/SEVEN DAYS
FRIDAY 29 Comedy / Welcome to Night Vale Cult podcast Welcome to Night Vale is returning to Manchester as part of a mammoth European tour. Hugely popular – with more than 150, 000 downloads in one week – it blends the weirdness of David Lynch’s Twin Peaks and the banality of American local radio into something deliciously dark and funny.
Albert Hall / alberthallmanchester. com / 0161 817 3490 / Friday September 29, 7pm / £25 Literature / Henry Normal Writer and producer Henry Normal – probably best known for co-writing comedy classics The Royle Family and The Mrs Merton Show – launches his latest book, Raining Upwards, his first all new poetry collection in over twenty years.
Central Library / librarylive.co.uk / 0161 234 1983 / Friday, September 29, 6pm / Free SATURDAY 30 Music / Radio 2’s All Star Party BBC Radio 2 is celebrating its 50th birthday with this epic takeover of Manchester’s O2 Apollo. Beeb favourites Trevor Nelson, Craig Charles and Ana Matronic will be spinning the tunes and broadcasting their shows live from the stage, while live music comes from Soul II Soul, The Craig Charles Fantasy Funk Band, Shalamar and Lisa Stansfield.
O2 Apollo / academymusicgroup. com/o2apollomanchester / 0844 477 7677 / Saturday, September 30, 7pm / £28 Music / Deadbolt Festival Manchester’s most moshpit-friendly music festival returns for two jam-packed days of rock/metal/punk/ hardcore action. Spread across five venues – Gorilla, Factory, The Bread Shed, Underdog and Zombie Shack – this year’s hard-rockin’ line-up includes Martyr Defiled, Everyday Sidekicks, Cascade, Autumn Ruin, Lotus Eater, From Inside, Illusions and more.
Various venues / Saturday, September 30 September and Sunday, October 1 / £26 weekend ticket, £15-£18 day ticket, more info at – facebook.com/deadboltfestival Music, Comedy & Debate / Saturday Night Live Join a host of well-known faces – including Maxine Peake, Owen Jones, Jolyon Rubinstein, Heydon Prowse and Mrs Barbara Nice – for an evening of music, comedy and political debate coinciding with this week’s Take Back Manchester Festival.
The Dancehouse / thedancehouse. co.uk / 0161 237 9753 / Saturday, September 30, 7.45pm / £10/£5 concs SUNDAY 1 Music / Neil Diamond Take a trip down memory lane as everyone’s favourite guilty pleasure, Mr Neil Diamond, explores his massive back catalogue of hits – I’m A Believer, Red Red Wine, Love On The Rocks et al – for his 50th anniversary tour. All together now: “Sweet Caroline...duh duh duh!”
Manchester Arena / manchesterarena.com / 0161 950 5000 / Sunday, October 1, 6.30pm / £65 Literature / Time Travellers and the Crystal Dome Book Launch The winning entries for this year’s Portico Sadie Massey Awards – an annual competition for young readers and writers – have been chosen and published in a wonderful new children’s book, Time Travellers and the Crystal Dome. Hosted by Waterstones Deansgate, this book launch event will include readings from the authors and a fun quiz about the history of Manchester.
Waterstones Deansgate / waterstones.com / 0161 837 3000 / Sunday, October 1, 2pm to 4.30pm / Free, book via – eventbrite.co.uk Theatre / The Carpenters Story Relive the story of siblings Richard and Karen Carpenter – from humble beginnings to worldwide fame and Karen’s tragic death – in this hugely entertaining musical show featuring 19 of the group’s classic hits. Accompanied by a full orchestra, the impressive Claire Furley plays Karen, with Phil Aldridge in the role of Richard.
Palace Theatre / atgtickets.com / 0844 871 3019 / Sunday, October 1, 7.30pm / £25.90-£27.90 MONDAY 2 Dance / Tap Factory Live music and choreography combine in a show which makes ingenious use of ordinary objects such as oil barrels, stepladders and rubbish bins. If you’re a fan of similar dance shows like Tap Dogs and Stomp, this one comes highly recommended.
Opera House / atgtickets.com / 0844 871 3019 / Monday, October 2, 7.30pm / £19.15-£31.65 TUESDAY 3 Theatre / The Kite Runner You’ve read the book, seen the film; now enjoy Khaled Hosseini’s muchloved story – concerning two friends whose childhood innocence is tainted forever by an incident during a kiteflying tournament – on the theatre stage. Directed by Giles Croft (Nottingham Playhouse artistic director), the production now comes to Salford Quays following two acclaimed West End runs.
The Lowry / thelowry.com / 0843 208 6000 / Tuesday, October 3 to Saturday, October 7 / £16-£30 Theatre / Climate of Fear Devised by the Contact Theatre in collaboration with writer/poet Zena Edwards, Climate of Fear explores the subject of climate change from the perspective of young people. First performed as part of Contact’s Flying Solo Festival in 2016, the show has been now