Events in the City - Englands North West including Chestival, Chester Summer Music Festival, Liverpool Comedy Festival, Liverpool Sound City, Screen Deva, Liverpool Arabic Arts Festival, On the Waterfront: War & Peace, On the Waterfront: Let’s Dance, Manchester Pride
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Events in the City

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Manchester Pride

20 - 30 Aug 2010

Manchester city centre turns rainbow-coloured for one of the UK’s biggest and best Pride celebrations. Running over 10 days, the festival culminates in The Big Weekend over the bank holiday, including the always wonderfully over-the-top parade. Expect some serious partying.

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Chestival

11 Jun 2010 - 14 Jul 2010 / Various venues, Chester

Not really one festival, but an amalgamation of all of Chester’s best bits, from the Roman Weekend and the traditional Mystery Plays to the ever-popular Summer Music Festival. New this year is Rhino Mania – a herd of 70 rhino sculptures designed by artists and community groups that will be positioned around the city during the summer months.

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Chester Summer Music Festival

30 Jun 2010 - 14 Jul 2010 / Various venues, Chester

Annual classical music bonanza, designed around the joy of choral music. This year features a performance of Fauré’s Requiem by the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, plus the always top-notch Tallis Scholars.

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Liverpool Arabic Arts Festival

02 - 11 Jul 2010 / Various venues, Liverpool

Programme of music, dance, literature, film and food staged across the city in venues including the Bluecoat, FACT and the Philharmonic Hall and National Museums Liverpool.

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On the Waterfront: War & Peace

16 - 18 Jul 2010 / Pier Head, Liverpool

This weekend festival on Liverpool’s £250m new-look waterfront looks at the issues of war and peace through two giants of 20th century culture – John Lennon and Pablo Picasso. With pyrotechnic displays, live street theatre and other visual spectaculars, events will draw on the landmark Picasso exhibition at Tate Liverpool and the concurrent John Lennon exhibition at the Beatles Story Museum at Albert Dock.

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24:7 Theatre Festival

26 Jul 2010 - 01 Aug 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

As the city where the UK’s first rep theatre was established in 1908, Manchester has always had a passion for all things dramatic. This celebration of new writing features trail-blazing, original performances taking place in a variety of unusual venues. See the hot new names in writing and acting here first.

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On the Waterfront: Let’s Dance

06 - 08 Aug 2010 / Pier Head, Liverpool

A weekend of dance-based spectacular performances on Liverpool’s epic waterfront includes aerial dance troupes, dancing on water and a lavishly over the top Tea Dance, complete with Glen Miller Tribute Orchestra. Plenty of demos and workshops if you want to get your toes tapping.

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White Feather: The Spirit of John Lennon

11 Jun 2010 - 31 Dec 2010 / The Beatles Story, Liverpool

Merseyside’s favourite son (with apologies to Macca) is remembered in the 70th anniversary year of his birth in this intimate exhibition bringing together the personal memories of his first wife Cynthia and his eldest son Julian, presented for the first time through a mix of personal interviews, family photos and previously unseen memorabilia.

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Heritage Open Days

09 - 12 Sep 2010 / Various venues across the Northwest

National festival celebrating architecture and culture that opens the doors of fascinating places that are normally closed to the public for one weekend only. Venues include the Salford Lads Club (take note Mozzer fans), the Port of Liverpool Building, Lancaster Castle and many more.

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Liverpool Food and Drink Festival

12 - 19 Sep 2010 / http://www.liverpoolfoodanddrinkfestival.co.uk

Liverpool shows it’s culinary skills off in a week of all things food across the city. Why not take part in ‘Speed dining’ where you can go from restaurant to restaurant and try bite size portions of their specialities.

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BBC Proms in the Park

11 Sep 2010 / Buile Hill Park, Salford

The award-winning BBC Philharmonic brings the outdoor Proms season to an end with a Last Night of flags and fireworks in the lovely setting of Salford’s Buile Park.

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Libor Pesek conducts Dvorak’s New World

15 Sep 2010 / Philharmonic Hall, Liverpool

Everyone loves Dvořák's ‘New World’ symphony (Hovis ad included), but expect it to be played with even more verve and passion than usual as the legendary Czech conductor Libor Pesek returns to his old orchestra, the Liverpool Phil, to bring his uniquely personal Czech flair to this greatest of Czech symphonies.

