It’s been a year since the Live from Wythenshawe Park kicked off its first-ever event and now the new gig series returns for its sophomore edition and the return of true Manc music royalty in the form of New Order.
Set to play the massive Greater Manchester park, which boasts a max capacity of roughly 30,000, this weekend, New Order will be just the second headliners to ever grace the outdoor venue.
Fellow Manchester icon Noel Gallagher smashed Wythenshawe’s opening day festival in August 2023, proving to be one of the biggest local music events in decades as tens of thousands of natives descended upon the fields, so they’ve got a tough act to follow.
That being said, when you’ve got the people behind not one but two of this city’s greatest-ever groups in New Order and Joy Division before them, we’re pretty confident it’ll be a walk in the… well, you get it. Here’s everything you need to know about New Order Live from Wythenshawe Park this Saturday.
First things first, do you still have a chance of grabbing tickets for New Order at Wythenshawe Park this weekend or are you just going to have to cling on to ‘True Faith’ of picking up a spare?
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Not to worry, the big bonus about huge open-air gigs like this is the capacity is just as enormous as the name, so there are still plenty of ticket options.
General admission is priced at £61.60 plus booking fees and VIP tickets – which grant you faster entry, a dedicated bar for drinks and additional food traders, plus a chill-out area – will set you back £137.50.
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Oh, and in case you hadn’t just heard, just a day later Stockport iconic Blossoms will also be playing their biggest-ever headline show in the very same field, so you can even opt for a full weekend pass at £89.60 if you’re hoping to head to both. Whatever your tier, you can grab yours HERE.
Who is supporting New Order at Wythenshawe Park?
It’s going to be a jam-packed 24 hours of live music too, in case you weren’t aware; the whole thing kicks off in the early afternoon and is more of a day festival than it is your typical gig.
Taking the stage first for the weekend will be local alternative outlet Kyris, Tyneside’s finest Nadine Shah still fresh off her latest album back in February, as well as the incomparable Irish songstress Róisín Murphy and, of course, The Smiths guitarist turned solo star Johnny Marr.
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I mean, come on, how good a set of openers is that? You’ll be plenty warmed up come time for New Order to close out the show.
As for when you can expect these wonderful artists to perform, stage times are always subject to change but this is the current schedule you’re looking for the Live from Wythenshawe Park 2024.
3:50pm — Kyris
4:50pm — Nadine Shah
6pm — Roisin Murphy
7:30pm — Johnny Marr
9pm-10:50pm — New Order
The venue’s curfew is 11pm, so you can expect to be exiting the fields not long after New Order wrap up and with plenty of time to catch the last raft of public transport services.
Setlist
We’ll have a clearer idea of New Order’s full running order when they play the first date on the current set of summer shows in Cardiff as part of The Bay Series on Thursday, 22 August, but you can always turn to trusty old Setlist.fm to get a decent idea of the average track selection.
Have a look below to see what they played at a gig in California back in November, but you can also see a more recent festival slot HERE.
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Tristan und Isolde: Prelude & Liebestod (Richard Wagner song)
Touched by the Hand of God (God Biff & Memphis remix)
Crystal
Regret
Age of Consent
Ceremony
Restless
Isolation (Joy Division cover)
Your Silent Face
The Perfect Kiss
Be a Rebel
Sub-Culture
Bizarre Love Triangle
Vanishing Point
Plastic
True Faith
Blue Monday
Temptation
Encore:
Atmosphere (Joy Division cover)
Love Will Tear Us Apart (Joy Division cover) — obviously…
Last but not least, there’s just the small matter of getting there. While we’d always recommend travelling as green as possible/using public transport where you can, there are still some car park tickets that you can pre-book online from 10am this Thursday.
As for those of you catching a ride, there is yellow signage to the north of the site which will lead you to the pick-up/drop-off point on Wythenshawe Road, M23 0AB.
There are also three tram stops to choose from: Wythenshawe Park, Moor Road and Baguley. However, it’s worth noting that both the Park stop and Baguley will be closed from 10pm so you won’t be able to get back home this way.
Finally, you can always catch one of the shuttle buses back into the city centre, which will set you back just £3.50 on the day. The service will be operating in a loop from Sale and the city centre, running from 1pm-8pm on the way to Wythenshawe Park and then from 8pm-1:30am when heading home.
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For more information, you can find all the up-to-date travel stuff HERE or check out (TfGM) Transport for Greater Manchester’s guidance and even use their interactive map below.
Featured Images — Warren Jackson (supplied)/Audio North
Audio
James Morrison is BACK with new music and coming to a beautiful Manchester venue
Danny Jones
Noughties favourite James Morrison is back with his first new album in six years and is putting on a small handful of special shows in a select few cities to celebrate, with Manchester being one of them, and tickets are going on sale next week.
