Outings Details

The u3a has several Interest Groups that arrange trips on a regular basis for Members. The majority of these are arranged by the Out & About Group.

If you want to receive information on all these trips, please register your interest by joining the Out & About Registration Groupon the Groups page, please Click Here to go to the Groups Page.

This will enable the Group Leader to keep you informed by e-mail of future trips.

All future trips will have their own entry on the Groups page and you must join the relevant group for the trip you are interested in to apply for a place.

If you do not have access to e-mail, then the Group Leader will contact you by your preferred contact method specified by you when you joined the U3A.

A desk with all the information on future trips is also set out at the monthly meetings. Booking at the monthly meeting and the monthly library desk is also available. If you need to contact someone about a trip, please do so by using the u3a Contacts button in the top menu bar.

Please note that outings are available only to members of Holmes Chapel & District u3a.

All trips at the time of advertising are provisional and maybe subject to change or cancellation. The cost of each trip will be based on the number of people attending and what is included in the trip. e.g. entry fees etc.

We fully recognise the importance of enriching the lives of others within our u3a. But please note, on all Out & About and Theatre trips Members must be able to manage independently or should be accompanied by a carer; companion or partner. It is not the responsibility of the Group Leader nor any other Member to have to accompany someone who has independently signed up for the trip and be responsible for their welfare. Every Member is responsible for their own health, safety and welfare and that of the person/s they have agreed to accompany.

Click on Booking Details for Terms and Conditions for booking trips.

Destination : The Legends in Vegas - After Hours!, Bridgewater Hall - Evening Performance
Date               : 3rd November 2026

Status Live: 2 tickets available

The Legends in Vegas - After Hours!, Bridgewater Hall - Evening Performance


The Strictly Legends Brendan, James, Pasha, Vincent and Ian present their brand new show Vegas After Hours!


After Hours–Where the Dance Floor Never Sleeps!  Get ready for the ultimate night out-Vegas: After Hours brings five Strictly dance legends together for a spectacular new show that captures all the glitz, glamour, and excitement of Las Vegas. The show that celebrates the magic, glamour and thrill of Las Vegas like never before. Think neon lights and electric nights, roulette tables spinning, glamorous showgirls, dazzling casinos, desert sunsets, lavish pool parties, whirlwind weddings, iconic hotels, and world-class entertainment. Vegas: After Hours captures it all in one unforgettable evening.

With their incredible female partners, our five dance legends will bring the spirit of Sin City to life through breathtaking routines and nonstop entertainment—all set to a soundtrack inspired by the greatest Las Vegas performers of all time.

Vegas: After Hours isn’t just a show—it’s a celebration of the entertainment capital of the world, promising five legends, one stage and a night of pure Vegas magic.  Lights, Legends and Vegas–Vegas: After Hours is the ultimate dance spectacle!


Cost £76.00, includes ticket for stalls & coach. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 5:00pm for this 7:30pm concert.  We expect to be back in Holmes Chapel for approx. 11:00pm.

Destination : Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 26th November 2026

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Matthew Bourne's Cinderella  Music by Prokofiev

London 1940. The Blackout. A siren sounds...

New Adventures return to Lowry with the 30th Anniversary celebration of one of their most popular and beloved productions, Matthew Bourne’s CINDERELLA – a thrilling and evocative love story, set in London during the Second World War. Matthew Bourne’s epic interpretation of the classic fairytale, has, at its heart, a true war-time romance. A chance meeting results in a magical night for Cinderella and her dashing young RAF pilot, together just long enough to fall in love before being parted by the horrors of the Blitz.

With Lez Brotherston’s glorious Olivier Award-winning designs, lighting by Olivier Award-winning Neil Austin and video and projection designs by Duncan McLean, CINDERELLA features sensational sound design by Paul Groothuis which will take the audience into the heart of Prokofiev’s magnificent score, and the sights and sounds of war-torn London.

CINDERELLA is both a tribute and a testament to the spirit of London during a time when every second counted and lives were changed forever. Bourne's vivid storytelling has never been more heart-stopping and touching, creating a unique and unforgettable depiction of a familiar but timeless fable.

