Author: Uncover

By John Maguire

In this instalment of Buried Treasure, ArtsGroupie’s John Maguire reveals how Liverpool’s streets become a living archive through immersive Irish Famine trail walks.

History is often treated as a date in a textbook or an artefact in a museum. But in Liverpool, history is a living, breathing map. It’s visible when you look up above the modern shop fronts, or walk along our Victorian warehouses along the docks of the Mersey, yet it remains hidden in the masses of modern developments that don’t really stand up next to some of our architectural masterpieces. Indeed, the number of memory-stick buildings going up can make part of the city feel like Manchattan – the nickname I heard for Manchester, from a taxi driver. I love the info I get from the cabbies in the city – like the fact that, as so many people get knocked down on Hanover street, it has been nicknamed  RANOVER street.

In this edition of Buried Treasure, we will be talking about Artsgroupie’s approach on our heritage walking tours and the work we’ve undertaken on the Liverpool Irish famine trail walks – a two hour tour – practicing, what is known as Living Historiography: uncovering the invisible layers of An Gorta Mór (The Great Hunger) that still define the topography of our city today.

The Tour Toolkit: Two Ways to See the City

To truly understand the Irish experience in Liverpool, the trails use two special lenses that help us see the streets in a whole new way. Don’t worry, there’s no test at the end, just an awareness of the past and a new perspective on the street we live in.

• Living Historiography (History as a continuous process): Rather than viewing 1847 as a closed chapter, we treat the streets and dock walls as a “living document.” We explore how the echoes of An Gorta Mór continue to shape Liverpool’s social and physical landscape today.
• Psychogeography (How a place makes you feel): This is the study of how an environment, the biting wind off the Mersey, the narrowness of a court alley, or the scale of a building, shapes our emotions. We use this to help people walk in the footsteps of the Irish refugees, connecting their feelings in 1847 to ours in 2026.

Through years of meticulous work by the Liverpool Irish Festival’s history research group, we’ve moved beyond the “what” and “when” to the “where” and “how.” These tours transform the city centre into a primary source, layering the sounds and stories of 1847 over the modern bustle of the city using a new trail app and noise-cancelling headsets.

An Gorta Mór Introductory Tour

Duration: 2 Hours | Focus: Liverpool’s historical landscape as a place of sanctuary.

This comprehensive walk traces the path from the harsh exposure of the waterfront toward the sites that offered food and safety.

• Local Philanthropy & Survival: Learn how the “Select Vestry” (local government) and everyday Scousers fought to provide medical care and food when the national government was slow to act.
• Fenwick Street Relief Station: Stand at the very site where, in 1847, thousands of people queued daily for life-saving soup and bread.
• Brownlow Hill Workhouse: Explore the history of what was once the largest workhouse in Britain (now the site of the Metropolitan Cathedral), a final, desperate safety net.
• A National Landmark: The tour culminates at the Liverpool Irish Famine Memorial at St Luke’s Church. Created by renowned sculptor Eamonn O’Doherty, it remains the only major freestanding monument to the Great Hunger in all of England.

This journey highlights the incredible benevolence of the local people and the lasting impact Irish refugees had on the city’s identity.

Once you’ve walked this trail, you’ll never see the dock front or the backstreets of the business district the same way again. 

Tour Dates (11am – 1pm): 17th May | 21st June | 19th July

• Meeting Point: The Pilotage Building (near the Museum of Liverpool). Please arrive 15 minutes early.
• Technology: Tours use headsets to enhance the storytelling and eradicate city noise (seagulls, traffic, etc.).
• Booking: Essential by 5 pm on the Friday before each walk. Donations are welcome and support the ongoing research of the Liverpool Irish Festival. 

Booking Link: eventbrite.co.uk/liverpool-irish-famine-trail

Liverpool’s weather is a key character in this story. Since you’ll be out for up to two hours and we start at the waterfront, dress for the wind and rain!

By Mars Omitoyin

What if you could see the very ghosts that haunt museums? 

