The cult classic musical, The Rocky Horror Show, began its two week run in Manchester last night.
If you’re looking for an understated, subtle musical that’ll have you elegantly tapping your foot to the beat – then this is not the show for you.
The Rocky Horror show is wonderfully weird, wildly extravagant and about as over the top as you can get. It’s about as camp as Christmas, and it’s a night out that you won’t forget.
For someone who is completely new to the Rocky Horror world, the experience of attending the show can be quite daunting as you join the queues of fishnet-wearing fans to scan your ticket.
Image: Supplied
But as soon as you’re seated and the first round of hecklers get started as soon as the curtain flies up, the anxiety melts away.
This is a show where you’re encouraged to sing and dance along, which we all did without hesitation.
The atmosphere in the Palace Theatre was nothing short of electric, from start to finish there were roars of laughter erupting from every tier of the auditorium and why? Well, there’s a couple of reasons.
Image: Supplied
Headlining the cast was Australian super star Jason Donovan starring as the iconic Dr. Frank N.Furter, and his performance was well and truly mesmerising.
Not only did Jason play the sassy sweet transvestite side of the role so perfectly, strutting across the stage with a corset and feather boa, but there were also moments of stillness that felt rather moving.
All in all, a captivating performance which underlines Donovan’s star studded status in the musical theatre universe.
Images: Supplied
Throughout the entire cast there wasn’t a weak link, Connor Carson and Lauren Chia are suitably sexy and strong as Brad and Janet.
Job Greuter delivers a freakishly brilliant Riff Raff whilst Jackie Clune gives a masterclass in comic timing as the omnipotent Narrator.
A standout moment was of course the Time Warp singalong, where the whole cast led us in the iconic dance as we shimmied back and forth in the stalls.
Overall, if you’re looking for a fantastic night out of frivolity and fun then the Rocky Horror Show is for you and we’re looking forward to seeing theatre-goers clad in gold hot pants and fishnet ties strutting around Manchester over the next two weeks.
The Rocky Horror show is at the Palace Theatre until Saturday 31 May and you can get your tickets here.
A FREE week-long event dedicated to Japan is coming to Manchester
Thomas Melia
An event dedicated to the East Asian country of Japan is making its way to Manchester city centre this month.
Simply titled ‘Japan Week’, this cultural ceremony aims to package up all the things this East Asian country has to offer, such as music and theatre, compiling them into a fantastic five-day showcase.
Taking place this weekend and based over in the ever-flourishing First Street complex – which will serve as the main hub – the festival is open to all.
We love anything that shows off just how multicultural this city is.
On Friday, 5 September, from 3-5pm, you can watch the Japan Week opening ceremony, which is taking place on an outdoor stage at First Street with the running order including dance acts and even ceremonial-style samurai performances.
With so many artistic events and cultural dates taking place in the growing mini-district that is First St (including Jack Rosenthal Street and Tony Wilson Place), it’s the perfect site for this month’s showcase.
This opening procedure is actually called ‘Kagami Biraki’, and if you attend on the day, you’ll be able to see the traditional opening of the sake barrel, which symbolises unlocking good fortune and the spirit of celebration.
Japan Week is coming to First Street in the city centre from Thursday, 4 September to Tuesday, 9 September, and, perhaps best of all, there are absolutely no tickets required.
More events on the Japan Week 2025 programme will also be taking place at other venues too.
Yes, as the goal of the festivities is to spread awareness and celebrate Japanese heritage and its connection to Manchester, the event is completely FREE – as it should be.
Five Manchester artists we’ve been listening to this month | August 2025
Danny Jones
2025 has been a belting year for music so far, be it legendary bands getting back together, veterans getting back in the studio, or rising new stars in the making, making waves – and Manchester has been right at the centre of all of it.
In case you’ve not found yourself on this site at this particular time of the month before, let’s give you a quick rundown: every few weeks, just before turning over another page on the calendar, we round up some of the best music we’ve heard from artists in and around Manchester.
Very much a Ronseal deal, we know.
Get your ‘add to playlist’ thumb at the ready and prepare to dive into yet more marvellous local music, both new and old.
New Manchester music we’ve been listening to – August 2025
Let’s start things off with one of the most heartwarming, albeit frustrating, stories of an independent musician just trying to make it in an industry that is already challenging enough without having your tour van full of gear nicked. Sigh…
We’re talking about Michael Gallagher, who not too long ago upped sticks from Hartlepool in the North East and made his way to Manchester city centre, bringing a nice brand of upbeat, radio-friendly indie music with him. He’s actually been at it since 2018, but more people are taking more notice of late.
