A huge 24-hour Hacienda House Party is being streamed live on New Year’s Eve
The blockbuster lineup is set to feature two dozen live performances from 10am on December 31 - including Moby, Graeme Park, Hacienda Classical, Carl Craig, Peter Hook, Todd terry and Soul Central.
The world’s greatest nightclub will rise again this week – as a 24-hour Hacienda House Party is streamed live around the world on New Year’s Eve.
The blockbuster lineup is set to feature two dozen live performances from 10am on December 31 – including sets from Moby, Graeme Park, Hacienda Classical, Carl Craig, Peter Hook, Todd Terry and Soul Central.
There will also be a special tribute to the legendary “Godfather Of House” Frankie Knuckles in collaboration with The Frankie Knuckles Foundation – which will see Frankie play a set (originally recorded at Albert Hall on his last appearance in Manchester) from within a newly recreated ‘Virtual Hacienda’.
The Virtual Hacienda project has been put together by the club’s original architect Ben Kelly to create a digital replica of the nightclub and will premiere in all its glory on NYE.
Kelly commented: “When the club was open, years later, one of the greatest compliments I had from that group of clients, Factory and New Order, was that they regarded the design as timeless.
“I think that was Tony’s [Wilson] thing, it didn’t pander to fashion or whatever trend was current. I saw it almost like a sculptural installation. Like a big art piece which I was painting. It democratised what those environments were about. It was flexible and all embracing.
“There was nothing prescribed about it. It stood the test of time as well because there was never any need to change it. The changes were all about improving the sound and lighting which came with the development of+ technology. The club was open for fifteen years, from 1982 to 1997 and they never had to change the design of the place.”
United We Stream GM
The entire event will be hosted live on the Greater Manchester music platform United We Stream – which beamed live gigs to more than 14 million viewers during the lockdown over spring and summer.
During its initial run, United We Stream gave a stage to 338 artists and raised over £477,000 for local charities and the events scene.
The Hacienda House Party NYE is free to watch but viewers can donate via the official website, with 50% of funds raised donated to oneGM (which supports local people hardest hit by the economic impact of COVID-19) and 50% to charities Save The Children, The Frankie Knuckles Foundation and Peacemeal Manchester.
You can watch the Hacienda House Party NYE exclusively via the website’s event page.
The stream will also be beamed live on Facebook, Twitter, Twitch and YouTube.
The full lineup is as follows:
Live: Haçienda Classical W/ Manchester Camerata, Inner City / Phuture
DJs: Carl Craig, Danny Tenaglia, David Morales, DJ Paulette, DJ Woody, Graeme Park, Greg Wilson, Hewan Clarke, Jon Dasilva, Justin Robertson, K-Klass, Moby, Norman Jay MBE, Peter Hook, Soul Central, Sub Sub, Todd Terry, Tom Wainwright & Tony Humphries
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Bob Vylan dropped from Manchester music festival following Glastonbury controversy
Danny Jones
English punk rap duo Bob Vylan have been dropped from an upcoming music festival in Manchester following the recent controversy surrounding their set at Glastonbury 2025.
The media storm surrounding their much-talked-about and heavily televised Glasto appearance has seen them reportedly dropped by their agency and their US Visas cancelled, along with multiple concerts – one of those being right here in Greater Manchester.
Bob Vylan were scheduled to play RADAR Fest at Victoria Warehouse in Stretford this weekend, but now the organisers have informed gig-goers that the artists will not be performing in their planned slot on Saturday.
The alternative music event did provide any additional details, posting nothing but this image:
For anyone unaware, Vylan were heavily criticised for the pro-Palestine chants, which Glastonbury itself has deemed as having “crossed a line”, labelling the chants against the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) as antisemitic.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has also commented on the situation.
In addition to RADAR, Vylan were also due to appear at Kave Fest in France the following Sunday, 6 July, but the music event has also decided not to host them.
The BBC also opted not to broadcast Northern Irish band Kneecap as part of their coverage this year, as the Belfast rap trio have also been outspoken on the issue, among many other musicians of late.
Responding to the decision on social media not long after the news broke, the act simply shared the post on their Instagram story along with the caption: “Silence is not an option. We will be fine, the people of Palestine are hurting. Manchester, we will be back.”
Manchester crowned one of the world’s best cities for music lovers
Emily Sergeant
Manchester has been crowned one of the world’s best cities for music lovers, even beating out New York along the way.
If there’s one thing Manchester is known and loved for over anything else, it’s music.
From Oasis and Joy Division, to Happy Mondays, The Smiths, The Stone Roses, The 1975, and even more modern-day acts, there’s no end to the amount of talented artists this city has produced or been home to over the years, all contributing to Manchester being one of the most prestigious music cities there is.
The city’s live music scene has always been thriving, and that continues right through to this very day, as you’ll see big-name musicians including Manchester as a destination in their UK tour schedules more often than not.
This summer is all set to be a sensational celebration of sound, as not only is an immersive art trail, Music for the Senses, taking over the city from this week, but this year’s annual Manchester Day will be music-themed too, marking one of the biggest years for Manchester music in a long time.
Manchester has been named one of the best cities in the world for music lovers / Credit: Manchester City Council | Eldhose Kuryian (via Unsplash)
Oh, and there’s also the small matter of Oasis reforming for a UK tour, including a run of gigs at Heaton Park this month.
So it’s no surprise that Manchester has been named one of the best cities in the world for music lovers, especially as the IFPI Global Music Report has revealed that the UK has the third largest music market globally – with the music industry’s contribution to the UK economy being £6.7 billion on average.
Taking this recent report into consideration, the experts over at SeatPick have collated data to uncover the best UK cities for music lovers, analysing factors such as the number of concerts, homegrown talents, music businesses, and the total number of music venues, to reveal each city’s overall music score out of 10.
Coming in at second place with a music scene score of 8.97/10 is Manchester.
2025 is all set to be a sensational summer of sound in our city / Credit: Supplied
“Manchester remains one of the UK’s most iconic music cities and with 1,204 concerts between 2025-2026, 116 live music venues, and 380 homegrown acts, the city’s live music offering is as strong as ever,” SeatPick said of its findings.
“2025 is shaping up to be a historic year for Manchester, with Oasis reuniting for the first time in over a decade, with a massive comeback show at Heaton Park – the very spot where they played their last hometown gig in 2009.”
While Manchester may have missed out on the UK’s top spot, with that title going to London, in the global rankings, our city has claimed an impressive sixth place, beating out New York’s influential music scene.
Liverpool and Leeds are two of the other northern cities in the UK’s top 10, taking fifth and sixth place respectively.
“Cities which have a larger number of music businesses are key in creating the perfect city for music fans, as this impacts the city’s cultural, economic, and social vibrancy,” explained Gilad Zilberman, who is the CEO of SeatPick.
“A thriving music scene within a city means it can provide more artistic expression, support a wider range of genres, and enrich the cultural landscape, as well as attracting creative talent.”
The Manc -
28th December 2020 