If you’ve ever wanted to experience your own “Night At The Museum”, Norton Priory is keeping its doors open after hours and dimming the lights down low with its Phantoms After Dark installation so you can come face to face with the figures that have shaped almost a millennia of Norton Priory history.  

With origins dating back to 12th century England, Norton Priory is Europe’s most excavated monastery. In 1545, the grounds were bought by Sir Richard Brooke following the dissolution of monasteries and in 1966, 45 years after the Brooke family left the house, it was given to the public where excavation took place shortly after. 

Commissioned by Unconventional Design, the team behind York’s popular “Ghosts In The Garden”, this installation features over 15 sculptures made from aluminium mesh and hard graft. The see-through mesh allows light to pass through, illuminating the sculpture from within. Some of these sculptures, for example The Canon, are completely enshrouded in darkness for most of the day until the right moment where they become almost iridescent as light bounces off them. 

Next to each sculpture is a standing sign that contains information about the sculpture, the history and daily life of the people who used to live at Norton Priory. Some signs include further “easter eggs” – hidden clues encouraging you to look carefully for small details  that would typically be overlooked yet provide much meaning to the people who once roamed the Priory’s walls. An example would be small mason marks scratched into the passageway walls originally used by stonemasons to determine how much work had been completed.

 After exploring the undercroft and the rest of the ground floor museum, head upstairs to encounter the phantom of an elegant lady, dressed for a Brooke family social event in a beautifully crafted Victorian gown. This room offers  many activities for children including a dress-up station where children are encouraged to try on Victorian-style costumes, an interactive map showing all notable locations from the time such as other priories, castles and villages, a doll’s house emulating the Brooke family home, and interactive wall displays where archivists go into detail about artefacts found at Norton Priory.

All this ghost hunting can work up an appetite and the Brooke cafe is right next to the reception serving a range of hot meals and baked sweet treats. Upon entry, you’ll see large hanging portraits of Lady Mary Brooke and her son Sir Richard Brooke, and you’ll see their phantoms again seated near the entrance to the undercroft deep in conversation where you’ll be transported back in time as a speaker plays a conversation from the past. 

Beyond the museum walls, history continues as the surrounding landscape reveals the remains of the excavated monastery. With so much to explore and discover, Norton Priory makes a great day out for visitors of all ages – including dogs! Whether you’re a family with young children, a ghost hunter, someone with a passion for history or lover of nature walks, there’s something for everyone. 

To see the phantoms in their ghostly glory after hours before they disappear, the next Phantoms After Dark at Norton Priory is on Tuesday 31st March from 4pm to 7.30pm.

If you can’t make the next Phantoms After Dark, Norton Priory also  hosts a range of events throughout the year. Meditation mornings take place on select Sundays taking advantage of the vast woodland area surrounding the museum. On 18th April there’s a haunted book club where you’re told spooky tales believed to be inspired by the Priory itself.

A family friendly arts and craft club on May 9th offers visitors the chance to make clay sculptures and collect flowers.The outdoor theatre programme also returns with Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet and Kipling’s The Jungle Book performed by Immersion Theatre Company on July 22nd and August 17th respectively, and Sullivan and Gilbert’s The Pirates of Penzance and Shakespeare’s As You Like It performed by Illyria on August 6th and 13th respectively.

For more information visit nortonpriory.org.

 

By Terry Sweeney

This brand new 30th anniversary tour of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert has been on at Liverpool Empire this week (14 March), and what a dazzling production it is.

The film, The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Dessert was one of my favourite, feel-good movie experiences of the 1990s, not least for the surprise of seeing Terence Stamp as Bernadette, a transgender drag queen, and the stage show is a real reminder of why I loved the movie so much.

The film was a cult classic in Australia and eventually worldwide. It was based upon the lives of three actual drag queens who were initially scheduled to play themselves but were eventually replaced by three ‘box office’ actors, Terence Stamp, Guy Pearce and Hugo Weaving.

The Broadway and West End smash musical uses the film as a blueprint. It stars Adele Anderson as Bernadette, Kevin Clifton as Tick/Mitzi, Nick Hayes as Felicia/Adam, and Peter Duncan as Bob/Preacher, and follows the three friends on a heartwarming trip across the Australian Outback to stage the show of a lifetime in Alice Springs.

