Musical Poems and Pictures of Chorlton-cum-Hardy …. the book ….. and the launch … Saturday July 18th .... at Chorlton Library

Come and join Peter, some guest poets and a heap of friends on Saturday July 18th for the launch of his second book showcasing more poems of his hometown Chorlton, turned into song, animation and video with karaoke subtitles.

The Book, 2026

As they say “its got the lot” to which Peter adds “Following on from Book 1 of “Musical Poems and Pictures of Chorlton-cum-Hardy” is… as you may have guessed… Book 2, with more poems of Peter’s hometown Chorlton, turned into song, animation and video with karaoke subtitles. 

Two books, 2026

As with the last book, this is again accessible to people that are visually impaired and hard of hearing by use of Navilens Accessible QR codes, and as the last book will be given away free to the visually impaired and hard of hearing people in Chorlton, while stocks last.

For all of you that would like to come along to the book launch to see how the book works contact peter@pubbooks.co.uk for a ticket. 

The launch is at Chorlton Library Community Room on Saturday 18th July at 2.00pm and is absolutely free. 

Also, there will be a limited number of free books to be given away courtesy of Peter’s main sponsor Anwyl Homes… so get there early.

There will also a couple of guest poets to round off the event”.*

So, it promises to be a good afternoon where you can enjoy a brace of poetic talent.  

At which point I am reminded of what the beat poet Allen Ginsberg said of Liverpool in 1965 that the city was "at the present moment, the centre of consciousness of the human universe".

He was reflecting on the music of the Beatles and a whole plethora of groups who sat beside the innovative and very funny trio of  Adrian Henri, Roger McGough and Brian Patten who with other poets were doing for poetry what the Mersey Sound was doing for music.

A bit over the top you may mutter if applied to Chorlton in 2026, but along with Chorlton Arts Festival and Chorlton Book Festival we can boast a rich collection of poets, writers and artists.

Peter, 2026

Leaving me just to say come along on Saturday July 18th, at 2 pm to Chorlton Library on Manchester Road and judge for yourself. And in Mr. Toppings own words afternoon which explores, "How to turn a poem into a song with music in three easy steps .... And a book launch".

*Link to Eventbrite https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/book-launch-musical-poems-and-pictures-of-chorlton-cum-hardy-book-2-tickets-1992444235343?aff=oddtdtcreator&keep_tld=true

The Balloon Man … and heaps of other stories about Greater Manchester ….. tonight … at Chorlton Library

It’s the story behind the books featuring that bestselling series … The History of Greater Manchester By Tram.

The Stories By the Stops, 2026

So come along and hear the story of how Andrew Simpson and Peter Topping came up with the idea of a collection of books which share the history of Greater Manchester based on the idea that each of the 99 tram stops on the eight routes all have stories which when put together make our collective past.

Chorlton Civic Society Free Public Meeting together with a history talk based around the tram stops books... The perfect antidote to staying in ... Tuesday  July 14th  7.30 till 8.30. Chorlton Library Community Room.

With those masters of history and art, 2026

When the Balloon Man came to Manchester and they named a street after the event, 1785

Stories from synagogues, the Manchester Jewish Museums, 2026

That's All Folks ... come and join us

Your invite to a new way of telling the stories of Greater Manchester …. today

 So, today at Wilbraham St Ninian’s Church you have the opportunity to roam over the history of Greater Manchester in a new and unique way.

Peter Topping and Andrew Simpson have come up with a different approach to exploring Greater Manchester’s past.

It is The History of Greater Manchester by Tram …. TheStories At the Stops in which the authors take all 99 Metro tram stops on all the eight routes picking out the interesting, the serious and the bizarre as well as the humours events and people at each destination which build to become a comprehensive account of the region’s past.*

At present there are four books in the series with a fifth due out later this year. 

They cover the journey into the centre from the south, crossing the city centre down to Victoria Railway Station and then east out to New Islington.

The fifth will travel from Old Trafford to Altrincham, with further books on Salford, and all the remaining towns on the network.

