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Manchester Pride Festival announces stage splits for 2023 lineup

This year's lineup is the most inclusive roster of local and international queer talent to date.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 26th May 2023
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Manchester Pride Festival has just announced its day-by-day lineup of artists and events for 2023.

In case you missed it, the UK’s leading LGBTQ+ charity event revealed its highly-anticipated 2023 lineup back in March, and it’s set to be the iconic Festival’s most inclusive roster of local and international queer talent to date.

Undoubtedly back with a bang this summer, and co-created in collaboration with Manchester’s diverse queer communities, Festival organisers say this year’s lineup champions “representation, inclusivity, and community celebration” over the four-day extravaganza.

The legendary Gay Village Party is back, and will light up with performances across three stages – The Village Stage, MancUnity Stage – which is in partnership with Gaydio – and the Alan Turing Stage.

Drag sensation Pabllo Vittar is headlining this year’s Gay Village Party, as is singer-songwriter and Scissor Sisters frontman Jake Shears, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK winner Danny Beard, and a mystery headliner still yet to be announced.

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Aside from those headline performances, the four-day August bank holiday weekend Festival also includes a whole host of other special events including Queer Asian Takeover headlined by Gok Wan, Trans Filth & Joy headlined by drag artist BIMINI, Black Pride MCR headlined by Raven Mandella, and the Queer Women’s Takeover headlined by Monki.

Here’s a quick run-down of the official Manchester Pride Festival stage splits for 2023.

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Manchester Pride Festival is back for 2023 this August bank holiday weekend / Credit: Manchester Pride

Friday 25 August

Village Stage – Headlined by BIMINI, with additional performances from Tito Bone, Midgitte Bardot, Cyro, The BollyWitch, An0maly, Finley Odin, Darnell, Denon, Xzan, and DJ Jess Rose. 

MancUnity Stage, in partnership with Gaydio – You can expect an evening of “dancing, partying, showing off and feeling good” with Fat Pride, featuring The Niallist, Ivy Profemme, The Fat Britney, Joe Spencer, Miss Lei-Lei, Sam Buttery, and Joanna Cuddle.

Alan Turing Stage – hosted by Donna Trump, with La Discothèque Orchestra, Queeriosity Cabaret, Pecs Drag Kings, The Enby Show featuring Cyro, Flick, and Carrot.

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Saturday 26 August

Village Stage – Headlined by Pabllo Vittar, with additional performances from Jodie Harsh, Black Peppa, Monopoly Phonic, Tom Aspaul, Violet Blonde, and Jsky – and a special multi-platinum selling headliner soon to be announced.

MancUnity Stage presents Black Pride MCR, all brought together by Darren Pritchard with headliner Raven Mandella, as well as Swagga, Kele Le Roc, DJ Stacy Bee, DJ NKay, DJ KL, Queens in Kicks, Goodie Magnum, and Dymond.

Alan Turing Stage welcomes the Queer Asian Takeover hosted by Lucky Roy Singh, with headliner DJ Gok Wan, alongside Gracie T, Reeta Loi, The Bitten Peach, Bollyqueer, House of Spice, Club Zindagi and more.

The UK’s leading LGBTQ+ charity event announced its diverse lineup earlier this year / Credit: Manchester Pride

Sunday 27 August

Village Stage – Headlined by Danny Beard and Friends, alongside Jake Shears, Natasha Bedingfield, Lisa Scott-Lee, Cheddar Gorgeous, Barb, Kelly Llorenna (N-Trance), Jonbers Blonde, Bailey J Mills, Lady Bushra, Banksie, The BollyWitch, Lill, and Ginny Lemon’s Dog Show.

MancUnity Stage presents the Queer Women’s Takeover with Monki, Kim Lana, Blasha and Allatt (Meat Free + Frixxxion), Mix-Stress and Friends, SWAGGA featuring DJ Stacy Bee, Queens in Kicks, Freequency3, Club Clam, What She Said, Vanilla, and Fat Camp.

