Sankeys is – quite rightly – the stuff of legend, a part of Manchester’s nightlife that will be talked about for decades to come.
While Ancoats 2024 is a maze of bars and restaurants, back in the 1990s Sankeys was the only destination most people bothered with – mostly everything else was a shell of a warehouse.
The doors to the club opened, and closed, and opened again, and closed again, with a few tweaks to its name along the way.
Whether you remember it as the Sankeys Soap that opened in 1994, or the Sankeys that built an actual beach (using 50 tonnes of sand) in 2009, or even if you never made it onto this hallowed dancefloor, you probably have a story about the venue.
It hosted everyone from Boy George to Bjork to the Spice Girls to Daft Punk, but famously turned away a baby-faced Justin Bieber (too shuffley, apparently).
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Nowadays it’s one of many, many converted mill buildings around the neighbourhood, filled with small businesses and apartments.
But Urban Splash, who have repurposed Beehive Mill into a co-working space, have kept many traces of Sankeys alive.
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Building manager Carl Holt, once a doorman at Sankeys, remembers when the entrance – now a wall of glass doors with fingerprint recognition – when it had huge steel doors to deter the cars that used to try and ram their way in.
The foyer of the building proudly displays photographs from the club’s final days, showing off rows of empty spirits bottles, crumpled promotional posters, and sticky dance floors.
Videos from club nights at Sankeys are projected on to the concrete wall that houses the mail boxes.
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There’s even the old safe, which developers drilled open to find years-old contraband confiscated from clubbers.
The old dance floor is now home to the head office of The Prince’s Trust, who store their outdoors equipment (wetsuits and the like) in what was once the smoking area, the jungle-inspired graffiti still covering the walls.
The old wooden staircase of Sankeys is now a fire escape and mostly blocked off from public view, while the former recording studios have been turned into bicycle storage rooms and office spaces.
Important meetings that now take place here are actually in what was Sankeys’ medical room, tending to revellers who’d overdone it a bit.
Carl says: “When Urban Splash bought it, they revamped it from top to bottom.
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“It’s flipped on its head, where there’s now all this business based here. It’s great to see but it is a big change.
The safe Urban Splash found when converting Beehive Mill. Credit: The Manc GroupThe old Sankeys medical room. Credit: The Manc GroupFamiliar stairs at Beehive Mill, which used to be Sankeys. Credit: The Manc Group
“I find it quite satisfying – yes I loved it when it was Sankeys, but I also like it the way it is now.
“Some people say to me ‘No, Sankeys weren’t here, this ain’t Sankeys’, they say they don’t remember, and I tell them ‘You don’t remember for two reasons…’
“In the early days when we were refurbishing it, people used to come here for the history.
“For the cobbles and the bricks and all that. It’s history. I love it.”
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While Ancoats is now often lauded as one of the world’s coolest neighbourhoods, nowhere will ever quite be able to recreate the cool of the Sankeys days.
In a statement shared today, the Co-op Live said it has been ‘undertaking an extensive protocol of testing critical procedures to ensure all areas are ready for fans’.
It said that the shows are being rescheduled to ensure they can ‘run safely’.
The 23,500-capacity arena said this will give them ‘the extra time we need to continue testing enhanced emergency communications thoroughly’.
The Black Keys will now perform on 15 May, and Peter Kay on 23 and 24 May.
As for the Bolton-born comedian, he sounds somewhat in disbelief himself:
My apologies once again but unfortunately the Co-op Live still isn’t ready and so, as yet, remains untested for a large-scale audience. Consequently, they are having to reschedule my two shows yet again (I know I can’t believe it either).
Co-op Live’s statement reads: “Since making the difficult decision to postpone the live shows at Co-op Live due to take place this week, we have been undertaking an extensive protocol of testing critical procedures to ensure all areas are ready for fans.
“To ensure that we can run all shows safely, regretfully we have now had to take the decision to reschedule the planned The Black Keys and Peter Kay shows.
“Both The Black Keys and Peter Kay have graciously agreed to reschedule their shows. The Black Keys will now perform on 15 May 2024, and Peter Kay will now perform on 23 and 24 May 2024.
“All tickets remain valid and ticket holders will be contacted by their point of purchase. Refunds will be available for those who can no longer attend.
“We deeply appreciate the impact this will have on excited fans, and sincerely apologise for the inconvenience that this change will undoubtedly cause.
“Rescheduling Peter Kay and The Black Keys will give us the extra time we need to continue testing enhanced emergency communications thoroughly.
“This is vital to satisfy the rigorous set of guidelines and protocols that are necessary for a venue of this size to ensure that our fans, artists and staff have the safest experience possible.”
Co-op Live boss resigns just days before venue’s official opening
Daisy Jackson
The boss of Co-op Live, Manchester’s enormous, ground-breaking new arena, has resigned from his position just days before the venue is set to open.
The enormous music-first arena has been taking shape beside the Etihad Stadium for several years, and was due to welcome its first official audiences this week, but has been hit with last-minute challenges.
And now Co-op Live‘s boss Gary Roden has quit the mammoth project, with the news of his resignation announced late Thursday evening.
Oak View Group, which Co-op Live is part of, said in a statement that they would like to ‘thank Gary for his help bringing the UK’s newest arena to live entertainment fans’.
Stepping into his shoes as interim general manager will be Rebecca Kane Burton, who previously ran the U.K.’s highest-grossing venue, London’s The O2 arena.
Gary has previously come under fire for saying that some grassroots music venues ‘poorly run’ – a statement that OVG has now distanced itself from.
A separate statement said that ‘neither Co-op Live nor Oak View Group share the sentiment expressed by former Co-op Live General Manager Gary Roden regarding the grassroots industry’.
It continued: “As OVG Chairman and CEO Tim Leiweke has repeatedly stated, Co-op Live remains committed to grassroots music in Manchester and beyond, including teaming up with Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham on the Artist of the Month campaign, and as a founding partner of Beyond The Music.
“Co-op Live also donates over £1m a year to the Co-op Foundation to support communities and empower young people to take social action through its new Young Gamechangers fund.
“Oak View Group and Co-op Live remain happy to meet with grassroots organisations once the venue is fully operational.”
Co-op Live boss Gary Roden speaking at the launch of Co-op Live just days before he resigned. Credit: The Manc GroupInside Co-op Live in Manchester
The news of the venue’s boss stepping down comes at a time when all eyes are on Co-op Live, the opening of which has been delayed.
The venue did host a test event with Rick Astley last weekend, but even that faced difficulties, with thousands of tickets cancelled to reduce capacity just hours before showtime.
It’s now set to officially open this Saturday 27 April with a performance by rock group The Black Keys.
The full statement from OVG about Gary’s resignation said: “Gary Roden has decided to resign. We’d like to thank Gary for his help bringing the UK’s newest arena to live entertainment fans and wish him the best for the future.
“Rebecca Kane Burton has been named Interim GM, effective today. Rebecca is a seasoned veteran of venue management and live entertainment in the UK having served as VP/GM of The O2 from 2012-2016 and CEO of LW Theatres from 2016-2021.