The talk will last for an hour, cost, £3 which covers refreshments and will be a mix of stories with how the authors researched and chose those stories, with plenty of pictures including some of Peter’s original paintings.

The books are available at £4.99 from Chorlton Bookshop, the shop at Central Ref, St Peter's Square, or from us at www.pubbooks.co.uk

And that is it.  Tuesday …. 1.30 at Wilbraham St Ninian’s Church

Location; Wilbram St Ninian’s Church, Egerton Road South, Chorlton-cum-Hardy, Manchester M21 0XJ

Pictures; a selection from the Power Point presentation, 2026

*A History of Greater Manchester By Tram, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/A%20new%20book%20on%20the%20History%20of%20Greater%20Manchester%20by%20Tram 

Celebrating Chorlton ..... down at our library today

All this month there is a selection of paintings of Chorlton people with the intriguing title of Chorlton Champions.

I have never liked that idea of history which was all about Kings, Queens, generals and the odd scientist.

If you are of a certain age you will remember history lessons where the good, the great, and the not so good marched across the pages of text books making everyone's lives a lot better or profoundly worse depending on whether you were on the winning side or one of the losers.

So much better to know about people like me who could still have a powerful impact but didn't feed the cult of the individual.  

That isn't to ignore monarchs, statesmen or soldiers but as my old mate Bertolt Brecht once wrote when "Caesar beat the Gauls. Was there not even a cook in his army? and when Phillip of Spain wept as his fleet was sunk and destroyed. Were there no other tears?"*

And that brings me back to the paintings.

My old artist pal, Peter Topping tells me that for the next month the library is hosting  "Chorlton Champions which is part of the  Chorlton Library Pop-up exhibition. These portraits have been created to honour our local heroes in Chorlton. 

Through dedication, leadership and tireless effort, they have made a lasting and positive contribution to the social, cultural and civic life of Chorlton. 

Their commitment exemplifies the spirit of community and inspires others. The exhibition will be added to when more people are recognised for their achievements. Works of art by Chorlton Artists. @everyone"

All of which is another reason to visit your Library and catch the CHORLTON CHAMPIONS during June.

P.S. nominations for candidates to be inducted into the Hall of Chorlton Champions are welcome via Peter Topping or Chorlton Civic Society.

* A Worker Reads History, Bertolt Brecht, 1935, written, 1939 published

All you ever wanted to know about Chorlton Arts Festival .... tonight

Historian and author Andrew Simpson and local artist and author Peter Topping will take you on a journey through the history of The Arts Festival showing how it has grown into a successful community event in Chorlton.*

It began when a teacher, a city councillor, and a vicar sat down with a bottle of wine and explored the possibilities of an annual festival of the arts here in Chorlton. **

They were ….. Ed Wyllie, Val Stevens and Hilary Barber and that was in 2002

And now in 2026, the aim remains to bring “the Visual Arts, Literary Arts, Performing Arts, and Crafts at all levels to the Chorlton Community”.

Leaving me just to say come along and find out about all the bits from 2002 till 2026.

The presentation will is part of Chorlton Arts Festival and will be in the Community Rooms of Chorlton Library, Manchester Road starting at 8pm and conclding at 9pm.

*Chorlton Arts Festival https://chorltonartsfestival.org/

**Chorlton Arts Festival stories, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Chorlton%20Arts%20Festival

OK let the Chorlton Arts Festival begin …….*

Last night saw the launch of our own arts festival.

It has been a feature of Chorlton’s cultural life for 24 years and yesterday evening’s event was a mix of speeches, music and lots of fun.

The speeches were short, the music from the choir was uplifting and artists, poets, musicians and writers celebrated together the start of another community-based arts festival.

And much fun was had.

To be followed by even more fun with over 200 events across Chorlton from May 8th to May 21st, in pubs, cafes, church halls and schools.

All of which will mean there will be something for everyone and as ever they celebrate our own community talent.

Location; Chorlton

Pictures; Celebrating our own arts festival, 2026, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*Chorlton Arts Festival, https://chorltonartsfestival.org/

Some history …. a bit of fiction …. heaps of music …. and a smash of art …… Chorlton Arts Festival today …. for 14 days*

It’s our arts festival back for its 24th year and as I do, I whizzed through the programme and chose some of the events that I will be going to.

