What's On Northwest 14-21 Jan: Delia Derbyshire

Each week The Skinny team hand pick a selection of the best events from the Northwest cultural calendar to provide you with this here top ten guide to the most exciting goings on for the week ahead. From gigs, plays, and exhibitions, to spoken word, pop-up foodie events, and one-off film screenings, we give you the insider's guide to things to do in Liverpool, Manchester and beyond every Thursday morning.

Delia Derbyshire Day
HOME, Manchester. Sun 17 Jan, 11.30am

One of history's most esteemed pioneers in electronic music, Delia Derbyshire was a member of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and, most famously, the woman behind the original Dr. Who theme tune in 1963. Celebrating her life, legacy and mad skills, Delia Derbyshire Day will take us on our own journey through time and space with family electronic music workshops, live music, film screenings, new commissions and more.

Labyrinth
FACT, Liverpool. Sat 16-Thu 21 Jan, times vary

Well it's been a grey few days here on planet Earth since the passing of David Bowie, but, hoping to salvage some good from the gloom, FACT cinema will be screening one of the greatest gifts he ever gave us, Labyrinth. A cult fantasy favourite following protagonist Sarah as she tries to rescue her baby brother from the clutches of the Goblin world, this one is packed with Jim Henson puppetry, great songs and, above all else, a mulleted Bowie as the glam rock Goblin King. In the meantime, you can read our piece on Bowie's death.

The Winter Fly
The Whitworth, Manchester. Thu 14 Jan, 7.30pm

As part of The Whitworth's fantastic Thursday Lates series, you'll be able to ease your way towards the end of the week with a free screening of a 30-minute animation using shadow theatre techniques, The Winter Fly. This will be accompanied by a live score performed by pianist Gareth Smith and Blackpool-based cellist Elizabeth Preston, creating a Thursday evening that pairs stunning visuals with unrivalled atmosphere.

Big Mouth
Church Street, Liverpool. Mon 18-Sat 23 Jan, 4pm

As part of Metal's Liverpool Provocations, a series of public realm art works that help interrupt the public so they can stop and think about gnarly stuff like consumption and money, each evening Church Street and its surrounds will be all aglow with Big Mouth, a mobile installation from the tech-savvy bods at MEYOUANDUS. The illuminated orb will tempt others to speak outside of the constraints of social dialogue through a projected human mouth, which will silently repeat and absorb the deepest thoughts of the public.

Up/Down
Holden Gallery, Manchester. Mon 18 Jan-Fri 4 Mar, times vary

A group exhibition from Andreas Gefeller, Dryden Goodwin, Noemie Goudal, Fiona Tan, Katja Strunz and Yang Zhenzhong, Up/Down explores how the sensation of being up high can somehow instigate both exhilaration and fear, while to feel down is sometimes seen as being more grounded. As we all know, our emotions don't like to be that straightforward, so here the Holden Gallery becomes a testing ground for the perspectives of up and down to be played out.

Photo: Still from Dryden Goodwin, Poised (2012). Courtesy FVU and the artist.

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Drifts + Break-Ups + Pardon Us + Arms
Maguire's Pizza Bar, Liverpool. Fri 15 Jan, 7.30pm

It's Sunderland-based Drifts who may draw many of the faces in for this, being the latest project from Ross Millard of now-on-hiatus The Futureheads. But you'll find that the rest of the bill is nothing to be sniffed at either, as a load of great sounds descend upon Maguire's in the form of pop-punk trio Break-Ups (pictured), Liverpool outfit Arms and their fellow scouse punk rockers Pardon Us.

Photo: Maria Kalavera

Covert free party
Mantra Live, Manchester. Sat 16 Jan, 11pm

Following a hugely successful 2015, Covert uproot themselves from their usual Sankeys dwelling and take to a nearby but lesser-trodden venue, Mantra Live. Here you'll find a line-up of Just Jorge, Cal Johnstone, Mike Lavercombe, Lewis Smith, Jack Meehan and more, and because everybody loves the gratis touch at this time of year, you can claim a free ticket to help you on your way. Noice.

Flat Death
Open Eye Gallery, Liverpool. Fri 15 Jan-Sun 3 Apr, times vary

Delving into how we deal with death both individually and as a society, Flat Death features two series of photographic projects by Edgar Martins and Jordan Baseman, who, through different means, explore photography's role within our relationship with death. In short, it may seem like a particularly heavy one, but it's from this dense subject matter that the show questions why it is that depictions of death make us so twitchy.

Photo: Jordan Baseman, Deadness (2013). Still courtesy of the artist and Matt's Gallery, London.

Chali 2na + The Funk Hunters
Band on the Wall, Manchester. Sat 16 Jan, 7pm

Knock out those January blues with the brute force of some of the world's most distinctive baritone vocals, as Chali 2na, whose deep tones you'll recognise from his integral role with classic hip-hop group Jurassic 5, makes his way to Band on the Wall. Known also for his on-stage charisma, from Chali you can expect a guaranteed good-time gig, especially as he's joined on stage by spirited Canadian duo The Funk Hunters.

Homegrown Festival
Lantern Theatre, Liverpool. Mon 18-Fri 22 Jan, times vary

Showcasing companies and theatre groups based in the Merseyside area, Homegrown Festival returns to The Lantern after its August debut last year. At no cost to any of the performers, the festival is a great way to support local talent, with shows for the coming week including Pieces, a collection of monologues from Keyhole Theatre Co., Part Vampire, a comedy-horror by Blue Park Theatre Co., and Altru Young Actors Company's play about mental health, happiness and choices, Perspectives.

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