The Kimpton Clocktower Hotel and The Refuge are throwing a summer packed with Pride events this year.
The Summer of Pride will see the incredible venue overtaken by everything from sparkling cocktails to photography exhibitions to terrace parties.
The Manc Audio will be launching a summer residency on The Refuge Terrace, celebrating diverse up-and-coming DJs and music talent from across the region.
Hotel brand Kimpton has been supporting the LGBTQIA+ community for more than 41 years and will continue with its work all summer.
The Refuge at the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel will celebrate Pride all summer. Credit: Supplied
The hotel supports several charity partners, including George House Trust, which provides support services to people living with HIV and their carers and loved ones.
Those who work for the Kimpton Clocktower are also completing the Be Trans Aware training programme, which will help staff to understand and support the full gender spectrum.
Although Pride month is officially in June, the celebrations will continue into July at the huge Oxford Street hotspot.
There’ll be a partnership with Sparkle Weekend, the world’s largest free-to-attend celebration of gender diversity.
The Kimpton Clocktower Hotel. Credit: Supplied
Sparkle Charity will host the event in Sackville Gardens between 8 and 10 July, but the Kimpton Clocktower will invite Sparkle Weekend members and hotel guests to a Sparkle Social Hour, with a drink on the house.
A special Sparkle cocktail will pop up on The Refuge’s menu, mixing white rum, cranberry, almond orgeat and cacao blanco, topped with an apple and rose foam.
50% of proceeds from the cocktail will be donated to Sparkle, the National Transgender Charity.
The British Culture Archive are going to host a free new exhibition at the hotel, launching on 19 July.
Together As One – A Celebration of Manchester’s LGBTQIA+ Community features photographs by Jon Shard and Peter J Walsh capturing some iconic moments in the city, including Flesh at The Hacienda and the protest against Margaret Thatcher in 1988.
The Come As You Are Weekender will make a return in August too, coinciding with the Manchester Pride celebrations on 27 and 28 August.
Speaking on the announcement, general manager of Kimpton Clocktower Hotel, Johan Scheepers said: “Inclusion and diversity is an integral part to the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel and Kimpton brand and we have always been extremely proud of this.
“It is crucial that any activity we do embraces the LGBTQIA+ community, so we’re more excited than ever to be announcing three-months of Pride championing activity.
“For us, it’s never just about doing something for Pride – it’s how we can spearhead the whole community throughout the entirety of the year. We look forward to welcoming all guests this summer and beyond.”
The Canadian hitmaker has just come off the back of three very impressive nights at one of the biggest music events of the year, Wireless Festival, and is now embarking on a tour of the UK and Europe.
Drake has solidified his position in the rap field, dropping bangers from 2006 and since then, he’s gone on to have some of the most streamed tracks of all time with ‘One Dance’ and ‘God’s Plan’.
The postponed Drake concert will take place at the Co-op Live in Manchester on Tuesday 5 August.
US rising star Reneé Rapp announces huge Manchester arena gig as part of European tour
Emily Sergeant
Reneé Rapp has just announced a European leg to her upcoming tour, and she’ll be stopping off in Manchester for a huge arena gig.
In just a few short years, Reneé Rapp has become a star… and her star is only rising higher.
At just 25-years-old, the critically-acclaimed musical theatre and TV actress has pivoted to become an undeniable pop sensation and film star – and an iconic figure in interviews too… which isn’t a job, but it should be – after landing her breakout role as Regina George in the Mean Girls musical on Broadway back in 2019.
Even though she chose to reprise her role as Regina George in the 2024 movie adaptation of the Mean Girls musical, since 2022, Rapp has largely turned her attention to her solo music career.
Reneé Rapp will be performing at Manchester’s AO Arena next March / Credit: Supplied
2022 saw Rapp release her debut EP, Everything to Everyone, before she then went on the channel her raw talent and authentic voice even further, and release her first full-length studio album Snow Angel in 2023.
Both 2024 and 2025 have been big musical years for Rapp too – so much so that she has now amassed more than 1.4 billion streams and counting across her entire discography.
An already-successful 2025 is about to become even more successful, as Rapp’s second album, Bite Me, is expected to be released on 1 August, and she’s also heading out on a highly anticipated US tour from late September through to late October.
Following on from her US tour, Rapp has today announced that she’ll be heading across the pond to Europe in the new year, and will be making her way over to Manchester to take to the iconic AO Arena stage in March 2026.
Amsterdam, Berlin, and Paris are just some of the other cities Rapp will be visiting before Manchester, ahead of closing out the tour at London’s Wembley Arena.
Reneé Rapp will be playing a huge gig at the AO Arena in Manchester on Wednesday 18 March 2026 as part of the ‘Bite Me Tour’, and tickets officially go on sale next week – with both pre-sales and general sale available.
The Three+ presale will begin on Wednesday 30 July at 10am, and the AO Arena presale will start on Thursday 31 July, again at 10am, before general sale launches on Friday 1 August at 10am.
Daisy Jackson -
4th July 2022 