So here in no particular order are the authors, historians, artists and musicians I will be enjoying.  Of course there are other authors, historians, artists and musicians and I will be taking a second dibs as the fortnight progresses.

First there is Juliette Tomlinson “writer of ‘Longford’ and ‘Sunnyside: The story continues’" on Wednesday May 13th at the Beagle on Barlow Moor Road between 7 & 9pm.  

Juliette is engaged in a trilogy of books focusing on John and Enriqueta Ryland.  The first was Longford which came out in 2024, and the second Sunnyside has just been published.

And while the books are fiction, they are based on endless hours of meticulous research and are rooted in the history of Manchester, Stretford and Altrincham.

Which seems the perfect point to advertise the story of the Arts Festival which is another in those historical presentations by me and my artist chum Peter Topping on May 12th in the community room of Chorlton Library on Manchester Road.

It fits well with Danielle Lowry’s "Time Threads  … a collaborative project presenting imag
ined encounters with ancestors, [which is an all-day event] inviting visitors to contribute personal stories” at Chorlton Library on Friday and Saturday of May 8th and 9th.

It is followed up by “Family History Research – Talk and Tips” which is a drop in with Mark Burton and Danielle Lowry on Saturday May 16th between 2 and 5 pm and is also at Chorlton Library.

And given that I have already mentioned Peter Topping I will be taking some light refreshments in the Tutku Café on Barlow Moor Road and viewing his Paintings from Pictures exhibition from Friday May 8th to Sunday, and sitting with a cake later on the same day at Mary and Archie on Manchester Road to look at the “Photographs of folk dance , folk musicians and folk traditions by a real life folkie”. 

Which blends nicely into “Baroque: History and Bagpipes with Baroque Giants’ Peter Paul Rubens and JS Bach by Steve Millward, plus Michael Billington talk and play with bagpipes ‘Everything but the Highlands -Bagpipes of the world and influence on classical music" Chorlton Methodist Church, on Sunday May 17th from 2 till 5.

Along with the Ordsall Acapella Singers from Salford in the Wilbraham St Ninian’s Church on Saturday May 9th for an hour at 3pm, concluding with Chorlton Sings  the “50 strong modern pop choir based in Chorlton, an all-inclusive friendly group that loves singing together at Benito Lounge on Wednesday May 20th".

Leaving me just time to visit “The Stories of Our Lives – writing by members of a writing and storytelling community group with an opportunity for audience interaction” at Chorlton Library on Saturday May 16th from 11 to 12.30pm”, and “The Next Thing about being a West fan, a photographic exhibition which follows the unique fan base of West Didsbury and Chorlton AFC during the 2025-26 season” by Jim Doxford in their club house at the end of Brookburn Road between May 13th and 14th.

Location Chorlton

Pictures; covers of Longford and Sunnyside, courtesy of Juliette Tomlinson and the rest from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*Chorlton Arts Festival, https://chorltonartsfestival.org/

Your Arts Festival wants you ……

To be more accurate you will want to be part of this year’s Chorlton Arts Festival.

It runs from May 8 to May 21st encompasses all the arts and is live across Chorlton in our church’s, bars, cafes, pubs, and community venues.

And because it is so good the team were out today in Chorlton, handing out programmes, and talking to people.

Added to which there was live music from local bands.

All very good on a day when the sun shone.

Location; Chorlton

Pictures;  out with  Chorlton Arts Festival, 2026 from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*Chorlton Arts Festival https://chorltonartsfestival.org/

**Chorlton Arts Festival stories, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/search/label/Chorlton%20Arts%20Festival

When Manchester embraced Mr. Shakespeare …….

It might seem a daft title, but it perfectly sums up the story of how William Shakespeare came to mean so much to Manchester over the last two centuries.

Mr Shakespeare's window

And for those who aren’t fully aware of the connection between the city and the playwright, there is an excellent exhibition at the Central Reference Library which offers up the story.

