For a snapshot of Manchester鈥檚 heritage, start in St. Peter鈥檚 Square. Here, you can gaze upon the Pantheon-inspired dome of , and the Edwardian baroque grandeur of the Midland 鈥 the hotel where Mr. Rolls and Mr. Royce reputedly agreed to team up. A cross marks the site of the long-razed St. Peter鈥檚 Church; a statue of Emmeline Pankhurst pays tribute to the leader of the suffragettes.
The past is both obvious and hidden in this ordinary-seeming pocket of the city: 鈥漌e鈥檙e standing upon dead people, whose bones are being rattled by the trams,鈥 explains Jonathan Schofield, an editor-at-large at Manchester Confidential who runs his own , to our group of travel journalists. Long-forgotten graves 鈥 the vaulted crypt of St. Peter鈥檚 Church 鈥 were discovered during tramline construction.
Standing in this historic square, I can also see something unexpected, shiny and new, not far from the yesteryear architecture: four sleek, skyline-transforming towers, one of them taller than anything else in Manchester. Sprouting on what was essentially nothing (a former parking lot), the highrises are the swanky Deansgate Square apartments and the most conspicuous sign of the city鈥檚 rapid growth.
Nearly 10 years in the making, Factory International’s permanent home soft-launched in June.
Mark WaughManchester has shape-shifted many times before, evolving from a Roman fort and settlement to the world鈥檚 first industrial city 鈥 a grimy, overpopulated hub of textile mills, nicknamed 鈥淐ottonpolis,鈥 during the Industrial Revolution. (A permanent gallery at the details how cotton, and exploitative labour, made the metropolis rich.)
A city in decline by the post-industrial 鈥80s and 鈥90s, today Manchester is again in the midst of massive change. People are moving into the core, including a younger generation and ex-Londoners wanting more affordable homes. 鈥淚t鈥檚 remarkable, really. About 25, 30 years ago, there were probably 400 people living in the city centre. Now, with all the (new) residences, there鈥檚 about 100,000,鈥 says Schofield.
New destinations 鈥 spanning arts and culture, dining and entertainment, and rare green space 鈥 are springing up all over. Anticipation is high for the Harry Styles-backed , which will be the U.K.鈥檚 largest indoor arena when it opens next year 鈥 fitting for a city whose music legends are too many to adequately list here (for starters: the Smiths, Joy Division, Oasis).
The newly opened DieCast has turned a former metalwork factory into a dining and dancing venue.
Marketing ManchesterOld warehouse buildings have morphed into offices, studios and design-conscious boutique hotels, like , which opened last year. What was once the city鈥檚 most squalid factory-filled quarter, Ancoats, is on the cool list for its stylish bars and splurge-y restaurants, including , the city鈥檚 first Michelin-starred spot in more than 40 years.
Industrial sites are being wholly reimagined. , which debuted its first phase this month, has remade a metalwork factory into a sprawling venue for dining, dance-partying and Insta-friendly frozen daiquiris. Similarly, has turned a disused train depot into a jumbo food and drink hall. At the entrance, I notice Mancunian poet Argh Kid鈥檚 description of his town, writ large: 鈥淎 haven for heathens, hoodies and hipsters, hijabis and Hebrews, high brow intellectuals and however-you-sexuals 鈥 It鈥檚 home to all.鈥
Next door, the restored River Medlock, until recently hidden under a concrete culvert, snakes through , Manchester鈥檚 first new city park in a century. The once-derelict area is now a kid-welcoming landscape, dotted with trees and wildflowers. It鈥檚 not the only new project to green a once-industrial patch: the has turned a 330-metre-long, Victorian-era steel railway bridge into a little urban park (脿 la New York鈥檚 High Line).
The “Yayoi Kusama: You, Me and the Balloons” exhibition was curated to show off Factory International’s cavernous warehouse.
Wing Sze TangBut by far the buzziest opening of the moment is the home of , which organizes the Manchester International Festival (MIF). Named Aviva Studios, it鈥檚 a landmark that has taken nearly 10 years and a fortune: more than 拢210.8 million. The site is just one part of the St. John鈥檚 redevelopment, a whole new neighbourhood in the Castlefield conservation area. The arts venue soft-launched in June, at the start of this year鈥檚 MIF.
鈥淲e鈥檝e all backed this place because Manchester is a city with scale and ambition and a history of innovation. But it鈥檚 not a city that dwells in the past, however illustrious that past may have been. It鈥檚 a forward-looking city,鈥 Darren Henley, chief executive of Arts Council England, explains to the global media gathered to preview the venue.
The vision is that Factory International will be a catalyst for change, creating jobs and economic opportunities and, of course, luring tourists from all over the world. Totalling roughly 143,700 square feet, it will host everything from major exhibitions to large-scale concerts. Its public spaces, on the banks of the River Irwell, will liven up the emerging neighbourhood with music, markets and more.
Street art, like this mural by Mikesian Studio, abounds in Manchester, especially in the trendy Northern Quarter.
Wing Sze TangFactory International鈥檚 official ribbon-cutting will take place in October, but if you can get there this summer, you鈥檒l catch the inaugural draw, 鈥.鈥 Running until Aug. 28, this is the beloved Japanese artist鈥檚 largest exhibition of inflatable sculptures, curated to show off the enormity of the warehouse 鈥 polka-dotted tendrils extending toward the 69-foot-high ceiling, gargantuan cartoonish characters peering down.
Though the Manchester International Festival calls this new building home, the biennial isn鈥檛 confined inside its walls. This year鈥檚 programming stretched across venues and also encouraged arts enthusiasts to get outside and see the city, sometimes in whimsical ways.
Take 鈥溾 by Ryan Gander, an invitation to explore in the form of a treasure hunt. The British artist and self-described amateur philosopher scattered 200,000 gleaming coins in mystery spots across the city centre, challenging everyone to search high and low. Custom-minted with wisdom (鈥淛ust listen,鈥 鈥淵our silence is louder than their raised voice鈥), they鈥檙e mini collectible artworks.
An aerial view from St. Peter’s Square: the Manchester Central Library (right), the historic Midland hotel (left), and towers changing the skyline.
Marketing ManchesterI assume it鈥檚 a quest with unlikely success, but by my trip鈥檚 end, I鈥檝e chanced upon one, two, three, four 鈥 coins placed here and there, on a ledge, in the corner of a windowsill. It鈥檚 a too-obvious metaphor, but I take the point: Manchester has gems to discover, more than you may expect, if you keep your eyes open.
The writer travelled as a guest of and Marketing Manchester, which did not review or approve this article.
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