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The Manchester Weekender

01 - 03 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

This 48-hour showcase of Manchester’s eclectic art and culture scene is being planned to coincide with the launch of the AND Festival (see below) and is a series of one-off, intimate events, pairing up artists and performers with some of the city’s most beautiful and secret settings. Details not yet announced but keep checking the website as it promises to be something really special.

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AND Festival

01 - 07 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

Short for Abandon Normal Devices, AND is a festival of new cinema and digital culture that spill from the screens and galleries into the streets of the city, allowing audiences to see new perspectives and interact with ideas in a festival that aims to question the normal.

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Manchester Food & Drink Festival

01 - 11 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

Drawing together the wealth of talent in producing, making and selling food and drink that exists across Greater Manchester , this festival is now in its 11th year. Expect the streets and squares of the city to come alive with events to titillate your taste buds.

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John Lennon Tribute Season

09 Oct 2010 - 09 Dec 2010 / Various venues, Liverpool

Two-month cultural programme marking 70 years since Lennon's birth and 30 years since his untimely death. Events include Lennon Remembered', a major tribute concert at the 11,000 seat Echo Arena, a major birthday celebration at the world-famous Cavern Club, a Lennon-inspired international poetry competition, film festival, lecture programme and visual art exhibitions.

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In The City

13 - 15 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

One of the most enduring bits of the late great Anthony Wilson’s legacy is this music industry event that sees Manchester packed full of A&R men for the weekend, looking for the next big thing in the city’s pubs and clubs. Over the past 15 years In the City has helped launch the careers of bands like Oasis, Radiohead, Coldplay and Foo Fighters and has hosted some now-legendary gigs, including ones by The Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk, Arctic Monkeys and many more.

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Manchester Literature Festival

14 - 25 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

Annual literary love-in with the best writers and poets de nos jours. The eclectic line-up includes everything from crime and romance to poetry in translation and this year’s festival is focussing on science as it’s big theme.

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Manchester Comedy Festival

21 - 31 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

10th year of this annual chucklefest which sees the best national and local comedians performing across the pubs and clubs of the city. Mark Watson and Frankie Boyle two of the big names announced so far.

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Bed-In at the Bluecoat

09 Sep 2010 - 09 Dec 2010 / Bluecoat, Liverpool

Part of a series of events across Liverpool celebrating the 70th birthday of John Lennon (and the 30th anniversary of his death), this performance art homage to John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s famous Bed-In for peace sees artists and the public perform together each day in 62 events over 62 days on the bed.

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Liverpool Food & Drink Festival

12 - 19 Sep 2010 / Various venues, Liverpool

Liverpool shows off its culinary chops in a week devoted to all things foodie. Try ‘Speed dining’, where you can go from restaurant to restaurant and try bite size portions of their specialities in each one.

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Liverpool Biennial

18 Sep 2010 - 28 Nov 2010 / Various venues, Liverpool

One of the world’s biggest contemporary art jamborees outside Venice, the Biennial is living proof of Liverpool’s seemingly insatiable appetite for contemporary art. The always intriguing shows are staged all over the city – in galleries, museums, studios, and on the streets – and aim to introduce new audiences to the latest up-and-coming artists and contemporary art trends. See feature on page 4 for more details.

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The Manchester Weekender

01 - 03 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

Showcase of Manchester’s eclectic art and culture scene that coincides with the launch of the AND Festival (see below) and promises 48 hours of some of the most unusual cultural experiences found anywhere in the UK. This series of one-off, intimate events will pair international artists, musicians, festivals and writers with some of the city’s most beautiful and unusual settings. See feature on page 8 for more details.

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AND Festival

01 - 07 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

Short for Abandon Normal Devices, AND is a festival that’s been building up steam around the Northwest for the last couple of years before arriving in Manchester for its 2010 iteration. Celebrating new cinema and digital culture, AND spills from the screens and galleries into the streets of Manchester, allowing audiences to see new perspectives and interact with ideas in a festival where the artistic criteria is to question the normal. This year’s event features the UK première of Turner Prize-winner Gillian Wearing’s first feature film and Lawrence Malstaf’s intriguing art installation Shrink. See feature on page 8 for more details.

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Manchester Food & Drink Festival

01 - 11 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

Drawing together Greater Manchester’s wealth of talent in producing, making and selling food and drink, this gastrofest is now in its 11th year. Expect the streets and squares of the city to come alive with events to titillate your taste buds.

