Welcome to Manchester –
the northern, industrial city that's probably most
well-known for its football or for the fact
that it has produced musical legends like Oasis
and the Stone Roses! But the city's industrial heritage means it's
not exactly famous for it's beauty and therefore isn't usually on everyone's travel bucket-list. However, it's the only UK city to be named
one of THE places to be in 2023, by both Lonely Planet and National Geographic. I'm here today to find out
if that's really
the case! I'll be checking out some of the places mentioned
by Lonely Planet and National Geographic, as well as some Mancunian institutions. So let's get going! I'm starting out with a wander through the
Ancoats district – which was once the beating heart of the city's industry. Manchester is famous for being the first industrialised
city in the world, and was the UK's leading producer of cotton and textiles
during the Industrial Revolution. Nowadays, Ancoats is one of the coolest districts
i
n the city, with lots of up and coming restaurants, cafes and bars. Manchester has had somewhat of a post-pandemic
revival with lots of exciting new projects and openings like the Castlefield Viaduct
here, which is now a high line city park. The park is built on
an old steel railway viaduct, with the aim of creating
more green space in the city. It's a really interesting example
of how Manchester's new developments pay homage to the city's industrial heritage. Both Lonely Planet and National
Geographic
mentioned the development of Manchester's Jewish Museum as a reason to visit the city. Manchester's Jewish Museum is
another recently developed building. So let's go check it out. In 2021, the museum reopened with a building
twice the size as before. It's attached to an old synagogue, which has
also been refurbished. I'm meeting Alex Cropper to find out why she
thinks the museum is so important to the city. It's really important in a city like
Manchester to tell the diversity story.
It's a city that is constantly changing
and who's living here. And every wave of migrants that have arrived
in the city have changed it and made an impact and added richness and culture
and colour to the space. And so it's really important that buildings
like this to tell that story. And I'd love it if there was a building like
us representing all the different community groups in Manchester. And I think it's a big part of
who the city is today. And our gallery is full of stories of, you
know
, from the 19th century, but also from people living in Manchester today and making
an impact in the city right now. Tell me a bit about the redevelopment
of the Jewish Museum here. Yeah, so there's been the Jewish Museum here
in Manchester since 1984, and that was just the synagogue building. And for a long time, the museum team here
wanted to expand and knew they could do so much more if we had more space. And so we reopened in 2021 with this new extension
attached to the old synagogue buildi
ng. And we got this gallery was stood in today.
So we could tell the stories about Manchester's Jewish communities. We got our cafe, which is a really important
part of our museum experience, because it's not just a place to get
a butty at the end of your visit. It really is part of an experience where the
food is part of the narrative we're telling about the people who arrived here in the city
and the traditions and cultures they brought with them. And, you know, we're stood on a map here. We
're talking about Red Bank, where the Jewish
community settled, you know, generations ago. Red Bank is an area now is completely changing. I mean, revitalised. So it's nice to be part of that
experience as the museum to be one of the cultural attractions in this area that's part of that development. Since food is such an important part of the
museum, let's try some. I go for a classic shakshuka and vegan Kischke. And it's delicious! Manchester is one of Europe's fastest growing
cities, but it's
seen even more redevelopment than usual since the pandemic. There seem to be innovative projects
being set up all over the city. This big white building over here is under
construction right now, so we can't get any closer. But it's set to open in June as a major
art space and cultural hub. There seems to be a bit of a running joke
with the locals that the country is low on cranes because they're all here in Manchester. The city's development hasn't just been about
new buildings. Creating more
green spaces has been at the heart of the city's growth. Mayfield Park is Manchester's first ever city
centre public park and it was designed as an urban escape! You can see that they really made an effort
to preserve Manchester's industrial parts in the midst of this huge,
beautiful green space. Unique to the city, I guess. Okay; I have to check this out. This is definitely made
for people smaller than me. Let's go. That was actually much
scarier than I anticipated. All right. Let the naus
