A Cinderella pantomime is coming to Manchester’s Contact Theatre for laughs, songs and dance in a series of fantastic performances throughout the festive season.

The Cinderella pantomime is set to take over Contact Theatre with Manchester drag sensations Lady Bushra and Misty Chance, who will take centre stage in this enchanting production from eight-freestyle this December. 

And our followers can bag themselves half price tickets to see it.

Theatre guests can expect a fresh twist on the traditional storyline as Cinderella fights for her freedom from her cruel Stepsisters and their questionable fashion choices. 

Marvel at the inventions of Lord Stoneybroke, share laughs with Buttons, and help the Prince find true love – all set to an upbeat modern soundtrack of ballroom bangers mixed by DJ Dandini. 

The show stars eight-freestyle’s regular cast of all-singing, all-dancing performers, making it a treat for children of all ages – even the grown-up ones!

This year’s Cinderella pantomime not only features an exceptional LGBTQ+ cast but also emphasises sustainability through recycled costumes and a collaboration with Hart-Work.

Hart-Work is a reworked clothing brand founded by Kimberly Hart-Simpson with the aim of promoting a positive buying experience and a goal to get people talking about clothing regardless of opinion.

The production team is committed to reducing its environmental impact, making this an eco-conscious and inclusive event for all. 

Sean Canning, Director of eight-freestyle, said: “Directing Cinderella with this fabulous team has been an absolute ball! With the unrivalled energy of our cast and the brilliant collaboration with Contact Young Company, we’re confident this will be eight-freestyle’s best panto yet.

“We’re all about the magic of storytelling and the joy of pantomime, and this production brings both to life in the quirkiest, most sustainable way possible.”

Keisha Thompson, Artistic Director and CEO of Contact, said: “We’re over the moon to partner with eight-freestyle for another extraordinary production.

“With sustainability woven into the fabric of the show, it’s like Cinderella’s glass slipper – a perfect fit for our commitment to eco-conscious fun.

“And let’s not forget the wild creativity of Contact Young Company! Cinderella is going to be a hoot, showcasing that entertainment can be both a riot and responsible.”

Cinderella runs from Saturday December 9th until Sunday December 31st at Contact Theatre, Oxford Road, Manchester. Tickets range from £15 – £25. 

The run includes a range of access provisions, including BSL, captioned performances, relaxed conditions and a range of discounts.

Our followers can get half price tickets on selected performances with code: FAIRY50% at checkout. For more information and to book tickets, please click HERE.

The selected performances include:

• December 14th at 7 PM
• December 15th at 7 PM
• December 16th at 7 PM
• December 20th at 10AM
• December 21st at 3.30 PM
• December 22nd at 7PM

Celebrate this Christmas in style at Manchester’s King Street – the city’s premium shopping and dining destination.

What better way to celebrate the festive season than on the picturesque King Street against a backdrop of 18th and 19th century buildings featuring a variety of premium shopping and dining destinations, plus plenty more.

Nestled in between historic landmarks in the city’s old banking district are a host of Alpine festive market stalls selling a tempting selection of European goods as well as crafts, food and drinks.

This beautiful street features an eclectic collection of fantastic high-end and designer brands, salons, an art gallery and even a tailor-made travel agents. Just some of these include the likes of The White Company, Hobbs, Patagonia, Kuoni Castle Fine Art, and Nailed It.

Some fantastic dining destinations here include El Gato Negro, Franco Manca, Gordon Ramsay’s Lucky Cat, Miller & Carter, and many more.

To add an extra sprinkle of festive magic, weekly competitions will be held where visitors to King Street will be in with the chance of winning prizes from various brands and shops situated here.

Visitors can simply scan the QR code, located on King Street, to enter the competition and be in with the chance of winning.

Winners of prizes will be announced each week with goodies from the likes of: TAST, Charles Tyrwhitt, Franco Manca, Kala, Castle Fine Art, and Kuoni.

For those dreaming of jet-setting off to a sunny paradise on a luxury holiday, Kuoni will be giving away a £500 voucher towards flights as one of the prizes to be won, which will be announced at the end of December.

