Undoubtedly one of the most exciting bands on the planet right now, Fontaines D.C. have just announced one their biggest headline dates yet as they are the latest act set to take Manchester’s Wythenshawe Park stage.
Fontaines already have a sell-out Manchester show coming up at Aviva Studios (arguably the biggest acts that have played the new arts venue yet) but now they’re set to level up to one of the biggest stages in the region next summer.
That’s right, following in the footsteps of legends such as Noel Gallagher, New Order, Johnny Marr and the likes of Blossoms earlier this year, the Dubliners are the first artist to be named as part of Live From Wythenshawe Park 2025.
Not even remotely exaggerating, this is going to be utterly enormous.
Landing in Manchester for the massive outdoor gig on Friday, 15 August – 2025 being just the third year of the now must-not-miss annual event – the young post-punk and alternative rockers are effectively skipping several steps on the gig venue ladder to play the huge summer festival.
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The announcement comes fresh off the back of the release of Romance, the band’s biggest record to date. Produced by James Ford and met with incredible responses from fans and reviewers alike, it’s categorically one of the albums of the year.
Elton John recently declared that they are “the best band out there at the moment” and with NME dubbing them as “the defining band of their generation”, not to mention massive sets at Glastonbury’s Park Stage and Reading and Leeds, this date shouldn’t really come as that as much of a surprise.
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That being said, what we couldn’t have predicted was how amazing the support acts were going to be, as warming the all-day festival crowd up will be none other than critically-acclaimed Belfast rap trio, Kneecap, and Leeds’ Mercury Prize-winning indie outfit, English Teacher.
Fontaines will be smashing an already seismic gig at London’s Finsbury Park next July, but then they’ll be bringing their unreal live atmosphere to Wythenshawe Park just a month later, and with Kneecap in tow too, you can guarantee a big Irish delegation will be turning up for this one.
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General admission for Fontaines D.C. Live From Wythenshawe Park goes live next Friday, October 4 at 9am but you can access pre-sale, available from the same time on Wednesday, 2 October,by signing up for the mailing list.
You can get ready to grab your tickets HERE and, as always, good luck with securing these ones!
Featured Images — Press Images (supplied)/The Manc Group
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Boyzone to reunite for exclusive New Year’s Eve special on the BBC
Danny Jones
2025 has very much been the year of the comeback – be it Oasis, Britpop fashion in general, or short bobs and pixie cuts – so it’s only fitting that we round off the calendar with one last reunion, as throwback boyband Boyzone are set to feature on a TV special on the BBC this New Year’s Eve.
Turns out ‘All That I Need’ to make a year memorable is a load of 1990s nostalgia.
Now, obviously, despite plenty of other music names enjoying a second renaissance over the past 12 months or so, nothing is ever going to be quite as big as the Oasis Live ’25 reunion tour.
However, if you asked us to guess which group from the era were also going to reunite this year back in January, there’s not a chance we would’ve said Boyzone.
Boyzone are telling us about coming back together for one final run in their most unforgettable concerts yet 🎤
After news first began circulating earlier this week, it has now been confirmed that musician turned presenter Ronan Keating will be getting back together with two of his former bandmates.
Joining the 48-year-old for ‘Ronan & Friends: A New Year’s Eve Party’, ex-Boyzone members Keith Duffy and Shane Lynch are part of an exciting live music lineup.
Other names include actor and singer, Shona McGarty, who recently starred on season 25 of I’m A Celeb, as well as fellow 90s pop artist Louise Redknapp and singer-songwriter Calum Scott.
The exclusive reunion comes after the success of the recently aired Boyzone: No Matter What documentary show.
Spread across three parts on Sky, the docuseries (named after their hit song from 1998) looks back on the career and journey up the charts back in their heyday, all the way up to the present. After seemingly striking a chord with fans and the lads themselves, it looks like they’re not done after all…
Yes, not only is the festive TV special going to see three of the original members performing alongside each other again, but
Here’s hoping that turns into a springboard for something even bigger, and we get a Manchester arena show sometime soon.
As for the programme itself, ‘Ronan & Friends: A New Year’s Eve Party’ will be broadcast on BBC One and made available on BBC iPlayer from Wednesday, 31 December 2025.
A candlelit Queen tribute concert is returning to Manchester
Danny Jones
Yes, you read that right: a candlelit concert dedicated to the one and only Queen, with a spectacular West End Cast and a talented live rock band, is coming to Manchester city centre in January.
In fact, it’s coming home, as this wonderful event started right here in 0161 back in 2021.
Concerts by Candlelight themselves host concerts up and down the country at various points throughout the year, but their much-loved ‘Queen by Candlelight‘ special knows all about lighting up Manc venues.
Having since gone on to become an internationally acclaimed live concert experience, we’re glad we still get to see the ‘Princes of the Universe’ on our doorstep.
Credit: Concerts by Candlelight (supplied)
With the likes of Bridgewater Hall and the magical Manchester Monastery all having played host to the promotion on many ocassions, this time Queen by Candlelight is coming to the legendary Manchester Opera House in the new year.
One of our most historic and legendary theatres, it’s only fitting, really, that they be chosen to welcome a night of equally iconic tunes.
But it’s worth reminding more casual fans that these aren’t just British rock and pop anthems; Queen‘s discography is one that still has global recognition to this day.
That’s why this specific show has been taken to virtually every corner of the world, with the incredibly talented cast of singers and musicians delighting audiences in Dubai, Australia, New Zealand and New York, to domestic crowds here in town and down in London’s West End.
‘Queenies’ or ‘Darlings’, as Freddie Mercury used to call them, can expect all the big hits, from ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ and ‘We Are The Champions’, to ‘It’s a Kind of Magic’ and ‘Who Wants to Live Forever’ and plenty more from the back catalogue.
Here’s a glimpse of what’s in store this coming January:
With tickets already flying out fast, we really would recommend securing your seats early before they inevitably sell out.
To quote the promoters themselves, “this spectacular celebration of Queen’s biggest hits is guaranteed to rock you.”
Coming to the Manchester Opera House on Tuesday, 6 January, you can book your tickets for Queen by Candlelight right HERE.
And if you’ve never been to one of their candlelit events before, you only need to see how much of a ball we had at their country event earlier this year to find out how much fun they are…
Danny Jones -
27th September 2024 