It runs until May 30th and in the words of Ian Nickson who collated the exhibition it is “the story of how seven personalities transformed Manchester into a global centre of Shakespearean theatre in the Victorian era and reveals present-day evidence of the city’s innovative engagement with the works of Shakespeare.

These seven people operated in diverse fields - business, religion, theatre, architecture, academia, politics - but were united by their appreciation of Shakespeare’s cultural value and, as if imitating the seven bees atop Manchester’s coat of arms, they collaborated to create an urban, libertarian, distinctively Mancunian interpretation of Shakespeare’s works”

They include “local businessman John Knowles who commissioned the Theatre Royal on Peter Street in 1845 and installed a marble statue of Shakespeare above the main entrance, early evidence of a desire to link Manchester with high culture

The actor-manager Charles Calvert who produced spectacular, historically accurate and commercially successful revivals of Shakespeare’s plays which, by appealing to all sections of society, developed into a ‘one-nation Shakespeare’ with global appeal.

Mr. Shakespeare and the Theatre Royal, 2024

In 1875, Calvert’s revival of Henry the Fifth was exported to the United States, prompting two New York impresarios to organise the fastest crossing of the continent by train as a publicity stunt and launching the career of the first global Shakespearean celebrity, George Rignold".

To these can be added Henry Irving who in 1860 came to Manchester and resurrected his career. He had who arrived as a failing actor, and his time in Manchester set him on the road to becoming the Victorian era’s most celebrated tragedian.

But that is where I shall stop because where would the fun be in just reading about the exhibition when you can come along and enjoy if for yourself and discover the other four notable people who in their own different ways brought the Bard to the city and whose influence is still here to uncover?

For more details please contact:

r. Ian Nickson. Honorary Research Fellow, University of Manchester, ian.nickson-2@manchester.ac.uk

Kattie Kincaid, Project Lead for the Shakespearean Garden,  kattiekincaid@hotmail.com

Location; Manchester Central Library, St Peter's Square, Manchester, M2 5PD

Pictures; the Shakespeare Window, 2025, courtesy of Ian Nickson, and Mr. Shakespeare at the Theatre Royal, 2024, from the collection of Andrew Simpson 

Let me tell you sad stories of the death of theatres ...... Manchester's Theatre Royal

There will be those who recognise the mangled link to Shakespeare, * and that is all to the good given that this is the story of our own Theatre Royal on Peter’s Street and the statue of the man himself which stands above the entrance.

Closed for business, the Theatre Royal, 2024

It opened in 1845 and can claim to be the oldest surviving theatre in the city.

That said it closed its doors in 1921 and since then has been a cinema, a bingo hall and even a night club.

My 1850 copy of the Stranger’s Guide to Manchester offers up that it could “hold 2,147 people and on the roof, there is a large reservoir capable of holding 20,000 gallons of water in the event of a fire….”**

And it was here sometime in 1970 that I saw the film Woodstock which documented the famous music festival the previous year.

All you ever wanted to know, 2026

I can’t remember too much of what I saw and even less of the theatre.  Nor if I am honest, have I given it much of a glance over the years as I whizz down Peter’s Street.

All of which changed recently after a visit to a new exhibition at Central Ref which explores the links between Shakespeare and the city.  It is simply entitled Shakespeare and Manchester: A Victorian Powerhouse Exhibition and runs through till May 30th.

That said there is nothing simple about the story which encompasses the American actor, Ira Alridge along with “local businessman John Knowles who commissioned the Theatre, actor-manager Charles Calvert and Rosa Grindon who forged a career as the Victorian age’s leading female Shakesperean scholar” and crosses the Atlantic to America.

The Theatre Royal mode, 2026

Of all the bits on display I was drawn to a model of the Theatre Royal which has its own story.  It comes from Derby Museum and dates possibly from the 1960s.

And as someone who spent his summer holidays out of London visiting my grandparents in Derby that museum was a tad special.  A decade earlier I spent heaps of time mesmerized by a giant model railway which took up a large area of the museum.  Alas the Theatre Royal did not arrive in Derby until long after I had stopped visiting, but it was still a sort of connection.