The musical is directed by Olivier-award nominee Ian Talbot with choreography by Olivier-award winner Matt Cole, and their Olivier credentials show throughout.

The show opens in a drag club in Sydney with a killer version of ‘It’s Raining Men’ sung by three ‘Showgirl’-type divas, who are then joined by the full singing and dancing chorus for a colourful and energetic routine. After this knockout opening number, we meet Tick who gets a call from his wife asking for his help by staging a show to help her finance her debt-ridden casino in Alice Springs. He ropes in his friend Bernadette, who was an original star of ‘Les Girls’ a famous Australian drag act of the 1970s, and then to the consternation of Bernadette, introduces her to the brash Felicia, the final member of his ‘troupe’,

They buy a broken-down old school bus, which is tidied up and painted and christened ‘Priscilla’, and set off from Sydney to drive across the outback to Alice Springs.

After getting stranded in the outback when taking a short-cut and the bus breaking down, they are rescued by Bob. Bob takes them to a ‘sheep’ town, where they win over the locals and rehearse their act on stage, only to be stopped mid number when Bob’s Thai wife interrupts their show to put on her hilarious ping-pong act and brings the house down.

They move on with Bob’s help and end up in a mining town, where they have a run in with the residents.

Eventually they make their way to Alice Springs for the uplifting ending and fulfil Felicia’s dream of performing in full drag on the summit of Ayers Rock. 

Along the way they perform ‘the greatest disco anthems ever to fill a dance floor’ (The Telegraph). Songs like ‘Hot Stuff’, ‘I Will Survive’, ‘Girls Just Wanna Have Fun’, ‘Go West’, ‘I Love the Nightlife’,  ‘Finally’ and many many more.

By Mars Omitoyin

Spring is a brilliant time to explore exhibitions and cultural events across Liverpool and the wider region, with galleries and museums unveiling new shows that span everything from ancient treasures and global art movements to climate activism and the future of artificial intelligence. Whether you’re looking for a family-friendly day out, a thought-provoking exhibition, or something a little unusual after dark, there’s plenty to discover over the coming months.

From interactive installations and rare historical artefacts to atmospheric evening experiences and celebrations of local creativity, these events highlight the breadth of the North West’s arts and heritage scene. Here are some exhibitions and events worth adding to your diary.

Treasure: History Unearthed, Museum of Liverpool (Until 29 March)

History lovers won’t want to miss Treasure: History Unearthed at Museum of Liverpool, which brings together the largest collection of archaeological treasure ever displayed in the region. Featuring discoveries from across the North West and Wales, the exhibition spans more than 5,000 years of human history and offers a fascinating glimpse into the objects people once buried, lost or deliberately concealed.

The display includes an extraordinary range of artefacts, from glittering Bronze Age gold and Viking silver to hoards of ancient coins and intricately crafted personal items. Many of the objects are on loan from major institutions including the British Museum and Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales, giving visitors a rare chance to see items usually housed elsewhere in the UK.

One of the exhibition’s standout highlights is the breathtaking Mold Gold Cape. Dating from around 1900–1600 BC and discovered in North Wales, this delicate ceremonial garment was crafted from a single sheet of hammered gold and remains one of the most iconic treasures from the Bronze Age ever found in Britain.

Alongside the artefacts themselves, the exhibition explores how the meaning of “treasure” has changed over time — from Victorian antiquarian discoveries to the modern scientific methods used by archaeologists today. Visitors can also learn about the behind-the-scenes work that brings these stories to life, including conservation techniques, museum research and collaborative investigations that continue to uncover new insights into the past.

20×20, dot-art Gallery (Until 2 April)

To celebrate its 20th anniversary, dot-art has invited more than 40 artists from its membership to take part in 20×20, a special exhibition at dot-art Gallery where every artwork measures exactly 20 by 20 centimetres.

