Manchester Central hosts its first ‘Open House' event
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Earlier this month, Manchester Central opened its doors to the city, giving everyone and anyone the opportunity to drop in and learn more about the iconic venue that was once a Victorian railway station.
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Hosting its first ever ‘Open House' event, guided tours were co-ordinated throughout the day, led by a local historian, along with two photography workshops with prolific local artist Andrew Brooks.
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Visitors were able to access never-before-seen areas of the venue, getting a special glimpse of its historic past and touring the spaces that today host some of the UK's most high-profile events. Latest partners Manchester Gin also gave guests an exclusive sneak peak of their new distillery, situated underneath the venue, which is due to open in September.
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Nearly 200 people attended on the day; many of which were residents from the city region and members of the local business community. The event also created a stir across Manchester Central's social media channels, driving nearly 6,000 engagements with ‘Open House'-related content.
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Shaun Hinds, CEO at Manchester Central, said: “As such an iconic part of the city and with our rich heritage spanning over 130 years, our venue holds a special place in many people's hearts. Our Open House event was a really important way for us to engage with communities, outside of attending an event here.
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It was fascinating for our teams to chat to people with so many different memories, some of which even involved boarding a train! This is absolutely something we'll be doing again; ideally making it an annual event!â€'