This is the New Manchester Walks spring and summer 2018 programme, in chronological order.
All the usual favourites – the Pankhursts, Salford Quays, Peterloo, the historic Canal Cruise, Ancoats, Hacienda-era music – plus the return for now of the Underground; a different Underground, wittier and wiser.
Below the entire programme to peruse, soon available in leaflet form on the website and in your hand.
- Most walks cost about £10. Where possible please book on eventbrite to avoid disappointment as many of our tours are now so popular. Walks tend to last up to two hours. Canal walks are usually longer.
- The leaflet has been compiled by Ed Glinert, long-established Manchester, Liverpool and London journalist, tour guide and Penguin author.
- Many of our tours are picture led. It all adds to the experience.
- Most city walks are wheelchair accessible. Canal walks not so.
- Please check website before setting off in case of last minute problems.
WEATHER
No one wants to walk around in torrential rain. Occasionally it might not be possible to conduct a tour through inclement weather. If in doubt, please see website before setting off.
Our tours, A-Z
Adolf Hitler’s Liverpool
Adolf Hitler’s Manchester
Adolphe Valette
Airport
Alan Turing
Alderley Edge
Ancoats
Angel Meadow
Architecture
Art Treasures
Beautiful Buildings
Brontes
Canal Cruise
Castlefield
Charles Dickens
Central Library
City of Culture
Coronation Street
Cotton
Crime
Dark Side of Liverpool
Dark Side of Manchester
Elizabeth Gaskell
Fame Is The Spur
Fenian Hangings
Football
George Best
Georgian Liverpool
Great War
Hacienda Years
Hidden Gems
Hitler’s Plans for Manchester
Hotels
Inventions
Italian Manchester
Jeremy Corbyn’s Manchester
Jewish Manchester
John Cooper Clarke
John Dalton
John Rylands Library
Joy Division
Knutsford
- S. Lowry
Lindow Moss
Literary 1st Editions and Rarities
Literary Manchester Coach Tour
Literary Manchester Grand Tour
Little Ireland
Liverpool in 12 Songs
Long Good Friday
Macclesfield
Madchester – Tales of Rock ‘n’ Roll Excess
Manchester at the Movies
Manchester By Moonlight
Manchester Guardian
Manchester in 12 Songs
Manchester Music Bus Tour
Manchester Music: the Hacienda Years
Manchester United
Marple
Marx & Engels
Mediaeval Manchester
Midland Hotel
Music Bus Tour
Northern Quarter
Pankhursts
Peterloo Massacre
Poetry
Politics & Poverty
Pre-Raphaelites
Pre-Raphaelite Women
Radical Manchester
Railways
Religious Shrines
Roman Manchester
Royal Exchange
Russian Manchester
Salford Quays
Science
Secret History of Manchester
Sex & Drugs & Rock ‘n’ Roll
Slavery
Smiths
Southern Cemetery
Strangeways
Sylvia Pankhurst
Ted Hughes Country
The Manchester Man
Thomas de Quincey
Underground Manchester – “Don’t Mention the War”!
Victoria Park
William Shakespeare’s Manchester
Wildlife
Winston Churchill
Women
Wuthering Heights
The programme
March
Thu 29 The Pre-Raphaelite Women of Manchester Art Gallery Meet Gallery entrance, 5.30pm. Please book on eventbrite.
Fri 30 (Good Friday) Manchester’s Religious Shrines Divinely approved for Good Friday. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 11am.
Fri 30 (Good Friday) Manchester Music: The Hacienda Years Meet HOME arts centre, 2pm.
Fri 30 The Long Good Friday Pub Tour “Have It!” Meet Malmaison Hotel, 6pm.
Sat 31 (Easter Saturday) How the Port of Manchester became Salford Quays and Media City Meet Salford Quays Metrolink stop, 11am.
Sat 31 (Easter Saturday) The Smiths’ Manchester Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2.30pm.
April
Sun 1 (Easter Sunday) Alan Turing’s Manchester In honour of the tortured genius of the computer age. Meet Manchester Museum reception, 11am.
Sun 1 (Easter Sunday) The Midland Hotel – The Rolls Royce of Tours Tea and tour, 2.30pm. Tour 4pm. Please book with eventbrite. For the tour, meet at the hotel entrance.
