A legendary music venue that once hosted the likes of Tina Turner and Jimi Hendrix is set to reopen this summer.
New Century Hall was a thriving dance hall and events venue in the 1960s and 1970s but has been standing silently for the best part of a decade.
The venue, which is part of the NOMA neighbourhood in the city centre, is now set to be restored and reawakened in a £10m project.
Once complete, the reopened New Century will be a three-floor social hub home to an 800+ capacity live music venue, a large food hall, and a creative college.
New Century in Manchester. Credit: Supplied
The Grade II-listed building’s incredible heritage, like its sprung dance floor, 1960s ‘disco ceiling’ and vintage wood panelled walls, will all be preserved.
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In its heyday, New Century Hall hosted acts including The Bee Gees, The Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix, as well as famous club nights in the 1980s.
It’s set to become a busy events venue again, hosting emerging talent and global touring artists, as well as comedy, performance and conferences.
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Credit: Supplied
The ground floor, meanwhile, will become the 300-cover New Century Kitchen, with five independent food operators working alongside a more permanent pizza and coffee offering.
A central bar will serve local beers, wines and cocktails, with an entertainment space in the plans.
New Century Kitchen will also operate in the outside space at Sadler’s Yard.
The basement, meanwhile, will be home to Access Creative College, which counts Ed Sheeran as one of its alumni and a patron.
This will be the college’s third site in Manchester and will help people to kick-start careers in the creative industry.
Taking inspiration from the trailblazing spirit of the 1960s when the building was developed, New Century will celebrate the past to inspire an exciting new chapter – an everyday place for unforgettable experiences.
New Century is expected to reopen this summer.
Featured image: Supplied
Gigs & Nightlife
Morrissey claims sole credit for The Smiths’ iconic Salford Lads’ Club photo shoot idea
Danny Jones
Morrissey is once again raising the issue of credit and disputes over The Smiths’ legacy, as the controversial former frontman has now claimed that their iconic photo shoot outside of Salford Lads’ Club was entirely his idea.
The 66-year-old lead singer turned solo star from Urmston is no stranger to sparking debates and attracting controversy, and it seems his latest is to do with one of the most iconic images in British music history, let alone just Greater Manchester.
The Davyhulme-born bard and divisive artist goes on to claim that the other co-founding members of the iconic Manc band initially viewed as more of his “lunacy” – the suggestion seemingly being (as it often is with Morrissey) that they simply didn’t understand the ‘genius’ at the time.
Many of his most die-hard fans still believe that most don’t and never will.
He even jokes that, in another life, it could very well have been something entirely different and random, such as the Kellogg’s factory in Trafford, basically suggesting that other members would have simply followed suit.
In his words, he argues that “now millions of people come from all over the world to be photographed on that very spot, it is claimed as a Smiths idea. It wasn’t, it isn’t, and it never shall be.”
Once again, this is by no means the first time he’s called into question, ‘who did what’ and/or who owns what bit of intellectual property; in fact, there was apparently another one of these instances with Johnny Marr only recently.
‘Moz’ and Marr have been at loggerheads pretty much ever since the group disbanded back in 1987, and still look to be far away from seeing eye to eye on virtually anything.
The Strokes announce first Manchester gig in two decades
Daisy Jackson
The Strokes are finally set to return to Manchester for the first time in years, announcing a huge arena show today.
The iconic indie rockers have shared details of a new European tour, which includes a night at the massive Co-op Live arena here in Manchester.
The news comes hot off the heels of their celebrated Coachella set over the weekend.
The Reality Awaits Tour, named after their upcoming seventh studio album, will take The Strokes to Manchester as well as London and Newcastle, plus several cities across Europe.
The Strokes broke into the industry back in 2001 with their seminal debut album Is This It, which spawned massive indie anthems like Last Nite, Hard To Explain, and Sometimes.
Since then, they’ve released six studio albums, all of which have climbed into the top 10 of the UK Albums Chart.
You can expect to hear all sorts of fan favourites, like Reptilia, Juicebox, and You Only Live Once, plus new music including their latest single The New Abnormal.
Co-op Live said: “This is set to be an unmissable show as they come to Co-op Live for the first time and we can’t wait!”
Last time The Strokes played in Manchester, it was at the O2 Apollo way back in 2006 – the same year they supported Foo Fighters at Emirates Old Trafford Cricket Ground.
They played Lytham Festival more recently, but haven’t ventured back into Manchester itself since.
The Strokes will play at Co-op Live in Manchester on 26 October 2026.
Tickets will go on sale at 10am on Friday 17 April HERE, with a number of pre-sales beginning from Wednesday 15 April.
Daisy Jackson -
3rd February 2022 