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Alan Turing Stage – Cutie-POC Cabaret hosted by Rikki Beadle-Blair, Angie Brown, The Cocoa-Butter Club, NoirTones, and Ghetto Fabulous, as well as Your Manchester hosted by Belinda Scandal.

Monday 28 August

Village Stage – Closing the festival with the Misty Chance and Friends, and Disabled Queer Joy Cabaret.

MancUnity Stage – THE RUNWAY by Banksie, and Firehouse with Dakota Schiffer.

Alan Turing Stage ends the event with Disney Classics performed by The Untold Orchestra.

Day-by-day stage splits for the 2023 Festival have been announced today / Credit: Manchester Pride

Closing the four-day Festival is the Candlelit Vigil with George House Trust, which is a moment of reflection in Sackville Gardens.

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As the home of Alan Turing, The National Transgender Memorial, and the Beacon of Hope, the gardens are set to be transformed into a sea of flickering candles to remember and honour those lost to, and stand in solidarity with, those who are living with HIV.

It also provides the space to reflect on and remember those who have been persecuted in the LGBTQ+ community, both here in the UK and around the world.

Read more:

Find out more about Manchester Pride Festival 2023 and grab tickets here.

Featured Image – Manchester Pride

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Parklife 2025 – dates, line-up, day splits, tickets and more

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Parklife is back for 2025
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Parklife is, hands down, the biggest party of the year in Manchester, luring tens of thousands of music-lovers to Heaton Park for two days of live music.

This year’s is shaping up to be the biggest in years, with huge headline slots from Charli XCX and 50 Cent, plus festival favourites like Bicep, Pawsa and Confidence Man.

With just a few weeks to go, festival-goers will be deep in their Parklife prep, whether it’s planning how to get there or what to wear all weekend.

Parklife is now releasing plenty of information about this year’s festival, including VIP upgrades, travel passes, and a few changes to the festival site, including new stages.

So we’ve rounded up a load of essential information you’ll need if you’re heading to the fields of Heaton Park.

When is Parklife 2025 and what times?

Parklife 2025 will be taking place on Saturday 14 and Sunday 15 June, at Heaton Park.

Parklife gates open from midday on Saturday 14 and 1pm on Sunday 15 June. On both days the event finishes at 11pm.

Last entry to Parklife is strictly 5pm.

Who’s on the line-up for Parklife 2025?

It’s a whopping year for the Parklife line-up, pulling in two huge headliners – artist of the moment Charli XCX, and hip-hop heavyweight 50 Cent.

Next up will be performances from incredible talent like soul singer Jorja Smith, Parklife favourite Peggy Gou, Pawsa, Bicep, Overmono, Confidence Man, Hybrid Minds, Rudimental, and Chris Stussy.

There’ll also be slots for Mancs like Interplanetary Criminal, Antony Szmierek, and Morgan Seatree.

Sadly, one of the hottest names on the bill, Lola Young, has pulled out of the festival this year, but it’s still shaping up to be a massive weekend.

You can see the full Parklife line-up below.

The Parklife 2025 line-up poster

How to get tickets, and ticket prices

Tickets for Parklife are still on sale, with decent availability for most ticket types – but they’re selling fast as the festival gets nearer and nearer.

Below are the prices for the main ticket options.

  • Weekend tickets – £164.45 each
  • VIP weekend tickets – £218.90 each
  • Saturday day tickets – £95.20 each
  • VIP Saturday day tickets – £137.50 each
  • Sunday day tickets – £95.20 each
  • VIP Sunday day tickets – £137.50 each

How much is a VIP or Backstage upgrade, and what does it get you?

If you’ve already bought a ticket but want to upgrade yourself to VIP, it’s not too late (and speaking from experience, WORTH IT).

You can upgrade your whole weekend to VIP for £72.80 each, or £44.80 each for day tickets.

The Parklife VIP area has jumped across to the other side of the festival site this year and is now right in the heart of the action near the Valley Stage.

From here, you have an exclusive viewing area of the stage, plus exclusive food and drink, priority entry, VIP toilets, a hair and makeup pamper station, and plenty more.