!SOLD OUT! Mon 2 (Easter Monday) The Peterloo Massacre at 199 Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 11am.
NEW SLOT Mon 2 (Easter Monday) The Peterloo Massacre at 199 Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 2pm.
Mon 2 The New Manchester Walks Easter Monday Treasure Hunt (City Centre trail) Clever clues, cryptic clues, easy clues. Enthralling, engaging and entertaining. Great prizes. Route: Piccadilly Gardens to the Free Trade Hall to the Bank pub. See website for details. Booking only through eventbrite. Morning and afternoon.
Wed 4 Martin Luther King Jnr Memorial Walk Fifty years since his assassination. Meet Holy Name Church, Oxford Road, Chorlton-on-Medlock, 12 noon.
SUE Fri 6 Historic Cruise – Canals & Railways Boat moored by the Castlefield Hotel, Liverpool Road. 11am start.
Fri 6 The Glories of Manchester Architecture King Street, Albert Square, the Free Trade Hall, Sunlight House, Instituto Cervantes, Chepstow House and more. St Ann’s Church, 11am.
Fri 6 Manchester Cathedral & Chetham’s Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 1.45pm.
!SOLD OUT! Fri 6 The Secret History of Manchester What they don’t want you to know. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 6pm.
!SOLD OUT! Sat 7 The Pankhursts of Manchester. Meet St Ann’s Church, 2pm.
Sun 8 John Rylands Library & the Royal Exchange … Meet St Ann’s Church, 12 noon.
Sun 8 Manchester Music Bus Tour On the road (with music accompaniment) to visit Manchester’s legendary music landmarks. Meet coach stop, Albert Square, 12 noon. Booking only through eventbrite.
Mon 9 The Midland Hotel – The Rolls Royce of Tours Tea and tour, 12 noon. Tour 1.30pm. Please book with eventbrite. For the tour, meet at the hotel entrance.
Wed 11 Afternoon Tea (optional) and Tour at the Radisson Free Trade Hall Come and luxuriate inside Manchester’s greatest ever building with a stylish tea followed by a fascinating tour of the site where Peterloo erupted, the Suffragettes protested, Paul Robeson wowed and Bob Dylan was booed. Tea/lunch (optional) 12.30pm; tour 2pm. For tour, meet at hotel entrance, Peter Street. Please book with eventbrite.
Thu 12 The Central Library Explorer Meet outside the library, 1.30pm.
Thu 12 The Pre-Raphaelite Women of Manchester Art Gallery Meet Gallery entrance, 5.30pm. Please book on eventbrite.
Sat 14 The Great Art Treasures of Manchester Church stained glass, the Deposition from the Cross, Manchester’s Pantheon, the Portico dome… Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 11.30am.
Sat 14 The Dark Side of Manchester The Moors Murders, hangings, police corruption, riots, Nazis, nuclear bombs and the Unmentionable One. Meet St Ann’s Church, 2.30pm.
Sun 15 L. S. Lowry’s Lonely Life Powerpoint talk at Gorton Monastery, 2pm. Please book with the Monastery.
Mon 16 (Easter Monday) The Midland Hotel – The Rolls Royce of Tours Tea and tour, 12 noon. Tour 1.30pm. Please book with eventbrite. For the tour, meet at the hotel entrance.
Heroes & Heroines weekend
Loved, lost but not forgotten
Fri 20 Coronation Street Pub Walk No rovers returned. Meet HOME arts centre, 6pm.
Sat 21 Tony Wilson’s Manchester “This is Manchester, we do things differently here.” Meet HOME Arts Centre, 2 Tony Wilson Place, 11.30am.
Sat 21 The Manchester that L. S. Lowry Painted Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2.30pm.
Sun 22 George Best’s Manchester The Good, the Bad & the Bubbly. Meet outside the National Football Museum, Cathedral Gardens, 12 noon.
Sun 22 Mark E. Smith’s Manchester “The North will rise again!” Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2.30pm. Music provided.
Mon 23 William Shakespeare’s Manchester (on his birthday). “What is the city but the people?” (Coriolanus). Meet entrance, John Rylands Library, 1.30pm. Ends with a look at a first folio.
Thu 26 City of Culture Discover the wealth of Manchester’s orchestras, poets, playwrights, novelists, musicians and painters. Meet Bridgewater Hall, Lower Mosley Street, 1.30pm.
