Sam Fender, the down-to-earth lad from North Shields has both the crowd and his black and white striped Fender Stratocaster in the palm of his hand alike as he embarks on the first of two nights at Co-op Live.
Strutting out on stage with the nonchalance of a superstar, he’s done it all before. The Pyramid stage at Glastonbury, headlining festivals worldwide and playing in front of 50,000 at his beloved St James Park. Howay man!
Yet, however he does it, it almost feels like it’s just you and him in the room. His relaxed, baggy jeans and oversized t-shirt are emblematic of his laid back approach to just having fun with his mates, even on the biggest of stages.
The humble 30-year-old hit maker, who has now been touring stadiums for seven years, still treats his audience like they’re locals at the Low Lights Tavern – unblinded by the 23,500 flashbulbs in the UK’s largest indoor arena.
Fittingly supported by Wunderhorse, one of the UK’s best upcoming bands, they warm the crowd up with their own supply of rock anthems including Midas, Purple and Teal.
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Sam Fender then opens up with Dead Boys, a tune he hadn’t played so far on his 2024 People Watching Tour, and it was to some reception in front of the Manchester crowd.
Alongside his gifted guitar talent, his lyricism is generational, with Dead Boys being a cult favourite and the perfect opener to what is to be an incredible showcase.
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The first song chosen from the critically acclaimed Seventeen Going Under album, ‘Getting Started’ follows and in its namesake he’s right…
The floor to the back row are on their feet in unison as Fender and the band catapult into full swing.
In his repertoire of heartfelt classics, Sam gives the Manchester crowd the taste of many a playlist favourite with the production to match.
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‘The Boarders’ hits a tone that only builds from start to finish, with the anguish of life as a young lad from the North East playing into poetry, a personal favourite. When the guitar solo hits in the final third of the track, the light show on display gets mesmerising. The saxophone solo takes the spectacle to new levels – as they always do.
Sandwiched between two tracks from his upcoming release is one of his oldest, ‘All Is On My Side’. If there was an indie rhythm to epitomise my adolescent years it would be this one. It is a tune that describes growing up and the challenges that come with it.
Across the tour so far, it has been welcomed back into the setlist with open arms paying homage to the music that took him to where he is that features a signature Stratocaster crescendo.
As an early Christmas gift, People Watching EP dropped into our streaming services with a taste of what is to come on the 2025 full album. Wild Long Lie, which we have already sampled on full release, is paired alongside Nostalgia’s Lie and Arms Length which somewhat dissipated momentum.
Nonetheless, it clearly shows signs of something to become Fender staples in the near future.
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Amongst the chaos of the floor, it’s poignant to note the moral compass of the man on stage. Midway through one of his brand new releases, the down-to-earth Geordie pulls the plug to care for fans struggling in the heat of the pit, making a point of looking after each other during the show. Something I can only think he would have resonated with during his youthful yesteryears as a gig-goer on the other side of the barrier. Class act!
‘We Will Talk?’ kickstarts proceedings off again, showering the crowd with another archetypal hit to get the Co-op Live firmly on their feet.
When you know a song is about to blow the roof off the place, as a proud songwriter he only had to say one word. Spice. Dating back to November 2018, ‘Spice’ came along with ‘Dead Boys’ in his debut EP and it holds cult status six years down the line. If the sheer genius of the anthem isn’t enough to keep the audience engaged, then the massive pyrotechnic display firing out the back of the stage might have!
Now, as a man who has religiously listened to Sam Fender’s collection throughout the year, a song that placed number one for me was ‘Howdon Aldi Death Queue’ – specifically the Finsbury Park live version. In its presence for the first time in the flesh, this more than lives up to expectations.
For a song that, on a surface level – describes separating a reasonable distance from the person in front of you during a global pandemic at a supermarket in Wallsend – it holds about two minutes of the greatest guitar solos you would hear this side of the Tyne Bridge.
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Shades of Springsteen, Petty and Hendrix, and that is high praise, just listen. Breathtaking. Rock. Music.
Running into the final phase of the performance, we were somewhat brought back down to earth with ‘Get You Down’ and ‘Spit of You’. The latter is always a touching tribute to his old man, performed with a backdrop of Polaroid images of children and their parents. More specifically the conversational difficulties between a father and son, but something that could pull on the heartstrings of the entire audience.
