Free things to do in Manchester

Curry and conversation

Salford-based theatre company Quarantine co-ordinates No Such Thing at Kabana Café. This free, monthly event has a simple premise: to challenge the old saying that “there’s no such thing as a free lunch” by offering a plate of curry in exchange, not for coins, but for conversation with a stranger. 

Special FX at The Royal Exchange

Held every Friday at 5.30pm in the Royal Exchange’s stunning Great Hall, Special FX is a free showcase of music, comedy, and the spoken word. Sit at small, circular tables beneath the original trading board of this one-time cotton exchange to revel in a whole variety of entertainment.

Museums at Night

Explore Manchester’s museums and gallerys with specially-curated evening talks and exhibitions. Locally known as Thursday Lates, events are organised at Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester Museum, and Whitworth Art Gallery; offering a chance to meet artists and muses and get a real insight into the work that goes in to a collection. 

Whether you consider yourself arty or not, you’ll leave with an entirely new perspective of the subject matter.

Central Library

There is just so much you can do at the newly refurbished Central Library. From rare books and special collections to the local history archive, you could spend a good couple of hours wandering the four circular floors.

After that, check out the Media Lounge, where you can while away a rainy afternoon on the latest technology available on fully-loaded iMacs and gaming consoles. There’s also a roster of (mostly free) Library Live events, where you can learn to use the creative software in the Media Lounge, for example, or even get involved in making an indie film. If there isn’t an event you fancy, why not organise your own?

Chetham’s Library 

Founded in 1653, Chetham’s is the oldest public library in the English-speaking world, still providing public access to over 100,000 books free of charge, right in the middle of Manchester.

The collection itself is obviously world-class, given that over half of it was published before 1851.  However, the building that houses the library is even older, dating from 1421, with its stunning grounds and sandstone structure that remains one of the most complete medieval complexes in the country.

Visitors are free to browse its internationally-rated collection of books, or sit in the same window alcove where Karl Marx once cooked up the Communist Manifesto with Friedrich Engels.