Sabrina Carpenter is bringing her live show to Manchester, as the blonde bombshell’s Short ‘n’ Sweet Tour heads to Co-op Live.
Ex-Disney actress turned worldwide phenomenon, Sabrina Carpenter is jetting her way up and down Europe to embark on the second leg of the massive tour.
The Pennsylvania native has been a consistent face for pop culture, through her ‘Nonsense’ outros and her various ‘Juno’ positions which end with the risqué lyric, “Have you ever tried this one?”.
From ‘Espresso’, ‘Taste’ to ‘Please Please Please’, it comes as no surprise that this singer had the UK’s Official Charts in her fingertips, racking up 20 weeks at the top spot last year.
The ‘Feather’ singer has chosen Co-op Live, the newest live music entertainment venue in the city boasting a 23,500 capacity as the sweet spot for her new tour.
If you’re lucky enough to be heading down to see Sabrina Carpenter in Manchester, here’s everything you need to know.
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Sabrina Carpenter UK tour dates
Thu 6 March – Birmingham, UK – Utilita Arena
Sat 8 March – London, UK – The O2
Sun 9 March – London, UK – The O2
Tue 11 March – Glasgow, UK – OVO Hydro
Thu 13 March – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Fri 14 March – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Sabrina Carpenter tickets for Co-op Live gig
As expected, all the tickets for this two-show event have been snapped up and I think you’d have to use your ‘Sharpest Tool’ to try and prize them from the hands of any loyal Sabrina fans.
There’s always the possibility that some final tickets may get released up to a few hours before, however there are no guarantees. Eager fans can check out the Ticketmaster official site HERE.(Just in case).
However if you’re willing to drop a couple of £100’s, there’s one ticket on fan to fan resale site Twickets in the region of £430!
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What merch can you buy at Sabrina Carpenter’s Short ‘n’ Sweet Tour?
Co-op Live knows everyone wants a ‘Taste’ of the Short ‘n’ Sweet Tour whether they’re attending the gig or not.
That’s why they have two exterior merch trailers that will be open from 1pm on both of Ms. Carpenter’s Mancheter dates, 13 and 14 March.
Fans will be able to choose from tees, crop tops, hoodies, football shirts, crewnecks, socks, jewellery and even a baby blue handbag.
Personal favourite is the blush pink Camaraderie top which defines the word underneath it, in case it gets mixed up or misheard as anything else…
🚨Sabrina Carpenter Merch Alert🚨
Our 2 exterior merch trailers will be open on 13 and 14 March from 1pm on Canalside and Joe Mercer Way💋 pic.twitter.com/wFS7Scf6WE
There’s no ‘Slim Pickins’ around here as Ms. Carpenter has done her absolute best to condense her vast discography into a ‘Short ‘n’ Sweet’ eighteen track array of career highlights.
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Taste
Good Graces
Slim Pickins
Tornado Warnings
Bed Chem
Feather
Read your Mind
Fast Times
opposite
Sharpest Tool
because i liked a boy
Coincidence
Nonsense
Dumb & Poetic
Juno
Please Please Please
Don’t Smile
Espresso
What are the stage times for Sabrina Carpenter in Manchester?
Co-op Live has a strict curfew of 11pm meaning concertgoers can be safe knowing they’ve heard Carpenter’s hits and still be able to get tucked up under the covers for that all important beauty sleep.
Doors for ‘The Short ‘n’ Sweet Tour’ are scheduled for 5.30pm with a kick off time of 7pm with support from one of the UK’s finest indie talents, Rachel Chinouriri.
How to get to Co-op Live
Tram
For those of you heading to Co-op Live, luckily 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.
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Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre and until 01:00 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.
Getting there by car and parking
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.
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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 come 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
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.
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Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes through the Beryl, 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.
Self Esteem at Manchester Academy – a night of pure energy and immaculate music
Kristen MacGregor-Houlston
A Complicated Woman – the name of Self Esteem’s album she is currently touring around the UK and Europe. While she may be complicated, there is nothing complicated about how absolutely sensational her performance is.
I only “got into” Self Esteem (Rebecca Lucy Taylor) this year. I kept hearing others talk about her and her music but I’d never really given her a listen until we saw the line-up for Glastonbury and saw that she was playing. Her album A Complicated Woman had just come out that April and so that was my introduction, and I immediately became a massive fan.
I was lucky enough to watch her performance at Glastonbury, which brought tears to my eyes for being both an incredible performance and from the themes of each of the songs. When the opportunity then came to see her again but at home in Manchester, I practically bit the promoters hand off.
The energy is palpable at Manchester Academy, everyone is just buzzing with a joyful energy that’s incredibly infectious.
Unfortunately Moonchild Sanelly, the collaborator on ‘In Plain Sight’ and Self Esteem’s support act on this tour, was unwell, so the delightful Tom Rasmussen stepped in at the last minute. Fresh from a family christening and pulling in some last minute pals, he delivers a delightfully camp and moving performance, getting everyone pumped up.
The lights go down at 9pm and the audience are met with a wall of Handmaids, and then Rebecca walks out on stage to a huge eruption from the crowd. Her fans (myself included) clearly love her. She opens with ‘I Do And I Don’t Care’ which brings a tear to my eye once again.
