For the first time in its three decade-long history, the BRIT Awards are taking place in Manchester this year – and there’s a whole programme of events happening all week in celebration.
Much like the Oasis fever that had the city in its grip last summer, venues all over Greater Manchester will be getting giddy over the upcoming awards ceremony, which will attract some of the world’s biggest music names to our hometown.
The BRIT Awards themselves will be taking place at the Co-op Live in Manchester on Saturday 28 February, as well as being broadcast live on ITV and ITVX.
Performances on the night will come from Harry Styles, Olivia Dean, Rosalía, Mark Ronson, Wolf Alice, and loads more – you can see the latest line-up for the BRIT Awards HERE.
But before that, Mancs will be able to enjoy everything from free art trails to intimate gigs from massive artists.
ADVERTISEMENT
The BRITs will really be taking over Manchester – here’s everything that’s going on.
The BRITs Art Trail
Northern Quarter and Ancoats | Thursday 12 February – Monday 16 March
ADVERTISEMENT
The BRITs Art Trail map
Curated by legendary Manchester artist Stanley Chow, and produced by Wild in Art, a new citywide art trail has appeared in the city.
The work of 21 different North West artists – from murals to billboards to installations – has taken over the Northern Quarter and Ancoats.
You’ll find them everywhere from the side of the landmark pink carpark on Church Street to the windows of Fred Aldous – one of our favourites is a classic David Bailey BRITs comic strip.
ADVERTISEMENT
A Microdot Design by Brian Cannon
Manchester Piccadilly | Tuesday 17 February – Sunday 1 March, 12pm-6pm
Taking full advantage of the closure of Manchester Piccadilly is one of the music industry’s best-known creatives, with a bespoke gallery exhibition popping up on the station’s concourse.
A Microdot Design by Brian Cannon will celebrate three decades of iconic British music artwork, including his creations for bands including Oasis, The Verve, Cast, Ruthless Rap Assassins, New Fast Automatic Daffodils, Inspiral Carpets, The Lathums and Super Furry Animals.
Brian Cannon said: “I established Microdot in Manchester in 1990, and since then, I have worked with many artists from the city and the wider North-West area. I was delighted, therefore, to be asked to curate an exhibition to celebrate The BRIT Awards 2026 with Mastercard’s first visit to Manchester showcasing my work for musicians from the region.
“The retrospective exhibition includes some classic pieces that most people will be familiar with, alongside some lesser-known work from my archive.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Entry is free, with advance timed tickets available to book HERE.
BRITs Week for War Child, delivered by DHL
Various dates and venues
Huge artists announce intimate charity gigs for BRITs Week 26 for War ChildRobbie Williams announces surprise intimate gig in Manchester at Aviva Studios. Credit: Supplied
Some of the world’s biggest artists – including BRITs-nominated star Olivia Dean – will be performing intimate shows at grassroots venues right across the UK.
Here in Manchester, that means Olivia Dean herself on stage at the beautiful Albert Hall, The K’s at Gorilla, as well two nights curated Warehouse Project at YES – one with Mixmag’s Year Defining DJ Josh Baker, and the other with DJ Mag’s One to Watch Rossi.
These shows have been announced in support of War Child’s vital work supporting children affected by Conflict.
Tickets and further information can be found HERE.
The Rodeo BRITs special edition zine
Friday 20 February
Independent Manchester music magazine The Rodeo are producing a limited-edition zine to celebrate The BRITs coming to town.
As well as interviews with nominated artists, it will feature words from people across our city’s music scene, and will showcase the events taking place all over the city.
ADVERTISEMENT
It will officially launch on Friday and you’ll be able to pick up copies in selected shops, record stores, and music venues – UNITOM, Piccadilly Records, Night & Day Cafe, The Rat & Pigeon, Fred Aldous, Ezra & Gil, The Bay Horse Tavern, Cane & Grain, Smithfield Social, Jimmy’s, Pollen, and Cloudwater.
FRINGE LAB
New Century Hall | Friday 27 February
BRITs Fringe will be a week-long programme that celebrates Greater Manchester’s music scene, under the banner ‘Manchester Seen and Heard’.
The event will harness the power of the BRIT Awards to amplify grassroots and local creativity.
At the centre of the programme is FRINGE LAB, a one-day music industry forum, mixer and live showcase at New Century Hall, with a line-up that includes YolanDa Brown OBE DL, Jamz Supernova (BBC 6 Music), Rich Castillo (Lionbear Music), The Lottery Winners, Donae’O, Zed Bias, Låpsley, Sam Potts (AWAL), Scott Lewis (EMI North) and Mark Lippmann (Scruff of the Neck).
ADVERTISEMENT
But there’ll also be three days of workshops for young musicians – you can find out more information on that HERE.