Then they arrive… the big finish, the final three. Some may have felt disheartened to miss out on the likes of ‘That Sound’, ‘Saturday’ and ‘Play God’ (me being exactly that person) but listen, he can’t play them all.
To close us out, Sam takes to the keys as the faint intro to ‘The Dying Light’ creeps across the venue. The melancholy piano feels like it could awaken the entirety of East Manchester on a crisp winter morning before creeping up into the traditional electric guitar with an explosive, confetti-worthy finish!
As an encore, ‘Seventeen Going Under’ and ‘Hypersonic Missiles’ provide the musical culmination of truly one of Britain’s (if not the world’s) greatest live acts.
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As the Geordie star and the band prepare for their swan song, the canny lad teases the crowd with waves of acapella Ohhh, Ohhh, Ohh, Ohhhhhh’s, pre-empting the grand finale.
Fireworks, fog machines and confetti pair with an overwhelming chorus of applause to conclude what was undoubtedly one of 2024 best live acts – and he fancies doing it all over again tonight.
Sam Fender setlist
Dead Boys (Tour Debut)
Getting Started
The Borders
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Wild Long Lie
All Is on My Side
Nostalgia’s Lie
Arm’s Length
Will We Talk?
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People Watching
Spice
Howdon Aldi Death Queue
Get You Down
Spit of You
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The Dying Light
Seventeen Going Under
Hypersonic Missiles
Featured image: Publicity picture
Audio
Richard Ashcroft announces all-North West lineup of support acts for Alexandra Palace headliner
Danny Jones
Wigan’s finest, Richard Ashcroft, has announced an all-North-Western lineup for his upcoming headline show at ‘Ally Pally’.
The former Verve frontman is not only riding a fresh wave of popularity thanks to supporting Oasis on their incredible Live ’25 world tour, but also recently released his long-awaited new album, Lovin’ You.
Not just a Manc music icon but one of the biggest names to have come out of his borough, specifically, the legendary lyricist is finally getting more like the kind of recognition he deserves, and is making sure to pay that exposure forward in the best way possible.
He could have picked from all manner of big British acts as supports at Alexandra Palace, but Richard Ashcroft has chosen to keep flying the regional flag by picking a group he’s spent the last few months with, as well as a fellow Greater Manchester act.
That’s right: as well as signing up Liverpool’s very own Oasis Live ’25 openers, Cast, as one of the warm-up acts, the 54-year-old has also chosen another native Wigan artist in the form of The Lathums to join him for the momentous headline show.
Much-loved not only in their hometown but across Manchester and beyond, the indie favourites – who also released their latest studio LP, Matter Does Not Define, back in February – the young band are only getting better and becoming more established as time goes on.
Having already played the likes of the AO Arena here in Manchester and booked numerous big festival slots of the past few years, we reckon you can pretty much bank on them headlining this historic and bucket list venue for themselves in the future.
In terms of Cast, the scousers continue one of the busiest years for touring in their career by supporting ‘King Richard’, having followed up supporting ‘LG’ in 2024 to both Gallagher brothers over the summer.
As for Ashcroft himself, we’re glad to see him back releasing new music, and can confirm his seventh record is a great listen.
By no means our favourite, but just a taste of his latest sound.
Now, if you were wondering why we’re talking about this show over any of the other gigs (namely the Northern ones) on his upcoming UK run, it’s because most of the tour has now sold out.
His Co-op Live date was obviously the first to go, with Cardiff’s Principality Stadium going shortly after, and extra dates being added in the likes of London, Liverpool and over in Leeds.
If you do happen to be in the capital already or are willing to make a trip to London for the show, there are still some tickets left for Richard Ashcroft at Ally Pally in July 2026.
Cannot wait to hear how this sounds in that storied room:
Featured Images — Press shots (supplied)/Audio North
Audio
HAIM at Co-op Live, Manchester – tickets, times, setlist, and more for UK tour
Thomas Melia
Rock trio HAIM are gearing up to play their first ever arena show in Manchester next week.
Sisters Este, Danielle and Alana – more widely recognised by their surname, which also doubles as the title of their group, HAIM – are about to perform their biggest Manchester show to date.
