WEEKEND COLUMN SATURDAY 11 OCTOBER 2025
- STEVE COOKE AATA
- 2 minutes ago
- 11 min read
previews, reviews, interviews, and recommendations with Steve Cooke
WEEKEND COLUMN SATURDAY 11 OCTOBER 2025
Jamie’s Mural Celebrates Lisa Stansfield
Review by Steve Cooke
One of the many outstanding works of art now adorning the walls of Rochdale’s town centre is a celebration of singer, songwriter, actress and world renowned superstar Lisa Stansfield.
Lisa’s roots are very much in the area. Her family moved to Heywood in 1976, then to Rochdale in 1977. She attended Siddal Moor School (Heywood), Redbrook Middle School and Oulder Hill Community School (both in Rochdale).
Her big breakthrough came in 1989 with debut album “Affection” which contained the world-wide hit that was to become her signature song, “All Around the World”.
“Affection” kicked of a career that led to Lisa becoming Britain's biggest solo female artist of the '90s, selling 20 million albums and memorably duetting with George Michael accompanied by Queen at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert.
Lisa’s latest album "Deeper" sees her back to the classic sound of 'Affection' and includes outstanding tracks such as "Billionaire" "Everything" and "Never Ever".
I asked Lisa what she thought about this recent addition to her hometown’s works of art:
“What a heart touching compliment! It’s such an honour to be part of the International Mural Festival and that Jamie Buckley created this on Yorkshire Street. Those words mean so much to me and I’m proud they were created in Rochdale like all this wonderful art.”
Artist Jamie Buckley was a DJ but had to give it up because of tinnitus, he was inspired by the 2019 Rochdale Uprising festival and started helping out and went on to channel his creative energy into mural painting.
He ended up supporting festival curator Hayley Garner over the course of the Common Walls festival and was keen to create this mural, Jamie was aided by Rochdale Development Agency in finding a spot and securing the relevant permissions etc.
In addition to this, earlier this year Jamie was commissioned by the library service to create a mural on the facade of Balderstone Library.
Curated by artist AYLO (Hayley Garner), the festival has brought together a line-up of internationally renowned artists alongside local talent. Each mural responds in its own way to Rochdale’s history, people and culture.
Great, inspiring art free for all to enjoy on walls spreading across such as Drake Street, Baillie Street and Milton Street – all within easy walking distance around Rochdale town centre.
To enjoy all these stunning murals, download a map at https://www.rochdale.gov.uk/downloads/download/1216/common-walls-festival-guide
Saturday Club at Rochdale Hopwood Hall College
By Steve Cooke
A fantastic opportunity for our budding creatives at Hopwood Hall College with their Rochdale Art&Design Saturday Club.
The club gives members the opportunity to attend free Saturday morning sessions in their local area.
The aim is to nurture the young people’s talent, build their confidence and give them the chance to explore industry art workshops, studios and galleries to gain experience of different careers within the creative industries.
Young people take part in Saturday sessions guided by professional artists and designers.
Each session is different, with opportunities to create work with Touchstones Art Gallery, focusing on experimentation and sustainability whilst expressing their personalities, interests and creativity.
Young people explore exciting exhibitions and outdoor environments for inspiration.
Members develop their creative skills using drawing, photography, sculpture, printmaking and more.
Creativity in Rochdale has no boundaries, there are limitless artistic possibilities, where individuals are encouraged to express themselves and supported to progress throughout the year.
Club members also take part in national events including Masterclasses with leading industry professionals and the Summer Show, where Saturday Clubs nationwide exhibit their work in a public exhibition – all for free!
Club dates:18 October 2025 – 16 May 2026 - Saturdays, 10:00 – 13:00
Hopwood Hall College, Rochdale Campus, St Mary's Gate, Rochdale OL12 6RY
Culture boost sparks creativity in Milkstone
Preview by Steve Cooke
The Milkstone Road area of Rochdale is getting a welcome and exciting boost of culture and creativity this autumn thanks to ‘Made in Milkstone’, a new programme supported by Rochdale Borough Council’s Community Regeneration Partnership funding.
