festival), the MFDF (Manchester Food and Drink Festival), various MM (Manchester Markets) and the MIMTOUF (Manchester I Made This One Up Festival). There’s also been a deluge of restaurant openings, the terms ‘street food’ and ‘pop-up’ have proved to be more contagious than the Black Death and a signature burger has somehow managed to make it onto every menu within a 50 mile radius of the now notorious, if a little crispy, Almost Famous.
Well, now there’s more… Pass the elasticated waistband jeans.
Now in its fifth year, this festival has had to up sticks and mosey on over to the sprawl that is EventCity in order to accommodate its 150 exhibitors and 20,000 plus visitors. This year’s headline acts are Sunday Brunch’s Simon Rimmer (the happy bald one), Andrew Nutter, Paul Askew and David Mooney. There’ll also be free cooking classes for kids, wine masterclasses and enough free samples to easily double your winter weight allowance. Oh well, it’s set to be a bitterly cold one. Stock up.
£6 online advance. FREE parking. Buy here.
Rimmer
Books: The Eighth Manchester Artists Book Fair, Holden Gallery, MMU, Friday 18 – Saturday 19 October, Fri 2pm-6pm and Sat 11am-5pm
“Book arts… what ever is that?” You may ask. Well, book building and using books as a medium in which to produce art. You know, folding ‘n’ that.
This event ran by Salford’s Hot Bed Press in association with the Manchester School of Art will bring 40+ tables manned by suppliers, art publishers, illustrators and book artists, filled with a multitude of book arts: screenprints, risographed, relief printed, etched soft and hard backed books, zines, pamphlets, letterpresses, woodcut posters, decorative paper, manipulated book sculptures and just loads and loads of stuff done with paper.
Morph would have a field day.
FREE. More info here.
It really jumped off the page
Art: Manchester Marauders, 2022NQ, Until Saturday 26 October, Everyday from 12pm, Opening night 6pm-Midnight
An exhibition that portrays the Manchester hip-hop scene through the eyes of Leeds-born Manchester-based photographer Air Adam. A Tribe Called Quest’s influential Midnight Marauders (1993) album moved away from displaying the collective on the album’s cover and instead displayed portraits of respected figures from the hip-hop scene.
Twenty years after the record’s release, this exhibition tips its cap to the original album cover and includes 49 respected artists from the Manchester scene included within the exhibition’s centrepiece. In addition to this, a number of photographs of Manchester hip-hop artists, new and old, will be scattered around the space.
The opening night will also have a short film on the project by In The Loop residents Bedos (NouGold) and Agent J (Groovement), as well as an MC/DJ ‘cipher’ featuring artists from the centrepiece performing live.
Free. More info here.
Snoop is behind me?
Sport: England vs Italy Rugby League Friendly, Salford City Stadium, Saturday 19 October, 4.30pm
Just one week before kicking off their 2013 Rugby League World Cup campaign, England shall host Italy in a pre-tournament warm-up friendly.
The meeting is likely to be a hard fought affair (it is rugby after all, I’m fairly sure there’s never been a softly fought game of rugby), with Italy heading into their first Rugby League World Cup unbeaten in 2013. However, England shall be looking to make their mark and stake their cliam ahead of a tough group stage run in.
England will play Australia in the opening match of the tournament at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium on Saturday 26 October.
Tickets for the England vs Italy friendly in Salford are available here.
England take on Italy
Tech: Technology Exhibition Old and New, University of Salford at MediaCity UK, Salford Quays, Saturday 19 – Sunday 20 October, 10am-4pm
Families will be given the chance to have a go at everything from Morse code, Atari computers, special effects and the world-conquering British-made Raspberry Pi (£32), the slender piece of circuit board that can do just about anything you want it to – as long as you know what you’re doing - and let’s face it; most of us that own one have absolutely no idea what to do with it. Makes a snazzy little coaster though.
Acting as a trailblazing event for the upcoming Manchester Science Festival (24 October – 3 November), the University shall be showcasing the extent of its multi-million pound high-tech facilities and collections of equipment new and old. The free event contains three separate exhibitions - retro computing, telecoms and television – all supervised and demonstrated by lecturers and technicians.
FREE and no need to book. Details can be found here.
