It’s almost time for tens of thousands of people to flock to the fields of Heaton Park for this year’s Parklife festival, which is bigger than ever in 2024.
The huge festival brings together the biggest names in dance, house, hip hop, grime and electronic music for two days of partying.
This year’s line-up is arguably its biggest yet, featuring headline performances from Doja Cat, Disclosure, Becky Hill and loads more.
And even with the incredible European debut of Fisher and Chris Lake’s Under Construction now pulled from the line-up, it’s still set to be Manchester’s biggest party of the year.
If you can believe it, it’s been 14 years since the first-ever Parklife was held and since then it’s gone on to be not only a Manc music institution and rite of passage, but one of the most famous festivals around the world – we’re just lucky it happens to be right on our doorstep.
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With that in mind, here’s everything you need to know about Parklife 2023, from who’s playing and where to how you’ll be getting there and back.
Parklife 2024 line-up
Aitch performing at Parklife 2023. Credit: Sam Neill
The city’s biggest music event has lined up huge names like Doja Cat, Disclosure and J Hus to perform over the weekend of 8 and 9 June.
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Returning Parklife favourites Peggy Gou, Becky Hill, and Four Tet are also heading up the huge 2024 Parklife line-up.
The pop and R&B side of the line-up will be taken care of by names like Sugababes, Anne-Marie and Mahalia.
Also on the bill will be Kaytranada, Camelphat, Rudim3ntal, Nia Archives, Hybrid Minds, Patrick Topping, Barry Can’t Swim, Folamour, Dom Dolla, Casisdead, Wilkinson, Shy FX: Specials, Interplanetary Criminal, Sammy Virji b2b Interplanetary Criminal, Kenya Grace, ANOTR, PAWSA, TSHA, Girls Don’t Sync, Max Dean, Hedex, Bou, Uncle Waffles, Skream, Jyoty, Loco Dice, Sub Focus and loads more.
The good news if you’ve not yet booked your Parklife tickets is that there are still some available, whether you’re picking a day to go or want to take on the whole weekend.
How much is a VIP upgrade and what does it get you?
Having done a fair few Parklife festivals now, we can confirm that the VIP upgrade is well worth the money.
You’ll get fast-track entry to the festival (no queues for you!), and access to a whole separate area of the festival to relax in.
The VIP area at Parklife has exclusive DJs, a street food market, cocktail and spritz bars, lockers, fast-track loos, a make-up artist and glitter station, and even a streetwear stall by Suzy Loves Milo.
It’s £35.50 to upgrade a day ticket to VIP, or £34.50 for weekend ticket-holders – again, check here to book yours.
Parklife 2024 festival site map
The map of the Parklife festival site for 2024
Parklife 2024 dates and opening times
Saturday 8 June : 12pm – 11pm
Sunday 9 June : 1pm – 11pm
Last entry into the festival is 5pm
Stage splits for Parklife 2024 headliners
It’s always the eternal question for festival-goers – how am I actually going to see all this amazing music and one weekend, and who’s going to clash this year?
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Parklife has already confirmed the stage splits for its 2024 instalment, so we know exactly who’s going to be playing which stage.
Stage times aren’t out yet but usually drop a good few days before the festival – you can download the Parklife app (here for Apple, here for Android) for all you need to know.
How to get to and from Parklife festival 2024
As Parklife is a non-camping festival, getting home at the end of the night is always a question people ask.
Organisers make it as straight-forward as possible for people to get back home after the stages wrap up in Heaton Park.
The fastest and easiest way to travel to and from Parklife is with the official Parklife Travel Pass, a partnership with Transport for Greater Manchester (Bee Network), Manchester City Council and Parklife, which allows you to travel on the direct Parklife Shuttle Bus and Metrolink service from Manchester City Centre.
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Buses will operate back into Manchester from the early evening, until the site is clear, and fans should use the NORTH EXIT of the site for the bus departure point.
Tickets are just £5.50 per day.
You can see more travel advice from Parklife here.
The UK’s much-loved ‘day rave’ with Vicky and Jon McClure returns to Manchester for New Year’s Eve
Thomas Melia
One of the UK’s most popular new club events and pioneering ‘day rave’ is returning to Manchester this New Year’s, featuring founders Jon and Vicky McClure, as well as some very special guests.