The result is a vibrant and eclectic showcase of small but striking works that demonstrate the breadth of talent across the Liverpool City Region’s artistic community. Despite their compact size, the pieces offer big creative ideas — from atmospheric coastal landscapes to bold portraits and colourful abstract compositions.

Visitors can discover a wide variety of styles and subjects throughout the exhibition. Highlights include beautifully detailed coastal scenes by Nisali Siriwardene, dramatic depictions of the Egyptian pharaoh Akhenaten by Kevin Pollard, and expressive portraits by Sharon Kayll-Mathews. Elsewhere, viewers will find energetic abstract works by John Petch and refined compositions featuring soft, luxurious tones by Amanda Oliphant.

As well as celebrating two decades of supporting artists, the exhibition also highlights dot-art’s mission to make art accessible to everyone. All works in the show are available to buy, with prices starting at around £75 — making it an ideal opportunity for first-time collectors to take home an original piece of artwork.

After 20 years at the heart of the region’s cultural landscape, dot-art continues to champion local creativity, and 20×20 offers a fitting tribute to the organisation’s role in nurturing artistic talent across the city.

LOOK Climate Lab, Open Eye Gallery (Until 29 March)

Green spaces play an important role in how people connect with their communities, memories and environment. LOOK Climate Lab, presented at Open Eye Gallery as part of the LOOK Photo Biennial, explores these relationships through photography, art and collaborative research projects.

Rather than a traditional exhibition, the gallery has been transformed into an experimental “lab” where artists, researchers, activists and community groups come together to test ideas and spark conversations about climate change. This year’s focus centres on gardens and green spaces — places that often serve as gathering points for communities while also playing a crucial role in supporting biodiversity and wellbeing.

A wide range of projects feature within the lab. Photographer Stephanie Wynne presents Our Growing Place, developed with Chester Zoo, examining how connections with nature can positively impact mental health and wellbeing. Meanwhile, Paul Harfleet continues his ongoing Pansy Project, planting flowers at sites of homophobic and transphobic abuse to create visible acts of remembrance and solidarity.

Other highlights include student-led sustainability projects, collaborative works exploring community relationships with nature at RHS Garden Bridgewater, and TreeStory Wigan, a project celebrating Wigan’s 50th anniversary through stories about its natural and industrial heritage.

Alongside the installations, the programme includes workshops, talks and open meetings that invite visitors to take part in discussions about climate action. With more events still to be announced, LOOK Climate Lab offers an evolving space for creativity, dialogue and discovery.

Phantoms After Dark, Norton Priory (31 March)

If you enjoy a touch of the supernatural, Phantoms After Dark at Norton Priory Museum & Gardens offers a rare opportunity to explore the historic site in a completely different light. Commissioned by the team behind York’s hugely popular Ghosts in the Garden, the experience invites visitors to wander through the priory grounds and museum spaces after hours in search of mysterious figures from the past.

For one evening only, the lights will be turned low to create an atmospheric setting as visitors follow a specially designed trail through the museum galleries and the dramatic medieval undercroft. Along the way you may encounter characters said to have shaped the priory’s remarkable 900-year history — from the imposing Duke of Bridgewater to a Georgian couple caught mid-conversation. Look closely and you might also spot smaller surprises hidden in the shadows, including three mischievous mice, a spider lurking nearby, the faint apparition of an arm and the contemplative figure of a canon seated quietly nearby.

Part of the fun is trying to capture these ghostly presences on camera — but will you manage to photograph a phantom?

Often described as one of Cheshire’s hidden gems, Norton Priory was once home to a medieval monastery and is now the most extensively excavated monastic site in Europe. Visitors can explore the impressive 12th-century undercroft with its vaulted ceiling, along with the evocative ruins that reveal the layout of the former priory complex. Daytime general admission tickets are also valid for the evening event, although the Walled Garden will close at normal hours and the wider museum grounds shut at 5pm.

Can Meeple Escape the Neurophoria?, FACT Liverpool (Until 26 April)

Interactive and thought-provoking, Can Meeple Escape the Neurophoria? at FACT Liverpool explores the increasingly complex relationship between humans and artificial intelligence. Through a series of immersive installations, the exhibition invites visitors to reflect on how technology shapes our behaviour, decisions and sense of agency.

