The Manchester barometer

Going up Live ravens The real star of Damon Albarn's folk opera. Quoth the Raven, give us more. The musical Tesla coil Looks so cool you don't even care that it sounds like a robot trying to fart a tune. Thanks, Björk. Friendly strangers Could this catch on in London? Almost certainly not, no. Punchdrunk do Doctor Who Beg, borrow or kidnap a child to get in. Or just wait for the adult-only shows. Festival Pavilion The place to be after midnight. More atmosphere than a planet with a really big atmosphere. Going down 1395 Days Without Red Fantastically tense film about the siege of Sarajevo. Going down because it's given us all serious permanent heart conditions. Canal Street hen nights How many weddings are going on here this week? It's an epidemic. Men who look like Jesus Guys, seriously, this look is taken. It's been taken for a really long time. By Jesus. Pairing Alina Ibragimova with a black-and-white stop-motion film Like watching Yehudi Menuhin accompanying a guy who juggles melons. The Northern Quarter Sure, it's got charm, but when your area can plausibly stand in for 1940s Downtown New York in Hollywood movies, it's probably time to redecorate.