There’s a brand new event launching that coincides with Manchester Pride and it’s coming to Depot Mayfield.
Manchester Pride is adding a completely new event as part of its summer showcase which gives us one more reason to look forward to those sunny skies and warmer months.
Titled ‘Mardi Gras’, anyone interested in attending the event can expect two days of high energy live performances and unity.
The name of this new event pays homage to the origins of Manchester Pride before the celebration adopted its official title.
‘Mardi Gras’ will be hosted between two neighbouring venues, both of which are popular for their ability to create outstanding shows, Freight Island and Depot Mayfield.
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Freight Island is renowned for its use of indoor and outdoor spaces, and this two day spectacular will utilise all areas of the venue meaning everyone gets a chance to party.
Then Depot Mayfield, best-known for hosting the enormous Warehouse Project season, will also be used for Mardi Gras.
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As well as this new concept, Manchester Pride will be running its usual joyous occasions in the Gay Village.
Once again, partygoers will live get the chance to see live entertainment across two stages, including the Alan Turing Stage and the Indoor Arena, both of which are set to be electric.
Gay Village will be adorned with various decorations this summer for Pride. Credit: The Manc GroupSome of the festivities you can expect for Pride. Credit: Carl SukonikThe huge main stage at Manchester Pride Festival as 2025 tickets go on sale. Credit: The Manc Group
Guests who are looking forward to Manchester Pride can expect a roster of independent food vendors, market stalls and funfair attractions helping to celebrate the festival in style at the Gay Village Party, keeping the city’s LGBTQ+ heart at the heart of the festival.
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While Mardi Gras is expected to be a big part of the festival, Manchester Pride will also see the return of much-loved events such as the Manchester Pride Parade, Gay Village Party, The Rally, Candlelit Vigil, Superbia, Family Pride MCR, and Youth Pride MCR.
The celebration will, as usual, close with the Candlelit Vigil in Sackville Gardens on Monday 25 August, in partnership with George House Trust.
David McGovern, Chair of the board of trustees at Manchester Pride, said: “Manchester Pride has always been about pushing boundaries, creating new opportunities for people to come together, and celebrating the incredible diversity of the LGBTQ+ community.
“Mardi Gras represents the next step in this journey. Every year our audience has grown and with that, the demand for more ways to celebrate Pride has increased. Introducing this new dedicated venue at Depot Mayfield will mean we can invite new audiences and make Pride even more accessible for all to enjoy.”
Phil Burke, Chair of the Village Licensed Business Association, said: “The VLBA is thrilled to support this exciting new addition to Manchester Pride. It’s fantastic to see the celebrations expanding across the city while keeping the Gay Village at the heart of the festival.
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“Mardi Gras was originally organised by Village venues back in the 1990s, so it’s wonderful to see our community’s rich history celebrated with this revival.
“Our members are proud to host the street parties, showcasing the brilliant LGBTQ+ venues and talent Manchester has to offer. We look forward to welcoming thousands to the Gay Village Party this August and remind attendees to purchase a ‘Gay Village Party Supporter Band’ which will give them access to all the venues within the Village, and ensures the safe delivery of the celebrations.”
Councillor Garry Bridges, Deputy Leader, Manchester City Council, said: “Manchester Pride is one of the biggest and best Pride events in the country. It gives an opportunity for Manchester residents from all walks of life to celebrate LGBT+ culture and to continue the fight for equality and against injustice. It also sees huge numbers of people visit our city and shows us in our best, most inclusive light.
“As both Manchester and the event continue to grow, we look forward to seeing Pride celebrated across even more of the city this year whilst keeping the things we value most such as the Parade and the Vigil.”
The festival will kick off on Friday 15 August lasting 10 days until Monday 25 August, featuring the notable annual parade which still champions the fight for equality.
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To register for tickets and to be on the mailing list for updates about Manchester Pride you can sign up HERE.
Featured Image: Publicity Picture (via Supplied)
Gigs & Nightlife
Review | Villanelle debut: Liam Gallagher’s son’s band release their first track – here’s our review
Danny Jones
Liam Gallagher’s son, Gene, and his band Villanelle, have officially released their debut single to the masses, and since we’re still very much immersing ourselves in everything even remotely to do with Oasis, we thought we’d give this first track a review.
Now, if you’re expecting a familiar Britpop vibe like his dad and uncle used to bash out back in the day, you’d be very wrong…
It’s one thing to settle into something similar to what you’ve grown up around and try to continue a lineage if you’re from a successful family – especially with a legacy as important and influential as the one left by Liam and Noel – but we’re glad to report they’ve done something pretty different.
24-year-old Gene Gallagher and his bandmates Ben Taylor (guitar), Jack Schiavo (bass), and Andrew Richmond (drums) haven’t just tried to do an impression of Oasis; instead, they’ve found their own sound, and while it does give somewhat of an old-school flavour, it’s not what we expected.
It takes literally milliseconds for you to click into realising the vibe they’re going for.
‘Hinge’ is a simplistic but hard-hitting, grungey and dark debut from Villanelle, who, despite having played a number of in-progress songs live over the last year or so, have only just dropped their first studio single.
In fact, they’ve actually taken the admittedly bizarre and unorthodox first steps of having already played live with Liam Gallagher on the Definitely Maybe 30th anniversary tour before they actually released anything people can easily listen to outside of their live performances.
Nevertheless, the young four-piece introduces Villanelle as the latest post-punk outfit amidst the ongoing revival of the classic rock genre.
That is to say that punk is a tried and true classic style of music, not that these lads are trying to sound like The Rolling Stones…
Anyway, we’re getting sidetracked: Villanelle draw plenty of influences from both original and contemporary examples of this sonic subculture, and while it isn’t explosive per se, ‘Hinge’ is short, direct and hits the same formulaic notes.
It’s also fair to say you can hear a bit of the recognisable LG whine in Gene’s vocals at times, too. Listen to it in full down below and see if you agree.
Even the basic found-footage style video fits into the same category.
To call it straightforward isn’t intended as any kind of a diss, by the way – some of our favourite tunes and best artists spearheading the renaissance of the punk scene write like this.
What we will say is that it looks like bloody good fun to both play and listen to in a small, sweaty room, with plenty of pits and people bouncing off the walls.
Gallagher Sr. might be surprised to see his son going for a slightly heavier, more hardcore route with his sound, but he can’t accuse him of forgetting his roots as the child of a ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Star.’
The boys are actually hitting the road this winter, including a date at The Castle Hotel in the Northern Quarter, if you fancy grabbing a ticket.
You can grab your tickets to see Villanelle on tour HERE, and in the meantime, let us know what you think of their debut track down in the comments.
That was dubbed the ‘best Warehouse Project there has ever been’ by people in the room – so the chance to see him at Amber’s is going to be pretty wild.
Fred Again sent a ticket link to fans registered in Manchester, which appear to have sold out immediately.
He wrote in his mailer: “cos it’s a very small venue i really wanna make sure the tickets go to the people who are more likely to be from Manchester based on what the team see when you’ve signed up for things before. so yeah, that’s why you’re getting this first :)”
Sharing the news on his Instagram stories today, he added: “i am playing a small show at @ambers.club in Manchester this thursday with @cariboumusic and @zuri_fernandez. a handful of tickets have been sent to the ppl we know are in manny, we did it this way jus to try and stop resellers and stuff ykno”
Fred Again added: “massive love to amber’s for making it possible. another really important independent venue i’m so happy i get to play in.”
Amber’s is a no-phones nightclub that’s famed for its sound system.
Fred Again and Caribou will take to the stage at Amber’s on Thursday 18 September.
Thomas Melia -
4th March 2025 