Urban Exploring: long weekend
Thu 26 The Horrors of Angel Meadow – Victorian Hell-Hole. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 5.30pm.
Fri 27 The Northern Quarter Pub Walk Beards, beer, bohos and bohemians. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 6pm.
Sat 28 Ancoats Day
Sat 28 The Ancoats Explorer. From New Cross to Little Italy. Meet Band on the Wall, Swan Street, 12 noon.
Sat 28 New Islington – The Other Side of Ancoats. Meet New Islington Metrolink stop, 2.30pm.
Sat 28 Wildlife Manchester – Trails of the Riverbank. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 5.30pm.
Sun 29 Historical Ramble: From Marple’s Roman Lakes to Disley and Lyme Park. Meet Marple Station, 1pm.
May
celebrating Manchester’s Political Heritage weekend
Brexit-free tours in the city of protest.
Thu 3 Politics and Poverty. Meet Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 1.30pm.
Fri 4 Reds, Revolutionaries and Real Ale. Whatever happened to Leon Trotsky? Well he never came to Manchester, but Friedrich Engels, Karl Marx, Michael Collins, Keir Hardie and George Orwell did. We’ll raise a glass to the comrades, compadres and communards. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 6pm.
Sat 5 Sylvia Pankhurst birthday walk. A homage to Britain’s greatest ever political campaigner. Meet St Ann’s Church, 10.30am.
Sat 5 Karl Marx’s Manchester. 200th birthday special Meet at the Friedrich Engels statue outside the HOME arts centre, 2.30pm.
Sun 6 The Manchester Guardian How a local weekly, founded on the 5th of May 1821, became the world’s greatest newspaper – and what went wrong. Meet Midland Hotel, Peter Street, 12 noon.
Sun 6 The Midland Hotel The Rolls Royce of political tours featuring Winston Churchill, Woodrow Wilson, Michael Collins, Theresa May and a jogging Boris Johnson. Tea and tour, 2.30pm. Tour only 4pm. Please book with eventbrite. For the tour, meet at the hotel entrance.
Mon 7 (May Day Bank Holiday) Canal Cruise Boat moored by the Castlefield Hotel, Liverpool Road. 11am start.
Mon 7 (May Day Bank Holiday) The Peterloo Massacre – 199 years on Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 11.30am.
Tue 8 The Salford Quays Explorer Meet Salford Quays Metrolink 12 noon.
Wed 9 Italian Manchester Arrivederci Croma. Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 11.30am.
Wed 9 Darkest Hour to Finest Hour Winston Churchill’s Manchester (on VE Day). Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2.30pm.
Thu 10 Southern Cemetery The final resting place of L. S. Lowry, Matt Busby, Tony Wilson, John Rylands … and the forgotten victim of the Munich Air Disaster. Meet at the Cemetery Gates, Barlow Moor Road, 11.30am.
Thu 10 Adolphe Valette, the Manchester impressionist. Meet Art Gallery, Mosley Street, 1.30pm.
Thu 10 John Rylands Library And…Meet St Ann’s Church, 2.30pm. (As seen in Darkest Hour!)
Fri 11 Manchester Cathedral & Chetham’s Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 11am.
Fri 11 Central Library Explored and Explained. Meet outside the library, 2pm.
Fri 11 !SOLD OUT! PLENTY OF DATES. SEE WEBSITE The Secret History of Manchester What they don’t want you to know. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 6pm.
Sat 12 Ted Hughes Country Hills, Hymns, Hebden Bridge and Heptonstall. Meet Mytholmroyd station, 12.30pm.
Sun 13 Manchester Music Bus Tour On the road (with music accompaniment) to see Manchester’s legendary music landmarks. Meet coach stop, Albert Square, 12 noon. Booking only through eventbrite.
Mon 14 Jewish Manchester day – 70 years since the founding of the State of Israel
Mon 14 Jewish Manchester – Building the New Jerusalem. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 11.30am.
Mon 14 Exploring the Old Jewish Ghetto. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 2.30pm.
Wed 16 Masterpieces of Manchester Art, Architecture & Design Meet Midland Hotel, Peter Street, 2pm.
Wed 16 The Horrors of Angel Meadow – Victorian Hell-Hole. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 5.30pm.
