A brand new gig venue with a late-night bar and restaurant and a plunge pool is opening in Manchester city centre next month.
Canvas will throw open the doors to its ‘next-generation’ music venue at the new Circle Square development just off Oxford Road.
The new three-storey hangout will have live music, club nights, a members’ lounge, and a bar and restaurant open until 4am, seven days a week.
It comes from the team behind two legendary London venues, The Pickle Factory and Oval Space, as well as the MAMA Group, which operated Lovebox and Wilderness festivals as well as the Manchester Ritz, G-A-Y and Hammersmith Apollo.
Canvas comes from the team behind Oval Space in London. Credit: Supplied
Canvas will also welcome creative music, art, wellness and technology programmes.
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The 600-capacity gig space itself will host live concerts, album launches and listening parties.
It will be kitted out with cutting-edge technology to deliver a world-class sound and visual experience, with video mapping and projectors enveloping audiences.
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Canvas will host panel talks for members. Credit: Supplied
It hopes to create a ‘blank space’ for emerging and underground talent.
The Canvas members’ lounge will invite members to participate in events, panel discussions and wellness classes, and will host some of Manchester’s most enterprising young professionals.
Later this summer, a plunge pool and sauna will be added for members to find their own serenity in the city.
At Your Beat dance classes will take place in a dark room filled with colourful lights and pumping tunes.
Memberships will be held in the form of a Canvas token (an NFT) which will include benefits like free access to gigs and club nights, discounts on food and drink, and part-ownership of the members’ club platform.
They’re priced at £15 per month for under 30s, with a different option for older members.
A food and drink lounge will serve global small plates – curated by Miam Miam Glou Glou – all day, before switching to a late night bar after 10.30pm.
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Diners can expect breakfasts like the Persian (Merguez sausage, hummus, spinach, harissa and poached egg) and the Cali (avocado, chilli, lime and egg) with sides of fresh juices, breakfast cocktails and health shots.
The rest of the day, small plates will incorporate dishes including sumac lamp chops, disco fries, and Korean barbecued chicken, plus slow-cooked chicken thighs, steak bavette, and road plum duck leg.
It will also serve sandwiches between 12pm and 5pm every day.
Cocktails will champion ‘a new breed of bartending’, like the Jasmine Margarita (El Jimador Blanco, Muyu Jasmine, silver needle and citrus), the Jungle Bird (Bacardi Cuatro, Appleton 8, Campari, pineapple, galangal and tamarind cordial) and Cafe Torino (Mr Black Coffee Amaro, Martini Rubino and soda).
Dean James, co-owner and co-founder, said: “We’re thrilled to finally open our doors at Canvas. With authenticity at the forefront of everything we do, our key ambition is to provide the most innovative space where emerging music and new talent can grow.
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“We’re incredibly proud of our diverseness; in both what we do and who we are – from our growing Canvas community, right through to our teams.
“By giving people a platform to share and collaborate, Canvas has a really unique way of bringing together artists and audiences from underrepresented backgrounds. We try hard to avoid being polarised – I think it’s this passion that keeps us ahead of the curve and relevant to what our communities actually want adjoin to.
“Through the development of Canvas membership programmes, our long-term vision is to forge an environment that young creatives and grass-roots talent are not only excited to be a part of, but we also hope that they share in a sense of ownership with us too.”
Featured image: Supplied
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Elbow get behind campaign to save Jodrell Bank from closure
Danny Jones
Manc band Elbow are among the latest to get behind the campaign to save Jodrell Bank Observatory from closing permanently.
The Greater Manchester natives famously played a sold-out gig at the important scientific and cultural landmark for a very special live album recording well over a decade ago, and know all too well the site’s national and, indeed, global heritage.
Choosing the Observatory and the rare chance to perform a show in the shadow of the world-renowned James Lovell Telescope, it probably remains one of their most significant standalone UK date ever.
With that in mind, the local lads have been left just as worried by the news of its impending closure as everyone else, and have therefore issued a fresh appeal to help keep it open.
Posting a timely statement on social media, the group wrote: “Jodrell Bank has long been close to elbow’s heart. In 2012, the band played beneath the Lovell Telescope for one of the most memorable shows in our history.
