John Cooper Clarke and Manchester Vibe

Do you have a qualifying question to determine whether the person you are talking to is of the same energetic vibration? After seeing this quote by Steve Coogan (born in Manchester himself), I added this question to my list of first-meeting-new-person questions.

“If I’m talking to someone and go, ‘D’you know John Cooper Clarke?’ and they say, ‘Oh yeah, he’s a genius’, I’m then, ‘Good, you’ve saved me a lot of time.’” – Steve Coogan

Performance and punk poet John Cooper Clarke is a legend and the greatest Mancunian who became famous in the 1970s, and is still so relevant through his poetry.

In July 2013, Clarke was awarded an honorary doctorate of arts by The University of Salford for bringing poetry to non-traditional audiences and influencing musicians and comedians.

No wonder I was so excited to visit Manchester for the first time. And I was not disappointed. Manchester has a special and unique vibe. It is a place of culture, history, fashion and style, great people, music, shopping and much more. After spending 3 days in the City, I wanted to come back and explore more.

2 things made my trip extra special :

An immersive experience at Manchester Cathedral featuring fantastic video light projection, iconic Manchester songs sung by a Gospel Choir, and a narration of Manchester’s history by the legendary Christopher Eccleston (also Mancunian). It was truly a goosebump experience that I highly recommend.

https://luminiscence.uk/manchester/

Manchester Art Gallery has a superb collection of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, which I am a big fan of. It also has works by Pierre Adolphe Valette, a French impressionist who spent most of his career in England. His most acclaimed paintings are urban landscapes of Manchester.

L.S. Lowry (one of my favourite artists and also a Mancunian) was one of Valette’s students, and the influence of impressionism on Lowry can be seen at the gallery, where paintings by the two artists hang side by side.

https://manchesterartgallery.org/

I loved Manchester so much, and it is a great city to visit for a solo traveller. Mancunians are super friendly and social.

I want to finish with a video by John Cooper Clarke, “I don’t want to be nice” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1gB-KNqa9k.

Enjoy!

With Love as Always,

Yana De Lilac