This should come as no surprise, with the band amassing a cult following of fans and almost seven million monthly listeners on Spotify – thanks to huge tunes like ‘The Wire’, ‘Now I’m In It’, and ‘Don’t Wanna’, as well as newer single released like ‘Relationships’ and ‘All over me’.
The band have already recently played to a near 70,000 fans, thanks to their longtime friend and musical collaborator Taylor Swift, who brought the band out as a special guest on her global phenomenon The Eras Tour last summer.
But now, HAIM are going it alone.
They’ll be stringing up their guitars, and warming up their vocal chords to sing their angsty and fiery hits over at Manchester’s biggest entertainment venue, Co-op Live.
HAIM are bringing their ‘I quit’ tour to Co-op Live in Manchester on 30 October / Credit: Supplied
HAIM – UK Tour Dates 2025
Friday 24 October – Nottingham, UK – Motorpoint Arena
Saturday 25 October – Cardiff, UK – Utilita Arena
Sunday 26 October – Brighton, UK – Brighton Centre
Tuesday 28 October – London, UK – The O2
Thursday 30 October – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Friday 31 October – Glasgow, UK – OVO Hydro
Tickets
No need to ‘Pray to God’, as there’s still a good selection of tickets available for any Manchester HAIM lovers to grab HERE.
If you’re feeling a bit fancier, however, and fancy watching HAIM while ‘Spinning’ the night away in a premium seat, then you can find a handful of tickets up for grabs over on SeatUnique, starting from £25 HERE.
Setlist
Gone
All over me
Take me back
My Song 5
Cry
Spinning
Don’t Wanna
The Steps
Gasoline
Blood on the Street
Hallelujah
Summer Girl
Want You Back
Relationships
Now I’m in It
The Wire
Down to be Wrong
What are the stage times for HAIM in Manchester?
Co-op Live has a strict curfew of 11pm, and with doors opening at 6:30pm and a start time of 7.30pm, this rock trio certainly won’t be working to ‘The Wire’ to cram in all their hits, meaning you can get home before the crack of dawn.
Bedroom pop musician Dora Jar supported the girls throughout the North American shows, however there’s no official artist confirmed for the UK leg so far.
Rock trio HAIM are gracing Manchester, London, Glasgow and more on their UK tour / Credit: Supplied
How to get to Co-op Live
Tram
For those of you heading to Co-op Live, you’ll be glad to know it’s right next door to a rather famous big blue stadium and its integrated Metrolink stop.
Head along the light blue or orange lines directly to the Etihad Campus or Ashton-under-Lyne, and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.
Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre and until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Bus
You can find the full list of bus routes HERE, with the one in closest proximity to the venue being the 53 bus, which runs from Cheetham Hill through to Higher Crumpsall, Old Trafford and Pendleton, leaving just a two-minute walk to Co-op Live.
You also get free Bee Network travel with any valid event ticket.
If you’re driving, there is limited parking available at the venue, but this must be pre-booked ahead of time, and there are designated drop-off areas.
The postcode is M11 3DU and you can follow the signs towards the wider Etihad Campus as you get closer, and directions to the adjacent drop-off points will also be signposted.
Keep in mind that congestion on the roads close to the stadium is expected to gather around two hours prior to any event, so if you are travelling on the road, these are the suggested times they provide come event day, though estimates will obviously vary:
Alan Turing Way (both directions): plan an additional 20 minutes into any journey by road.
Hyde Road (eastbound): expect an additional 15 minutes to be added to your journey.
Mancunian Way (westbound): plan for an extra 10 minutes of travel time.
There are also three park-and-ride facilities near Co-op Live, but be advised that the Velopark and Holt Town stops will be closed post-event to help safely manage crowds:
Ashton West (Ashton line) – 184 spaces and 11 disabled spaces
Ladywell (Ashton-Eccles line) – 332 spaces and 22 disabled spaces
Walk/cycle
Lastly, Co-op Live is only a half-hour stroll from Manchester Piccadilly, and you could even walk along the canal all the way to the front door if you fancy taking the scenic route.
Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes through the Beryl scheme, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the bike all through an easy-to-use app. There are hire points just near the south-west corner of the Etihad Stadium on Ashton New Road.
For more information on all travel options, you can check out the enhanced journey planner.