“The recent news that funding for the e-MERLIN radio telescope network is set to end in 2028 puts the future of the scientific work at Jodrell Bank under serious threat. It is a remarkable place, with an extraordinary history, and one that continues to play an important role in science, culture and education.”
In addition to reliving clips and images from the historic live set all the years later, they also pointed people towards their ‘elbow – Live at Jodrell Bank‘ album documentary, which has now been made available online for the very first time as part of wider efforts to raise awareness around the cause.
Directing people to key online resources shared by the institution and astrophysics centre itself following their unfortunate update late last month, the push to not only find the funding but sustain support for the facility continues to ramp up throughout the world of science, arts and industry.
For anyone who somehow missed the news – 2028 being the current deadline handed down as per budget cuts across the sector – concerned parties here in the North West and all over the country have since started petitioning to save Jodrell Bank Observatory from shutting down for good.
In addition to being described as a “huge blow” to the field by the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS), some have even gone so far as to describe the decision as a form of “vandalism” when it comes to research and British culture as a whole.
Having also served as the host venue for the annual bluedot Festival since 2016, the multi-genre science and arts celebration could soon be forced to find a new home.
The battle is far from over yet, and the community has time to rescue Jodrell Bank Observatory from its fate, but it will take lots of money and more notable public figures to make it happen.
Once again, you can do your bit by signing the petition mentioned above right HERE.
Featured Images — Emma Farrer (via Wikimedia Commons)/The Manc Group
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Manichester organisers confirm tribute festival will return in 2027
Danny Jones
For anyone who didn’t manage to make it to the inaugural ‘Manichester’ festival held earlier this year in memory of British music legend Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield, you’ll be glad to hear that the tribute festival will be returning in 2027.
Set up in the name of the late, great Stone Roses and Primal Scream bassist, the event sold out in the blink of an eye, as hordes of Mancs and more turned up to honour the local icon through live music.
Following paying their respects in the immediate aftermath, his surviving family members, peers and other figures from within the industry then held that wonderful evening, where several big names turned up to remember with live performances – and it’s official: they’re not done yet.
Writing in a lengthy caption, the brand said, “The family of Stone Roses legend Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield have thanked everyone who made Manichester at Diecast such a special day — performers, organisers, and the thousands who turned up to celebrate a true Manchester icon.”
The evidently emotional and grateful statement goes on to read: “On behalf of Gene, George & the Family — thank you to everyone who performed, contributed and attended Manichester on 30 May 2026, and for all your kind words of support.
“The response was massive — fans travelled from everywhere, demand through the roof, love for Mani louder than ever. [Local fashion label] GioGoi even said they could’ve filled Old Trafford.”
Revealing that the team of organisers have now green-lit the follow-up edition next year, they promise to deliver the same kind of magic, only “bigger, better, built properly” and with more music and people involved this time around.
They also thanked Manc-Mexican musician and creative, Alejandro Reyes Knight, for filming and editing the content on the night, adding that since he “grew up in Madchester”, there was no better person to be tasked with the job.
For anyone who was there at Diecast on the special memorial evening itself, we don’t need to tell you how special the energy was in the room.
We spent a good week or so looking back at footage following the maiden Manichester festival, as we’re sure plenty of you did, too; safe to say we’re glad we’ll have another opportunity to celebrate his life and career in the best way we know how: with plenty of tunes and singing our hearts out.
It remains to be seen whether Diecast will remain the host venue for the sophomore tribute fest, and the next date is also still yet to be fully set.
All we do know is that with such a good lineup and turnout the first time around, you can expect an excellent and equally heartfelt sequel in 2027.
You can register your interest right HERE. Wherever and whenever it is, we’ll see you there.
@the.manc Yesterday, Manchester laid one of the city's greatest music legends, Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield, to rest at Manchester Cathedral. 🍋 Fellow band member and life-long friend Ian Brown read out a speech as hundreds gathered outside the cathedral to pay their respects to The Stone Roses and Primal Scream bassist. Mani will be missed by many, and we send love to all his family and friends. ❤️ #manchester#mani#ianbrown#thestoneroses#stoneroses♬ original sound – The Manc
Daisy Jackson -
12th May 2022 