The Line of Duty star and Reverend and the Makers frontman started the parent-friendly event back in January of this year as an alternative day out for those looking to have a party and still manage an early bedtime. Since then it’s gone on to become a real phenomenon and is only getting bigger.
With Vicky swapping UK dramas and crime thrillers for the discotheque and ‘Big Jon’ switching lanes from his usual rock, indie and alternative roots to favour timeless dance tracks to still get people up on their feet, Day Fever has gone down a storm all over the country.
With their first year coming towards a close, they now look set for arguably their biggest day rave to date as Day Fever will be hosting a special New Year’s Eve for their final hurrah of 2024 right here in Manchester city centre – and no, you don’t need to be able to stay up until midnight.
The two McClures – unrelated, by the way, they just share a name and a fantastic taste in music – and the rest of their crew will be partying between 3-8pm for a much more tame and friendlier night (day) out, commanding the decks alongside some other special guests.
Not only does this alternative way to party promise a more responsible curfew, meaning clubbers don’t have to worry about missing the last train home but it’s also geared towards over 30s whilst still being super inclusive.
This day-time clubbing event is designed to reminisce on the old days and all those dance-filled memories of evenings spent out on the tiles, just minus the late-night finish – and hopefully the hangover but that’s down to you really, isn’t it?
In their words: ‘There’s no dress code, no egos—just pure positivity’; there’s nothing we love to hear more than the sweet relief of not having to get dolled up for a big night when we just can’t be bothered.
With New Century Hall hosting the Day Fever once again for their first-ever NYE party here in Manchester, along with two other events being held simultaneously in Edinburgh and Birmingham, you can get all your partying done way with plenty of time to get cosy in bed before the calendar turns over.
Just in time to watch Jools Holland’s famous Annual Hootenanny, as they put it.
Jon McClure and Vicky’s co-star, Martin CompstonVicky McClure leading the dance routines
This is guaranteed to be an evening to remember for everyone in attendance, especially when you’re joined by stars of stage and screen who will be powering you through with some proper dance bangers as they have done all year long.
The New Year’s Eve party isn’t just the last dance of the year either, it’s also effectively the prequel to next year’s raft of shows as Day Fever has already announced more than a dozen big dates in January and February.
This batch of 2025 dates sees the gang taking on lots of other cities, including North West neighbours Liverpool, Sheffield, Leeds and Hull over in Yorkshire, two Newcastle shows and plenty more.
So, if you’re feeling those clubbing blues, that pesky seasonal affective disorder or just still not booked up for NYE 2024, why not make the most of this day-time opportunity?
Tickets for both the New Year’s Eve and the rest of their 2025 events are available on the official Day Fever website HERE.
Oh yeah, and help get Rev to Christmas number one – it’s for a good cause and they deserve it!
Sean Paul and Ashanti are hosting a massive Manchester show in 2025
Danny Jones
The one and only Sean Paul is coming to Manchester next year and we’re about to be smashing that buy ticket button it’ll be left sticking like glue.
A terrible pun, we know, we’re just very excited.
Better yet, he’s bringing a fantastic co-headliner along with him as fellow noughties and R’n’B throwback Ashanti will be sharing the stage too.
Landing at the AO Arena in spring 2025, they’ll be upping the ‘Temperature’ ahead of the summer and just in time for the festival season to start getting underway.
Having both enjoyed the scene for many years back in its 2000s heyday and each still boasting their own long-serving fan bases no matter how long it’s been, we wouldn’t think of this as a Sean Paul headline gig with a support act but two very special guests doing what they do best.
The Jamaican-born rap, reggae and dancehall artist as well as all-round popstar needs no introduction really but we’ll give him one anyway: you have to pronounce his name funny and he’s best known for countless club classics like ‘Got 2 Luv U’, ‘Get Busy’ and ‘Gimme The Light’, just to name a few.
Coming back to Manchester for basically a celebration of what many still revere as one of the golden eras for the genre will no doubt be an unbelievable night and playing the AO Arena after all this time is no mean feat.
General admission goes live from 10am, Friday 20 December but presale will be available for Three mobile users who want exclusive early access from Wednesday onwards from the same time.
The ‘Bring It’ Tour comes our way on 13 April 2025, with other dates including Leeds, Birmingham, Cardiff and a massive London show with Fat Joe joining too.
You can get ready to grab your tickets for Sean Paul and Ashanti’s AO Arena date HERE.
Daisy Jackson -
31st May 2024 
