There's a lot to do in Sheffield this summer, whether you fancy a big pop concert, the best of touring theatre productions or getting up close and personal with a Bessemer Converter at an industrial museum. We've filleted out some of the big events of the next few months and slipped in one or two less-well-known gems for you to check out.

Best for music
The big pop event of the season is Hallam FM Summer Live, with Taio Cruz, Lawson, Alesha Dixon, Foxes, Aston Merrygold and others (Motorpoint Arena, 17 Jul.) If your tastes run more to the nostalgic, there's The ELO Experience (Sheffield City Hall, 27 Jun & 25 Jul) and Oasis UK (Leadmill, 11 Jul). Anvil, the metal band best described as life imitating Spinal Tap, are here to to rock your postal district (O2 Academy, 14 Jul) and if you fancy some crunchy American roots rock (sort of Alabama Shakes meets Free), try Atlanta, Georgia's 68-75. Their name tells you what era of music they like best (Greystones, 20 Aug.)

Best for kids
If you've never been that interested in ancient times, think again: Horrible Histories: Groovy Greeks will tell you all about how the ancient Greeks invented democracy, theatre, philosophy, the Olympic Games and olive oil, when they weren't beating the stuffing out of each other, that is (Lyceum, 14–18 Jul.) Weston Park Museum has Discovery Days with gallery trails and summer activities (21–28 Jul), as well as Creation Station arts and crafts sessions for wee ones (Mondays, 29 Jul–13 Jul) and Saturday Sessions for the whole family (27 Jun). As July kicks in, Yellow Bus Events bring their urban beach to The Moor for a taste of seaside fun without the inconvenience of going to the seaside (The Moor, 4 & 5 Jul.)

Best for theatre
The Mousetrap, Agatha Christie's long-running whodunit, is on tour for the first time; just don't tell anyone the secret when they can easily find it out for themselves on Wikipedia (Lyceum 6–11 Jul). Slung Low and Sheffield People's Theatre present an epic production, Camelot: The Shining City, featuring a cast of more than 150 (Crucible, 9–18 Jul). Then there's Belinda Lang and Gary Wilmot in Rodgers and Hammerstein's rousing musical of love, lust and accidental stabbing, Oklahoma! (Lyceum, 21 Jul–1 Aug). Michael Praed and Noel Sullivan are the titular pair of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels in the highly praised music based on, but generally considered more fun than, the 1989 movie (Lyceum, 25–29 Aug).

Best for free
Everyone's on a budget, and Sheffield has plenty of free events to check out. Sheffield Cathedral has regular lunchtime recitals (25 Jun, 3 Jul, 9 Jul). The Greystones Open Mic (6 & 20 Jul) nights give you a chance to see the mumblecore heroes of tomorrow. The Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize show is a major touring exhibition of award-winning photography (Millennium Gallery, 24 Jun–16 Aug), and to let your hair down after all that gallery roaming, there's the Planet Zogg Free Party (Plug, 10 Jul).

Best for comedy
Comedy is a little thin on the ground in Sheffield this summer, with many of the big names not touring to the city until autumn, but the veterans of I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue have had the decency to step in (Sheffield City Hall, 29 Jun). Meanwhile, local talent is in residence at the Last Laugh Comedy Club (Sheffield City Hall, Fri & Sat until 1 Aug). The All Stars of Comedy sees international laughs from Will-E, Jamaica's Prince Harry aka White Yardie, Aurie Styla, India's Mickey Sharma, and acclaimed newcomer Thanyia Moore (Sheffield City Hall, 12 Jul). Finally, you really shouldn't miss YouTube martial arts sensation Master Ken and his assistant Todd: with nearly 2m views, their video '100 Ways to Attack the Groin' is one of those clips that just keeps on giving. (Corporation, 16 Aug).

See our complete list of events happening in Sheffield.