Each installation responds directly to visitors, meaning that your choices influence how the experience unfolds. By placing the audience at the centre of the work, the exhibition encourages reflection on themes such as autonomy, control, consumption and the blurred boundaries between human and machine intelligence.

One standout piece is Coffee Machine by Jan Zuiderveld. At first glance the work appears to be a simple vending machine — but to receive your coffee you must first engage in conversation with it. The sentient machine questions your intentions, challenges your worthiness and responds with sarcastic, sometimes rude commentary as you attempt to persuade it to dispense a drink.

The humorous yet unsettling exchange mirrors the way many people interact with generative AI tools, which are often treated as convenient sources of instant answers. By reversing that dynamic and placing the machine in a position of judgement, the installation invites visitors to reconsider humanity’s assumptions about technology and entitlement.

Rather than presenting a clear solution, the exhibition suggests that AI is now inseparable from modern life. Its message is one of awareness and adaptation: by questioning our own habits, values and choices, we can help shape the future relationship between humans and intelligent machines.

Artist Rooms: Ed Ruscha, Tate Liverpool (Until 14 June)

A major exhibition dedicated to influential American artist Ed Ruscha is currently on display as part of the ARTIST ROOMS collection at Tate Liverpool.

Ruscha is widely regarded as one of the defining figures of post-war American art, known for his innovative combination of photography, painting and text. This exhibition draws from the national ARTIST ROOMS collection, jointly owned by Tate and National Galleries of Scotland, which brings major international artists to audiences across the UK.

The show traces Ruscha’s fascination with the American landscape and roadside culture, themes inspired by his frequent journeys across the United States by car. A central feature of the exhibition is material related to his influential 1963 artist’s book Twentysix Gasoline Stations, which documents petrol stations encountered along the famous Route 66.

Visitors can also see photographs from Ruscha’s Sunset Strip Portfolio, including images of legendary Los Angeles venues such as Filthy McNasty’s, alongside examples of his distinctive text-based artworks like OK (State I) and Dance?.

Together these works highlight Ruscha’s ability to transform everyday imagery and language into striking visual statements. By focusing on ordinary scenes from the American roadside, the exhibition reveals how the artist redefined what could be considered subject matter for contemporary art.

Echoes of the Floating World, Williamson Art Gallery (Until 24 December)

A remarkable collection of Japanese woodblock prints takes centre stage in Echoes of the Floating World at Williamson Art Gallery and Museum. The exhibition focuses on the influential artistic tradition of Ukiyo-e — literally meaning “pictures of the floating world” — which flourished in Japan from the 17th to the 19th century.

Visitors can discover works by some of the most celebrated masters of the form, including Utagawa Hiroshige and Katsushika Hokusai. Their prints are renowned for their striking compositions, bold colours and innovative perspectives, capturing scenes of landscapes, everyday life and fleeting moments in nature. These techniques went on to influence generations of artists around the world, reshaping ideas about composition and visual storytelling far beyond Japan.

The exhibition also explores the lasting impact of these prints by placing them in dialogue with works by contemporary artists from the Wirral. By presenting historic pieces alongside modern responses, the show highlights how the visual language of Ukiyo-e continues to inspire new creative interpretations today.

Through this cross-cultural conversation, Echoes of the Floating World reveals how artistic ideas travel across time and geography. The result is an exhibition that not only celebrates a globally significant art movement but also demonstrates how local artists remain connected to an international artistic legacy.

To discover what’s on in Liverpool and the city region check out our events listings.

By John Maguire

In this latest edition of Buried Treasure, John Maguire of ArtsGroupie CIC turns his attention to the beating heart of Liverpool’s music scene — not the pop anthems or the sandstone landmarks, but the international rhythms that have quietly shaped the city for decades. John reflects on forty years of Milap’s work bringing Indian classical music to Merseyside, and the vibrant Indo-Jazz movement born from its partnership with the Liverpool International Jazz Festival. This month, his eye lands on a particularly special find: the return of percussionist and composer Sarathy Korwar to the region, performing at Future Yard.