***** ‘A VALENTINE TO THE POWER OF LOVE’ LA Times
‘FRESH AND VITAL, HILARIOUS, PROFOUND AND STUNNINGLY ORIGINAL’ The Times
‘A PERFECT TREAT. GLORIOUS’ Daily Telegraph
‘A FINE ROMANCE AMONGST THE CINDERS OF LONDON’ Daily Telegraph
‘A BIG-HEARTED BALLROOM BLITZ’ The Observer
‘A GRIPPING THEATRICAL SPECTACLE’ The Guardian
‘DAZZLING. SEDUCES THE SENSES AND TOUCHES THE HEART’ San Francisco Chronicle

Cost £79.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination :
Date               : 18th December 2026
Status Live: Names being taken for waiting list
 
A Christmas Carol

Matthew Warchus’ big-hearted, smash hit production of Charles Dickens’ immortal classic comes to Lowry following nine sell out years at The Old Vic, joyously adapted for the stage by Jack Thorne (Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, His Dark Materials).

On a bitter Christmas Eve night” a cold-hearted miser is visited by four ghosts. Transported to worlds past, present and future, Ebenezer Scrooge witnesses what a lifetime of fear and selfishness has led to and sees with fresh eyes the lonely life he has built for himself. Can Ebenezer be saved before it’s too late? A Christmas Carol fills the auditorium to the brim with mince pies, music and merriment in this unique big-hearted production full of music and festive cheer. 

Reviews
★★★★★ ‘A festive staple’ - Daily Express
★★★★★ ‘An absolute delight’ - Daily Mail
★★★★★ ‘The very best of Christmas’ - The i
★★★★★ ‘A magical revival’ - The Times
★★★★ ‘An irresistible pageant of delights’ - The Standard
★★★★ ‘Euphoric joy’ - Sunday Mirror
★★★★ ‘Joy to behold’ - The Telegraph
Reviews from multiple productions of The Old Vic’s A Christmas Carol

Cost £90.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
Date               : 9th January 2027

Status Live: Names being taken for waiting list

The Hallé - Viennese New Year Concert - Bridgewater Hall Manchester

Ring in the New Year with a concert of sparkling Viennese music. This traditional celebration is packed with the best-loved melodies, from the buoyant Blue Danube to the beautiful Wiener Blut waltz.

Also in the programme is music by Richard Strauss (unrelated) including the serenely optimistic song ‘Morgen!’.

 
Conducted by Stephen Bell, and joined by soprano Rebecca Bottone, the Hallé will make The Bridgewater Hall feel like a ballroom.

This is always such a special event full of joy and sparkle. Join us to step into 2027 in style.

Programme includes:
J. Strauss II The Gypsy Baron: Overture
J. Strauss II Wiener Blut waltz
Eduard Strauss Österreichs Völker-Treue
R. Strauss Morgen!
Josef Strauss Village Swallows from Austria
Suppé Light Cavalry Overture
Binge Faire Frou Frou
J. Strauss II Tritsch-Tratsch Polka
J. Strauss II Pizzicato Polka
J. Strauss II On the Beautiful Blue Danube


Cost £50.00, includes ticket for stalls & coach.

We will leave Holmes Chapel at 12:30pm for this 3:00pm concert.  We expect to be back in Holmes Chapel for approx. 7:00pm.

Destination : A Little Night Music, Manchester Royal Exchange Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 20th January 2027

Status Live: One ticket available

A Little Night Music

Stephen Sondheim’s breathtaking classic, a life-affirming fairy-tale for adults.

‘I frequently laugh myself to sleep contemplating my own future.’
 
In Sondheim’s enchanting musical, set in turn-of-the-century Sweden, mismatched couples waltz through a series of self-delusions in search of a happy ending.

This lighter-than-air confection of romantic misfires and magical songs features Sondheim’s bittersweet masterpiece, ‘Send in the Clowns’. 

Old, young and middle-aged are equally determined and witty in this Tony award winning musical comedy.

Cost £71.00, includes transport and theatre ticket either Stage Level or First Gallery. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 12:30pm / Goostrey 12:40pm.  We expect to be back home for approx. 6:30pm depending on the traffic.