If you enjoy artists like Circa Waves, early Declan McKenna and Vistas; Pigeon Detectives or pretty much most mainstream indie bands of the past decade or so, you’ll love this lad – we certainly do. Our top picks include ‘Hannah’, ‘Rum & Raisin’, and since ‘Pour Me Another’ is dedicated to our shared love of the black stuff, we couldn’t not include that one.
2. Foxglove
The budding Manchester group have more music coming in 2025. (Credit: Foxglove via Facebook)
Fancy some euphoric indie and alt pop with vocals that would suit pretty much any genre, if you ask? We’d recommend giving Foxglove a go. With Abi White’s infectious vocals, brothers Ryan and Liam Croney hit all the familiar and classic Manc-coded notes on guitar and drums, plus Joe Myers’ trusty bass-playing, we’re tipping them for a big year.
We also love how the city has played as the backdrop to all of their artwork thus far – it really does ground those tuneful guitars and the twinkly overtones of their sound into a romantic, rose-tinted Mancunian lens.
They’re kicking on 2025 too and following the release of ‘Busy Beach’ (which we’ve had on repeat for most of the month), we’re enjoying seeing how the style can shift from the likes of the UKG-reminiscent, ‘Tell Me A Story’; we don’t mind admitting we’re pretty keen on their latest single, ‘Lost’, too.
3. Doves
Now, they should* need no introduction, but we sometimes find that Doves still go under the radar as one of those bands that plenty of people have been exposed to without quite realising that their music belongs to them. Quite often the way with bands who got going in that era, we’ve found.
Sharing some similarities to The 1975 in having met at school in Wilmslow, the Manchester band were spawned after Jez and Andy Williams met bassist Jimi Goodwin; fast forward the best of three decades later and the alternative rock veterans still have such an enchanting and enigmatic style about them.
We’ve always gone in for their moodier numbers like ‘Snowden’, so it’s no surprise we’re a little obsessed with their newest atmospheric number, ‘Lean Into The Wind’, but as one of those artists people often realise they’ve heard countless times without realising who it is, you can’t go wrong with their biggest hit:
The long-standing Manchester band are heading on their first tour in 15 years with new music to boot.
4. Better Joy
Penultimately, we’re sticking Manchester-based alt pop project, Better Joy, in at number four. If, like us, you like immersing yourself in quiet, introspective nights spent tethered to headphones, you’re going to love this one.
Led by singer Bria Keely, you can expect nods to everything from The Cure and the Cocteau Twins to Pale Waves and plenty from the 80s in general. From ‘plugged in’ to ‘quiet thing’, you get slightly different flavours each time. We also like her cover of ‘You Get What You Give‘ by one-hit wonders, New Radicals; she even recreated the album cover. Her new EP, at dusk, drops on Halloween, too, so we’re keeping our eyes peeled for what’s next.
She’s also one of several artists playing an up-and-coming new music showcase over in Stockport; in fact, she’s headlining local music mag and promoter, The Rodeo‘s stage at the stunning St Mary’s Church as the magical venue continues to attract more live gigs. Her new EP, at dusk, drops on Halloween, too, so keep your eyes peeled.
Is she technically a Manc, no? Do we care? No. She moved here as a teenager to pursue her dream of becoming a musician – just like Michael – and besides sharing Irish roots (and no, stop right there: he shares no connection to Oasis), she’s also an example of how hard work pays off eventually.
The ‘Duboyne Diana’ has gone from arriving here from County Meath as part of a two-piece band and becoming a bit of a cult hero around these parts, so much so that she’s just sold out two whole nights headlining O2 Victoria Warehouse after stunning at Glasto 2025. An icon in the making.
We’re going to start you off with some of her biggest hits: current favourite, ‘Take A Sexy Picture of Me’, the ever wonderful ‘I Wanna Be a Cowboy, Baby!’, and sorry, but if you thought we were going to overlook the fact that she’s got a track called ‘The Jamie Oliver Petrol Station’, you’d be dead wrong.
As always, we’re more than happy to be directed to more new music coming out of Greater Manchester, and with less than half the year remaining, let’s make our 2025 listening as memorable as possible.
Clementine Hall -
20th May 2025 
