I am almost afraid to write about how good Bricktastic 2023 was in case it persuades more people to visit the Lego show in 2024 because it was BUSY!
Our daughter and I have visited Bricktastic every year that it has run. We were delighted when it returned last year and so as soon as tickets were made available for 2023 we immediately booked once again.
For 2023 the event had been moved to a bigger room in Manchester Central. This was much better, but it still needed to be bigger. The queuing was a problem last year (not sure why) but this year it was brilliant getting in. We pretty much walked straight in. We made use of the cloakroom facilities this year. I don’t know if they were there before but this was a very welcome service which meant we weren’t roasting as we walked around the room.
There was food inside the gallery but we decided to go elsewhere to eat. So we used wristbands to show that we were returning guests when we came back.
I think I’d have liked to see a few more shops. Due to personal circumstances we were not looking to spend lots of money, but there was nothing that gripped us at all this time. Our daughter bought a kitchen fron One More Brick (without a doubt, the best stall at the show).
The exhibitions were amazing. Our favourites were The Tower Zoo and The Great Ball Contraption.
The Tower Zoo is… a zoo in a tower. There were so many details included in this build that we had to visit it twice to take it all in. We had a chat with the builder and he was a lovely guy.
We loved the Great Ball Contraption. I didn’t film it this year as it was so busy and I didn’t have the patience to stand with my phone. We visited it twice to take in all of the different contraptions. This is an exhibition worth watching – if you get the chance you must visit and watch the balls being transported in creative ways using imaginative contraptions.
Our children were disappointed that there were no Harry Potter displays this year. We couldn’t really find anything at all. I think there are probably reasons for this due to JK Rowling’s views on trans people and Lego builders working togther to make a stand. I don’t know if this is the reason, this is pure speculation. Last year, our favourite build was a Harry Potter rollercoaster and we were hoping to see it again.
The mosaic felt quicker to get to this time. We enjoyed our builds and adding our tiles. The people who worked there were very patient with everybody.
We didn’t spend long watching the master builders. I thought I would enjoy this as I enjoy Lego Masters. But I think it proved why these programmes are edited as I did not have the patience to stand there and watch.
Bricktastic is a brilliant event and I would recommend anyone to visit!
