A landmark photography project
ABOUT THE PROJECT
The Manchester College, supported by Manchester City Council, is proud to introduce Greater Mancunians, a landmark, student-led photography project celebrating the people who have shaped Greater Manchester for the better.
Students are currently photographing individuals who were born in the region, raised here, or have chosen to make Greater Manchester their home, and whose contributions have had a lasting positive impact on the city and its surrounding boroughs
The groundbreaking photography project showcases portraits of some of Manchester’s most famous and influential figures, captured at iconic locations across the city. Led by 95 students from The Manchester College, the project features photographs of 120 contributors, including musicians Noel Gallagher and Johnny Marr; athletes Keely Hodgkinson and Ricky Hatton; politicians Andy Burnham and Angela Rayner; actors Maxine Peake, Steve Coogan and Bill Roache; artists Stan Chow and Akse P19; alongside a wide range of local figures and community champions.
At its heart, the project aims to equip talented young creatives with the employability and real-world experience that are so essential when building careers in the creative industries.
More than a photography exhibition, the project is a powerful celebration of the spirit, diversity and creativity of Greater Manchester.
The Greater Mancunians Project (Phase 1) was exhibited at the iconic Manchester Central Library in the Main Exhibition Hall and published as a book in 2024. Six years in the making, the Phase 1 exhibition and accompanying book featured 120 contributors and received outstanding reviews at local, regional and national level.
A BRIEF HISTORY
The project began when Class of 2017 student Harry Yeates set out to photograph performance poet John Cooper Clarke as part of his final major project. With Clarke scheduled to perform at the Albert Hall, a last-minute one-to-one meeting was arranged for the morning after the show. Harry photographed him beneath Blackfriars Bridge, beside a life-sized stencil created by artist Stewy.
The shoot proved to be an immensely positive experience for Harry, and the resulting work received widespread praise at the college’s end-of-year exhibition.
We repeated this collaborative approach with a number of celebrated Mancunian creatives, and gradually an original mini project began to take shape organically.
Over the following two years, the list of Greater Manchester contributors continued to grow, attracting notable names including Andy Burnham, Peter Saville and Johnny Marr. Their involvement brought fresh energy to the project and generated significant attention across social media. Today, the momentum continues, with an exciting and ever-growing list of new contributors preparing to take part.
The pandemic, of course, had a significant impact on the project. During the strict lockdowns, all activity came to a halt. As restrictions gradually eased, we were able to resume the shoots, although this was limited to a single student photographer working under social distancing measures and wearing a face mask.
Post-pandemic, the photography project continued to gather momentum, with many more notable figures taking part, including Maxine Peake, Paddy McGuinness, Steve Coogan and Noel Gallagher, to name just a few. In 2024, Phase 1 of Greater Mancunians was exhibited at Manchester Central Library, where it received fantastic reviews
GREATER MANCUNIANS 2
Following the success of Phase 1, Phase 2 of the project launched in Spring 2025 with renewed ambition. Discovering just how many remarkable Greater Mancunians are still waiting to be celebrated proved to be a challenge we could not resist.
