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Watch Ross from The 1975 pull a few pints at Bunny Jackson’s after sold-out Gorilla gig

We just want to know one thing... How many wings does he usually go for and what flavour?

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 4th February 2023

Following his band’s sellout intimate gig at Gorilla, Ross from The 1975 decided to celebrate like any true rockstar would: by pulling pints behind the bar at Bunny Jackson’s.

Bassist Ross MacDonald has become somewhat of a cult figure in the band of late, with countless fans swooning over him and his understated manner on stage.

He comes across as just a normal, down-to-earth bloke — so much in fact that he could probably slip into your local bar without anyone really noticing. Well, almost.

Yes, after The 1975 wrapped up their much-talked-about charity set for War Child on Wednesday, Ross decided to head round the corner to everyone’s favourite dive bar and surprise some Manc faces by serving up a few drinks. Because why not?

Imagine getting up to order a pint and some wings only to see Ross from The 1975 serving you.

The beloved bar and wing spot on Jack Rosenthal Street is packed to the rafters most nights whether there’s a gig on or not, but with arguably one of the biggest bands in the world right now having played literally metres away at Gorilla, there were plenty of punters enjoy their usual rock-heavy playlist.

That being said, while many may have expected the Wilmslow band to come on shuffle at some point, very few of them would have been expecting to see the long-haired heart-throb himself behind the bar.

Again, so unassuming — just a tall guy in a hoody.

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Severe lack of head on that one, Ross, lad.

We have to say, he could do a little more practice when it comes to pulling pints, but we always like hearing wholesome stories like this.

It wasn’t too long ago that rising pop star Olivia Rodrigo made a similar spur-of-the-moment decision and decided to get up on stage and sing for the Bunny‘s crowd.

Why are we never in there when this stuff happens? Fuming.

‘Wild’ moment Olivia Rodrigo hops up on stage to sing at Manchester dive bar

We’re just gonna start writing a list of all the people we want to see in real life and hope we catch them at BJ’s one of these nights.

We might not have been able to get our hands on one of those Gorilla tickets (they were like gold dust), but we did recently catch them at their massive arena show.

Think it’s safe to say we had a very good time and Ross was on just as good form that night too.

You can read our full review HERE or just watch us making pillocks out of ourselves instead:

@the.manc Who else saw The 1975 in Manchester?! What a gig 🔥 #the1975tour #the1975 @AO @the1975 #aoarena #themanc ♬ original sound – The Manc

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Image — Bunny Jackson/The1975 (via Instagram)

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Bob Vylan dropped from Manchester music festival following Glastonbury controversy

Danny Jones Danny Jones Manchester music festival drops Bob Vylan after Glastonbury chants

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:

radar festival cancels bob vylan set
Credit: RADAR Festival

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.”

The pair have said that they are being “targeted for speaking up.”

At present, an official police investigation has been launched into both Bob Vylan and Kneecap’s performances, with footage from both shows to be reviewed in order to decide whether their respective comments amounted to a criminal offence.

A statement added: “This has been recorded as a public order incident at this time while our enquiries are at an early stage.”

You can see the rest of the remaining RADAR Festival 2025 lineup down below.

RADAR Festival returns to Manchester with huge lineup this summer and you can still get tickets
It gets underway on Friday, 4 July.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — NMK Photography (via Flickr)

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Manchester crowned one of the world’s best cities for music lovers

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Live music crowd

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 skyline
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.

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“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.”

Featured Image – Alex Bracken (via Unsplash)

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