Thu 17 The Castlefield Explorer Meet outside MOSI, Lower Byrom Street, 1.30pm.
Fri 18 Ian Curtis’s Manchester “I’ve been waiting for a guide to come and take me by the hand.” 38 years since his tragic demise. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 5.30pm.
Sat 19 Not The Royal Wedding Tour Kings and Queens, bones and bastards. Meet at the Queen Victoria statue, Piccadilly Gardens, 12 noon.
Sun 20 Marx & Engels in Manchester. Powerpoint talk at Gorton Monastery, 2pm. Please book with the Monastery.
Steve Sun 20 Alderley Edge Wells, Wizards and wondrous views. Meet railway station, 11am. (Long trek).
Wed 23 Coronation Street Locations by Tram. An all-day extravaganza visiting Richard Hillman’s watery grave, the Weatherfield Register Office, where it all went wrong for David Platt, what’s left of the old studios in Granadaland, and more. Meet Ashton-under-Lyne Metrolink stop, 11.30am. £12. Ends at Fiz’s restaurant. Please book with eventbrite and do buy an all-day tram and bus ticket. Corrie event in the evening run by Salford council.
Thu 24 The Wrong Side of the Law Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 1.30pm.
Thu 24 The Secret History of Manchester What they don’t want you to know. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 5.30pm.
celebrating Manchester’s Music Heritage weekend
Sounds from the city that brought you Joy Division, the Smiths, Oasis, New Order, Mondays, Fall, Dr John Cooper Clarke, Buzzcocks…
Fri 25 The Hacienda Years – Manchester’s Music Legacy. Meet HOME arts centre, 6pm.
Sat 26 Madchester – Tales of Rock ‘n’ Roll Excess Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 11.15am.
Sat 26 Manchester in 12 Songs Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2.30pm.
Sun 27 The Macclesfield Explorer Beyond the Silk Road. Meet railway station, 11am. Ends Treacle Market.
Sun 27 The Smiths’ Manchester 30 years since “Every Day Is Like Sunday”. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 12 noon.
Sun 27 Joy Division’s Macclesfield. Meet railway station, 1.30pm. Long walk to include Barton Street and Ian Curtis’s gravestone.
Mon 28 (Bank Holiday) John Cooper Clarke’s Manchester Putting on the Ritz. Meet Band on the Wall, Swan Street, 12 noon.
Tue 29 The Story of Manchester United 50 years since Manchester United won the European Cup. Meet outside the National Football Museum, 5.30pm.
June
Manchester: City of Culture weekend
Fri 1 The Hidden Gems of Manchester. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 1.30pm.
Fri 1 An Ale of Two Cities The Manchester & Salford Literary Pub Tour. Meet Midland Hotel, Peter Street, 6pm.
Sat 2 Secrets of the Pre-Raphaelites Meet at the Art Gallery, Mosley Street, 11.30am.
Sat 2 The Glories of Manchester Architecture King Street, Albert Square, the Free Trade Hall, Sunlight House, Instituto Cervantes, Chepstow House and more. Meet St Ann’s Church, 2.30pm.
Sun 3 Manchester and the Great Entertainers Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jnr, Dickens, Danny Kaye, Manning and Madonna in the La-La Land of the North. Meet Oxford Road station, 12 noon.
Sun 3 The Midland Hotel – The Rolls Royce of Tours Tea and tour, 2.30pm. Tour 4pm. Please book with eventbrite. For the tour, meet at the hotel entrance.
Thu 7 Manchester’s Formidable Women. Meet Art Gallery, Mosley Street, 1.30pm.
celebrating Manchester’s Political Heritage during the Histories Festival
Brexit-free tours in the city of protest.
Fri 8 Seditious Salford Meet People’s History Museum, Bridge Street, 2pm. Ends at the Working Class Movement Library.
Fri 8 Marx & Engels pub walk Drinkers of the world unite! Meet St Ann’s Church, 6pm
Sat 9 Ten Manchester Speeches That Shook the World Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 11.30am.
Sat 9 The Pankhursts of Manchester Celebrating the centenary year of women first voting. Meet St Ann’s Church, 2.30pm.
Sun 10 The Peterloo Massacre at 199 Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 1.30pm.