With five records to his name over the course of a career spanning more than 20 years, it may have been a while since we’ve heard his instantly recognisable and raspy vocals, but he’s making his return later this year with his sixth studio LP and this limited run of live performances.
The Rugby-born singer-songwriter, acoustic guitarist and one-time regular in the pop charts enjoyed a successful period in the 2000s, even collaborating with the likes of Nelly Furtado, Demi Lovato, Olly Murs, Kelly Clarkson and more.
Having just announced his latest project, Fight Another Day, which is scheduled for release this autumn, we’re looking forward to seeing him not just back on stage but at a truly beloved and beautiful Manc music space.
My new album ‘Fight Another Day’ is out 03/10/25, and I’ll be going on tour this September. Pre-order the album here https://t.co/1ycLwUTETo to get early access to tickets, with pre-sale starting 10am on 04/06/25. I hope you enjoy 'Fight Another Day', my first single, out today pic.twitter.com/Ud6YKziGXd
Morrison, now 40, said of his latest music: “When I leaned into how I was feeling, that’s when the songs started coming. I started writing about what I was going through. My own struggles with myself. Every day being a bit of a battle. Trying to eke the light out after what felt like darkness for ages.
“I’m really proud of the album in terms of the creative, sonic elements and how I dealt with truthful stuff. But also it’s an album of songs that hopefully make you feel better and make you nod your head and stamp your feet and singalong.”
“It just sums up what the record is. It’s about reminding yourself what’s good. About convincing yourself you’ve got enough strength to keep the fight going”, he went on to add.
Having helped co-produce the entire thing with the likes of two-time Ivor Novello winner, Eg White; Daniel Merriweather, Connor Reeves and Andy Platt (Young Gun Silver Fox), fingers crossed it’s everything fans are hoping for.
As for the gig venue itself, the ‘Broken Strings’ and ‘You Give Me Something’ singer will be coming to Manchester’s grand Bridgewater Hall in September.
A historic and truly iconic place. (Credit: The Manc Group)
With just three other shows confirmed – Birmingham, Symphony Hall on 23 September, Glasgow, SEC Armadillo (24 Sep) and a night at the London Paladium (28 Sep) – Manchester can count itself lucky to have been chosen for these intimate evenings.
As for the album itself, Fight Another Day is due to drop on 3 October and is available for pre-save/pre-order right now; those who do so will gain access to the pre-sale window, which opens at will open at 10am next Wednesday, 4 June.
General admission to see James Morrison in Manchester city centre goes live at the same time on the following Friday (6 June); you can get ready to grab your tickets HERE.
Meanwhile, for those unaware of the venue itself, find out more down below.
A brand new grunge and hard rock festival is kicking off in Manchester
Danny Jones
Manchester grungers, hardcore heads, and fans of all things rock, pay attention because there is a brand new festival coming to the city centre – and it has possibly the best name for a live music event we’ve heard in some time.
Ahem… let us introduce you to Broken Knees Fest.
Yes, donning a name that feels increasingly more relatable the closer we get to the wrong side of 30, Broken Knees Festival 2025 marks the inaugural edition of Manchester’s newest series of rock and grunge gigs, helping spotlight rising artists across the genres from within two crucial grassroots venues.
Very loud music inside tightly-packed, small-capacity rooms? It’s a winning formula that never fails. It’s about time we broke a sweat – here’s hoping the knees just about hold out.
Hosted in the heart of the Northern Quarter, which continues to thrive as a creative hub for new music and art of all forms, the festival will be debuting at small-cap favourites Gullivers and Castle Hotel just across the road.
As you can see, the lineup is full of up-and-coming talent within the guitar-driven space, but you can bank on more than a few bringing their die-hard fans to fill the place out to the rafters.
It doesn’t matter if you prefer punk, hardcore, grunge or another specific sub-genre found somewhere in between the ever-sprawling rock spectrum, there’s something to suit all alternative tastes at this one.
With the likes of Bohmen, Mavis, One Dimensional Creatures and Smother headlining the first-ever iteration of the festival across four stages, you can expect plenty of energy and even more noise.
Set up by the events group of the same name, Broken Knees Promotions, who help platform rock and alt acts across Greater Manchester and beyond year-round, this is more than just a festival: it’s a grassroots celebration through and through.
Best of all, if you’re interested, you don’t have to wait long because it’s kicking off next month.
Gigs go off in here. If you know, you know… (Credit: Audio North)
Broken Knees Fest 2025 is happening on the weekend of 21-22 June, and you’ll be glad to hear that, as a brand new event, prices have been kept nice and low.
The early bird window had prices starting from just £12, and although this tier has now sold out, day tickets are still only £15 while a full weekend pass will set you back £25.
Until then, why not dive into another load of new Manchester music? We round up artists from all genres each month; we’ll also confess to leaning slightly more towards the heavier stuff from time to time.
Danny Jones -
20th August 2024 