There’s a specific kind of friendly, warming twang to the Scouse accent that we all recognise; it’s the sound of a city built on the ebb and flow of the Mersey. But for me, the true Buried Treasure of Liverpool isn’t always found in the lyrics of a pop song or the sandstone of a cathedral. Sometimes, it’s found in the international rhythms that have made their home on our docks, surfacing now as the pulse of a beat that belongs to the city as much as the river itself.

As I walk through Everton, I’m reminded that Liverpool has always been a city of global conversations. We aren’t just a ‘pool of life’; we are a whirlpool where cultures collide to create something entirely new. 

For forty years, the arts organisation Milap has ensured that Indian classical music is part of this city’s very foundation. While their story started back in 1985, their spiritual home for a long stretch was the Capstone Theatre. It was here, in 2013, that the Liverpool International Jazz Festival was established, sparking a partnership that helped pioneer the ‘Indo-Jazz’ movement in the North West.

In this space, the disciplined, ancient structures of the raga meet the improvisational soul of jazz. When you hear a Sarangi (a bowed instrument with a haunting, human-like voice) trade riffs with a saxophone, you aren’t just hearing a concert; you’re hearing the literal sound of the city’s DNA.

As the city begins to shake off the winter frost, the standout treasure on my map for March is the return of percussionist and composer Sarathy Korwar. An innovator who treats rhythm as a language, Korwar first captivated local audiences in 2020. His return on Saturday, 28 March marks a significant moment for the region’s music scene. He doesn’t play a standard kit; he brings the Ghatam (a South Indian clay pot) into a modern electronic landscape.

To catch this particular cultural treat, you’ll need to head to Future Yard in Birkenhead, just a short walk from Hamilton Square station. Something is fitting about taking Milap’s sophisticated 40-year legacy and placing it in a raw, independent space on Argyle Street. It proves that this music belongs to the streets as much as it does to the academy.

The performance, Sarathy Korwar: There Is Beauty, There Already, promises a masterclass in modern Indo-Jazz through percussion-led exploration and vocal drones. As we move toward the spring, I encourage you to look past the usual landmarks. 

The greatest finds in this city are often the ones that have been playing right next to us for decades, waiting for us to finally stop and listen.

Sarathy Korwar
Future Yard
28 March
Tickets

By Terry Sweeney

This was a great show by a tight band of superb musicians celebrating 50 years of Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers. The show was held in one of my favourite venues; The Music Room at the Phil, which is a great intimate venue that gives you a chance to get up close and see and hear a band playing within feet of you. A much as I enjoy going to gig at a bigger venue, this is how I prefer to hear music performed.

The band did two different setlists over the two nights at the Music room and covered the big hits and a few rarities. They covered Heartbreakers numbers and solo album songs, and two or three from Tom’s time with the Travelling Wilburys’ and his work with Stevie Nicks (for which he was joined onstage by a guest vocalist and Stevie lookalike).

This is the second time I’ve seen this band, and they were superb again.

You get what you expect when you go to see a tribute band, namely very good musicians who sound like the original band, and a front man who looks and sounds like the main man. If this is what you expect, this act ticks all the boxes, down to ‘Tom’s’ blond hair/hat and voice.

The set list on Friday 13th was taken from Heartbreakers albums like Damn the Torpedoes and Into the Great Wide Open, his solo outings like Full Moon Fever and Wildflowers, and his Travelling Wilburys’ and Stevie Nicks collaborations.

The set explored the depth of his songwriting with rarities like Wildflowers and big anthem like Free Fallin’, American Girl, and Love is a Long Road. 

The set list included The Waiting, Refugee, You Wreck Me, Saving Grace, Don’t Do Me Like That, Into The Great Wide Open, Learning To Fly, I Won’t Back Down, Wildflower, It’s Good To Be King, Running Down A Dream, End of The Line, Stop Dragging My Heart Around.

This show is a must-see for any Tom Petty fan. The band are on tour until later this year. I’m already looking forward to seeing them again.