Manchester is one of the UK's most dynamic and cosmopolitan cities. It is also a city of contrasts… large but not so big as to be anonymous, glorious Victorian buildings set against state-of-the-art 21st century architecture, a thriving, ultra-regenerated city centre and yet with some of the most beautiful landscapes in Britain within easy reach.

With 56 museums and galleries, 132 cinema screens, 450 licensed premises, 60 miles of canals, eight professional football clubs, three professional orchestras, 42 traditional markets and thousands of acres of parks and countryside, the city and its surrounding area offers something for everyone.

2009 will see the return of the Manchester International Festival, for which Cobbetts will again be the official supplier of legal services. Billed as the world's first international festival of original and new work, it will bring together large-scale events from world-class artists, musicians and academics.

Manchester also provides for those with a shopping addiction. There is an abundance of retail and fashion outlets in the city centre, ranging from the alternative Afflecks Palace to the designer shops on King Street. Manchester has been compared to the culturally rich and cosmopolitan city of San Francisco which, given Manchester's diverse ethnic mix, individual character and a population with over 65% of people aged under 45, is no surprise.