Manchester will once again stoke the fires of creativity and passion this winter as an eclectic new festival celebrating local music, poetry and fashion begins tomorrow evening.
Over the Bridge Festival, curated by local creative agency Cube3, gives acts the platform to display their work – and hopefully inspire the next crop – by the banks of the River Irwell.
The free festival takes place across three weekends over the next month in the cosily bohemian setting of Sofas & Stuff, next to the Lowry Hotel.
To throw together music, literature and fashion may seem to outsiders like a strange set-up, but to Daniel Nixon of Cube3, this mix is integral to Over the Bridge’s Mancunian charm.
“We had this idea that doing a traditional festival just goes on all the time, so we wanted to do things a bit differently,” he said.
“We wanted to be a bit more chilled out, so we decided to do something that feels like a festival in a living room.
“It’s very much in the spirit of Manchester to do things differently, so we said ‘hang on, why can’t we bring music, fashion and literature together in one festival?’
“It feels quite unique, but it also feels quite like the sort of thing that you’d expect a festival in Manchester to look like, going out on its own and doing different things.”
The festival kicks off with the freshest Mancunian sounds at 7pm on Saturday night, and whilst the identity of the artists remains a closely-guarded secret, with musical heritage running through the city like a stick of rock, those who attend are unlikely to be disappointed.
It continues its relaxed vibe on Sunday November 29, with an award-winning poet leading attendees ‘over the bridge’ in an interactive celebration of literature.
Ben Mellor, former winner of the Radio 4 National Poetry Slam, is the star attraction of the second week, fostering Manchester’s burgeoning creativity through writing workshops and live poetry.
The curtain comes down six days later with a fashion event, continuing the home-grown feel by partnering up with Northern Quarter agency Purple Riot to display innovative designers, pop-up shops, and on-trend accessories.
For further information, follow @otbfestival.