Visit Website

John Lennon Tribute Season

09 Oct 2010 - 09 Dec 2010 / Various venues, Liverpool

Two-month cultural programme marking 70 years since Lennon’s birth and 30 years since his untimely death. Events include Lennon Remembered, a major tribute concert at the 11,000 seat Echo Arena, a birthday celebration at the world famous Cavern Club, plus a Lennon-inspired international poetry competition, film festival, lecture programme and visual art exhibitions.

Visit Website

In The City

13 - 15 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

One of the most enduring bits of the late, great Anthony Wilson’s legacy is this music industry event that sees Manchester packed full of A&R men for the weekend, looking for the next big musical thing in the city’s pubs and clubs. Over the past 15 years, In the City has helped launch the careers of bands like Oasis, Radiohead, Coldplay and the Foo Fighters and has hosted some now legendary gigs, including ones by The Chemical Brothers, Daft Punk, Arctic Monkeys and many more.

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Chapter & Verse

13 - 17 Oct 2010 / The Bluecoat, Liverpool

Five packed days of readings, conversations, storytelling, debates, workshops and poetry slams exploring the idea of ‘A New England’ in the new post-election environment. Featuring Brian Patten, Frank Cottrell Boyce, Shami Chakrabati, Polly Toynbee, Shappi Khorshandi and many more.

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Manchester Literature Festival

14 - 25 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

Annual literary love-in with the best writers and poets de nos jours. This year’s stellar line-up includes Bernard Cornwell, Carol Ann Duffy, Seamus Heaney, Lionel Shriver and Jeanette Winterson, plus a range of events marking the bicentenary of Cranford author Elizabeth Gaskell.

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Shell Chester Literature Festival

18 - 31 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Chester

Celebrating the written and spoken word with an ensemble of literary personalities, local authors and poets.

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ENRON

19 - 23 Oct 2010 / The Lowry, Salford Quays

Transferring to The Lowry after receiving stonking reviews in both the West End and on Broadway, this Rupert Goold-directed production mixes classical tragedy with savage comedy in what now seems like a prophetic morality tale about the world’s financial meltdown

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Manchester Comedy Festival

21 - 31 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

10th year of this annual chucklefest which sees the best national and local comedians performing across the pubs and clubs of the city. Mark Watson and Frankie Boyle are two of the big names announced so far.

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North West Food Lovers Festival

22 - 24 Oct 2010 / Tatton Park and various venues, Cheshire

Get the taste buds tingling for two weeks of foodie events involving restaurants and fine food stores across Cheshire, culminating in two days at Tatton Park when over 120 food and drink stalls will tempt you with top quality regional produce to see, taste and buy.

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Salford Film Festival

10 - 14 Nov 2010 / Various venues, Salford

Now in its seventh year, this film festival with attitude always presents a wonderful mix of international premières, local community films, cutting edge new shorts and difficult to see cult classics.

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NICE Festival

18 Nov 2010 - 02 Dec 2010 / Various venues, Manchester

This annual Northwest festival presents the best in collaborative creative work between the UK and Nordic countries with participants coming from Finland, Iceland, the Faroe Islands, Sweden, Norway and Denmark.

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Relaunch of Open Eye Gallery

Until 01 Jan 0001 / Open Eye Gallery, Liverpool

The Northwest’s premier photography gallery moves to a new home on Liverpool’s waterfront with a planned programme of cutting-edge international exhibitions that will make it one of the UK’s leading photography spaces. Fab - May 2011

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Manchester International Festival 2011

30 Jun 2011 - 17 Jul 2011 / Various venues, Manchester

2011 may only be the third Manchester International Festival but it already feels like a firm fixture in the world’s premier league. Under the directorship of Alex Poots, this festival of firsts presents a heady brew of new work, one off performances and unusual collaborations by some of the world’s leading creative minds. Definitely one to look out for.

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Museum of Liverpool

Until 01 Jan 0001 / Pier Head, Liverpool

This head-turning piece of new contemporary architecture on Liverpool’s waterfront is the biggest newly-built national museum in the UK for over a century. Due to open towards the end of 2011, its 8,000 sqm of public space will be solely devoted to the history, character and people of Liverpool, from its impact on world trade and the opening up of the Americas to its huge influence on the world of popular culture. Opening the end of 2011

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