For those wishing to enter the competition, just visit one of the two vinyl screens located on 35 King Street and scan the QR code – you can’t miss them!

There will be POS signage in some stores for people to scan as well.

Once you’ve scanned the code, just sign up to the mailing list to enter the competition. Prizes will be announced each week with weekly giveaways until Christmas – find out more and sign up for the mailing list HERE.

Paddy McGuinness has announced his first stand-up comedy tour in eight years and he’s coming to Greater Manchester.

The Bolton-born comedian, best known for his roles in Phoenix Nights, Max and Paddy, and  The Keith and Paddy Picture Show, will perform his Nearly There tour on 40 dates at selected venues around the UK in 2024 and 2025.

McGuinness is a much-loved presence on British TV, presenting primetime shows such as Take Me Out and BBC’s Top Gear, as well as having previously sold out hundreds of venues across the country on his stand-up tours. 

In 2021 he released his acclaimed autobiography My Lifey, and is now raring and ready to get back to where he belongs – on stage, making people laugh, with his hotly anticipated show.

Paddy said: “It’s been eight years since my last tour and there’s lots of things to laugh about!

“I’m looking forward to getting back in front of a live audience, along with running the gauntlet of cancel culture, click bait and fake news!”

Tickets go on sale Friday December 8th at 10am, book yours by clicking HERE.

Paddy McGuinness will perform his Nearly There tour to venues around the UK next year on the following dates:

Thursday October 24th 2024     Blackburn King Georges              

Friday October 25th 2024          Sunderland Empire        

Saturday October 26th 2024      Hull Connexin Live         

Thursday Oct 31st 2024             Llandudno Venue Cymru Theatre            

Friday November 1st 2024         Leicester De Montfort Hall         

Sunday November 3rd 2024       Milton Keynes Theatre 

Thursday November 27th 2024  Middlesbrough Town Hall          

Friday November 8th 2024         Dunfermline Alhambra

Saturday November 9th 2024     Dundee Caird Hall          

Sunday November 10th 2024      Aberdeen Music Hall    

Thursday November 14th 2024   Leeds Grand Theatre     

Friday November 15th 2024        Leeds Grand Theatre     

Saturday November 16th 2024    Glasgow SEC Armadillo

Sunday November 17th 2024       Edinburgh Usher Hall    

Friday November 22nd 2024        Bradford St Georges Hall            

Saturday November 13rd 2024     Stoke-On-Trent Regent Theatre

Sunday November 25th 2024        Oxford New Theatre     

Thursday November 28th 2024     Halifax Victoria Theatre

Friday November 29th 2024          Sheffield City Hall

Saturday November 30th 2024      Newcastle O2 City Hall 

Sunday December 1st 2024           Nottingham Royal Concert Hall

The tour will continue on the following dates in 2025:

Thursday February 13th 2025        Truro Hall for Cornwall

Friday February 14th 2025             Swansea Arena

Saturday February 15th 2025         Cardiff New Theatre      

Thursday February 20th 2025        Ipswich Regent

Friday February 21st 2025             Southend Cliffs Pavilion              

Sunday February 23rd 2025          Dartford Orchard Theatre

Friday February 28th 2025            Birmingham Alexandra Theatre

Saturday March 1st 2025            Wolverhampton The Civic at The Halls

Sunday March 2nd 2025          Aylesbury Waterside Theatre

Thursday March 6th 2025          Eastbourne Congress Theatre   

Saturday March 8th 2025            Bournemouth Pavilion Theatre

Sunday March 9th 2025          Torquay Princess Theatre           

Thursday March 13th 2025          Bath Forum       

Friday March 14th 2025             London Palladium          

Thursday March 20th 2025          York Barbican   

Friday March 21st 2025             Scunthorpe Baths Hall

Sunday March 23rd 2025          Stockton Globe

Friday March 28th 2025             Salford Lowry Lyric Theatre

Saturday March 29th 2025            Blackpool Opera House