As expected, Manchester Pride Festival 2024 went down a treat this year, with artists like Eurovision double-champion Loreen plus Jessie J, Rita Ora and Sugababes delivering show stopping performances in the city’s iconic Gay Village.
Next year’s festival is looking like a biggie too, with Early Bird tickets selling out fast, so you need to grab ‘em while you can and get this on your roster for August.
Past years have seen the likes of global sensation Ariana Grande, Natasha Bedingfield and Zara Larsson wow the crowds at Manchester Pride Festival, and 2025 will surely bring in some more household names.
Tickets are available for £41 with a £2.50 Community Donation Fund, which helps contribute to pushing issues which are reviewed yearly. 2023’s Manchester Pride Community Fund saw topics like HIV Stigma, LGBTQ+ Events, Mental Health and Wellbeing all raised and addressed.
The 2025 Manchester Pride Festival will run from Friday 22 August until Monday 25 August, however annual Pride-goers will already have the last weekend of August reserved in their diary for celebrating in style.
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Nobody does it like us Mancs as Manchester Pride is one of the country’s largest Pride Festivals carrying a legacy of its own, starting with the city’s first Pride Event in 1985.
The 2024 Manchester Pride parade. Credit: The Manc GroupThe huge main stage at Manchester Pride Festival as 2025 tickets go on sale. Credit: The Manc Group
Mark Fletcher, CEO of Manchester Pride, shared his reflections: “This year’s festival was nothing short of magical. Seeing our community and allies come together in such a vibrant and heartfelt celebration reminds us of the strength we have when we stand united.
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“From the incredible performances to the profound moments of reflection, Manchester Pride Festival 2024 embodied the true spirit of love, acceptance, and resilience. We can’t wait to make next year’s festival even better!”
Multi award-winning musical Back to the Future returns to Manchester next summer
Emily Sergeant
Nearly six years after making its world premiere here in Manchester, Back to The Future The Musical is returning to our city next summer.
The multi award-winning musical – based off the beloved 1985 film of the same name – held its world premiere at the Manchester Opera House back 2020, but unfortunately, as you can probably guess, its run was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but now, flash forward to 2027, the production is returning to ‘settle some unfinished business’.
Lead producer Colin Ingram, together with Robert Zemeckis and Bob Gale, the creators of the Back To The Future film trilogy, have announced that the musical will return to Manchester as part of its first-ever UK tour.
Directed by Tony Award-winning director John Rando, alongside a multi Tony and Olivier Award-winning design team, Back to the Future The Musical has a book by Bob Gale, and new music and lyrics by Alan Silvestri and Glen Ballard.
Multi award-winning musical Back to the Future is returning to Manchester / Credit: Supplied
Additional hit songs from the film, including ‘The Power of Love’ and ‘Johnny B. Goode’, are also included in the production, making it a real trip down memory lane for fans.
The show will run at Manchester Opera House from 13 July through to 21 August 2027, following its run in the West End at the Adelphi Theatre, where it’s currently in its fifth year, having broken box office records and being seen by more than 2.3 million people.
“Speaking for the entire creative team, we are beyond thrilled to be returning to the Manchester Opera House, which we consider the birthplace of Back to the Future The Musical and one of the UK’s best venues,” commented co-creator Bob Gale.
“No city has ever given us a better reception and the incredible audience response we received in 2020 helped shape the show creatively in myriad ways.”
Back to the Future The Musical will take to the Manchester Opera House stage from 13 July – 21 August 2027, and tickets officially go on general sale tomorrow (18 February) at 10am.
Florence and the Machine at Co-op Live Manchester – tickets, setlist, and more for UK tour
Thomas Melia
Florence and the Machine have visited Manchester before… but this UK tour marks their Co-op Live debut.
The ‘Dog Days Are Over’ because London-based band Florence and the Machine are returning to the music capital of the North – Manchester.
The band has played in our city many times over the years, including staple venues like Manchester Academy and AO Arena, but now they’re taking to the stage of the 23,500 capacity Co-op Live for the first time in their career this month.
