All aboard: Rochdale Canal Week and Ancoats Canal Festival

From the outset, a week’s worth of events focused around canals may not peak your interest the same way a fortnight’s worth of international artists creating new works across amazing venues in this fine city of ours. But MIF is finished. It won’t be back for two years. Just get over it, okay. Also, there’s more to canal week than meets the eye. A host of great events taking place along much of the thirty-two mile length of the Rochdale Canal. Highlights of the festival – set up to promote the heritage of the historic canal and encourage visitors – include Horseboating and Poetry Trips in Hebden Bridge, A Poetry Workshop with Andrew McMillan, A Horseboating Trip in Todmorden, Grassroots Oldham Canal Festival, Todmorden’s Lantern Making Workshops and canalside Parade and canoeing for the over 8s at Wrigley Head. Be sure to check the Rochdale Canal website to keep up to dates with where and when things are happening. This weekend The Ancoats Canal Festival takes over the New Islington Marina, which offers circus skills, canoeing taster sessions, facepainting, music, ice cream stalls and a free BBQ. Didn’t get that at the MONEY gig, did you?

Sat 27 Jul – Sun 4 Aug, Various points along the Rochdale Canal. www.myrochdalecanal.org.uk/category/events

Photo: Tim Green @Flickr