Then there’s a new Backstage ticket type this year, which gets you on-stage access to the Hangar stage, an exclusive viewing area of the Valley Stage, a backstage bar and a chill out area – it’s £165.00 each to upgrade for the weekend.

How to get to and from Parklife festival 2025, plus travel pass

Parklife takes place up at Heaton Park, so it’s a little way out of the city centre – but it’s a doddle to make your way up to the fields.

The festival still advises using the dedicated shuttle bus to get there and back, which is the quickest and easiest route.

The shuttle bus leaves from Lever Street in the Northern Quarter and will drop you right outside the festival site within about 30 minutes.

Alternatively, you can get a Bee Network tram to Bowker Vale or Heaton Park tram stops, and walk up to the gates.

As for getting home, buses will operate from early evening until everyone has safely left the festival site.

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Trams will operate on their normal schedule but note that Heaton Park station closes at 9pm on both evenings, so that crowds can be safely managed at Bowker Vale instead.

There’s a special Parklife Travel Pass that allows you to travel on any bus or tram service including the shuttle bus – it’s £8 per day, or £14 for the weekend, and is available on the Bee Network app.

Parklife 2025 festival map and stages

There are some big changes on site at Parklife this year – including The Parklife Stage disappearing altogether.

Now, The Valley will act as the main stage, and there are two brand new stages to check out too.

Both Matinee and Big Top will be new this year.

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Magic Sky will move a bit more centrally into the festival site, while the truly impressive Hangar stage dominates the western side of the event.

And at the top of the hill will be the small but mighty G Stage.

What you can and can’t bring to Parklife 2025

There’s strict security in place getting in and out of Heaton Park for Parklife festival, for everyone’s safety, and a long list of what you can and can’t bring with you.

You can bring your own water bottle on site with refill stations all over Parklife, but it mustn’t be larger than 500ml and can’t be metal.

You can also take sun cream as long as it’s 200ml or less and in original containers, and if the weather goes the other way, compact umbrellas are okay.

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As for the banned list, it includes obvious stuff like alcohol, drugs, knives, aerosols and flares/fireworks, as well as less obvious things like hoverboards and skateboards, hi vis jackets and selfie sticks.

Check the full list and more information HERE.

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Featured image: Jody Hartley

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A huge Irish festival with iconic music stars, markets, food and more is coming to Greater Manchester

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson
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A massive Irish music festival with masses of food, drink, crafts, workshops and surprises is returning to Greater Manchester this summer. 

Craic by the Creek 2025 will bring together all the best bits of the Emerald Isle for a weekend-long knees-up in a gorgeous countryside location on our doorstep in July. 

There’s a huge music line-up (with plenty more still to be announced) featuring Boyzlife, made up of Keith Duffy from Boyzone and Brian McFadden from Westlife. 

And this fun-filled Irish Music Festival is the only one of its kind offering full weekend camping, at the beautiful village of Compstall in Stockport. 

The countdown is now officially on for this unmissable celebration of Irish music, culture, and community spirit, which will take place between 18 and 20 July. 

Craic by the Creek has been hailed as the greatest Irish music festival in the UK and is back for 2025 bigger than ever.

Craic by the Creek is back in Greater Manchester. Credit: Supplied
Craic by the Creek is back in Greater Manchester. Credit: Supplied
Craic by the Creek is back in Greater Manchester. Credit: Supplied
Craic by the Creek is back in Greater Manchester. Credit: Supplied

Already announced to perform live along with Boyzlife are The Tumbling Paddies, Derek Ryan, All Folk’d Up, Johnny Brady, The Kilkennys and loads more. 

There are still more acts to be revealed in this stacked line-up. 

And it’s not just about the music at Craic by the Creek – there’s also a bustling Irish-themed craft market with handmade goods, Irish-inspired food and drink, social dance workshops, and plenty of surprises. 

Expect a weekend of tunes, traditions, community vibes and campfire craic. 

Craic by the Creek will take place between 18 and 20 July, 2025 – tickets are on sale now via Skiddle, and they’re already flying.

Read more

Featured image: Supplied

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