Easter Weekend is only a couple of days away, which means Mancunians will be on the lookout for things to do over the four-day weekend. After two years of pandemic-induced disruption, many will be looking forward to the resumption of normal service - and there's plenty of foodie favourites, parties and family-friendly options to get stuck into.
There'll be the chance to learn about the role chocolate played in the WW2 war effort courtesy of The Imperial War Museum; festivals for music lovers, vegans and everyone in-between; and plenty of Easter egg hunts, spanning many of Greater Manchester's neighbourhoods. Of course, Manchester's regular agenda of gigs, comedy, theatre and clubbing can also be expected.
Friday, April 15
Comedy / Music / Peter Kay's Dance For Life
Peter Kay's Dance For Life will return six years after its inaugural event in 2016, where over 75,000 people turned up to dance the night away to raise funds for Cancer Research UK. Like 2016, each venue on the tour - in this case, Manchester Central - will be transformed into an enormous dance floor with state of the art sound and lights, while DJ PK takes to the turntable.
Tickets cost £28.50 and are available from See Tickets and Ticketmaster. Fancy dress for the show is 'optional but encouraged'.
Peter Kay's Dance for Life / Manchester Central / April 15 and 16, 7.30-10.20pm
Cinema / Grimmfest Easter horror film festival at the Odeon Great Northern
While Halloween might be the more traditional time to scare oneself witless, why not try doing so over the Easter weekend instead? Grimmfest is happening at the Odeon at the Great Northern Warehouse, so why not try the screening of The Cellar on April 15, with a director Q&A too, or cult chiller The Family on April 16.
Odeon Great Northern / Grimmfest.com / info@grimmfest.com / April 15 and 16 / Screenings from £7.50
Craft / Food & Drink / Makers Markets
The Makers Markets bring together some of the best food, drink, art and craft producers in the Greater Manchester area and further afield. This weekend, they'll be popping up in a number of locations across the city including Quayside, Sale and Chorlton.
The Makers Markets / www.themakersmarket.co.uk / Quayside Media April 15-18 April / Chorlton, April 16, 10-4pm / Sale, April 17 - 11-4pm
Clubbing / Essential returns for Easter
Manchester's gay superclub Essential is back at Albert Hall for another night of vocal house music on Easter Friday. Essential was launched by the queen of pop herself Kylie and revived following an online petition last year, with an inaugural dance party at Albert Hall to mark the occasion.
Expect the same happy hands in the air, clubbers dancing along to a soundtrack of uplifting house, brilliant light shows as last year, plus muscle boy dancers, drag queens and much more. Chrissy Darling and Mad Pat are on hosting duties, and are accompanied by an all-star line-up of names including Kitty Scott-Claus, Angie Brown, Sharon O-Love and Aphrodite.
Essential Easter / www.alberthallmanchester.com / Friday, 15 April, 22pm till late / General Admission £28.50
Food & Drink / We Are One - Ramona
This Easter weekend marks one whole year of Ancoat's favourite, Ramona, and what better way to celebrate than a five-day knees up? Running Wednesday through Sunday, you can expect bottomless margaritas and huge bill of DJs raising the tipi roof all weekend long.
Ramona / www.takemetoramona.com / 0161 441 9020 / April 13-17 / book a spot or join them at the bar
Saturday, April 16
Bars / Pong & Puck Easter Hunt
New retro games bar Pong & Puck are set to host their own Easter egg hunt this Saturday, with plenty of goodies up for grabs including a £100 bar tab. Three eggs will be hidden around Great Northern as part of the nostalgia-fuelled egg hunt - and each one will have either an 80s, 90s or 00s theme, with a special prize connected to each one.
For the chance to win a one-hour game session simply find Pong & Puck's 'Together in el-EG-tric dreams', or to a win a £50 bar tab find the 90s egg, aptly called 'Livin' la vida yoka'. For the chance to snag the £100 bar tab though, you'll have to track down the 00s-inspired 'Where's your egg at'.
Pong & Puck / pongandpuck.co.uk / 07375 894523 / Saturday, April 16, from 1pm / Free
Museums / Imperial War Museum - Chocolate and the Second World War
The fabulous Imperial War Museum will be embracing the theme of chocolate - naturally - over the Easter weekend. Always adept at telling fascinating stories, you can learn how vital chocolate was to the war effort in WW2, with CBBC’s Ben Shires presenting talks on April 14 and 15. There will also be chocolate tastings - what kid would be into that? - the IWM’s Chef Tony too.
