Arts and culture news

Gallery Oldham has opened two new shows that look hard at how women and migrants keep the town running. 'Women. Portraits: Trades & Professions' lines up local workers, while 'Indian Perspectives' hangs more than 100 drawings and paintings that trace 200 years of shared history between Oldham and the sub-continent.

The double launch lands only weeks after the council secured £564,375 to repair the roof, wiring and lifts inside the same building. Staff say the cash means both exhibitions can stay open longer hours and tour to neighbouring libraries next spring.

Down the road, the empty Oldham Coliseum will stay dark until 2026. The theatre trust folded in 2023; council papers now talk of a mixed-use reopening rather than a full playhouse, leaving actors and audiences waiting for detail.

Chris Riley, landlord of the Fox and Pine, reckons culture keeps people in the borough. On the council podcast he admitted his award-winning pub survives on an 'unexpected' chicken-and-banana pie that outsells steak. Riley's takings jump 40 % during Festival Oldham, which returns to the town centre this July with twin music and arts stages.

Sarah Lancashire's New Year honour for services to drama was the latest proof that Oldham names still travel. Yet the gap between national acclaim and local rehearsal space is widening. Gallery staff confirm they have turned away three community groups this month because every workshop room is booked until September.