Manchester’s much-loved Poet Laureate, Carol Ann Duffy Words by Sian Pemberton  The eighth instalment of Carol Ann Duffy and Friends kick started at the Royal Exchange Theatre. Alongside the Poet Laureate, graduates and students from Manchester Metropolitan University’s Writing School joined her for a celebration of poetry and poetic talent. Four poets joined Carol Ann;…

Words by Caroline Matthews Escaping the crowds of Odder’s main bar, I turned away from the front door and instead hurried up the dark deserted stairway to its function room. Like a classic horror movie victim, seeking sanctuary while actually leading myself right into the arms of the attackers. For what lay behind the purple…

Words by James Harris      Photographs by Neil Harrison A young man sits silent and still on a loudly rattling train as it cuts its clumsy, purposeful way through a thick, inky night; a night so deep and fathomless any recollection of the distant memory of daylight seems fanciful and imagined. The darkness was impenetrable. The…

Words By Jordan Noton   Rockstar Games are no strangers to controversy. From the schoolyard sandbox of Bully – or Canis Canem Edit, after its censorship in England – to the graphic mutilation and murder action of Manhunt, Rockstar has faced heavy criticism within the gaming world and the world at large. I remember Grand…

Fiction Prize Finalists (L-R): Adam Wilmington, James Hopkin, Alison White, Richard Knight and Carys Davies. Not pictured: Joe Dunthorne Manchester Writing Competition Gala Award Ceremony – Baronial Hall, Cheetham School of Music. Words by Kevin Danson Where else would I have been on Friday, 18th October, at 7:30pm, but at the Manchester Writing Competition’s gala…