The busy area, close to Rochdale town centre, is in line for a series of improvements and activities, delivered by Culture Co-op and Rochdale Development Agency, aimed at celebrating the people, businesses and identity around Milkstone Road. Residents will be at the heart of the project, which follows work done last year by the University of Sheffield, which generated ideas from the local community to improve the area.
As part of Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture the programme will see a range of cultural activities being rolled out. These include a ‘Paint the Street’ mural programme that will create murals on walls and shop shutters co-designed by residents, alongside guest artists.
Monthly ‘Creative Corners’ will be held with live demonstrations of various arts including embroidery, calligraphy and weaving alongside opportunities for residents to give their views during one to one ‘Spill the Tea’ community sessions. Free digital media workshops will also be available, giving locals chance to learn skills in things like podcasting and video content generation. There’ll also be pop-up ‘Street Sounds’ - live music sessions in the area during October and November.
The project will also extend to include improvements to facades on Milkstone Road, with Rochdale Development Agency and Culture Co-op intending to apply for further funding to deliver more improvements and activities that residents suggest.
Councillor Sue Smith, cabinet member for communities and co-operation at Rochdale Borough Council, said: “This is the first step on what I hope will be long term investment in the area, putting culture at the heart of regeneration. It’s not only about funding the arts, but this is also about creating pride, opportunity and a sense of belonging for local people, listening and working with residents.”
Find out more at www.theculturecoop.org and www.rochdalecreates.co.uk
This initial phase of Made in Milkstone is funded as part of Rochdale Borough Council’s Community Regeneration Partnership package from the UK Government and Culture Co-ops ‘Creative People and Places’ programme from Arts Council England.
ROCHDALE MUSIC SOCIETY CONCERT
Review by Graham Marshall
Rochdale Music Society’s CONCERT SERIES 2025-26 began on Sunday 21 September with a spectacular programme of mainly French piano music played in the parish church of St. Michael, Bamford, by the French pianist, Louis-Victor Bak, now resident in London after studying first in Lyon and more recently at the Royal College of Music.
He began with the set of the three pieces that make up Book 2 of Debussy’s ‘Images’. These explore the wide range of tonal effects which can be achieved by the performer’s keyboard control and offer the listener musical ‘imagery’ to evoke sights and sounds beyond the black and white of the keyboard itself, impressionism’, as it began to be described.
Louis-Victor’s accomplished technique manifested itself immediately as he began to play No. 1, "Cloches à travers les feuilles" (Bells sounding through the leaves, and his fine artistry continued through No.2 , "Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fut" (And the moon on the temple that once was), and No. 3, "Poissons d'or" (lit. Gold Fish). The musical imagery was vivid.
The concert continued with a finely presented account of one of Chopin’s late works, the ‘Polonaise- Fantasie Op. 61’, which illustrates the depth of the composer’s personal exploration of musical sounds and the abundant inventiveness with which he had become able to exploit the discoveries he had made over the years. Hence its fantastic structure filled with intense feeling, which Louis-Victor showed he understood and was more than capable of conveying to a receptive and attentive audience.
The Chopin was followed by the Austrian composer Alban Berg’s single movement ‘Sonata Op. 1’. This was the only non-French music in this concert, but it fitted into the programme very well, since it complements the technical freedom of Latin ‘impressionism’ with the more constrained technique of contemporary Teutonic ‘expressionism’ and reveals a warmth of artistic feeling and aesthetic aspiration common to all great music. Louis-Victor brought to his performance an obvious appreciation of this, with resounding success: an ‘ear-opener’ for those who had not heard this mind of music before! To end the first half of the concert the audience was treated to two of the six Concert Studies written in the 1880s by the female composer, Cecile Chaminade: No. 5 ‘Impromptu’ and No.4 ‘Appassionato’. Louis-Victor has become a champion of Chaminade’s music, and these two examples of music which concentrates on particular aspects of pianistic technique show why he is to be encouraged to continue to do so. The flowing melodies and charming pirouettes which soar about the flowing accompaniment in the Impromptu, along with the need for firm wrists and flexible fingers to cope with the demands of the Appassionato, make rich artistic sense as well as calling for the highest degree of technical accomplishment.
