A gorgeous and atmospheric floating city of lanterns will appear in Sefton Park in February. City of Light, City of Sanctuary is set to attract thousands of people to the boating lake in the South Liverpool park over half-term. The Lantern Company spectacle will be accompanied by an epic soundscape of original music, poetry and real-life stories, bringing Liverpool communities and international artists together. And it will be complemented by Habitats, a trail featuring glowi

Giant artworks featuring the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac will be revealed in Liverpool from tomorrow. Artist Cherie Grist has created the designs - which feature the ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig – especially for Chinese New Year celebrations. They will appear on walls and in shop windows in the run up to the main Year of the Pig events, with a rat the first to pop up on the side of the former Cabin nightclub in Berry Street.

Fourteen intricate sketches created by Leonardo Da Vinci more than 500 years ago are on show in a new exhibition at the Walker Art Gallery. Leonardo Da Vinci: A Life in Drawing is one of 12 concurrent shows taking place across the UK to mark the 500th anniversary of the death of the Italian Renaissance master. The free exhibition features 12 pages from the artist’s sketch books held in the Royal Collection, including two double-sided pages, making 14 images in all. Along with

While the popularity of some Saturday night TV shows might arguably be on the wane, Strictly Come Dancing cha chas on in a cloud of sequins, fake tan, heel leads and high-wattage smiles. It’s warm-hearted family entertainment, and that’s also reflected in the annual Live tour which has returned to Liverpool after missing the city out of its schedule in 2018. Yes, it’s all carefully scripted. Yes, all the contestants and their professional partners get a bit squirmingly earnes

Chester Literature Festival is promising to celebrate its 30th anniversary in style this year. Sir Michael Morpurgo, Roger McGough and Benjamin Zephaniah are the first wave of names to be announced for the 10-day festival which takes place from November 9-19. Morpurgo, author of more than 130 books including War Horse and Private Peaceful, makes a date for Storyhouse on November 9 as part of his 75th birthday tour, and promises to reveal the secrets nearly 50 years of writing

The Bordeaux Wine Festival is set to return to the Liverpool waterfront for 2019. The award-winning inaugural event took place last year as part of the Tall Ships and Mersey River Festival. It will run from May 31 to June 2 promising a selection of world-class wines from the Bordeaux region along with accompanying food. This year’s River Festival promises a varied programme of entertainment along the waterfront, inspired by the city’s maritime history as a globally-significan

Rising city-based music stars will play at the Philharmonic Hall this week in a special free night from the LIMF Academy. LUNA, Raheem Alameen and Kyami are set to appear alongside the Ignition Orchestra and LIMF Academy alumnus Sub Blue in the event at the Music Room on January 31. LIMF Academy is an award-winning programme that nurtures emerging talent and provides artists, bands and producer-DJs aged 16 to 25 with opportunities and help to launch their careers, all with th

When Gustav Mahler premiered his Fifth Symphony in Cologne in 1904 the reaction ranged from warm to cold – with the majority of reviews being what might be termed tepid. The composer himself apparently bemoaned his listeners’ lack of understanding and suggested: “I wish I could conduct the first performance 50 years after my death.” Ironically it did indeed take the best part of half-a-century following his demise for the world at large to appreciate the Bohemian’s works, and

The Bluecoat has revealed its 2019 programme of exhibitions and events. Among the highlights of the year, which has a theme of looking to the future of artistic practice, are a major new show from American artist Alexis Teplin, and solo exhibitions from Grace Ndiritu and Shezad Dawood. There will also be residencies from international artists like Indonesian Nurrachmat Widyasena (January 23-February 25) and Indian artist Chinar Shah (April 6-June 30) which whose work will be

EastEnders and Grantchester’s Kacey Ainsworth is to play Mrs Lovett in Sweeney Todd at the Liverpool Everyman this spring. The 50-year-old actress will make her Everyman debut appearing opposite Liam Tobin as the demon barber in the new version of Stephen Sondheim’s cult musical, directed by Nick Bagnall. Casting also includes a return to Hope Street for former Everyman Rep actors Dean Nolan and Paul Duckworth. Nolan, who was in Fiddler on the Roof, Conquest of the South Pole