BOLTON'S Mark Radcliffe and his fellow DJs will bring a festival to life for audiences next month.

This year’s Manchester International Festival (MIF) is taking place from July 2 to 19 and the BBC will broadcast live for the first week of the festival.

Mark, along with Radio 6 Music co-presenter Stuart Maconie, Radio Manchester's Becky Want and Sam Walker and Radio 5 Live's Phil Williams will host their shows from a purpose built studio in Festival Square.

Free tickets for BBC shows and performances will be issued through a ballot which is now open until Friday, June 26.

Mark said: "Here in Manchester we are inordinately proud of MIF. To have a world class festival, drawing internationally celebrated artists, creating unique works that are world premieres is a towering achievement for the city.

“Having said that, the proud Northerner in me considers this to be nothing more than we deserve. I look forward to boasting about how great we are to the viewing and listening public.”

Along with Newsnight’s Kirsty Wark, he will front a live special, showcasing a selection of the best music and performance from this year’s festival. The one-off programme will be recorded for a BBC Four special to be broadcast on Sunday, July 12.

Radio 3 will be broadcasting from the Pavilion Theatre in front of a live studio audience with shows including Ian McMillan’s “cabaret of the word”, The Verb, The Early Music Show and Radio 3's flagship drive time programme, In Tune with Suzy Klein.

Alongside the hub of Festival Square, MIF has invited the BBC Philharmonic to perform the world premiere of young Liverpool composer Mark Simpson’s new work, The Immortal.

The musical piece explores themes of love, death and the afterlife and will be performed at The Bridgewater Hall on Saturday, July 4.

Pat Connor, head of development and events, BBC England, said: “This brilliant bundle of collaborations and broadcast specials between the BBC and MIF really cements our ongoing commitment to the arts and, in particular, this wonderful festival.

"We will be giving audiences across the UK a front row seat to one of the most exciting cultural events of the year.

“I'm proud that every time MIF comes around, we raise the bar with what we do together and, in its tenth year, I think it is testament to that fantastic partnership that we have such a lovely line up of treats for all audiences."

CBeebies is also joining in, with some of the channel’s biggest names part of the line-up, as well as new performances.

Alex Poots, CEO and artistic director of MIF said: "We are very pleased to be working across the BBC to take these shows, made here in Manchester, out to the wider world — and to welcome the BBC onto our Festival Square to present a range of their best programmes."

Tickets are available through the ballot for:

• Friday, July 3 — BBC Radio 3’s The Verb 11am to noon

• Saturday, July 4 — CBeebies Swashbuckling Adventure noon to 1pm

• Monday, July 6 — BBC Presents: One Night in Manchester (WT) 6.30pm to 7.30pm

• Tuesday, July 7 — BBC Radio 3’s The Early Music Show 6.30pm to 7.30pm

• Wednesday, July 8 — BBC Radio 3’s In Tune 4.30pm to 6.30pm

• Saturday, July 11 — CBeebies’ Swashbuckling Adventure noon to 1pm

• Saturday, July 18 CBeebies’ Swashbuckling Adventure noon to 1pm

To apply for BBC audience tickets visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/showsandtours/shows/manchester_int_fest_jul15