IWM North / IWM.org.uk / 0161 836 4000 / April 14 and 15, 10am-5pm / Free admission
Fashion / Swap Shop at Smoke & Mirrors Bar
Smoke & Mirrors Bar in Altrincham has partnered with Secondhand Styling UK to host a swap shop, where fashionistas can come down and exchange unwanted items for new-to-you pieces.
For those interested, simply head down your old clothes, shoes or bags - up to 12 items and they must be in good nick - and exchange for a swap card with the relevant number of tokens. Lucy Norris, founder of Secondhand Styling UK will also be on hand to educate on the benefits of swapping clothes, highlighting how to reduce your carbon footprint and sharing tips and styling advice.
Smoke & Mirrors Bar / itssmokeandmirrors.com / 07909 551065 / Saturday, April 16, 2-6pm / £5 for five swaps and a 20 per cent discount off any future styling service you choose to book in the future
Food & Drink / Cloudwater Brew Co x Levanter at Kampus
Starting the Friday, much-loved Manchester brewery Cloudwater Brew Co and Ramsbottom restaurant Levanter are teaming up for a 10-week, globe trotting residency at The Manchester foodie neighbourhood, Kampus.
Each weekend will see Manchester's rental garden neighbourhood play host to electric patio parties paired with Cloudwater beer on tap and traditional Spanish delights, from giant paella to charcuterie boards. The residency will takeover the gardens and bungalow and will run from Friday, April 15 to Sunday, June 26.
Cloudwater x Levanter / Kampus / 0161 546 1350 / From Friday, April 15 / Free entry
Music / Khruangbin at 02 Apollo
Atmospheric Texan trio Khruangbin, best know for their perfect medley of global music influences and psychedelic drops, hit the road in celebration of their most recent album, Mordechai.
Grounded and energetic, hints of music around the globe are woven into this third album, from Indian folk music and Jamaican dub to Latin America elements brought to life by lyrics sung in Spanish. Some tickets are still available for what is sure to be a relaxing but upbeat entry into the long weekend.
Khruangbin / 02 Apollo / Saturday, April 16, 7-10pm / Tickets £38.35
Sunday, April 17
Entertainment / Nell's New York Pizza & Bar
There's all manner of stuff going on all through the Easter weekend at Nell's handsome new outpost at Kampus, with karaoke on Maundy Thursday from 8pm, the Lovescene DJs on Friday night, and Hot Take's Rudy Mead and Zeyla on Saturday night. But Sunday is the big one, with Jenna G, Marco Woolf, Me Gusta's Atiké and Obeka and a Piano In The City takeover.
Margaritas and daquiris are a dizzyingly reasonable £5 all day long, all through the weekend, if that wasn't already enough, and if you're still standing on Monday, there's some more sedate arts and crafts going on with Cork & Canvas. Though there's an all-day happy hour happening too, so best of luck with that. 14" Pizzas on Monday are also a bargainous £7.77 during lunchtime hours.
Nell's New York Pizza & Bar / NellsPizza.co.uk / 0161 806 0516 / Maundy Thursday onwards / Free entry
Festival / ManiFest at The Oast House
Spinningfields' favourite The Oast House is kicking off the festival season in style with a brand-new music festival on Easter Sunday. ManiFest will take place on the bar's large outdoor terrace, complete with a dedicated stage and a packed roster of musicians including bands, solo artists and duos, as well as interludes provided by resident DJs.
To mark the occasion, a new mural painted onto The Oast House stage will also be revealed. Northern artist Sam Porter has spent the last week painting iconic Manchester scenes onto the stage, and festival-goers will be able to get a first glimpse when the event kicks off this Sunday.
Food wise, the bar's street food menu will be on offer throughout the weekend, with dishes such as Northern Poutine, Crispy Burger and the famous Hanging Kebabs on the bill.
The Oast House / theoasthouse.uk.com / 0161 829 3830 / Sunday, April 17, 1pm onwards / Free entry
Food & Drink / Easter at The Midland
Why not head to the Midland's Mount Street restaurant for your Sunday roast this Easter? After tucking into roast lamb with all the trimmings, wash it down with one of the hotel's signature Easter cocktails - The Midland Bunny and Limoncello Spritz.
