Dear members — a few months ago we heard about ‘Dark Days, Luminous Nights’ — a very interesting-sounding show about the Irk Valley, commissioned and produced by Manchester Collective. It is described by its creators as “an immersive, audio-visual installation which audiences will experience in timed slots at The White Hotel, a former MOT garage turned underground music and arts venue in the shadow of Strangeways prison.”

After being delayed by the lockdown, the show opens next week, so we asked Simon Buckley, whose beautiful photographs of places in the valley are central to the project, to write something for us. He has written a lovely piece about what this part of Manchester means to him, including six of his best shots.