THE HERDS, a major new work of public art and climate action featuring 70 life-sized safari animal puppets comes to Heywood in July as part of Manchester International Festival.
THE HERDS, a major new work of public art and climate action featuring 70 life-sized safari animal puppets comes to Heywood in July as part of Manchester International Festival, and more details have been confirmed.
The event is an ambitious public artwork by The Walk Productions, featuring elephants, giraffes, antelope and lions, made from the upscaled or recyclable cardboard and plywood. It's a dramatically eye-opening way to put focus on climate change, the concept being that these animals are fleeing climate disaster.
The animals began their 20,000km journey in Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in April and have since visited Lagos, Dakar, Marrakesh, Casablanca and Rabat. The procession is now making its way through various European cities.
THE HERDS, featuring 70 life-sized safari animal puppets, comes to Heywood in July.
‘Ground-breaking international production’
THE HERDS is due to appear in the residential area around Aspinall Street in Heywood from 7pm on Friday, 4 July 2025 on a mission to find a way back to nature, before they move to nearby Queen’s Park seeking and finding a tranquil oasis.
Following THE HERDS appearance in Queen’s Park there will be a live performance on stage by 9-piece Riot Jazz Brass Band. The festival favourites will be playing their unique mix of dancefloor anthems and aggro-jazz until 9pm. There will also be a programme of live entertainment accompanying THE HERDS at venues across Heywood town centre during the evening with further details to be revealed next month.
The event is free, and no booking is required. Visitors who aren’t able to walk to the event are being advised to use public transport where possible as parking in Heywood will be limited.
Visiting Heywood during the Greater Manchester stage in partnership with Heywood Town Board, it is described as a public art project on a scale never attempted before – a testament to both the scale of the crisis and the collective effort needed to fight it. After visiting Greater Manchester, THE HERDS travel on to Scandinavia and then the Arctic Circle.
A dramatically eye-opening way to put focus on climate change.
Councillor Sue Smith, cabinet member for communities and co-operation at Rochdale Borough Council, said:
“It’s so exciting that this ground-breaking international production is coming to Heywood, one of only a handful of stops in the UK. Already THE HERDS are capturing the imagination of everyone who sees them and I hope through these life-sized creatures we will spark thoughts and raise awareness about everything that is happening to our environment worldwide too. Nature and THE HERDS message is so important.”
If you’re unable to attend the event in Heywood, you can catch THE HERDS the day before in Manchester city centre (Thursday, 3 July 2025) or the following day (Saturday, 5 July 2025) at Pennington Flash in Leigh. As well as joining events in-person, audiences are able to follow THE HERDS online
THE HERDS is part of a spectacular line up of festivals, live performances, exhibitions and art during Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture 2025-26. The title, awarded by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority celebrates the town’s rich history, creativity, talent and diverse arts scene.
- Find out more about seeing THE HERDS in Heywood
- Find out more about Rochdale’s year as Greater Manchester Town of Culture