Cornerhouse

Slicker than your average art gallery, the Cornerhouse (quite aptly) occupies a three-storey corner building comprising art space, independent cinema, bookstore and café-bistro near Manchester's trendy Northern Quarter. Light, bright, inspiring and informative, it's abuzz with the pick of foreign cinema and contemporary art exhibitions. And if this weren't motivation enough, it's worth a visit just on the offchance that Cornerhouse's esteemed patrons (Danny Boyle, Damien Hirst and Helen Mirren) might decide to stop by.