Kate Lowes, Director at Brighter Sound, said: “We’re thrilled to be announcing some of the incredible artists and industry figures joining us for BRITs Fringe – with more to be announced in the coming days. The line-up reflects both the calibre and generosity of people ready to share knowledge and open doors for the next generation.
“We’ve had a fantastic response from local creatives and can’t wait to welcome everyone to our events in the week leading up to the awards. From development sessions to live showcases, we’re focused on creating clear, meaningful pathways for Greater Manchester talent.”
Manchester Must Dance (an afternoon with Mike Pickering in conversation with Graeme Park)
The Social, Aviva Studios | Saturday 28 February, 2pm
In celebration of Manchester-born musician, DJ and songwriter Mike Pickering, this special event will give guests an exclusive preview of Mike’s forthcoming book Manchester Must Dance, alongside his take on the music, moments and movements that shaped his groundbreaking career.
ADVERTISEMENT
The event will feature an in-conversation hosted by legendary house music DJ Graeme Park, with a live audience Q&A offering a rare opportunity to hear directly from Mike himself.
Manchester’s beautiful winter Teepee is back, with free pints this weekend and live music every day
Daisy Jackson
Nothing heralds the arrival of the autumn/winter seasons quite like the appearance of The Oast House’s beautiful winter Teepee.
The popular seasonal space is officially reopening its doors this weekend, and inside you’ll find roaring fires, a giant disco ball, live music, and plenty of pints to keep the colder months feeling a little less grim.
After giving its beer garden a major glow-up this spring and hosting a summer packed with live music, The Oast House is bringing back one of Manchester’s favourite winter hangouts – and it’s kicking things off with a proper belter of an opening weekend.
We’re talking twinkling fairy lights, faux fur throws, and a dedicated bar pouring Staropramen fresh from the tank, all inside its massive winter Teepee.
And there’s even better news for the first few through the door.
To celebrate the Teepee’s return, The Oast House team will be cracking open a full tank of fresh Staropramen on Saturday 10 October, with free pints up for grabs for the first 440 guests.
There’ll be live music every night in the winter TeepeeManchester’s cosiest venue is back
The Teepee will be keeping things lively seven nights a week throughout autumn and winter, with The Oast House’s much-loved Open House programme moving indoors for the season.
Expect everything from Bandeoke and Musical Bingo to Retro Sounds and Oast Acoustic sessions, meaning there’ll be something different on the cards every night of the week.
The venue’s free monthly live music festival, Oast House Live, isn’t going anywhere either. It’ll continue inside the Teepee on the last Saturday of every month, bringing even more live music to the heart of Spinningfields.
Of course, it wouldn’t be The Oast House without a menu worth getting stuck into.
The kitchen will be serving up its 12-hour-brined rotisserie chicken, alongside a line-up of tempting sides like Ziggy Fries tossed in chicken salt and chicken butter, cheddar and onion slaw, and charred corn on the cob drenched in house-made Scotch bonnet butter.
Food in The Oast House Winter TeepeeThere’ll be 450 free pints given away on SaturdayRotisserie chicken
And if you’re after something a bit different, the house-special ‘addictive’ Chicken (T)oastie is one you won’t want to miss.
Sundays are all about the roast, too, with the kitchen dishing up its signature rotisserie chicken alongside chicken-butter roasties tossed in chicken salt, all the trimmings and bottomless house chicken gravy.
Basically, if you’re after somewhere to escape the cold without sacrificing a good night out, you know where to head.
The Oast House and its Winter Teepee are open daily from 11am until late throughout the season.
The Oast House Winter Teepee opens Saturday 10 October, with free Staropramen pints for the first 440 guests.
For more information and to book your table, head HERE.
Pussycat Dolls at Co-op Live – tickets, times and more for UK tour
Thomas Melia
American girl group Pussycat Dolls have reunited for a UK tour, stopping off at Co-op Live in Manchester with their powerhouse pop anthems.
Releasing their first LP in 2005, this pop girl group have a variety of radio hits to their name like ‘Don’t Cha’, ‘When I Grow Up’ and ‘Buttons’.
Over the years, the Pussycat Dolls lineup has gone through significant changes with this latest reunion comprised of Nicole Scherzinger, Kimberley Wyatt and Ashley Roberts.
The trio even released some brand-new material to coincide with the announcement of their UK and EU tour titled ‘Club Song’.
Now the girls are about to put their Doll Domination to the test as they bring their PCD Forever Tour in arenas across the nation.
Gig guide – Pussycat Dolls at Co-op Live, Manchester
Doors for Pussycat Dolls at Co-op Live open from 6pm with a start time listed of 7pm with Lil’ Kim and rising girl group Deja Vu kicking things off.
Co-op Live has a strict curfew of 11pm, meaning you can get home and loosen your ‘Buttons’, hopefully before the clock strikes twelve.
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.
Getting there by car and parking
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; 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 on 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 on the Beryl app, 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.
Daisy Jackson -
18th February 2026 
