Enter our competitions

Events in October

Back to home

Elizabeth Gaskell Bicentenary Celebrations

31 Mar 2010 - 28 Nov 2010 / Various venues, Cheshire and Manchester

The series of events celebrating the live of this acclaimed British novelist and short story writer

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

William Morris: a Sense of Place

26 Jun 2010 - 17 Oct 2010 / Blackwell Arts and Craft House, Bowness-on-Windermere LA23 3JT

Exhibition exploring the design, creative writing, socialism and conservation work of the founder of the Arts & Crafts movement.

Visit Website

Industrial Revolutionaries: People who shaped the Modern World

26 Jun 2010 - 06 Nov 2010 / Harris Museum & Art Gallery, Preston

Major new exhibition looking at the issues that were preoccupying the citizens of the industrial revolution 150 years ago and how these issues are echoed in 2010, from employer/worker relations, child labour and the need for temperance to impending elections with surprise results.

Visit Website

The Loneliness of Lowry

17 Jul 2010 - 30 Oct 2010 / Abbot Hall Art Gallery, Kendal

Mysterious bleak landscapes, desolate seascapes and deserted buildings are the subjects of some of LS Lowry’s most powerful yet lesser known works and this exhibition examines a different side of the artist who cites his inherent loneliness as one of the main influences on his work.

Visit Website

William Morris: a Sense of Place

19 Aug 2010 - 17 Oct 2010 / Blackwell Arts and Crafts House, Bowness-on-Windermere LA23 3JT

Treasuring the sense of place created by nature and architecture was a core tenet of the Arts & Crafts movement pioneer, William Morris’s world view. This exhibition charts his take on life through graphic designs, textiles, hand-printed books and photographs of the back-to-nature guru himself.

Visit Website

The Loneliness of Lowry

19 Aug 2010 - 30 Oct 2010 / Abbot Hall Art Gallery, Kendal

Mysterious bleak landscapes, desolate seascapes and deserted buildings are the subjects of some of LS Lowry’s most powerful yet lesser-known works and this exhibition examines a different side of the artist who cited his inherent loneliness as one of the main influences on his work.

Visit Website

Industrial Revolutionaries: People who shaped the Modern

19 Aug 2010 - 06 Nov 2010 / Harris Museum & Art Gallery, Preston

Major new exhibition looking at the issues that were preoccupying the citizens of the industrial revolution 150 years ago and how these issues are echoed in 2010, from employee/worker relations, child labour and the need for temperance, to the surprise results of elections.

Visit Website

Elizabeth Gaskell Bicentenary Celebrations

19 Aug 2010 - 28 Nov 2010 / Various venues, Cheshire and Manchester

The 200th anniversary of the birth of the author of Cranford is the excuse for this year-long celebration of all things Gaskell. There are walking tours around her home town of Knutsford (the ‘real Cranford’) plus exhibitions, talks and performances around the fashion, music and politics of her times.

Visit Website

White Feather: The Spirit of John Lennon

19 Aug 2010 - 31 Dec 2010 / The Beatles Story, Liverpool

Liverpool’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.

Visit Website

Blackpool Illuminations

03 Sep 2010 - 07 Nov 2010 / Promenade, Blackpool

The biggest free light show on earth has been pulling the crowds since 1879, but you’ll be pleased to hear it’s had a serious makeover since then. Best way to enjoy the spectacle is to grab a bag of chips and hop on an open top tram along the promenade.

Visit Website

Blackpool Illuminations

03 Sep 2010 - 11 Nov 2010 / Blackpool Promenade

The biggest free light show on earth has been pulling crowds since 1879, but you’ll be pleased to hear it’s had a makeover since then. Best way to enjoy the spectacle is to grab a bag of chips and hop on an open top tram along the promenade.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

Sedition

18 Sep 2010 - 28 Nov 2010 / Tullie House Museum & Art Gallery, Carlisle

Exhibition of the best work currently being produced in Cumbria by established and emerging artists. Features sculpture, photography, installation, film and live art by over 20 artists who put innovation and experimentation at the heart of what they do.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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 love affair with the arts. The always-intriguing shows are staged all over the city with the aim being to introduce British audiences to up-and-coming international artists and trends.

Visit Website

Ullswater Outdoor Festival

25 Sep 2010 - 03 Oct 2010 / Various locations around Ullswater

Reckoned by many to be England’s most beautiful lake, this nine-day festival has something for all exertion levels, from woodland trails and steamer rides to mountain biking, kayaking and remote peak ascents.

Visit Website

Rural Rossendale Walking Festival

01 - 03 Oct 2010 / Rossendale, Lancashire

This year the Rural Rossendale Walking Festival features a host of aptly named ‘foodie’ walks such as The Fudge Trudge, Swish and Chips, The Black Pudding Plod, take in the best of Rossendale’s local food producers.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

Rossendale Walking Festival

01 - 04 Oct 2010 / Rossendale, Lancashire

Exercise and indulgence combine to make a guilt-free treat as this year’s festival features a host of aptly named ‘foodie’ walks such as The Fudge Trudge, Swish and Chips and The Black Pudding Plod, taking in the best of the Rossendale Valley’s food producers.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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

Farmageddon

08 - 01 Oct 2010 / Farmer Ted’s Farm Park, Flatman’s Lane, Ormskirk, Lancashire L39 7HW

Farmer Ted has shown an award-winning bit of innovation in turning his bit of rural Lancashire into a full-on spookfest for the witching month of October. Two huge walk-through houses of horror called Terror on the Farm and Insanity promise to prey on your senses and embody all your worst nightmares in what was voted Lancashire’s best tourism experience last year. Shows a wonderfully self-deprecating touch, describing itself as ‘forged in Hell but conveniently located just off the Formby bypass’.