I could say more but then that would spoil a trip to Shakespeare and Manchester: A Victorian Powerhouse Exhibition so I won’t.

Mr. Shakespeare and that model of the Theatre Royal, 2026

Suffice to say there is lots to see.

For more details please contact:

r. Ian Nickson. Honorary Research Fellow, University of Manchester, ian.nickson-2@manchester.ac.uk

Kattie Kincaid, Project Lead for the Shakespearean Garden,  kattiekincaid@hotmail.com

Location; Manchester Central Library, St Peter's Square, Manchester, M2 5PD

Pictures; Mr. Shakespeare at the Theatre Royal, 2024, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, and remaining images from Shakespeare and Manchester: A Victorian Powerhouse Exhibition, 2026, courtesy of Ian Nickson

*let us sit upon the ground, And tell sad stories of the death of kings" , Richard II, Act 3 Scene 2, William Shakespeare 1592

**Duffield, H.G The Strangers Guide to Manchester, 1850

Remembering the Spanish Civil War .... today at Central Ref .... Manchester

 

Discovering that Shakespearean Garden in Platt Fields ….. courtesy of the new exhibition Shakespeare and Manchester

 It is a sad confession that despite living in Manchester for 57 years and visiting Platt Fields heaps of time I had never come across the city’s own Shakespearean Garden.

In the Shakespeare Gardens, 2026

The Friends of Platt Fields tell me that “A Shakespearean Garden is a themed garden which contains some or all of the 175 plants mentioned in Shakespeare’s works. 

Most of these gardens are a late 19th / early 20th century interpretation of the formal Elizabethan gardens. 

The aim being to design an historically accurate garden such as Shakespeare would have recognised.

‘Shakey’, as our garden is affectionately known, is a sunken walled garden which is entered via a central ‘staircase’. The formal garden is divided into 4 quadrants, or ‘rooms’, and surrounded by large banked areas and majestic trees.

The garden is often described as the park’s hidden gem nestled in a discreet corner, just a few moments from Wilmslow Road”*

Model of the gardens in the exhibition, 2026

My failure to know it existed is an outstanding piece of ignorance which was only corrected yesterday when Ian Nickson gave me a personal tour of the new exhibition Shakespeare and Manchester which runs until May 30th on the first floor of the Central Reference Library.

The gardens are only part of an extensive exhibition which explores Manchester’s links to the playwright from theatre producers, actors, and scholars to a description of the Theatre Royal. 

Nor is that all because contained in the glass cabinets are the stories of how it was here in Manchester that new safety designs for theatres were conceived and put into practice along with a pioneering method of photography both of which went global.

I could say lots more, but its all there on the first floor of Central Ref and is an introduction to Ian’s book on the same subject which is due out in September.

Mr. Shakespeare at the Theatre Royal, 2024

Which just leaves me to add that in Ian’s own words “one aim of this exhibition is to raise awareness of the benefits to mental and physical health conferred by the Shakespearean Garden and to obtain funding for a full-time gardener who can secure the future of the garden for the benefit of the citizens of Manchester”.

Shakespeare and Manchester: A Victorian Powerhouse Exhibition Manchester Central Library First Floor Display Cases February 12th, 2026 - May 30th 2026.

For more details please contact:

r. Ian Nickson. Honorary Research Fellow, University of Manchester, ian.nickson-2@manchester.ac.uk

Kattie Kincaid, Project Lead for the Shakespearean Garden,  kattiekincaid@hotmail.com

The Shakespeare window, 2026 

Location; Manchester Central Library, St Peter's Square, Manchester, M2 5PD

The Rosa Grindon Mural, 2026

Pictures; in the Shakespearean Garden, and the model of the gardens, 2026 courtesy of Kattie Kincaid, and Mr. Shakespeare at the Theatre Royal, 2024, from the collection of Andrew Simpson, the Shakespeare Window, 2025, courtesy of Ian Nickson, and The Mural Of Rosa Grindon Facing Platt Fields Due To Her Part In The Creation Of The Shakesperian Garden, 2026, from the collection of C.Roman

