Free things to do this week ft. Gein’s Family Giftshop, English Corner + more

Gein’s Family Giftshop at Kosmonaut
Sketch group Gein’s Family Giftshop have been garnering acclaim left, right and centre recently, with a Best Newcomer nomination at the Edinburgh Fringe and a recent Sky Christmas special to their name. Amazing then that you can still catch them for free at their monthly scratch night at Kosmonaut. As well as roughing out new sketches, you can also see turns from excellent stand ups Dave Williams, Danny McLoughlin and Amy Gledhill. Get on it before they realise they could get away with charging money.
Mon 4 Jan, Kosmonaut, 10 Tariff St, Manchester, M1 2FF. 8pm, www.facebook.com

English Corner at Manchester Museum
One of Manchester University’s free classes in conversational English that uses the museum’s collections as a starting point for discussions. Chances are if you’re reading this you’re already a fluent in English, but this might be the hot ticket for someone struggling with the idioms and dialects that native speakers breeze over.
Tue 5 Jan, Manchester Museum, The University Of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PL. Tel: 0161 275 2634, 1pm – 2.30pm, events.manchester.ac.uk

Matthew Darbyshire at Manchester Art Gallery (pictured)
Artist Matthew Darbyshire’s exhibition at Manchester Art Gallery draws to a close this weekend, so this is your last opportunity to take a look. Darbyshire’s installations feature a collection of assembled objects, looking at the nature of collection in both a fun and critical way. Sculptures featured in the exhibition include unique 3D printed pieces.
Fri 25 Sep – Sun 10 Jan, Manchester Art Gallery, Mosley Street, Manchester, M2 3JL. Tel: 0161 235 8888, 10am – 5pm, www.manchesterartgallery.org