Visit Website

Antony & Cleopatra

08 Oct 2010 - 13 Nov 2010 / Liverpool Playhouse, Liverpool

Watch out chaps – Samantha’s in town! Kim Cattrall returns to the city of her birth to play the simmering Shakespearean siren. Jeffrey Kissoon is the actor man enough to take her on as Antony with the directing honours being taken by Janet Suzman, herself one of the legendary stage Cleopatras of yesteryear.

Visit Website

Antony and Cleopatra

08 Oct 2010 - 13 Nov 2010 / Liverpool Playhouse, Liverpool

Watch out chaps – Samantha’s in town! Kim Cattrall returns to the city of her birth to play the simmering Shakespearean sexpot. Jeffrey Kisson is the actor man enough to take her on as Anthony with the directing honours being taken by Janet Suzman, herself one of the legendary stage Cleopatras of yesteryear.

Visit Website

John Lennon Song Book 70th Birthday

09 Oct 2010 / Liverpool Philharmonic, Liverpool

Kicking off Liverpool’s two-month Lennonathon is this evening of his classic songs performed by the city’s on-form symphony orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic.

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 major birthday celebration at the world-famous Cavern Club, a Lennon-inspired international poetry competition, film festival, lecture programme and visual art exhibitions.

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

The Planets in High Definition

12 Oct 2010 / Bridgewater Hall, Manchester

Holst’s evocative Planets Suite gets a stellar makeover as the Houston Symphony Orchestra perform the symphonic version as a live accompaniment to a HD footage of images from NASA missions such as the Mars Rover, Voyagers 1&2, Mariner 10, Magellan and Galileo. Literally out of this world.

Visit Website

The Planets in High Definition

12 Oct 2010 / Bridgewater Hall, Manchester

Holst’s evocative Planets Suite gets a stellar makeover as the Houston Symphony Orchestra perform the symphonic version as a live accompaniment to HD footage of images from NASA missions such as the Mars Rover, Voyagers 1&2, Mariner 10, Magellan and Galileo. Literally out of this world.

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.

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 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.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

Sir Mark Elder and the Hallé

14 Oct 2010 / The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester

English classical music is a fundamental part of the Hallé’s DNA, so the orchestra should be playing at the peak of its powers as two of England’s greatest composers are celebrated in this programme featuring Elgar’s Violin Concerto and Vaughan Williams’ London Symphony.

Visit Website

Sir Mark Elder and the Halle

14 Oct 2010 /

English classical music is a fundamental part of the Halle’s DNA, so the orchestra should be playing at the peak of its powers as two of England’s greatest composers are elebrated in this programme featuring Elgar’s Violin Concerto and Vaughan Williams’ London Symphony.

Visit Website

Kiteival

14 - 17 Oct 2010 / North Shore Promenade, Blackpool

Blackpool’s North Shore is the location for this year’s finals of the British Kite Surfing Association’s Championship competition. Categories include kite landboarding, kite surfing and kite buggy racing, with over 100 competitors taking to the sands and seas.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

Bollington Walking Festival:

15 - 31 Oct 2010 / Various locations, Bollington, Cheshire

Two-week festival of enjoyable walks (many of which are very fortuitously focussed around public houses) exploring the scenery, heritage and wildlife of this glorious part of Cheshire’s Peak District, known locally as Happy Valley. Art, music and food events are thrown in for good measure.

Visit Website

The Barber Goes North

15 Oct 2010 - 15 Dec 2010 / Abbot Hall Art Gallery, Kendal

The Barber Institute is famed for its collection of Old Master paintings and its magnificent works on paper. This two-month outing to the Lake District features a rarely seen selection of Old Master drawings, including fine works by Tintoretto, Rubens, Rembrandt and Degas, plus German Expressionist prints and drawings by Max Beckmann, Käthe Kollwitz and others.

Visit Website

The Barber Goes North

15 Oct 2010 - 15 Dec 2010 / Abbot Hall Art Gallery, Kendal

The Barber Institute at the University of Birmingham is famed for its collection of Old Master paintings and its magnificent works on paper. This two month trip to the Lake District features a rarely seen selection of Old Master drawings, including fine works by Tintoretto, Rubens, Rembrandt and Degas, plus German Expressionist prints and drawings, including images by Max Beckmann, Käthe Kollwitz, and others.

Visit Website

Shell Chester Literature Festival

18 - 31 Oct 2010 / Various venues, Chester

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

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

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 offering a lip-smacking range of top quality regional produce to see, taste and buy.

Visit Website

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.

Visit Website

Die Fledermaus

26 Oct 2010 / Capesthorne Hall, Macclesfield, Cheshire

This distinctive Jacobean-style house set in over 100 acres of parkland is the venue for a performance of Johann Strauss II’s operetta by touring company Heritage Opera, renowned for its operatic performances in statelies across the Northwest.

Visit Website