Get ready for the Universally Manchester Festival
06 Jun 2025
Our free, family-friendly festival returns on Saturday, 14 June 2025 - see you there!
Join us on Saturday 14 June, 11am - 4.30pm for a day of creativity, discovery and play. Our free community festival offers something for everyone with inspiring talks and performances, hands-on science experiments, art and crafts workshops, heritage tours and more.
One of the festival’s standout features is the Bee Curious programme, featuring thought-provoking talks and performances for all ages. Highlights include: exploring the science and art behind how our brains respond to everyday environments, people we see, and places we visit with Dr Sarah Fox and Dr Henry McPherson; taking an interstellar journey to find out about other worlds with Dr Eamonn Kerins as the Jodrell Bank Alien; and exploring links between creativity and wellbeing to find joy in the everyday with Manchester-based poet, Rebecca Hurst.
Step back in time with Grant Collier and explore the roots of our revolutionary institution on a guided historic walking campus tour. Uncover the rich tapestry of history that makes our campus unlike any other. As the nation’s first ‘civic’ university, our unique identity has pushed us to global prominence and this tour offers a fantastic opportunity to learn about pioneering individuals and groundbreaking discoveries.
Try your hand at street art with local art collective Grit Studios, presenting The Art of Research, a vibrant showcase of artwork inspired by research at the University. There’ll be a series of free drop-in workshops throughout Saturday, so release your inner artist and get creative with sprays and stencils.
Come plant with us! Pop along to our University community allotment a partnership between the University and Ardwick Climate Action and get hands-on with planting and sustainability. Then visit the co-curated, community exhibition Blue Skies at Manchester Museum, which asks a critical question: “You wouldn’t drink visibly dirty water, so why would you breathe invisibly dirty air?”
Together we’ll explore what makes for a greener, healthier and fairer world for everyone. Take part in over 80 interactive stalls. Uncover the mysteries of the human body as we take a closer look at our hands, hearts and minds. Interact with robot companions, step into a world of virtual reality and explore the wonder of space. Meet the makers of marvellous materials. Enjoy wellbeing and craft making activities, learn the art of calligraphy and don on a University graduation gown! There’s plenty to discover and do – with activities on offer for all ages.
Be amazed by the power and joy of chemistry in our visually exciting Flash Bang Show with Dr Frank Mair. Expect fantastic colour changes, flashes and the occasional bang - get ready to hold on to your hats!
Our Universally Manchester Festival is taking place on our Oxford Road campus and is free and open to everyone.
- Find out more about our family-friendly activities on the Universally Manchester Festival website.