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Award-winning musical Jesus Christ Superstar to kick off 2023 UK tour in Manchester

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Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 2nd March 2023

Award-winning musical Jesus Christ Superstar is heading out on a UK tour later this year, and it’s kicking things off here in Manchester.

Following several acclaimed and sold-out runs in the West End, as well as an extensive tour right across the US and Canada, it’s now been announced that the Olivier Award-winning reimagined production of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s celebrated musical, Jesus Christ Superstar, will take to the stage at some of the country’s best-loved theatres.

Liverpool, Newcastle, Sheffield, Bradford, Sunderland, and Blackpool are just a handful of the Northern locations the show will be stopping off at – with several other major UK cities also on the lineup.

But what better way to kick things off than with a visit to see us here in Manchester?

Jesus Christ Superstar will be taking over Manchester’s Palace Theatre for a two-week run from Monday 11 – Saturday 23 September 2023.

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Featuring music and lyrics by Emmy, GRAMMY, Oscar, and Tony winners Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, this version of the beloved production first staged all the way back in 1971 was reimagined by London’s Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre – which is actually where it originated – and is headed up by director Timothy Sheader and choreographer Drew McOnie.

Unfamiliar with the award-winning production? A global phenomenon that has wowed audiences for decades, Jesus Christ Superstar’s iconic 1970s rock score was originally released as a concept album and opened on Broadway in 1971 at the Mark Hellinger Theatre.

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The show is set against the backdrop of an extraordinary series of events during the final weeks in the life of Jesus Christ, as seen through the eyes of Judas.

The legendary score includes smash-hit songs like ‘I Don’t Know How to Love Him’, ‘Gethsemane’, and the stand-out ‘Superstar’.

Jesus Christ Superstar to kick off 2023 UK tour in Manchester / Credit: Supplied

Speaking ahead of the start of the UK tour, the show’s producer David Ian said: “I am thrilled to be taking this award-winning production on tour in 2023 and 2024.

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“Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre has created a fresh and bold new version of a beloved classic, which will enthrall both longtime fans of the show and delight those seeing it for the very first time”.

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Starting from just £13 per person, tickets to Jesus Christ Superstar at Manchester Palace Theatre are now on sale and being snapped up fast.

Grab yours here.

Featured Image – Supplied

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Fawlty Towers – The Play is coming to Manchester Opera House next year

Danny Jones Danny Jones Fawlty Towers The Play Manchester tickets

John Cleese’s much-loved Fawlty Towers – The Play is landing at the Manchester Opera House next year and we cannot wait.

The critically acclaimed theatre adaptation of the iconic sitcom, still revered as one of the greatest UK comedies of all time, first came to fruition back in 2016 and is now set to land here in Manchester city centre for the first time ever.

We’ve been treated to Fawlty Towers The Dining Experience at The Lowry Theatre in Salford before, but this is the first time the smash-hit West End stage production has headed North and judging by the reviews, audiences are about to be belly-laughing all the way to Torquay.

Coming to Manc crowds this time next winter, you can expect this one to be a sell-out.

Still busy playing a fully booked-up run at London’s Apollo Theatre Shaftesbury Avenue, the twice-extended West End show is packing up its stage for a massive tour across the UK and Ireland.

Announcing dozens of dates next year and well into the summer of 2026, including shows in Leeds, Liverpool, York, Stoke, Sunderland and many more, the show has earned four and five-star reviews from countless publications.

The Arts Desk have hailed it as a “comedy masterpiece [that] makes a seamless transition to the stage”, with actor Adam Jackson-Smith playing the lead role of Basil Fawlty and the entire cast said to leave viewers cackling with some of the best bits from iconic TV series recreated in the flesh.

Speaking on the stage adaptation, John Cleese said: “When we came up with the idea of bringing Fawlty Towers to the stage, I never thought it would get the reception that it has.

“On 23 December it will be 50 years to the day since we recorded the pilot at BBC Television Centre and I’m delighted the audiences we’ve had in the West End still think it’s as funny as ever. The announcement of the tour means many more people will now have the chance to laugh themselves helpless.”

John Cleese, now 85.

Set to hit the road 50 years on from the broadcast of the first episode on BBC Two back in September 1975, before going on to win countless awards including two BAFTAS and even being voted the best British programme of all time as part of a British Film Institute poll, it all feels very full circle.

Brought to life on stage by a creative team consisting of Cleese and fellow writer Connie Booth and directed by Caroline Jay Ranger – best known for her work on Blood Means Nothing (2019), My Week with Maisy (2024), Early Doors: Live (2021) and the Monty Python live show, there’s non-stop talent both on and off the stage.

One of the best part parts about a series that was stretched across just 12 half-hour episodes of TV is that you can just about manage to squeeze in the majority of the most memorable highlights into the approximately 1h50m run-time.

You can see the cast’s recent interview on This Morning HERE and for a short trailer for a better look at what to expect down below:

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Fawlty Towers – The Play comes to the Manchester Opera House on Tuesday, 4 November 2025 and will be there until Saturday, 8 November.

General admission is live as we speak, with ticket options starting from £20 and going all the way up to £147.50 for the best premium seats and experience in the house.

You can grab your tickets HERE.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Press Images (supplied)

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Iggy Pop announces landmark gig in Manchester next year

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia

Pivotal punk icon Iggy Pop has released a massive Manchester tour date as part of a series of UK gigs taking place in 2025.

‘The Godfather of Punk’ and all-round rockstar last visited the music capital of the North way back in 1993 where he performed at Manchester Academy more than 30 years ago.

The latest comeback gigs announced next year will see the living legend headlining the O2 Victoria Warehouse, which can host up to 3,500 avid fans and attendees.

Manchester can expect his usual on-stage antics, shirtless attire, iconic hairdo and plenty of energy. We’re no stranger to hosting some of the most iconic gigs of all time anyway, so this should be ‘She’s a Business’ as usual.

The former Stooges vocalist turned successful solo artist has been keeping himself a mainstay in pop culture featuring on the bill of ‘I Wanna Be Your Slave’ by Måneskin in 2021.

It’s safe to say the star’s touring absence has been truly felt as this new date comes as the result of ‘overwhelming demand’ following the announcement of two other headline shows: one in London and an already sold-out Glasgow gig.

Iggy Pop’s Manchester tour date is for all his fans in the North, giving them the chance to experience his biggest anthems in an electrifying live setting and venue that never disappoints. This crowd is truly about to be ‘Livin’ on the Edge of the Night’.

Come on, how often do you get to throw out Iggy Pop puns?

Alongside being a hugely influential voice during one of the most important and historic eras of music, in more recent times, the man born James Newell Osterberg Jr. has been advocating for upcoming artists on social media in collaboration with BBC 6 Music.

In 2010, Iggy Pop was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of his work alongside fellow bandmates The Stooges.

This isn’t the only time Pop found himself rewarded for his work, receiving a Grammy in 2020 on behalf of his solo work titled the ‘Lifetime Achievement Award’. He is a true legend not just of the genre but the music world as a whole.

Whether you’re attending for ‘I Wanna Be Your Dog’ or his more contemporary work like the raw hit ‘Frenzy’, he’s sure to roll out a selection of songs that spans his truly impressive musical career, one which dates back to the 1960s.

Iggy Pop is performing at O2 Victoria Warehouse in Manchester on Saturday, 31 May 2025 with tickets on sale from Friday, 6 December. There is also presale available for MasterCard and O2 members, as well as through the venue itself.

You can grab your HERE.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Image – Publicity Picture (Supplied)

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