Destination : Palace Theatre, Manchester Matinee Performance
Date               : 17th February 2027
Status Live - Names being taken for waiting list
 
Jesus Christ Superstar

The record-breaking West End production of Jesus Christ Superstar, starring Sam Ryder in the iconic role of Jesus is now coming to Palace Theatre, Manchester.

Tim Rice and Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Jesus Christ Superstar follows the events of the last days of the life of Jesus Christ, as seen through the eyes of Judas. Reflecting the rock roots that defined a generation, the legendary score includes ‘I Don’t Know How to Love Him’, ‘Gethsemane’ and the iconic title number ‘Superstar’.


Cost £80.00, includes ticket for the stalls and transport.

Destination : Lowry Theatre
Date               : 25th February 2027

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

The Rise & Fall of Little Voice
The hardest voice to find is your own.


Alone in the sanctuary of her small bedroom, Little Voice fills the air with pitch‑perfect renditions of her deceased dad’s prized record collection of the great Divas, from Judy Garland to Billie Holiday.

But when her mother Mari's latest fling, local wheeler dealer Ray, hears her sing he’s certain he’s struck gold. Will Little Voice be pushed into a spotlight she never asked for?

Jill Halfpenny (After the Flood) and Francesca Mills (Silent Witness) play mother and daughter in this major new production of Jim Cartwright’s modern classic. A joyful, tender and bittersweet celebration of music, ambition and the courage it takes to be heard, directed by National Theatre Deputy Artistic Director Robert Hastie. 


Cost £68.00, includes a ticket for the stalls and transport.

Destination : Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
Date               : 20th March 2027

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

The Hallé - A Night at the Oscars- Bridgewater Hall Manchester


As the lights go down, be swept away by blockbuster music from a hundred years of cinema. 

Hear the most memorable tunes from the Oscar-winning scores for Ben-Hur, Up, and Slumdog Millionaire. And the nominations are … the enchanting soundtracks to Gladiator, Interstellar and How to Train Your Dragon. 
 The orchestra brings its own magic to Morricone’s nostalgic theme for Cinema Paradiso and the lush Golden Age melodies of Korngold’s The Sea Hawk. 
Highlights include the menacing theme to Taxi Driver, written by Hitchcock’s favourite composer and master of suspense Bernard Herrmann, John Williams’ suspenseful two-note motif, which brings the shark in Jaws to horrifying life and the symphonic jazz stylings of Henry Mancini’s score for Breakfast at Tiffany’s, which made Audrey Hepburn dub the composer ‘the hippest of cats’. 

Stephen Bell conductor

Music:
Moross The Big Country
Arlen arr. Campbell Somewhere Over the Rainbow
Herrmann Taxi Driver
Mancini arr. Bateman Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Korngold The Sea Hawk
Morricone Cinema Paradiso
Rózsa Parade of the Charioteers (Ben-Hur)
A.R. Rahman Slumdog Millionaire
John Powell How to Train Your Dragon
Michael Giacchino Up
John Williams Jaws
Hans Zimmer Interstellar
John Williams Catch Me If You Can
Hans Zimmer Gladiator
John Williams Star Wars: Imperial March 


Cost £58.00, includes ticket for stalls & coach. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 5:00pm for this 7:30pm concert.  We expect to be back in Holmes Chapel for approx. 11:00pm.

Destination : Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 8th April 2027

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Albert's Boy - Lowry Theatre - Matinee Performance

A funny and achingly moving play shining light on one of history's most enduring figures...  Albert Einstein is not feeling too good. His house is empty, his cat is missing, he can't remember where he put his violin and he is slowly driving himself insane as he struggles to solve the unanswerable question: Did I do the right thing? 

When a family friend, newly released from a Chinese POW camp, comes to visit, a warm reunion soon becomes an explosive collision of opposing beliefs on the subjects of evil, the winning of wars, and the construction of the world's first weapon of mass destruction, the atomic bomb. 

Albert's Boy is the second play written by James Graham who has become one of the nation's most celebrated playwrights and screenwriters (This House; Ink; Dear England; The Crown; Quiz; Sherwood) and in 2026 his play Punch won the Olivier Award for Best New Play.   