The second half of the concert began with the ‘Valses nobles et sentimentales’ of Ravel, another very colourful ‘impressionist’ work presenting a succession of contrasting ‘noble’ and ‘sentimental’ waltzes in a way that only Ravel could conjure up to fill a quarter of an hour with seriously heart-warming music.
Executed with full attention to the intricate detail demanded of the performer, this provided the last part of a musical thread which had run through the programme to link Debussy with Henri Dutilleux, who died in 2013 in his nineties, and whose Sonata for piano Op. 1 featured as the climax of the whole concert.
The first movement ‘Allegro con moto’ begins with an engaging and expansive tune from which emerges, contrasting melody which leads into a sound world that brings together in a creative dialogue musical ideas which have something in common with what Stravinsky and Prokofiev were exploring at the time but could only be taken up and developed by a twentieth century French composer.
The second, much shorter, movement is a ‘Lied’ ( German for Song) and seems to drag its feet in a somewhat melancholy, German fashion suited, I think, to the 1940s decade in which it was written.
The last movement is a ‘Chorale et variations’ (Choral and Variations). It starts with an imposing Choral that suggests a four-part Choir and sounds carillon-like with sonorities that are created by the overlapping of low and high sustained notes. Four variations follow without no breaks. They illustrate the composer’s creativity. Several passages are of brilliant toccota like character, others are ethereal and shadowy, and the final moments recall the opening Choral but end in a resolved though strangely (?) subdued fashion.
Louis-Victor’s brilliant and spellbinding account of this Sonata’s musical thought processes brought a well-deserved accolade of applause from the audience.
Next month’s concert is on 19 October, when the classical and flamenco Guitarist, Galina Vale, will be performing music from all over the Latin world. More details on www.rochdalemusicsociety.org
Christmas isn’t Cancelled at Oldham Coliseum - it’s Spilling out of Fairbottom Street and into Town
Preview by Steve Cooke
As the Coliseum Theatre undergoes its £10m refurbishment, the team is stepping outside the venue’s walls to keep the festive spirit alive. They’re heading into the heart of the community with a revival of Jim Cartwright’s A Christmas Fair, in association with award-winning company Not Too Tame. The play will be an immersive experience, staged at Chadderton Town Hall, and will run from 17 December to 2 January.
Martina Murphy, CEO of Oldham Coliseum Theatre, says “Christmas at the Coli has always been at the heart of our theatre, and we're pleased to be keeping that tradition alive. During this time of transformation as we prepare to return to our newly refurbished home next year, it has been fantastic to form a new partnership with Not Too Tame whose work resonates with our desire to interact more with our audiences. As we look ahead to a bright, exciting future, we continue to explore creative opportunities and find new ways of bringing theatre to the people of Oldham. Staging A Christmas Fair written by the inimitable Jim Cartwright in Chadderton Town Hall is the perfect setting to bring Jim’s characters to life in the most joyful and somewhat unruly manner.”
Set in the hustle and bustle of a Northern fair, the play is a joyful way to celebrate Christmas with family and friends.
Director Jimmy Fairhurst (Artistic Director of Not Too Tame, previously nominated for Best Director at the UK Theatre Awards) says “I’ve always believed theatre should be fearless, fun and rooted in the lives of everyday people. Being invited to be part of Oldham Coliseum’s history is a delight and working with Jim Cartwright, the Paul McCartney of theatre, is an honour. His plays told me as a young man that this industry could be for me. It’s my responsibility now to make sure that my work does the same for others. His words sing with humour, grit and humanity, and directing his work at Christmas feels incredibly special. This show is about resilience, celebration and togetherness - values that feel more vital than ever.”
The cast features well-known faces including John Henshaw (Early Doors), Samantha Robinson, and Dickon Tyrrell and the call is also being put out for local involvement. As part of their shared commitment to supporting local talent, Oldham Coliseum and Not Too Tame are holding open auditions on Monday 6 October to fill the final two professional roles. Applicants should have accredited training or professional experience and must be over 18.
