The city and the people

This poem and accompanying video responds to What is the city but the people? It is an ode to Manchester and its hidden treasures – its residents. While being proud and tender, it also playfully mocks Manchester’s negative stereotypes and the pseudo-divine devotion to the city often made by those who live there. In the poem, the 28 places of Manchester are hidden in puns. This is partly a cheeky game but it also unsettles and undermines the notion of ‘place’ as it relates to ‘home’. The video was filmed on a Gopro attached to the author’s cycle helmet as she made her way from the city centre to the suburbs. Copies of the poem have been hidden in geocaches around the city and are already being moved around Manchester by keen treasure hunters.