Tom DeLonge, Mark Hoppus and Travis Barker, a.k.a. the original blink-182 as we know and love them, made a final pitstop on the European leg of their world tour on Monday night at the AO Arena here in Manchester.
Having established themselves as pop-punk royalty a long time ago, fans lined up in the cold to claim their spot at the front of the venue to witness the classic blink-182 line-up following bassist Mark’s recent battle with lymphoma and DeLonge’s long-awaited return to the band once again.
In front of a sell-out crowd of Mancs who were once teenagers listening to the band’s iconic sound for the first time, the trio emerged and delivered rip-roaring performances of classics such as ‘All The Small Things’ and ‘The Rock Show’, along with new material ahead of their new album release this Friday.
The SoCal rockers sent out waves of nostalgia, with everyone waiting to hear ‘What’s My Age Again?’ and, of course, ‘I Miss You’, leaving screaming fans asking themselves why they grew up in the first place — us included.
Credit: The Manc Group
Travis Barker showed off an already bloody, bandaged hand to the camera after taking drumming to a whole other level as per usual, going on to be hoisted 50 feet into the air and continue his stand-out performance as his bandmates lovingly declared him “the best to ever do it”.
You’ll hear no argument from us.
There was fire, profanity, toilet humour (no surprise there) and just about everything else you could expect from the band who have been causing trouble for over 30 years now, with founding member Mark giving the crowd a heartfelt thank you for “saving his life for a second time.”
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We knew it would be somewhat of a throwback evening filled with plenty of adolescent abandon and memories of our youth flooding back, but we don’t think we were quite prepared for how emotional a night it ended up being.
After performing the bulk of the good stuff, the band departed the stage before re-emerging for their encore with a new song fittingly titled ‘One More Time’. A stripped-back, tear-inducing ballad centred on the band’s newfound understanding of the importance of friendship, notably with each other.
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With 20 shows in Europe done, it’s time for the band to head back to the warmer climates of the US, with a big gig in Las Vegas the next stop.
Let’s hope this is the beginning of a new era for Blink-182 and that Manchester leaves them with enough love to come back One More Time…
Fans are preparing to pay tribute to Mani from The Stone Roses ahead of his funeral service
Danny Jones
Stone Roses fans and Greater Manchester locals alike are getting ready to pay their respects to the late, great, Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield, following his tragic passing last month.
As well as details surrounding his funeral being announced earlier this week, the iconic Manc musician’s cause of death has also finally been revealed.
While Hatton’s service featured a high-profile cortège which started all the way from his hometown of Hyde, past multiple landmarks and ending at the Etihad Stadium, those local to Mani’s family home on the edge of Stockport are also being welcomed to help send him off.
It's the funeral of Mani of the Stone Roses on the 22nd. He lived locally. This poster is asking people to line the route of his funeral cortege to "show that he truly was adored". pic.twitter.com/X0DYHl10Hp
He had been struggling with emphysema for some time; he was declared dead at his home in the suburb of Heaton Moor, and is said to have died peacefully in his sleep.
As you can see from the posters put in various places around the area, residents wishing to pay their own tributes to Mani before his private funeral service at Manchester Cathedral are encouraged to line the long street leading down from St Paul’s and Heaton Moor United Church as he heads towards the city.
Departing Parsonage Road from 10am on Monday, 22 December, before turning right onto Heaton Moor Rd, then Wellington and eventually on to the Cathedral, you can expect plenty of people to show up.
One of those people will be his former bandmate and another influential guitarist, John Squire, who is one of many famous musical names to have honoured him in their own way over the last few weeks.
Other members of The Stone Roses, as well as Primal Scream (who he joined in 1996), are expected to join the close family and friends at the service itself.
Nevertheless, we have no doubt that plenty will be observing the funeral in their own way.
So, for those of you also looking to honour him, you know what to do; and to quote the poster itself, “together we can show this local legend and his family that he was truly adored.”
Boyzone to reunite for exclusive New Year’s Eve special on the BBC
Danny Jones
2025 has very much been the year of the comeback – be it Oasis, Britpop fashion in general, or short bobs and pixie cuts – so it’s only fitting that we round off the calendar with one last reunion, as throwback boyband Boyzone are set to feature on a TV special on the BBC this New Year’s Eve.
Turns out ‘All That I Need’ to make a year memorable is a load of 1990s nostalgia.
Now, obviously, despite plenty of other music names enjoying a second renaissance over the past 12 months or so, nothing is ever going to be quite as big as the Oasis Live ’25 reunion tour.
However, if you asked us to guess which group from the era were also going to reunite this year back in January, there’s not a chance we would’ve said Boyzone.
Boyzone are telling us about coming back together for one final run in their most unforgettable concerts yet 🎤
After news first began circulating earlier this week, it has now been confirmed that musician turned presenter Ronan Keating will be getting back together with two of his former bandmates.
Joining the 48-year-old for ‘Ronan & Friends: A New Year’s Eve Party’, ex-Boyzone members Keith Duffy and Shane Lynch are part of an exciting live music lineup.
Other names include actor and singer, Shona McGarty, who recently starred on season 25 of I’m A Celeb, as well as fellow 90s pop artist Louise Redknapp and singer-songwriter Calum Scott.
The exclusive reunion comes after the success of the recently aired Boyzone: No Matter What documentary show.
Spread across three parts on Sky, the docuseries (named after their hit song from 1998) looks back on the career and journey up the charts back in their heyday, all the way up to the present. After seemingly striking a chord with fans and the lads themselves, it looks like they’re not done after all…
Yes, not only is the festive TV special going to see three of the original members performing alongside each other again, but
Here’s hoping that turns into a springboard for something even bigger, and we get a Manchester arena show sometime soon.
As for the programme itself, ‘Ronan & Friends: A New Year’s Eve Party’ will be broadcast on BBC One and made available on BBC iPlayer from Wednesday, 31 December 2025.
The Manc Audio -
17th October 2023 
