Kicking us off this Summer is a whole host of events around the city. We’ve rounded up the best of what’s on so you can find it all in one place!
Gigs
There are lots of gigs on this month so there really is something for everyone, from a Jazz Night for music that’s ahead of it’s time [The Fitzgerald, 7 June] to Manchester’s own Northern Grooves [Band on the Wall, 2 June, FREE] to Pride Classical, celebrating 50 years of Pride songs [The Bridgewater Hall, 2 June].
For Indie lovers, YES, Gorilla and the Academy are serving up treats this month with the Arctic Monkeys after parties [Gorilla, 2 + 3 June], The Deep Blue [YES, 3 June], Swim Deep [Manchester Academy, 6 June] and The Goo Goo Dolls [Manchester Academy 23 June].
Festivals
Festival season starts this month and Manchester is offering up a range for every interest. For music lovers, there are still Sunday tickets for Parklife [Heaton Park, 11 June], Sounds of the City [Castlefield Bowl, 29 June – 8 July] and the first of three dates for the Green Island Festival celebrating underground and unrepresented artists [Hulme Community Garden Centre, 17 June].
For festivals celebrating culture and heritage you’ve got the Histories Festival [Central Library, 8-12 June], Festival of Nature [Heaton Park, 25 June] and the Festival of Libraries [various venues, 7-11 June]. UoM are also hosting a Community Festival for all, filled with activities about science and art [various venues, 10 June] as well as a one-off Manchester Literary Festival event for 100 Queer Poems hosted by co-editor Andrew McMillan [Manchester Poetry Library, 2 June].
Lastly, across the city, there’s the Manchester Day Carnival [city centre, 19 June], We Invented the Weekend Festival, celebrating the joys of free time [Salford, 3-4 June] and DogFest [Tatton Park, 17-18 June]. The University is also hosting a Film Festival [CULTPLEX, 8 + 9 June] and the SU is showcasing some of the best Manchester student performing artists at Alive! Festival [SU, 8 June].
Culture
There are also quite a few exhibitions starting in June, including the Nothing About Us Without Us guided tour celebrating the work of Disability activists. [People’s History Museum, 15 June], We Cut Through Dust – a futuristic interactive work exploring social and political questions, reflecting the personal experiences of Manchester’s marginalised communities [Factory International, 29 June – 16 July]. And SWIM an exhibition about open water swimming and community [The Edge Theatre and Arts Centre, 15 June].
For those who would like to try their hand at something creative, the Centre for New Writing are putting on a Wellbeing Writing session [Chetham’s Library 7 + 8 June], there’s Life Drawing Late – where you can hone your pencil and chalk skills [Salford Museum and Art Gallery, 21 June] or for something more relaxed there’s Paint & Sip Night where you can have a lowkey paint and a chat over a glass of wine [The Crafty Tipple, June 15].
Community
For some community events, there’s the Great Big Green Week which includes a City of Trees tour [Castlefield Viaduct, 15 + 17 + 24 June] as well as a Sketch the City event with Len Grant [Castlefield Viaduct, 17 June] and for more in nature, there’s Gardening Volunteer Sessions for you to get stuck into [Peel Park, 2 June].
For the arts and crafts lovers, there’s the MCR Sew Social for sewers of all abilities to get together [The Lowry, 4 June] and Third Place are hosting a pottery painting session for women [Pottery Corner, 25 June]. Make sure to check out the SU events this month as they have everything from free pizza nights [6 June], to photography exhibitions [Manchester Academy 2, 9 June] and Yoga at Whiteworth Park [various dates].