Raspberry Pi OR a snazzy coaster
Drink: UK Tiki Fest Closing Parties, Liars Club & Hula Tiki Lounge, Sunday 20 October
Rum. Hunter S Thompson swore by it. That and a breakfast consisting of eggs, sausage and cocaine. Surprisingly, the Indians drink more rum than any other nation, twice as much as the United States, 400 million litres of the stuff a year. Probably why they don’t mind standing on the roofs of moving trains. Then again, per capita it probably works out as about one slurp per person.
Well, the grog has been having a fair time of it in Manchester this week, with its very own UK Tiki Fest spread around the city’s finest rum fuelled dens: Liars Club, Hula and Keko Moku. Sunday night sees the culmination of events with the closing parties. Liars plays host to the Sailor Jerry closing party with DJ Peter Parker (he gave up on Spiderman as soon as The Avengers came out), while Hula will put on ‘The Zombie Jamboree’ with £5 Zombies all night. So you’ll only need a tenner to get crapulous.
Oliver Reed's breakfast bar
Theatre: A Clockwork Orange, The Lowry, Monday 21 - Saturday 26 October, 7.30pm
Action To The Word’s critically lauded sweaty and vesty all-male version of A Clockwork Orange, banned for 27 years bu Kubrick himself, is a muscle-bound, high-octane and testosterone-filled physical theatre horrorshow that captures and transcends the spirit of Anthony Burgess’ original literary masterpiece. A Clockwork Orange lures its audience into the glorious glass-edged nastiness of Manchester’s underworld. A playtime of pornographic ultra-violence and sexuality, it is the story of Alex and his Droogs in their battle against the tedium of adolescence. Never did a codpiece carry such threatening connotations.
£16 - £20. Book here.
Festival: Gothic Manchester Festival Preview, Various Venues, Monday 21 – Sunday 27 October
No not the nail a dead crow to a crucifix down Cathedral Gardens or stomp around wearing big black boots that could penetrate the outer armour of an M1A2 Abrams tank type of gothic, but an exploration of the Gothic arts, literature, architecture, music and cinema with a few punter-pleasers thrown in to (big black) boot.
Expect readings from award-winning Gothic writers such as Ramsey Campbell and Conrad Williams, architectural tours taking in spots such as the glorious Victorian neo-gothic John Rylands Library and the Town Hall, a torch-lit wander through the Manchester Art Gallery, creative writing workshops, a horror double-bill at the Cornerhouse, documentaries, a ‘Monstrous Manchester’ tour, a series of academic discussions and even a Zombie-themed pub quiz.
Quite what Zombies have to do with Gothic studies we’re unsure, Frankenstein’s monster perhaps, but was he even a Zombie? Certainly not I Am Legend Zombies, they're about as Gothic as Abba. We're confused. Who cares?
Ticketed but mostly FREE. Full listings can be found here.
"Nevermore"
Tour: Haunted Underworld, Meet St Ann’s Square, Saturday 19 October (also 26 November), 1.30pm
In a dark and mysterious undercroft of the city centre old stories are coming alive. Tales might include those of dead artists, sinister magicians, tragic lovers and a body snatcher. Expect the unexpected and also lots of laughs. People who are brave enough to come on the tour should try not to faint (something that has happened before). The tour costs £8 per person and lasts just over an hour. Minimum age is ten years old but if the child is particularly sensitive, best not to bring the under twelves. Tickets can be booked here.
Duncan from Blue's basement was abit... weird
Music: Arctic Monkeys, Phones4U Arena, Wednesday 23 October, 7.30pm
They’ve come along way the lads from Sheffield. Refusing to succumb to the seemingly inevitable slide down into the abyss of obscurity that so many bands that came bouncing out of the Strokes-stoked noughties have. The Arctic Monkeys prevail. Since their first record Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not went quadruple platinum eight years ago, the boys have kept at it, selling millions and getting bigger, heavier, wiser and simply… better. Their sound has moved on from that brattishly-awkward-smart-arsed-skitty-guitar-pop to the sweeping and often mountainous riffs that pervade the new and fifth record AM.
And AM is an absolute belter. Their best record to date.
The scary thing about these lads is not that they keep on getting better; but that they’re only just hitting their stride.
Tickets have been sold out for some time but some are still available here at a premium. £85 (ouch). Alternatively, tickets in Liverpool are £60 or even Birmingham at £45