Wed 13 John Rylands Library And…Meet St Ann’s Church, 11am. (As seen in Darkest Hour!)
Wed 13 Manchester Cathedral & Chetham’s Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 1.45pm.
Thu 14 Manchester’s 10 Best Buildings. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 1.30pm.
Thu 14 Liverpool Day with New Liverpool Walks – “You’ll never walk alone”
Thu 14 Adolf Hitler’s Liverpool He came, he saw, he bombed, he lost. Meet at the Ken Dodd statue, Lime Street station, 1pm.
Thu 14 Liverpool in 12 Songs The soundtrack to the beat city. Meet entrance, Anglican Cathedral, 5.30pm.
Fri 15 The 1996 IRA Bomb Meet outside Selfridge’s, Exchange Square, 11am.
Steve Fri 15 The Lost Rivers of Manchester Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 5.30pm.
Steve Sat 16 Grand Canals West Meet Malmaison Hotel, No. 3 Piccadilly 6pm.
Thu 21 In Search of the Ship Canal A trek along the world’s greatest waterway. Meet outside MOSI, Lower Byrom Street, 1pm
Thu 21 Manchester at the Movies – Lights, Camera, Action! Meet St. Anne’s Church, 1.30pm.
Thu 21 Midsummer Madness: The Horrors of Angel Meadow – Victorian Hell-Hole. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 5.30pm.
Fri 22 Central Library Explored and Explained. Meet outside the Library, 2pm.
Fri 22 Manchester Airport on a summer’s evening 80 years since Ringway opened. Meet station barrier, 6pm.
Fri 22 The Didsbury pub walk. Meet Didsbury Village Metrolink stop, 6pm.
Sat 23 The History of Manchester in 20 Objects From the “Berlin Wall” to the “IRA” Postbox Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 11.30am.
Sat 23 The Hacienda Years Manchester’s Music Legacy. Meet HOME arts centre, 2.30pm.
Sun 24 Aviation in Manchester (80 years since Ringway opened). Meet Station barrier, 10.30am.
Sun 24 Wildlife of Manchester Airport Meet Airport Inn, Altrincham Road, SK9 4LR, 3pm.
Thu 28 The Manchester Literary Trail Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 1.30pm.
Urban Exploring weekend
Hot town. Summer in the city.
Fri 29 The East Manchester Explorer Meet Etihad Campus Metrolink, 1pm. Includes Velodrome.
Fri 29 The Old Salford pub walk Up and down Chapel Street, in and out of the Eagle … and the King’s Arms and the Oxford to drink in tales of Victorian vegetarian vicars, Ewan MacColl and Love on the Dole. Meet Victoria Station wall map, 6pm.
Sat 30 Midsummer Cruise Boat moored by the Castlefield Hotel, Liverpool Road. 11am start.
Sat 30 The Mancunian Way Explorer Meet Star & Garter, Fairfield Street, 11am.
Sat 30 The Ancoats Explorer From New Cross to Little Italy. Meet Band on the Wall, Swan Street, 11am.
Sat 30 The Other Side of Ancoats (New Islington) Meet New Islington Metrolink stop, 2pm.
July
Sun 1 The Stockport Explorer Meet railway station, -outside main booking hall, 11am.
Wed 4 American Manchester – The Trumped-Up Tour on July 4 Lincoln, Joe Kennedy, Paul Robeson, Jimi, Dylan and slave-picked cotton. Meet Midland Hotel, Peter Street, 2.30pm.
Thu 5 Through the University Campus from Alan Turing’s office to Elizabeth Gaskell’s writing desk Meet Manchester Museum Reception, 11.30am.
Thu 5 The Birth of Cool Stylish Manchester. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 1.30pm.
Sat 7 The Pankhursts of Manchester Celebrating the centenary year of women first voting. Meet St Ann’s Church, 11.30am.
Sun 8 The New Manchester Walks Summer Treasure Hunt (Castlefield trail) Clever clues, cryptic clues, easy clues. Enthralling, engaging and entertaining. Great prizes. See website for details. Booking only through eventbrite. Morning and early afternoon.
Tue 10 Jewish Manchester day
Tue 10 Jewish Manchester – Building the New Jerusalem. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 11.30am.
Tue 10 Exploring the Old Jewish Ghetto. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 2.30pm.
