Rochdale reveals more Greater Manchester Town of Culture plans

Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham visited Rochdale on Friday as more about the town’s plans for its year as town of culture were revealed during a preview event staged at the town hall.  

Mr Burnham took a tour around the recently refurbished Rochdale Town Hall before heading to the nearby Voltalab Studios where he met international artist Shilpa Gupta and a Ukranian community choir as they rehearsed for Shilpa’s exhibition taking place in Rochdale this July as part of Manchester International Festival.  

The mayor also got chance to see the new Town of Culture Outdoor Gallery on Drake Street, featuring 24 new pieces of public art.  

Mayor Burnham said: “There is so much happening here over the next few months, Rochdale has the most magnificent town hall you could wish to see, such a rich cultural heritage,  so we’re going to be celebrating this and all the history during the year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture. It’s easy to get here by public transport, and Rochdale will surprise you, it’s got so much to offer and it's going to be a wonderful year in the spotlight.”  

The Greater Manchester mayor’s visit was followed by a preview event at Rochdale Town Hall attended by creatives, artists, arts organisations, businesses and local leaders, including Rochdale MP Paul Waugh, as more was revealed about the spectacular year ahead.  

The evening included a performance from Rochdale’s new poet laureate Sammy Weaver who read her poem inspired by the peregrine falcons that nest in the town hall before introducing two new poets in residence - Alende Amisi and Sasha Mostafa who will be capturing the spirit of Rochdale in words.  

Sam Elliot from Bolton Council looked back on Bolton’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture which ended in March and explained how they shone a light on existing creativity as well as working in new ways with new audiences before wishing Rochdale good luck for the year ahead.  

World renowned Shilpa Gupta took the stage to reveal the title of her latest work that will be premiered in Rochdale in July as part of Manchester International Festival. ‘You Are The Place’ is her upcoming multilingual sound installation which sees the Mumbai-based artist working with local residents to create a thought-provoking sound installation taking in different perspectives in a piece about waiting, persistence and hope.    

On Friday 4 July ‘The Herds’ a major new work of public art and climate action by the team behind Little Amal comes to Heywood, with 139 puppeteers bringing more than 70 life-sized animal puppets to the streets, bring the worlds of culture and the climate crisis together as part of Manchester International Festival. Kee Hong Low, creative director at Factory International said he was pleased to be working in the borough: “It’s very exciting to see how the festival will be venturing out beyond Manchester, creating groundbreaking work in Rochdale and Heywood.”  

Councillor Neil Emmott, leader of Rochdale Borough Council added: “We are in the early stage of a very exciting journey that will see us drawing audiences from across Greater Manchester and beyond to enjoy a fabulous programme of new events and activities as well as amplifying our existing offer. A really inspiring line-up celebrating the culture, history and future of Rochdale and our wonderful borough.”  

It was also announced that The Co-Op Congress, the biggest annual conference of the modern-day co-operative movement will be staged at the town hall on the 4 and 5 of July, attracting delegates from across the UK and beyond.  

The popular free days out for families - the Feel Good Family Picnic returns in July and August, along with the Street Eat food and drink festival in June, live music and in August the Merhaba Halal Food Festival, a celebration of food, live music and artisan crafts from the Islamic world.  

While work is well under way restoring Touchstones Rochdale, the team is working with residents, and in August will stage ‘Side by Side’ a seven-day festival on Rochdale Town Hall Square. In September a Rochdale Comedy Festival will be held for the first time in venues across the borough.  

More information was also confirmed about the new urban arts festival to be titled ‘Common Walls’ and staged in September curated by The Butterfly Effected, a community interest company that helps create inspiring art.  The event will take place across Rochdale town centre, providing the chance to see new murals being created by some of the UK’s most exciting urban artists who will be in town for over a week, bringing their artwork to life.   

Hebe Reilly, director of Cartwheel Arts, talked about their Young Producers project that will also be delivered, supported by the Heywood Town Board, helping young producers develop the skills required to support public events, including Darnhill Festival in July.  

A Pride Parade, Teenage Markets, Ignite Fire Festival and much more will also take place over the coming months and on 18, 19 and 29 October M6 Theatre will perform ‘Little Gift’ their heartwarming show about friendship, at their studio theatre and Rochdale Town Hall.  

Nationally acclaimed Rochdale organisation, Breaking Barriers are developing a new interactive sound and projection installation that will bring to life the stories of Rochdale residents in February next year. There will be plenty of opportunities for children and teenagers to get involved in planning and participating in Rochdale’s Youth Arts Festival to be staged in spring 2026.  

The town hall preview event also featured Tabla performers from Aymen Arts, an atmospheric musical set by Rochdale guitarist Becky Langan and was brought to a close by Rochdale indie-rock band PoolEra who took to the stage for an energetic ten-minute finale.   

Find out more about what’s on during Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture and get the latest news as its announced at www.rochdale.gov.uk/TownOfCulture,www.rochdalecreates.co.uk search #RochdaleTownOfCulture on social media and follow @rochdale.creates on Instagram.  

Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture is supported by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, Arts Council England, Rochdale Borough Council and Rochdale Development Agency.