All you need to know about Manchester Flower Festival
The streets of Manchester have been transformed with beautiful blooms and inspiring floral installations by talented florists and gardeners for the start of a three-day celebration of flowers.The themes of the 2025 Manchester Flower Festival which begins on Friday, include the city's industrial roots as well as its music culture. Described by organisers Manchester City Centre Business Improvement District (BID) as a free "petal powered" event, it was arranged on behalf of city centre businesses.Here is everything else you need to know about it from Gary Williams, head of events at Manchester City Centre BID.
When is it and where?
The festival begins on Friday and will take place over the bank holiday weekend until Monday. Nine, professionally designed displays can be found across a trail that runs through the city centre at the following locations:Manchester Arndale shopping centreThe PrintworksTwo on New Cathedral StreetExchange StreetSt Ann's SquareThe Royal Exchange and Two on King StreetThere will also be other garden and green displays throughout the city's shopping streets too.
When and why was it set up?
The festival, billed as "green takeover of the city", evolved as a successor event to the Dig the City summer garden festival, organisers have said.It started in 2021, welcoming people back into the city after the Covid lockdown, with colourful floral creations from some of Manchester's most talented florists and gardeners.
What is the theme?
This year's theme is Manchester's musical and industrial heritage as well as celebrations of other great cities around the world.The floral trail features displays on themes including the vibrant markets of Marrakech, city life in New York, Paris and Mumbai, and the tulip fields of Amsterdam.
What are the highlights?
Mr Williams said the trail is the "backbone of the event" along with the floral marquee on New Cathedral Street, which features a collection of displays from Manchester florists.Other displays can be found across the city at sites from Afflecks (formerly Afflecks Palace) to Sadler's Yard, which has a garden installation inspired by the nearby hot air balloon ascent of James Sadler in 1785.Melanoma UK in collaboration with not-for-profit landscape design studio Constructing Minds with Nature has created a shaded garden space to deliver a message about sun safety, skin protection, and melanoma awareness.Inspired by the charm of Parisian café street scenes, the garden will pay homage to the year 1804 when melanoma was first identified by René Laennec.
Is it family friendly?
Organisers have said there is plenty for children to do from free child-friendly workshops such as craft wildflower seed bombs and building insect hotel.A bee hunt will also be held Exchange Square along with a bee procession, where families dressed as bees can follow the much-loved Queen Bee figure around St Ann's Square on Sunday.
Listen to the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
37 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Marnie Simpson insists she has 'no regrets' over stripping off on OnlyFans and vows to continue while she's 'young' as she fires back at mum-shamers
has insisted that she has 'no regrets' over stripping off on OnlyFans as she fired back at mum-shamers. The Georgie Shore star, 33, who is currently pregnant with her third child, joined the adult subscription website back in 2022 and has since thrilled fans with an array of sizzling lingerie snaps - which she's told is not 'explicit', but 'applied nudity.' And in a new interview, Marnie told how she has no plans to stop showcasing her figure and will continue to do so while she's 'young' as she praised the 'empowering' platform. Marnie went on to note that while she's used to criticism following her years of starring on the controversial MTV show, she remarked that 'no one should have the right to judge others' when it comes to their choices in life. Speaking to The Sun about her decision to share racy photos on the X-rated social media platform, Marnie said she has 'no regrets', explaining: 'While I'm young, I'm going to embrace my body and I'm really proud of my body. Then why not.. I feel empowered by embracing it.' From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new Showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop Following her explicit and drunken antics on Geordie Shore, Marnie told how she's been 'judged and mum-shamed' over the years, but she feels the tide is changing when it comes to adult content creation. She said: 'I honestly feel the stigma and taboo is already breaking down. As the years go by, it's becoming more normalised. So many girls and women and ladies are just having that choice for themselves and I think it's really empowering.' She added that adult content creation is a 'normal thing now' with less 'stigma' than in the past, with the stunner going on to insist that in the current climate, no one should be passing judgement on others for choosing to strip off. Marnie shared: 'I definitely like where it's going because no one should have the right to judge others, there shouldn't really be a stigma around it because not everyone is doing the same thing on there - it's each to their own.' Meanwhile, while she's proud of her OnlyFans career, the reality star also said she doesn't 'live with regret' amid her past antics on Geordie Shore, which she starred in on and off between 2013 to 2025. She told that with the way the world is currently, she doesn't feel that her TV past needs to be 'a conversation' when her children grow older, revealing she has a 'very open and honest' relationship with her family. In February, Marnie opened up about how she plans to talk to her children about her career on the X-rated social media platform, OnlyFans. The beauty is expecting her third child with husband Casey Johnson. The couple already share two sons, Rox, five, and Oax, two. She told new magazine: 'All I'm trying to do is create an amazing life for my family and myself. I've raised my children to be good people, not to judge, and to always be supportive. 'I don't think it'll even need to be a discussion - they know me inside out. Plus, I did much worse on Geordie Shore!' When asked about the type of content she shares on the adult platform, the reality star clarified: 'I'm not classed as an explicit account - it's more applied nudity.' It comes after Marnie announced her pregnancy with a black-and-white video featuring her ultrasound and touching moments of her children cradling her bump. Fans were shocked by the news, as Marnie had previously insisted she wouldn't have a third child due to her past difficult pregnancies. When pregnant with her second child, she stated: 'I would not go to three. I think you've got to find the balance for yourselves. 'We want to enjoy our lives as well. We've not waited too long to have kids and I feel like having two, we can give them the best life possible.' Casey and Marnie first became an item in June 2017 after they appeared on the reality show, Single AF together. The couple tied the knot in 2023.
Daily Mail
42 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Meghan Markle exhibits 'bossy' behaviour and Kate Middleton 'doesn't like to be interrupted', according to expert foot reader
Palm reading is out, and foot reading is in. That's according to the UK's leading expert, Jane Sheehan, who has a host of celebrity clients and has been in the business for more than 25 years.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Alex Warren's smash hit Ordinary breaks chart records
It's probably been in your head for months, and it's not going anywhere anytime soon - Ordinary by Alex Warren has hit number one for the 12th week running in the the longest anyone's held the top spot since Ed Sheeran's Shape Of You in it has broken a record: Alex is the first US artist with the most weeks in a row at number one in Official Singles Chart history. The love song dedicated to his wife has been streamed 107 million times in the despite how well it's doing, there are still a few more weeks to go until it can claim the title of longest-running number one of all crown belongs to a song from 1953 called I Believe by Frankie Laine, which stayed at the top of the charts for a whopping 18 of the reasons it's impressive that it has held the spot for so long is that a few years ago, the chart changed its a song's sales fall for three weeks in a row, it automatically gets pushed down the rankings, making it more difficult than before for songs to stay at the so far, Ordinary seems to be going strong. Who is Alex Warren? Alex Warren originally found fame on was a member of Hype House, a group of creators who all lived together in Los Angeles and got really popular during the Covid-19 first entry into the top ten was with Carry You Home last year, but it's been Ordinary that's taken the world by storm.