Next; the story of Rosa Grindon, and her time in Manchester, her role in The Shakespeare Garden and  her contribution to Shakespeare research, with material from the exhibition

*The Shakespearean Gardens, Friends of Platt Fields,  https://friendsofplattfields.org.uk/shakespeare-garden/

Remembering the Spanish Civil War

 

The painting …. the actor …. and the exhibition

This is Ira Aldridge and my Wikipedia tells me he “was an American-born British actor, playwright, and theatre manager, known for his portrayal of Shakespearean characters”.*

 Ira Aldridge, 1826

He was born in1807 and emigrated to Liverpool in 1824 and by the following year was performing on the London stage.

At this point I could launch into a detailed description of his life and achievements, but I would only be copying from Wikipedia and even if I cobbled something together from several sources, I doubt that I could really call it research ….. it would still in truth be copying.

At the Threatre Royal with Mr. Aldridge, 1856

So, I won’t.  Suffice to say that by following the link you can get the lot.

Instead, I will just pick up on his condemnation of slavery which he made in several speeches while touring in Coventry and which according to various sources inspired the residents to petition Parliament to abolish slavery.**

Now that I think is worthy of some research.

And as you do, I went looking for him in Manchester, and yes, this portrait is in the City Art Gallery but more exciting because it is a bit of original research, I found that he performed here in the city.

The Queen's Theatre, 1850

On May 12th, 1849, the Manchester Guardian reported that he was performing at the Queen’s Theatre, Spring Gardens and seven years later at the Theatre Royal.***

At the Queen's Theatre, 1849 in the company of Mr. Aldridge

I have yet to uncover a review, but it will only be a matter of time, but I know the old Theatre Royal and found the Queen’s Theatre on the corner of Spring Gardens and York Street. Alas the Queen’s has gone having been demolished in the 1860s for a warehouse.

All of this was unknown to me until I met Ian Nickson who is involved in a fascinating exhibition at Central Ref exploring the connection between Shakespeare and Manchester.

It explores "the story of how seven personalities transformed Manchester into a global centre of Shakespearean theatre in the Victorian era and reveals present-day evidence of the city’s innovative engagement with the works of Shakespeare”.

The Shakespeare Windowm, Central Ref

One of the seven is my old chum Ira Aldridge along with “local businessman John Knowles who commissioned the Theatre Royal on Peter Street in 1845, actor-manager Charles Calvert and Rosa Grindon who forged a career as the Victorian age’s leading female Shakesperean scholar.”

There are more but where would be the fun in recording all of them when dear reader you can discover them for your self at  Shakespeare and Manchester: A Victorian Powerhouse Exhibition Manchester?

It is on at  Central Library on the First Floor Display Cases from February 12th 2026 untill May 30th 2026.

I have got my personal tour booked with Ian for next Wednesday, but given that it is on till the end of May there will be plenty of opportunities to visit it again and again and again.

For more details contact:

Ian Nickson. Honorary Research Fellow, University of Manchester, ian.nickson-2@manchester.ac.uk

Kattie Kincaid, Project Lead for the Shakespearean Garden,  kattiekincaid@hotmail.com

Location; Manchester Central Library, St Peter's Square, Manchester, M2 5PD

At the Ref, 2014

Pictures; Ira Aldridge, 1826 painted by James Northcote, Manchester Art Gallery Accession number 1882.2, advert for The Theatre Royal 1856, the Queen’s Theatre 1850, from Adshead’s map of Manchester,  courtesy of Digital Archives Association http://www.digitalarchives.co.uk/  The Shakespeare Window in the entrance of the Central Library and Central Reference Library, 2014, from the collection of Andrew Simpson

*Ira Aldridge, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ira_Aldridge

**First black Shakespearean actor Ira Aldridge honoured BBC News, August 3, 2017, https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-coventry-warwickshire-40802072

***Queen’s Theatre, Manchester Guardian, May 12, 1849 Theatre Royal, Manchester, Manchester Guardian July 5th, 1856