Manchester International Festival is the world’s first festival of original, new work and special events. From theatres, galleries and concert halls to railway depots, churches and car parks – MIF bursts across the city in established and found venues. The Festival is staged every two years in Manchester and the next edition is set to take place 4 – 21 July.

The Manchester cholera epidemic of the 1830s is the unlikely inspiration for the first major UK project by one of the world’s most playful and provocative art collectives. Here at the invitation of Contact Young Curators, five emerging local artists brought together by MIF and Contact, Tokyo’s Chim↑Pom are building a temporary brewery underneath Manchester Victoria Station*.

Cholera swept through Manchester almost 200 years ago. Thousands of people were buried in cholera pits around modern-day Victoria Station and Angel Meadow – and thousands more only survived because they drank beer instead of water. Tour the secret brewery, try the beer, check out the special events below – and expect the unexpected…

Commissioned and produced by Manchester International Festival and Contact.

*Subject to licence