Jimmy Fairhurst says “We welcome and encourage performers from all backgrounds and abilities - especially those who are working-class or have protected characteristics. We're passionate about representing real people and telling stories with heart, humour and guts”.
Visit: https://www.coliseum.org.uk/
RECOMMENDED
Saturday, 11 October 2025
Reading Group - Littleborough Library
Our group meets once a month on the second Saturday to discuss various authors, genres and themes. If you want to join us, there is no need to book, just turn up.
Free
10.30am - 11.30am
Littleborough Library, Hare Hill Park, Littleborough OL15 9HE
Saturday, 11 October 2025
Brereton Memorial Organ Recital 2025
Join us for an inspiring afternoon of organ music as Darius Battiwalla performs the annual Brereton Memorial Organ Recital for the Oldham, Rochdale and Tameside Organists’ Association.
The programme will feature a rich and varied selection.
Guilmant’s Sonata No. 1 in D minor
Bach’s Pastorale
Fela Sowande’s Kyrie
Mendelssohn’s Prelude and Fugue in E minor
Bizet’s rousing Farandole from L’Arlésienne
From £8 concession and £10 normal tickets
Booking required: book your tickets through Your Trust – please book by 4pm on Friday, 10 October 2025 at https://www.yourtrustrochdale.co.uk/whats-on/events/brereton-memorial-organ-recital-2025/
Email: hello@rochdaletownhall.co.uk
Phone: 01706 924 797 10am-4pm, Monday-Saturday
3pm - 4.15pm
Rochdale Town Hall, The Esplanade, Rochdale OL16 1AZ
Monday, 13 October 2025
Reading Group - Junction Library
Second Monday of every month. Discover new authors and discuss shared books with other readers at our friendly reading group. Everyone's welcome.
Free
2pm - 3pm
Junction Library, Grimshaw Lane, Middleton M24 2BW
Tuesday, 14 October 2025
Tuesday Reading Group - Spotland Library
Tuesday every 4 weeks. Read, share and discuss a range of fiction and non-fiction chosen from our extensive list of book titles in a relaxed and friendly group.
Free
For adults, no need to book you can just turn up.
11.30am - 12.30pm
Location: Spotland Library, Ings Lane, Rochdale OL12 7AL
Tuesday 14 October 2025
HAMLET
A full-scale production set in the shadowy medieval court of Denmark, where love, power, and vengeance collide.
Experience this Shakespearean classic with ghostly apparitions, intense family betrayals, and thrilling sword fights. A tale of ambition, heartbreak, and the eternal question: To be or not to be?
Age Recommendation: 11+
Watch the trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oejy4doInwo
Warnings: Choreographed fights, flashing lights (not strobes), use of stage blood, use of haze.
Tue 14 Oct
12:30pm
Doors open: 12:00pm
Tickets from £17.00
Tue 14 Oct
7:30pm
Doors open: 7:00pm
Tickets from £17.00
Ticket Sales & Event Enquiries (open Mon-Fri 10am – 2.30pm: 0300 303 8633
Box Office: arts.events@yourtrustrochdale.co.uk
Middleton Arena, LCpl Joel Halliwell VC Way, Middleton, Greater Manchester M24 1AG
Wednesday 15 October 2025
Toad Lane Concerts - Rochdale's Weekly Music at Lunchtime
This week we have - Lewis Kingsley Peart piano (Trinity Laban Conservatoire)
The concert series has been held at St Mary’s since 2001 and was granted the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service in 2020.
Running every Wednesday, Music at Lunchtime is a weekly live classical music concert series that has been going since the 1960s. The sessions were initially run at the old Rochdale Art Gallery by the local authority, but since May 2001 have been run by volunteer-enthusiasts and artistic director, Dr Joe Dawson.
£6
Phone: Dr Joe Dawson 01706 648872
Doors open 12noon, concert starts 12.30pm - 1.30pm
St Mary in the Baum, Toad Lane/St Mary's Gate, Rochdale OL16 1DZ
celebrating creative arts and artists - an oasis of positivity supporting individual and community wellbeing.