Watch…..No(at Cornerhouse)..set in Chile in 1988, where the fascist dictator Pinochet is still in power and wants another 8 years. Under pressure from the international (read the USA) community to legitimize his regime he agrees to hold a referendum, to decide Yes or no. Gael Garcia Bernal plays Rene Saavedra, a young advertising executive who is seems to be living the modern, affluent Chilean lifestyle, who designs the No campaign. His decision to work for the left brings him into conflict not just with his partner in the advertising agency, and the left activists, who are suspicious of his marketing approach. The film reveals his own radical past. One of the undeveloped aspects of the film is his relationship with his ex-wife and mother of his child whom he looks after. She appears, generally at night, to see her son and then as Rene becomes more involved with the No campaign we see her being targeted by the police and brutally beaten and dragged off. In the end the regime loses the referendum and a democratic government was elected.
For many Chileans this was only the beginning of trying to find out the truth about the disappearance of their loved ones. No, shows how the left can triumph even after many years of fascism, dependant, of course, on those brave people who say yes to living in a truly democratic country.

Celebrate…it’s a hundred years since the birth of Rosa Parks aka The Mother of the Civil Rights Movement. On 1 December 1955 , in Montgomery, Alabama, Rosa refused to obey bus driver James F. Blake’s order that she give up her seat in the colored section to a white passenger, after the white section was filled. She wasn’t the first person to do so, but she was determined to challenge through the courts the Alabama segregation laws. Parks’ act of defiance and the Montgomery Bus Boycott became important symbols of the modern Civil Rights Movement. She became an international icon of resistance to racial segregation. She organized and collaborated with civil rights leaders, including Edgar Nixon, president of the local chapter of the NAACP; and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., a new minister in town, who gained national prominence in the civil rights movement.

On Monday 11 February at City Library, Elliot House, 151 Deansgate Manchester from 1-2pm Lou Kushnick will talk about Rosa’s life and why we should remember her.
Book free tickets at http://www.rosaparkscentenary.eventbrite.co.uk or call 0161 234 1317 for more information.

Learn about .Walter Tull, only the second black professional football player, and one of the few black officers in the British Army. He was a war hero during the First World War and in the play Tull at the Bolton Octagon this month we also find out about his relationship with suffragette, Annie Williams. Phil Vasili has written a biography Walter Tull, 1888-1918: Officer, Footballer and he has collaborated with the playwright David Thacker to develop the play. It looks to be one of the most interesting and relevant plays that are on in the northwest this season. Further details see

Eat……and make your views heard.….. , Salford based theatre company Quarantine are offering you a free lunch at Manchester curry house, the Kabana Café, if you talk to them for half an hour. It is refreshing that a theatre group want to listen to their customers and maybe other companies should follow when going to the theatre is a luxury item. For more info on the monthly curry and chats visit http://www.qtine.com or you can book your place by emailing info@qtine.com or calling 0161 830 7318.
Next date is Tuesday 19 February 2013
Time: Half hour slots between 12 noon – 2.30pm
Venue: Kabana Café
Address: 52 Back Turner Street, Northern Quarter, Manchester M4 1FP

Reclaim the Night…..in Manchester on Thursday 21st February. Organiser Tabz O’Brien says: it will be a lively, creative march filled with colour, light and sound. The event is open to the whole community, to demonstrate women’s right to walk the streets at night free from sexual violence, street harassment and assault. The march starts at Owens’ Park, Wilmslow Road, Fallowfield at 7pm, where a neon parade will head down Wilmslow Road towards Manchester Students’ Union. The march will be led by a women’s-only block, open to all self defining women, and followed by a mixed march open to all genders. The evening continues with the Reclaim the Night After Party, a festival of the finest women talent, with live comedy and music, arts and crafts, fun activities, community stalls and DJs from 9pm until late. Further see

Read about……. the northern spirit…a website exploring all aspects of what it means to be northern. The latest post is by talented writer Chrissy Brand and its about my favourite place in the northwest the WCML… This is just one of Chrissy’s posts, she also covers Manchester Town Hall, businesswoman Elizabeth Raffald, and gig-goer Dave Eckersley. It is her series of Manchester Movements and Manchester Moments exploring her love of this part of the northwest. See

And don’t forget… Emergency Summit on Future of NHS in Gtr Manchester …. 12 noon, Saturday February 16th, 2013 Friends Meeting House, Mount Street, Manchester. M2 5NS. See you there!