The Midland Hotel / themidlandhotel.co.uk / 1061 236 3333 / Sunday, April 17, Easter lunch £17
Food & Drink / Grub Easter Sunday Vegan ‘fun day’
The folks at Grub have ‘supercharged’ its usual ‘Plant Powered Sundays’ event for Easter, with all manner of fun stuff going on all day. By that, we’re talking an Easter egg hunt (at 11.30am), family crafts and face painting, and an afternoon screening of the stone-cold classic Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. And that’s without the food, including Igloo Pizza Kitchen, Mus Mus, Rice Over Everything & Drizzle City Bakes.
Grub / 50 Redbank / Grubmcr.com / Sunday, April 17 / Free entry, booking advised
Food & Drink / Easter Roast at The Refuge by Volta
The roast is notoriously hard to get right, but The Refuge has long offered among the very best in the city (and was recently featured in the top 50 in the whole of the UK in a survey by Open Table). So take any roast anxiety jeopardy out of the equation, and sit down in one of the most handsome rooms in the city to one of the best-looking lunches in town.
The Refuge / Refugemcr.co.uk / 0161 233 5151 / April 17, Easter lunch from £17 or £39 for a sharing platter
Music & Nightlife / Electrik Sundays
The first in the new 'Electrik Sundays' events happens on one of - if not the - best Sunday of the year. Hitting up Chorlton's beloved watering hole will be The Devil's Jukebox, aka Chris Maude and Fritz Great Lakes, doling out the Balearic vibes and leftfield business. You can stuff yourself with vegan pizza to your heart's content too, thanks to Four Side Pizza doling out the slices from the kitchen.
Electrik / ElectrikBar.co.uk / 0161 881 3315 / Sunday, April 17 / Free entry
Monday, April 18
Entertainment / Crystal Maze
If you're not sick of the sight of Easter eggs come Monday morning, then The Crystal Maze LIVE in Manchester have a treat in store. To celebrate Easter, the team has recreated the game's iconic host, Richard O'Brien, or at least just his head in chocolate form.
Fans of the legendary host will be able to get their hands on one of 50 egg-sclusive chocolate heads created across two weeks of celebrations. The original Maze Master had been reimagined in milk chocolate by a team of specialists using photos and video stills taken from all angles during O’Brien’s stint on the 90s Crystal Maze TV show.
A 3D design was created from the images, which in turn was printed as a 3D mould. Milk chocolate was then poured into each mould to form Richard’s chocolate head.
The eggs will be given out by current Maze Masters to random lucky teams each day to celebrate a new Easter game, which is available from the April 11-24.
Crystal Maze / 0161 791 0727 / the-crystal-maze.com / The new Easter Game and chocolate heads are available April 11-24
Exhibition / HOME - Suzanne Bethell: Lucky Dip
Part of HOME Projects, and shown across the Granada Foundation' Galleries 1 and 2, this latest exhibition brings together paintings, unique screen prints and assemblages bound by lively palettes. Artist Suzanne Bethell's work celebrates the power of colour to excite the eye, engage the heart and awaken the soul, with many of her works being created when she is a state of 'flow'.
Suzanne Bethell: Lucky Dip / HOME / 0161 200 1500 / Running until May 22, opening times: 12-8pm, Free Entry
Food & Drink / The Waltzing Matilda Boat
If you haven't checked out Stockport's own floating pizzeria, then the Easter weekend might just be the perfect time. Brought to life by father-son duo Paul and Chris - the compact narrowboat serves up authentic-style Neapolitan pizzas alongside tasty bakes including brownies, cookies and seasonal treats to be washed down with ice-coffees and hot chocolates.
The boat moves up and down the Macclesfield Canal and this weekend it will be mooring up in Marple, with plenty of Easter treats on hand. To mark the long weekend, they'll be hosting a egg hunt along the canal, hiding a total of 46 eggs at some of their most frequent stop off points - Marple, High Lane, Strines, Poynton, Lyme View, Bollington and Macclesfield.
The Waltzing Matilda / Thewaltzingmatildaboat / 16-18 April / Marple
Gig / Arrested Development
90s hip hop icons Arrested Development alight at Gorilla to round off the Easter weekend, preaching those same conscious vibrations that have kept them together for 34 years, since they burst onto the international scene with Grammy-winning material like People Everyday and Tennessee.
Gorilla / ThisIsGorilla.com / Monday, April 18 / £27
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