
Kimpton Clocktower Hotel offers an unforgettable stay on Oxford Road Corridor in one of Manchester’s most iconic buildings.
A vibrant nightlife and home to many of the city’s most iconic music venues, theatre spots and high-end cultural offerings such as the Whitworth, HOME and RNCM.
With one of the most concentrated, diverse and distinctive collections of cultural attractions in the UK, there are always things to do on the Oxford Road Corridor. Home to many of Manchester’s iconic music venues, auditoriums and exhibition spaces, Oxford Road also has a vibrant night-life and an abundance of cafés, restaurants and bars. Nestled between the beautiful architecture and significant landmarks and memorials are a number of historic parks and contemporary green spaces to discover.
Oxford Road Corridor’s love affair with live music dates back as far as 1858 when Sir Charles Hallé formed Manchester’s symphony orchestra at the Lesser Free Trade Hall. Fast forward to 1966 and the Free Trade Hall would become part of musical history again when Bob Dylan was famously heckled for going electric. Ten years later the Sex Pistols played the “gig that changed the world”. Punk was born with Joy Division, The Fall, Magazine and The Smiths, not far behind.
With over six million items from across the world, spanning over four floors of displays and exhibitions in 15 galleries, Manchester Museum (reopening in Feb 2023) is an extraordinary space with a vast collection dating back as far as the early 1800’s. South of the museum and transformed by a £15 million development is the Whitworth, the first English gallery in a park, providing contemporary exhibition programmes that have gained global attention.
At the opposite end of the Oxford Road Corridor, presenting the most diverse, contemporary and challenging visual art, cinema and theatre in the region is HOME Manchester, who have specialisms in artist film, performance and participation.
The area is steeped in literary history, with the life and works of both Anthony Burgess and Elizabeth Gaskell immortalised here alongside iconic venues like Manchester Central Library and contemporary spaces like Manchester Poetry Library.
The transformation of the Pankhurst Centre exhibition space is incredible thanks to its new permanent exhibition, At Home with the Pankhurst Family.
(Un)Defining Queer delves into the Whitworth’s collection to examine how we can use a queer lens to define what the term ‘queer’ means.
Golden Mummies of Egypt is Manchester Museum’s re-opening exhibition. This one-of-a-kind cultural experience opens in February 2023.
A new exhibition exploring how Elizabeth Gaskell presented Manchester and its people through her novels and short stories, and the impact she had through her writing.
Traces of Displacement uses the Whitworth’s collection to address one of the major humanitarian concerns – forced displacement.
The Poetics of Water asks visitors to look at landscapes, borders and centuries and think deeply about soil and water’s fundamental elements.
Economics the Blockbuster is a research and exhibition project, developed in collaboration with Alliance Manchester Business School and MIF.
Albrecht Dürer’s Material World is the first major exhibition of the Whitworth’s outstanding Dürer collection in over half a century.
Curry Mile – A Changing Neighbourhood is a documentary photography project exploring ‘present day’ Wilmslow Road.
Marketing the Manchester Ship Canal showcases original publicity material and print adverts created as marketing for the Port of Manchester.
Turner Prize-winning artist Lubaina Himid presents new commissions and work from artists Magda Stawarska, Rebecca Chesney and Tracy Hill.
One of the UK’s most ambitious art fairs, Manchester Art Fair, returns to Manchester Central on the 17-19 November.
Public Image Ltd. (PiL) return to Manchester with their eleventh studio album and first album in 8 years, End of World.
Following a triumphant sets at Neighbourhood Festival and Gorilla, Manchester’s The Covasettes have announced their biggest headline show to date.
Puma Blue’s music is noted for a blend of intimate fragility, sensual grooves and haunting, nocturnal ambience.
Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs are touring their fourth studio album, Land of Sleeper, stopping by The Ritz this September.
Coach Party is an indie rock band from the Isle of Wight, acclaimed for their infectious melodies and refreshing sound.