Thu 12 Politics and Poverty. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 1.30pm.
Fri 13 John Rylands Library And…Meet St Ann’s Church, 2pm. (As seen in Darkest Hour!)
celebrating Manchester’s Music Heritage weekend
Sounds from the city that brought you Joy Division, the Smiths, Oasis, New Order, Mondays, Fall, Dr John Cooper Clarke, Buzzcocks…
Fri 13 Madchester – Tales of Rock ‘n’ Roll Excess Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 6pm.
Sat 14 The Smiths’ Manchester “The rain falls hard on a humdrum town”. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 11.30am.
Sat 14 Manchester in 12 Songs Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2.30pm.
Sun 15 Manchester Music Bus Tour South of the border with music accompaniment to include Stockport’s and & Macclesfield’s legendary music landmarks. Meet coach stop, Albert Square, 12 noon. Booking only through eventbrite.
Tue 17 Manchester Cathedral & Chetham’s Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 1.30pm.
Thu 19 Radical Manchester Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 1.30pm.
Thu 19 The Pre-Raphaelite Women of Manchester Art Gallery Meet at the gallery entrance, 5.30pm. Must be booked on eventbrite.
weekend in celebration of Manchester’s history
Fri 20 Cotton – The Cloth That Cut Manchester. Meet at the Engels statue outside the HOME arts centre, 11.30am.
Fri 20 The Great Treasures of Manchester. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2.30pm.
Sat July 21 Historic Canal Cruise – The Story of The Manchester Ship Canal Boat moored by the Castlefield Hotel, Liverpool Road. 11am start.
Sat 21 The Ordinance Survey Map of Manchester City Centre, 1849 Come with us to map the Victorian city. Meet Midland Hotel, Peter Street, 11.30am.
Sat 21 Roman Manchester. What did the Romans ever do for us? Well…Meet entrance, Beetham Tower, 2.30pm.
Sun 22 The Story of Manchester United. How a railway works team became the world’s most famous football club. Meet National Football Museum, 11.30am.
Sun 22 The Midland Hotel – The Rolls Royce of Tours Tea and tour, 2.30pm. Tour only 4pm. Please book with eventbrite. For the tour, meet at the hotel entrance.
Mon 23 The Central Library Explorer The story of Manchester’s libraries began in 1852; this is library number four! Meet outside the library, 10.30am.
Wed 25 The Great Art Treasures of Manchester Church stained glass, the Deposition from the Cross, Manchester’s Pantheon, the Portico dome… Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 2pm.
Wed 25 The Horrors of Angel Meadow – Victorian Hell-Hole. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 5.30pm.
Thu 26 Exploring The Northern Quarter Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 1.30pm.
Thu 26 Control – Ian Curtis’s Manchester “I’ve been waiting for a guide to come and take me by the hand.” Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 5.30pm.
Formidable Women weekend
Fri 27 Manchester’s Formidable Women. Meet Midland Hotel, Peter Street, 5.30pm.
Sat 28 Wuthering Heights Emily Bronte’s 200th birthday celebrations. Meet Haworth Steam Railway Station, 1pm.
Sun 29 Elizabeth Gaskell’s Manchester. Meet St Ann’s Church, 11.30am.
August
Fri 3 Historic Canal Cruise – The Port of Manchester Boat moored by the Castlefield Hotel, Liverpool Road. 11am start.
Fri 3 L. S. Lowry and his World Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 2pm.
Fri 3 Pre-season Football Pub walk Bungs, brawls, booze, Balotelli, Best. Meet Malmaison Hotel, junction Piccadilly/Auburn Street, 6pm.
Sat 4 Manchester’s Railway History 50 years since the end of steam. Meet Midland Hotel, Peter Street, 3pm.
Sun 5 The Ancoats Explorer From New Cross to Little Italy Meet Band on the Wall, Swan Street, 12 noon.
Sun 5 The Midland Hotel – The Rolls Royce of Tours Tea and tour, 2.30pm. Tour only 4pm. Please book with eventbrite. For the tour, meet at the hotel entrance.
Thu 9 Ten Things You Never Knew About Castlefield. Meet entrance, Beetham Tower, 2pm.
Thu 9 Madchester – Tales of Rock ‘n’ Roll Excess Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 5.30pm.
Fri 10 Central Library Explored and Explained. Meet outside the library, 2pm.
