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The adopted Manc indie pop star that we’re backing to win the Mercury Prize this year

You've gotta get behind the hometown hero, after all.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 11th September 2025

The 2025 Mercury Music Prize shortlist is officially out, and we’re proud to say that the North has been well represented once again this time around, with multiple names from the top end of the nation featured among the nominees – including an adopted Manchester-based rising star.

You know what, cratch that: she might as well be a Manc music queen at this point, if you ask.

We may be heavily biased here, but with indie and alt-pop artist CMAT making her way onto the Mercury Music Prize award shortlist this year, our vote is practically already cast.

If you haven’t listened to CMAT yet, then you’re seriously missing out, and following the release of her latest LP, Euro-Country, at the end of August, it’s little surprise she’s earned the Mercury nod.

What is CMAT’s connection to Manchester?

She may be Irish-born, but the ‘Dubyone Diana’ truly started to make a name for herself in Manchester, and you’re damn right we’re taking her as one of our own.

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Moving to 0161 as a teenager with her old band, Bad Sea, she was just 17 when she got here; now 29 and making fairly different music to the kind she did as part of the previous duo, she’s grown massively in popularity over the last few years – and she’s done a lot of it from right here in Greater Manchester.

From playing the city centre music venue circuit to stunning crowds at the likes of Kendal Calling and Glastonbury Festival, she’s come a long way in a relatively short amount of time.

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Come on, if this isn’t award-winning energy, then we don’t know what is…

We welcome her to keep leaning into country music as much as she wants.

There’s another reason we want CMAT to win the Mercury Prize

It isn’t just because we’re somewhat biased local fans that we’re putting our money on her winning the 2025 Mercury Prize: she nearly already did this time last year for her sophomore outing, Crazymad, For Me, having released three impressive studio albums in less than 36 months.

Further reflecting on the second shortlisting, Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson (ergo, ‘CMAT’) went on to explain: “I had a weird thing happen at the Mercury Prize 2024 when Annie Mac was announcing who the winner was.

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“As she was reading it, I had this weird flip in my stomach, that I didn’t want to win the Mercury Prize for THAT record, because I had a feeling I could make something better.

“Two days later, I started to make EURO-COUNTRY. The Mercury Prize put a bottle rocket up my bum, to try and do something a bit more cutting edge and experimental and intense, if that makes sense.”

She signed off by adding, “I didn’t necessarily expect to be nominated again as a result, but I am very happy to have been.” We had a feeling she would, to be honest, hence why she was among our artists of the month – not even a fortnight before the shortlist was announced, no less.

Five Manchester artists we’ve been listening to this month | August 2025
You say CMAT was our headliner last month, and rightly so, Euro-Country is an absolute triumph.

Thompson joins the likes of resurgent Sheffield Britpop icons, Pulp, as well as Wolf Alice, FKA twigs and lots more talented acts on the list.

Not only are there plenty of Northerners on the list, but our friends over in Yorkshire have had another big year too.

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Leeds jazz musician Emma-Jean Thackray has also been nominated, and with the story behind her most recent heartbreaking but brilliant material, it’s no surprise.

Unsurprisingly, the likes of Fontaines D.C. and Sam Fender are also on there after a standout 12 months for both artists, but we’re sticking with CMAT for our 2025 Mercury Prize winner. After all, surely she can’t miss out two years in a row?

You can see the full list of nominees down below:

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Featured Images — Raph_PH (via Flickr)/Publicity picture

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Andy Burnham’s favourite Manchester pub, restaurant, neighbourhood and Sunday roast

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Andy Burnham's favourite Manchester pub, restaurant, neighbourhood and Sunday roast

Andy Burnham’s favourite pub, restaurant, neighbourhood, and Sunday roast have been revealed – and the man’s got taste.

Old footage of now-PM Andy Burnham chatting to content creator Isaac Likes has been doing the rounds again, and while the interview dates back to before Andy left us and headed down to the big smoke, his Manchester recommendations still stand.