ea begin! Oh, I actually feel sick! I'm getting too old for this kind of thing! Okay, let's get serious again! Time for some more culture! Band On the Wall is Manchester's oldest,
licensed music venue. And it just recently reopened again last year after undergoing
some major refurbishments. Manchester has always had a thriving culture
scene, especially when it comes to music. I'm meeting Santana Guérout to find out more
about how the city shaped the music scene here. Band on the Wall puts on ecl
ectic performances
from artists from all over the world, like this Ukrainian folk quartet. Or this British folk rock
and reggae fusion band. Music in Manchester is obviously –
you've got some huge names like Stone Roses, Oasis, the Smiths
like there's that history here. Why do you think Manchester has been
such a hotspot for music? It's always been like
trying to redefine itself. Lots of DIY things happening. I think that's where
the music came from. And also the influences
that came into t
he city. So we've always had quite
a big immigrational influx. So from the Irish influx
back in the days to yeah, to the South Asian influx
to the Jamaican influx. So there's always been kind of something going
on in Manchester which influenced the music. And I think you can hear it. I think therefore
the great music that came out and the great artists that came out of Manchester. Can you tell me a little bit
about the way that Band on the Wall has developed over the last few years? Obviousl
y it's a Mancunian Institution. But how has it developed? I think in the 1940s or 1930s we've had a
landlord that tried to get the space used as much as possible, so used to put the band
literally on the wall in order to have more dance floor and more people in the venue. So that's where the name comes from. Smart move. Yes, absolutely. So we've been here
for some time as well. Our first refurbishment was in 2009, opened
up to a 340 cap and now last year we did another expansion into the COCOZZ
A
and are now a 500 capacity and are running pretty much every day. How do you see the future
of music in the city? Forever growing. We've got loads and loads of great venues. We've got a pool of absolutely amazing
artists still redefining itself all the time. And yeah, absolutely still working on all
the local artists as well to bring them out of Manchester. Manchester has been named
like the place to be this year. It's been the only UK city to be named as
one of the must visit spots in the
world. Why do you think that is? We've got loads of entertainment,
not just music, but we've got music, we've got wonderful restaurants,
bars, pubs, clubs. You've got football. There is a wonderful greenery. You've got the canals, you've got a little
bit of everything for each taste. And yes, I mean, I moved here 13 years ago
and was supposed to only stay for six months. A trip to Manchester wouldn't
be complete without visiting one of city's famous craft beer bars. Some of the finest craft b
eer in the world
is brewed right here in Manchester, so a trip to the Marble Arch Inn seems like
the perfect end to my day. Very good. They've got some seriously
wacky flavours on offer! Peanut butter and cacao
Imperial stout. Smells like chocolate. Amazing! I can smell the ginger before you taste it. You need to try! Yeah, I'll try this one. Thanks so much. Absolutely. Would you like a pint? Yeah, go on. Thank you! And cheers! Welcome to Manchester. Thank you. So is the beer that you guys
hav
e here, is it all locally brewed? The brewery did initially
start in the back room of the pub where the kitchen is now,
in just a very, very tiny units. But as popularity and demand grew,
we needed a bigger premises. So we then moved to a railway arch just around
the corner from the pub, which was quite pioneering in a way, because half the breweries in Manchester
are operating out of a disused railway arch. But we were the first to do it. Do you feel like there's quite a lot of interest
in c
raft beer from everyone or do quite a few people just want to come and sit in a
pub and have a pint and that's what they go for? Marble is in a really unique position where
it's sort of toes the line between the modern craft and the traditional. So the two sides of the coin in Manchester's
brewing scene where there are a handful of breweries that have been owned by the same
family for generations, they go back over 100 years and they will stick to like the
very traditional English styles of beer
. We have the newer emerging trends, the craft
ones that will focus on really big hoppy IPAs or Imperial Stouts and all of that. We at Marble do both. Well, I have to say, I've been
pleasantly surprised by Manchester. It might not be as beautiful as some other
cities, but there's definitely a vibe and an atmosphere here that a lot of
other places just don't have. And if the alternative scene is more your
thing, Manchester is definitely the city for you!
Comments