Horrible Histories weekend
Fri 10 Southern Cemetery The final resting place of L. S. Lowry, Matt Busby, Tony Wilson, John Rylands … and the forgotten victim of the Munich Air Disaster. Meet at the Cemetery Gates, Barlow Moor Road, 12 noon.
Sat 11 Adolf Hitler’s Manchester – It nearly happened! Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 11.30am.
Sat 11 Strangeways The dodgy prison, the old Jewish ghetto, the edgy streets … Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 2.30pm.
Sun 12 The Dark Side of Manchester Coach Tour The Moors Murders, Harold Shipman, hangings, riots, fascists, Nazis, Yorkshire Ripper, Jack the Ripper and the Unmentionable One. Booking only with eventbrite. Please see website.
Sun 12 Dark Secrets of Lindow Moss Meet Wilmslow railway station 1pm (Long trek).
- ••
Wed 15 Manchester Cathedral & Chetham’s Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 1.30pm.
Wed 15 The Horrors of Angel Meadow – Victorian Hell-Hole. Meet Victoria Station wallmap, 5.30pm.
Thu 16 The Peterloo Massacre 199 years to the day since the worst event in British political history. Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 5.30pm.
The Pride of Manchester … a week before pride
Fri 17 The Smiths’ Manchester. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 5.30pm.
Sat 18 Alan Turing’s Manchester In honour of the tortured genius of the computer age. Meet Manchester Museum reception, 12noon.
Sat 18 In Search of the Peterloo Memorial A different Peterloo tour during the weekend of the Peterloo remembrance events. Meet Central Library, St Peter’s Square, 2pm.
Sun 19 The Pankhursts of Manchester Celebrating the centenary year of women first voting. Meet St Ann’s Church, 12 noon.
Tue 21 Coronation Street Locations by Tram. An all-day extravaganza visiting Richard Hillman’s watery grave, the Weatherfield Register Office, where it all went wrong for David Platt, what’s left of the old studios in Granadaland, and more. Meet Ashton-under-Lyne Metrolink stop, 11.30am. £12. Ends at Fiz’s restaurant. Please book with eventbrite and buy an all-day tram and bus ticket.
Fri 24 John Rylands Library And…Meet St Ann’s Church, 11.30am. (As seen in Darkest Hour!)
Sat 25 Knutsford in the Summer The North’s most beautiful village. Meet Knutsford station, 2.15pm.
Sun 26 Peak Forest Canal & Etherow Country Park Historical Ramble Mediaeval Chadkirk, Britain’s Highest Aqueduct and the glorious Marple countryside. Meet Romiley Station, 1.30pm.
Sun 26 Grand Canals East Meet Malmaison Hotel, No. 3 Piccadilly, 3pm
ENDS
AT THE BACK
NEW! • Underground Manchester – “Don’t mention the war”
Nazis in the air, 5th columnists God knows where, GIs on the streets, shelters down below, nukes possibly next. Stay calm, don’t panic!
For dates, times and longer description see website. This must be booked on eventbrite.
- The Secret History of Manchester
This has proved to be very popular and tickets sell out fast. Plenty of dates, which will be announced as the summer proceeds. Please see website. Booking on eventbrite.
- Manchester town Hall
Manchester Town Hall is shut till 2024 but a remarkable souvenir will soon be available, Ed Glinert’s book, Manchester Town Hall: 140 Glorious Years, out in 2018.
- The Midland Hotel
The Rolls Royce of Tours
Sunday tea and tour
Sun 1 April, Sun 6 May, Sun 3 June, Sun 22 July, Sun 5 Aug
Tea and tour, 2.30pm. Tour only 4pm. For tour meet at the hotel entrance. Please book with eventbrite.
Mondays – for ladies (and gentlemen) who lunch
Tea and tour, 12 noon. Tour only 1.30pm. Most Mondays. For dates, see website and please book with eventbrite. For tour meet at the hotel entrance.
The Midland is Manchester’s most famous hotel, built on the site of the house from where the magistrates sent the troops into the Peterloo massacre and the concert hall where Chopin was booed.
- Manchester Highlights
Most Saturdays. Please book with eventbrite.
Welcome to Manchester City centre highlights. Meet Visitor Centre, Piccadilly Gardens, 2pm.
