I’m going to use this rare moment online to dump information about some news and events I’ve recently discovered:

BBC 6 Music reports that Manchester City Council is considering a proposal to rename Whitworth Street West (home to Green Room, Rainbow Snooker Club and the Brickhouse nightclub) in honour of the late Tony Wilson. Two-thirds of residents will have to approve the name change to either Tony Wilson Way or Anthony H Wilson Way – I personally prefer the latter.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, is of course the date of the Manchester Blog Awards 2007 – for which Mancubist is nominated in the arts and culture category. Remember, the venue has now changed from MohoLive (which now opens in late November) to Matt & Phreds, also on Tib Street. The city’s music bloggers will be DJing (or MP3ing…) and blogger-cum-published-writer Caroline Smailes will be doing a reading. It’s free and starts at 7pm.

Also happening tomorrow is a low-key media event called MELD. It aims to generate ideas by ‘melding the skills of Northern Journalists and Interactive Designers’. The long-term goal is to pitch ideas by 20 of the region’s hacks and geeks to ‘major industry players’. The project’s Manchester launch event takes place in Selfridge’s Moet Bar from 6pm. If you think you fit the bill email info@just-b.com.

And finally, another lovely (lapsed) blogger called Kate tipped me off about a free event happening on Friday. A Wall is a Screen is ‘part guided tour, part film night’ and invites the public to view nine short films projected on buildings across seven secret city centre locations. It’s part of Manchester Urban Screens (11-14 October, check out their other events) and begins at 9pm outside Kro Piccadilly.

See you at some or all of the above…

Back in January I wrote that no funding for the Salford Film Festival spells the end. Organisers had pulled the plug, you may recall, after a no one was found to plug a £20,000 funding hole.

Thankfully, Ciara Leeming in yesterday’s MEN reported that Salford Council had, begrudgingly, agreed to stump up the money and that the festival is now back on track:

Salford council leader John Merry said he would be sitting on the management board to ensure this year’s festival was a successful one.

He said: “We can’t win. If we hadn’t have given the money we would be accused of not listening to people. Because we have, we’re being told we’ve been shamed into it. That’s simply not true.

“We were quite satisfied once we examined the business plan that this was an event we would be happy to support. Encouraging learning and creativity is one of the council’s key pledges and the Salford Film Festival certainly fits with that.”

Elsewhere, however, the future of Afflecks Palace still hangs in the balance.

Over 5,500 people have now signed an online petition to keep it open and, as the MEN reported last month, the two sides are currently engaged in talks. Interestingly, someone claiming to be Manchester councillor Pat Karney has been posting comments on that MEN story.

With just five weeks left before the lease expires on June 14, much of Manchester awaits further news with bated breath.

So these are the major events organised by the Manchester International Festival – I’ve picked out a few of the more interesting-sounding events in bold:

Shows and Events:

• Monkey: Journey to the West – 21st century circus opera, based on an ancient Chinese legend
• The Ground Beneath Her Feet – The largest UK orchestral commission of 2007
• For All the Wrong Reasons – A new theatre production
• The Pianist – Stage production of famous memoirs with concert pianist
• Kapital – Cinematic look at the hidden voices of every city
• Dead Wedding – Cult puppetry company reinterprets ancient myth
• Il Tempo del Postino – A Group Show from some of the world’s leading visual artists
• Carlos Acosta – First visit to Manchester and world premiere of the Tocororo Suite

International Music Series

• Lou Reed: Berlin
• Kanye West
• PJ Harvey
• Bert Jansch with Beth Orton and Bernard Butler
• Happy Mondays with special guests
• The Fall
• The Blue Nile
• Carlos Acosta
• Ojos de Brujo
• Orchestral Suite by William Orbit
• Happy Mondays with special guests
• The Cunning Little Vixen and Alphabicycle

Debates Series

• Slavery in Our Time – Symposium commemorating 200th anniversary of the abolition of The Slave Trade
• The Guardian Debates – Series of high profile, engaging debates
• Festival Futures – Thought-provoking seminars examining issues of our time
• The Manchester Debate – Is TV good for society?

Here’s the full events calendar, including dates and venues. I notice most of it is focussed around the Oxford Road corridor: Cornerhouse, Green Room, Library Theatre, Academy, The Ritz, Contact Theatre etc.

But they are also using a few other interesting venues: the Town Hall, Kro Piccadilly, The Temple, Science and Industry Museum, Zion Arts Centre, Central Library, for example.

What do we think then? Some seriously impressive coups, or festival for festival’s sake?

Here’s something for the film-makers out there:

The deadline for the next call for submission for The Bigger Picture (for work to be shown on the Big Screen in Exchange Square) is 16 March. For round 2 The Bigger Picture is particularly seeking film and video works that are about, or engage with, the world of sport in the widest sense, from football to mountain culture – rock climbing and base jumping, or Skateboarding! More information on The Bigger Picture web page.

And one for the writers too:

There are 10 days left to submit to Transmission Magazine Issue 8. We are looking for short stories on the theme of Survival. Even if you have already sent work in but think you have another tucked up your sleeve, we would love to hear from you! In response to many of your questions we have published an updated set of submission guidelines to help you when you are submitting your work.

Good luck if you’re getting involved!