Starring actor, writer, presenter, comedian and two-time Olivier Award winner Griff Rhys Jones as Albert Einstein alongside stage and screen favourite Joe Absolom (EastEnders, Doc Martin) as Peter and directed by Tony and Olivier Award winner Terry Johnson.   

"James Graham is unquestionably one of our most significant playwrights, with an eclectic and electrifying body of work to his name”-  The Stage 

Cost £62.00, includes ticket for stalls & coach. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 12:00noon for this 2:00pm performance.  We expect to be back in Holmes Chapel for approx. 6:00pm.

Destination : Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 22nd April 2027
Status Live: Names being taken for waiting list
The Hollow - A Hercule Poirot Mystery  
 
Renowned detective Hercule Poirot expected a quiet break in the country; instead he's drawn into one of the most unsettling cases of his career. 
 
At The Hollow, an elegant country estate, a glamorous circle of guests gather together one summer evening. But beneath the sunlit charm, something darker coils. Old passions refuse to die. New rivalries ignite. Dangerous infatuations take hold. Then — a shot rings out. 
 
A body is discovered. A smoking revolver in an unsteady hand. The scene appears almost staged; a shockingly straightforward crime… it is anything but. 
 
Starring Peter Polycarpou  as the ever-meticulous Belgian sleuth.

Don’t miss this darkly seductive new staging of one of Agatha Christie’s most compelling mysteries.  


Cost £62.00, includes transport and ticket for the stalls.

Destination : Lowry Theatre, Matinee Performance
Date               : 27th October 2027

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

The Truth - Lowry Theatre - Matinee Performance

Direct from a sold-out West End run, The Truth is a smash-hit comedy from Oscar-winning writer Florian Zeller. An Olivier-nominated play hailed as ‘hugely entertaining’ by The Telegraph, it’s a sharp comedy of deception, where trust is fragile, loyalty is negotiable, and everyone has something to hide... This ‘deliciously funny, superbly cast and expertly constructed, 90-minutes of sharp-witted entertainment’ (Smooth Radio) peels back the lies we tell the people we love, and the ones we tell ourselves.

Starring TV icon Stephen Mangan (The Split, Episodes, Have I Got News For You), alongside the hilarious Sarah Hadland (Miranda, The Job Lot), and double Olivier Award-winner Janie Dee, The Truth is ‘sophisticated fun’ (Time Out), a ’chic, clever comedy’ (Financial Times), an ‘ingenious Rubik’s cube of hilarious deceit’ (Daily Mail), and a performance at the theatre you won't want to miss!

Reviews:-
★★★★★ ‘Florian Zeller’s comedy of deceit is seat-shakingly funny’ - The Guardian 
★★★★ ​‘I cried with laughter for 90 glorious minutes’ - Mail on Sunday
★★★★ The Telegraph
★★★★ Daily Mail
★★★★ Time Out
★★★★ The Standard
★★★★ WhatsOnStage

Cost £78.00, includes ticket for stalls & coach. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 12:00noon for this 2:00pm concert.  We expect to be back in Holmes Chapel for approx. 5:30pm.

Destination : Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
Date               : 26th November 2027

Status Live: Bookings now being taken

Fisherman's Friends - Bridgewater Hall - Evening Performance

Fisherman’s Friends bring Cornwall’s maritime heritage to life with booming close-harmony sea shanties rooted in the fishing community of Port Isaac. Mixing chapel-born vocal power with humour and camaraderie, they’ve become unexpected ambassadors for authentic coastal folk tradition, captivating crowds from harboursides to festival stages worldwide.

For a group whose remarkable story has inspired two hit feature films and a successful touring stage musical, this new tour marks yet another chapter in an extraordinary journey that began with friends singing on the harbour in Port Isaac to raise money for local causes.

In 2027 they are returning to theatres and concert halls nationwide with the humour, camaraderie and stirring harmonies that have made them one of Britain’s best-loved live acts.

Cost £60.00, includes ticket for stalls & coach. We will leave Holmes Chapel at 5:00pm for this 7:30pm concert.  We expect to be back in Holmes Chapel for approx. 11:00pm.