With this current run of shows titled Everybody Scream Tour, you can expect this arena gig to be a spectacle or… ‘Spectrum’ (there’s more puns coming).
So, grab the ‘Girl With One Eye’, ‘Jenny of Oldstones’, and the ‘Queen of Peace’, and get ready to ‘Howl’ out all of Florence and the Machine’s bangers.
Florence and the Machine are coming to Co-op Live, Manchester on 20 February / Credit: Autumn de Wilde (Supplied)
Florence and the Machine UK tour dates
Fri 13 Feb – Liverpool, UK – M&S Bank Arena
Sat 14 Feb – Sheffield, UK – Utilita Arena
Mon 16 Feb – London, UK – The O2
Tue 17 Feb – London, UK – The O2
Fri 20 Feb – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Mon 24 Aug – Edinburgh, UK – Royal Highland Showgrounds
Fri 28 Aug – Leeds, UK – Bramham Park
Sun 30 Aug – Reading, UK – Richfield Avenue
Tickets
Anyone wanting to see this stellar act in all their glory when they play their latest arena show in Manchester can find some seats left HERE.
There’s even a handful of premium seating options on offer, where you can ‘Shake It Out’ in style feeling like a ‘King’ HERE.
Setlist
Everybody Scream
Witch Dance
Shake It Out
Seven Devils
Big God
Daffodil
Which Witch
Cosmic Love
Spectrum
Never Let Me Go
Music By Men
buckle
King
The Old Religion
Howl
Heaven Is Here
Sympathy Magic
One of the Greats
Dog Days Are Over
Free
And Love
What are the stage times for Florence and the Machine in Manchester?
UK act Florence and the Machine are playing various arena and festival shows this year / Credit: Autumn de Wilde (Supplied)
Co-op Live has a strict curfew of 11pm, meaning as much as we want to sing until there’s ‘No Light, No Light’, at least we’ll be tucked up in bed before the early hours.
Anyone attending can expect the doors to open at 6:30pm, with a kick-off time expected to be 7:30pm, and support from self-proclaimed alternative-indie ‘Good Girl’ Paris Paloma.
How to get to Co-op Live
Tram
For those of you heading to Co-op Live, you’ll be glad to know it’s right next door to a rather famous big blue stadium and its integrated Metrolink stop.
Head along the light blue or orange lines directly to the Etihad Campus or Ashton-under-Lyne, and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.
Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre and until 1:00am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Bus
You can find the full list of bus routes HERE, with the one in closest proximity to the venue being the 53 bus, which runs from Cheetham Hill through to Higher Crumpsall, Old Trafford and Pendleton, leaving just a two-minute walk to Co-op Live. You also get free Bee Network travel with any valid event ticket.
If you’re driving, there is limited parking available at the venue, but this must be pre-booked ahead of time, and there are designated drop-off areas.
The postcode is M11 3DU, and you can follow the signs towards the wider Etihad Campus as you get closer; directions to the adjacent drop-off points will also be signposted.
Keep in mind that congestion on the roads close to the stadium is expected to gather around two hours prior to any event, so if you are travelling on the road, these are the suggested times they provide on event day, though estimates will obviously vary:
Alan Turing Way (both directions): plan an additional 20 minutes into any journey by road.
Hyde Road (eastbound): expect an additional 15 minutes to be added to your journey.
Mancunian Way (westbound): plan for an extra 10 minutes of travel time.
There are also three park-and-ride facilities near Co-op Live, but be advised that the Velopark and Holt Town stops will be closed post-event to help safely manage crowds:
Ashton West (Ashton line) – 184 spaces and 11 disabled spaces
Ladywell (Ashton-Eccles line) – 332 spaces and 22 disabled spaces
Walk/cycle
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Lastly, Co-op Live is only a half-hour stroll from Manchester Piccadilly, and you could even walk along the canal all the way to the front door if you fancy taking the scenic route.
Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes on the Beryl app, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the bike all through an easy-to-use app. There are hire points just near the south-west corner of the Etihad Stadium on Ashton New Road.
For more information on all travel options, you can check out the enhanced journey planner.
Thomas Melia -
2nd September 2024 