From his go-to neighbourhood and favourite pub to where he heads for a Sunday roast, and even the song he likes to play when he gets behind the decks, Burnham gave us a glimpse into his ideal Manchester day.

First up, there’s the Northern Quarter, which Burnham reckons has to be his favourite neighbourhood in the city.

He said: “Got to be the Northern Quarter. It’s the place where it’s all happening.”

When it comes to food, he singled out Firehouse, sitting on the edge of the Northern Quarter, as one of his favourite places to eat. He also gave a shoutout to its sister venue Ramona, where he’s been known to get behind the decks.

Andy said: “On the edge of the Northern Quarter, Firehouse is a place I love to go. Ramona Pizza, I’ve DJ’d there – if the mayor DJs there it’s gotta be alright.”

For a proper pint, Burnham’s choice is a little more traditional, saying his favourite pub is the ‘proper old school’ Peveril of the Peak.

The beautiful tiled pub was recently named the best in the UK, just days before its legendary landlady Nancy passed away.

When Sunday rolls around, Burnham said he has a couple of options up his sleeve. The Wharf in Castlefield gets a mention, as does Edinburgh Castle up in Ancoats.

The Peveril of the Peak pub in Manchester
The Peveril of the Peak pub in Manchester
The Edinburgh Castle has ranked highlight in the Top 50 Gastropubs list. Credit: The Manc Group
The Edinburgh Castle
Firehouse
Firehouse
Some of Andy Burnham’s favourite places in Manchester. Credit: The Manc Group

He said: “We love our gravy, we drink it by the pint in Manchester.”

Of course, no conversation with Burnham about Manchester would be complete without talking music.

Asked to name the best Manchester band of all time, he offered a few contenders – The Smiths, New Order, and, ultimately, The Stone Roses.

“The band I think are quintessentially Manchester is The Stone Roses. That was peak Manchester,” he said.

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Featured image: Shaun Peckham (via GMCA)

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Fontaines D.C. announce massive return to Manchester on new European tour

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Fontaines D.C. are heading back to Manchester on their new European tour

Fontaines D.C. have just announced their biggest headline tour to date, including a massive arena gig here in Manchester.

The wildly popular Irish rock band are set to play a whopping 20 arena shows across Europe and the UK this autumn.

The tour has been announced in celebration of their upcoming fifth studio album, Dopamine Chamber, which is set for release this October.

Fontaines D.C. will hit the road just five days after the album drops, kicking off their European tour in Lisbon on 21 October.

Then they’ll make their way over to the UK, with shows in Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Glasgow, Birmingham and London.

Fans in their home country of Ireland are told to stay tuned for live news very soon.

As we speak, Fontaines D.C. are warming up to play one of the country’s biggest festivals, with headline slots at Reading & Leeds Festival.

They’ve already released Marianne, the first single from their new album, and frontman Grian Chatten says of the album: “The album itself is a dopamine chamber. You step inside and we test these different mind- or mood-altering pieces of music on you.”

The new record has been recorded between London, the English countryside, and Palermo, where Chatten recorded vocals in a makeshift booth built from mattresses and cushions.

He said: “There’s a poignant sense of us being on the brink of some other kind of form of humanity, or non-humanity.”

Tickets will go on general sale at 10am on Thursday 3 September, with pre-sale live from 10am on Tuesday 1 September.

You can access tickets for Fontaines D.C. in Manchester HERE.

Fans who pre-order Dopamine Chamber from the official store by 6pm on Monday 31 August will gain access to the UK pre-sale.

Fontaines D.C. UK tour dates in full

  • Friday 20 November – Liverpool, UK – M&S Bank Arena
  • Saturday 21 November – Manchester, UK – AO Arena
  • Sunday 22 November – Glasgow, UK – OVO Hydro
  • Tuesday 24 November – Leeds, UK – First Direct Bank Arena
  • Wednesday 25 November – Birmingham, UK – Utilita Arena
  • Friday 27 November – London, UK – The O2 Arena

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Featured image: Elizaveta Porodina

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