Carmel ThomasonI’m coming a bit late to the party with this one I know, but when something is this good I don’t think too many people can shout about it or shout too loud. I missed press night because I was in York for the official launch of my latest book with...
For theatres, the Christmas show is often the biggest of the year. And in Greater Manchester the Opera House pantomime is the biggest of them all. Recent years have seen mega-stars, like Priscilla Presley and David Hasselhoff on the bill. But...
It’s a Horrible Christmas at the Lowry this year, but judging by the reception of Friday’s audience it could be one of their best. The show is a seasonal spin-off from Terry Deary’s Horrible Histories, whose ingenious concept of mixing historical...
The Royal Exchange likes to put a twist on the usual Christmas cheer with its festive production. So it is with its choice for this year, Sweet Charity, a musical whose innocent title belies a seedy world of lap dancing clubs, domestic violence and...
No-one knows the true number of children and young people under the age of 18, who have responsibilities for looking after a parent or sibling. Official UK figures put the number somewhere around 160,000 but if it’s true, as some think, that the...
Long before Harry Potter was imagined Roald Dahl captured the appeal of young wizardry in George’s Marvellous Medicine. This year marks 100 years since the birth of the much-loved children’s author and as part of the centenary celebrations...
There are few things in life we know to be true, and one is that there is nothing as complex as families. They have been at the heart of good drama for centuries, and in this new play Andrew Bovell takes us into their darkest secrets and most...
The rising popularity of Cirque du Soleil has upped the ante for all circus troupes, large and small. Audiences are demanding more from circus entertainment but smaller companies are rising to the challenge with quirky, multi-talented acts, of which...
The rhythms of life aren’t always as comfortable as the phrase might suggest. And so it is with Aditi Mangaldas’ latest work, Inter_rupted which is takes the audience through a range of emotions from exhilaration to an overwhelming urge to stop the...
It’s not yet 10am and already there’s barely a spare seat to be had in Manchester’s Palace Theatre such is the pull of children’s TV favourite, Peppa Pig. I’m here with my four-year-old nephew. The age guide is three plus, but looking around there...