Join Bez In conversation as he talks about his extraordinary life and career, the story of a bad lad who has turned his life good.
Hello Oriental celebrates 50 years of Hip Hop by bringing Hip Hop Karaoke to Manchester.
Known for their catchy melodies, energetic performances, and witty lyrics, The Hoosiers play Gorilla this autumn.
Gang of Four, one of the most radically important, and influential rock groups of the last 40 years, play Manchester this October.
The Easy Rollers are a roaring seven-piece jazz outfit — ready to transport you back to the golden age of jazz.
In her 50-plus years in music, Judy Collins has always exhibited impeccable taste in songcraft, catch her in concert at RNCM.
Scottish Ensemble Present Jasdeep Singh Degun, bringing together traditions of Indian and Western Classical music at RNCM.
Jesus Christ Superstar is the album that inspired a revolution. A revelation that changed the world. A reinvention for this millennium.
Beautiful and bonkers, Project Dictator at HOME is the clown show about totalitarianism we never knew we needed.
Manchester’s 23rd micro-marathon of the bizarre, the bold, and the beautiful takes over Contact this September!
Six new short plays, written in special collaboration with Manchester Rape Crisis, in honour of their 45th Anniversary.
Dual دوگانه is a multilingual, multidisciplinary, multi-form work with a live theatre show at its core devised and performed by Peyvand Sadeghian.
The hilarious comedy musical from the Olivier Award-winners behind Fleabag, Baby Reindeer and A Super Happy Story (About Feeling Super Sad)
40/40 is an inspiring, insightful and moving celebration of Katherina Radeva’s 40 years as a woman, a migrant and an artist.
Full of humour and beauty, Hamzeh Al Hussien’s extraordinary story takes you on a personal tour of the places he knows best.
A new production of New Dawn Fades: A Play About Joy Division and Manchester returns to RNCM.
Set against the frenzy of the Lioness’ success, this brand new multi-sensory play by Keisha Thompson invites you on a journey inside the confines of a post-match train carriage.
Manchester 2016. In the middle of a hot and sweaty queer warehouse party, two damaged hearts collide.
A classic for our times. After astounding audiences around the world, Akram Khan’s Giselle returns to the Palace Theatre, where it premiered.
A new exhibition exploring how Elizabeth Gaskell presented Manchester and its people through her novels and short stories, and the impact she had through her writing.
Contact welcome Zadie Smith and her new work of historical fiction, The Fraud, to Manchester Literature Festival,
Experience a special event with pioneering Jamaican reggae poet, performer, activist and critic, Linton Kwesi Johnson, hosted by Jackie Kay.
At MLF23, Simon Armitage discusses his love of language, compositions and his collaborations with musicians.
One of our most fearless voices on nature, climate change and the environment, George Monbiot visits Manchester Literature Festival.
Cities Untold provides lyrical, surprising, sensual, and sometimes surreal impressions of the three cities through fresh lenses.
Where to stay
All you need to know now is where you are going to stay. There are plenty of hotels on the Oxford Road Corridor which cater for all tastes and budgets.
Kimpton Clocktower Hotel offers an unforgettable stay on Oxford Road Corridor in one of Manchester’s most iconic buildings.
The Midland Hotel is one of the most famous places to stay in Manchester, and one of Oxford Road Corridor’s most lavishly decorated hotels.
The Holiday Inn Express on Oxford Road is a centrally located hotel that offers visitors great value for money.
Hotel ibis on Princess Street offers 126 value for money rooms in a central Manchester location near Oxford Road.
Stay up to date with the latest news from Oxford Road Corridor.
Work begins on CityLabs 4.0, bringing specialist lab space to Oxford Road Corridor’s internationally significant health innovation campus.
A small but significant ceremony has taken place between the Pankhurst Centre and Manchester University NHS Trust that reflects an important historical agreement between the two organisations.
Images of the illustrative masterplan for Manchester’s trailblazing new city centre innovation district have been revealed.