This is more than just a ‘gig’. It is a full, theatrical performance with dancing and storytelling the whole way through. Whilst Taylor is very clearly the focus, her team of performers are an essential element of the whole show and are so much more than just simple backing singers and dancers. They’re so in sync with each other and there is so much joy on stage as they perform together – a very clear bond ripples through with such love.
The show flows almost as different ‘Acts’, with the running order not following the album order itself, with a mix of songs from her current album and the 2021 album ‘Prioritise Pleasure’. ‘Mother’ gets the crowd grinding away as she moves onto ‘Lies’ and ‘69’ – which always gets a chuckle from the crowd.
We are fixated on her, she just draws you in and holds you there throughout the whole performance. Nobody is shifting around to go to the loo or get a beer, everyone is just glued to their spot and basking in her sensational energy. Despite some of the themes of the songs throughout the gig, everyone is just abuzz with energy.
When ‘Fucking Wizadry’ comes on, every single person sings (or screams) along, and Taylor and her onstage posse absolutely lap it up.
With Moonchild Sanelly being unwell during our performance, when ‘In Plain Sight’ is performed, Self Esteem still moves to the side of the stage when the recording of Moonchild is played, giving space to where she would have been. Hopefully she is feeling better for her further performances because her presence would have been a powerful addition to the song and I’m gutted to have not experienced it.
When ‘Cheers To Me’ comes on, the party has really begun and the audience go absolutely mad for it when the inflatable men (like the ones you see at car garages wobbling around and waving you in) appear. It is honestly so hard to describe the feeling of euphoric joy that is just blasting through the crowd – it is a sight and sensation to behold.
Now you may or may not know, but Self Esteem is personal friends with Julie Hesmondhalgh, who appeared on stage on night two of her three-night gig in Manchester. She admits to us that on night one, she forgot that Julie was only doing night two and had shouted to introduce her during ‘If Not Now, It’s Soon’, which had apparently caused a bit of a stir with some of the night one’s audience. Making light of it, she asked if the crowd wanted her to shout Julie Hesmondhalgh again so we all felt equal, which of course, we did.
The show goes from strength to strength, “finishing” with ‘The Deep Blue Okay’ which perfectly encapsulates the raw emotion and talent of Self Esteem. The crowd are beside themselves with cheer as they erupt in applause, deafening just about everyone around them as the stage empties and the lights dim.
Self Esteem returns to stage alone initially, and chats to us about two important charities she is raising money for, the Schools Consent Project which goes into schools and teaches kids about consent; and the other is X, helping to help displaced people through war. She then moves into ‘I Do This All The Time’, joined by her troupe again on stage, and finally finishing on Focus Is Power.
Emotions are incredibly high. There isn’t a single person who hasn’t been moved and hyped by the whole show. Self Esteem is truly a force to be reckoned with, an absolute star and show woman, yet I feel like not enough people know who she is. A hidden gem on display in front of everyone waiting to be noticed, and she should be, because she is absolutely, boneshakingly sensational.
Tickets are still on sale for her show in Sheffield, and you would be absolutely mad to miss her. I will be there, I better see you there too.
Irish singer CMAT postpones sold-out Manchester gig and rest of UK tour ahead of emergency surgery
Emily Sergeant
Acclaimed Irish singer CMAT has been forced to postpone the rest of her current UK tour due to an upcoming emergency surgery.
CMAT – full name Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson – was due to play a number of sold-out shows at renowned UK venues throughout this month, including one at Manchester Academy this Saturday (4 October).
But sadly, due to unforeseen health-related circumstances, the 29-year-old has had to make the decision to call off the rest of the tour.
Other major UK cities the genre-bending artist was due to play in this month include Leeds, Sheffield, Glasgow, Birmingham, and Bristol, as well as the capitals of London and Cardiff.
CMAT has postponed the rest of her sold-outUK tour ahead of emergency surgery / Credit: CMAT (Instagram) | Raph_PH (via Flickr)
Explaining her decision to call off the rest of her UK shows this October, CMAT wrote in an emotional statement on Instagram yesterday: “I am devastated to say that due to an infected wisdom tooth, I need to reschedule all of my upcoming dates of the October UK tour.
“I woke up today with a throbbing pain in my jaw and booked an emergency visit with my dentist. He has booked me in for surgery to remove both lower wisdom teeth next week and given me antibiotics to help with the infection.
“I am told the recovery period for my surgery is two weeks to allow me to heal, with a following short period to allow me get back to full health.
“We are working to reschedule dates and will provide information on this as soon as possible.”
CMAT, who recently just released her third studio album, EURO-COUNTRY, last month to widespread critical acclaim – including being nominated for the prestigious Mercury Prize 2025 – assured fans that her team is ‘working hard’ to reschedule the postponed dates and will provide information on this as soon as possible.
“Your ticket will be valid for the rescheduled dates, and if you’re not able to make the new date, please contact your point of purchase for a refund,” she added.
Trying to remain positive and make light of the situation, the singer – who is known for her humour and comedic lyrics – asked fans for ice cream and soup recommendations, as she currently ‘can’t even chew any food for the foreseeable’, let alone talk or sing.
“I realise that this will cause difficulties for so many of you who may have made plans to travel to these dates, and for this I can only say I am so so sorry,” she concluded in her statement.
Featured Image – Raph_PH (via Flickr) / Press shots (Supplied)
Thomas Melia -
7th March 2025 
