Great Northern

A huge entertainment centre with so much potential with its close proximity to Deansgate. Though its lacks in atmosphere unfortunately, It’s a beautiful building though and its home to the multi screen AMC cinema and Almost Famous Burger restaurant and Virgin Gyms and thats about it, if you want a fun place go to the Printworks instead.

The Great Northern is finally starting to pad out with more businesses — hooray!
And what more could you be super happy with than a cinema and bowling alley in the same building? Watch out Trafford centre!
With local bars and restaurants just outside and a Virgin Active Life gym in the building too, this place is offering more variety. A casino too you say! I have yet to gamble my life away in here…
Let’s hope the Great Northern continues to secure more businesses here and help the place thrive more.

The cinema itself is fine, and the cheapest mainstream cinema you’ll find in Manchester.
However, Great Northern itself is completely rubbish. I’ve seen many restaurants and bars come and go in the main building. You’d think they’d manage to get Nando’s on board, after all, which cinema doesn’t have a Nando’s or Frankie and Benny’s within a 5 minute walk away? But no, there’s just a few sad boarded up units and a Virgin gym in this gigantic building, which has so much potential.

As far as I can tell this place is absolutely dead and in need of some new ideas and serious regeneration. Apart from the cinema and Virgin Active, I couldn’t really find anything else in Great Northern and it seems as if all the units are boarded up.
It’s a sad situation for such an incredible building that’s steeped in so much history. I guess the problem must be that the Printworks offers exactly the same deal (restaurants, pubs, cinema, clubs) but has actually managed to continue to be a huge success.
The Great Northern is the exact opposite from that, and there’s really nothing in here to entice people in beyond wanting to watch Alice in Wonderland in 3D, but then swiftly leave. Weird.

I have to agree with the last review this place absolutely stinks place has a Virgin Health Centre in it and for some reason cannot contain the stench of old sweat.
The place itself is huge and orange Wednesdays are a godsend but I just cant get past the horrible smell, its just not what I want when I am trying to relax after a hard week at work thanks.

I couldn’t figure it out for ages. It bothered me everytime I went in. I couldn’t concentrate on the movie and just forget about popcorn– or eating in general!
What am I on about? If you don’t know then you’ve not been.
I’m obviously talking about the smell!
How can an entrie multiplex cinema that runs half the length of Deansgate smell of BO?!!
The first time I went this cinema I thought ok, its the height of summer, somebody is having a stressfull day.
But by the second, third, fourth and fifth times I realised this was more than some teenage phase the AMC was going through, it had a bad case of overactive sweat glands, botox in the pits of screen 5 please!
Once I’d got used to the idea that it was never going to go, I just became puzzled by it. It couldn’t just be some higene-​lax member of staff, the place is huge!
Then in considerally less globally significant Eureka moment than Albert’s it hit me– there is a gym next door and both places obviously share the air con.
Still though… lather up from time to time ‘ey lads?

I am definitely a fan of the AMC cinema here: cheaper than the Printworks, a cool selection of arcade games in the foyer plus last week they gave me and my friends a 2 for 1 voucher each.
All those nights fretting that I should have got a contract on Orange (for Orange Wednesdays) over and out.
The décor is cool; although they could update it a bit. They have big classic movie quotes as you walk towards the escalator and stills of the greats (you know Harrison Ford as Han Solo) as you make your way up to get some popcorn. Its very spacious in all, although that does make it feel perpetually empty.
As for the rest of the Great Northern, I think that restaurant spot as you enter from Peter Street must be cursed. They always seem to either be opening a new one or just closed down. There’s a gym, plenty of car park space and some conference rooms that they must rent out. So, there’s no real buzz about the place. I’d just go for big screens.

This is quite small and there doesn’t seem to be much in there, but it hosts, a casino, a gym, eateries and plenty of shops/​boutiques. it’s a bit of a hidden gem!