It’s been a long time coming – but this Saturday, Manchester’s AO Arena will open its doors once again to a sell-out crowd of Blossoms fans as the Stockport indie band perform their first headline show at the iconic venue.
This means it’s been 78 weeks and a whopping 553 days since live music last rocked the arena.
Blossoms will take to the stage at their hometown arena to conclude their most recent UK tour, before they’re set to support fellow Manchester indie rockers Courteeners at Emirates Old Trafford later this month, and even join forces with Northern 80s pop icon Rick Astley for two intimate gigs playing only the songs of Manchester band The Smiths.
Blossoms’ most recent studio album, 2020’s Foolish Loving Spaces, went all the way to number one in the UK album chart.
The band have now sold 604,747 albums in their career to date worldwide, including more than 340,000 in the UK, and have amassed over 484 million global streams – 319 million of those streams in the UK.
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Blossoms sell-out gig at the arena – which celebrated its 25th anniversary back in July 2020 – is also the first time the venue opens under new sponsorship, as back in September, 2020, it welcomed online electricals retailer AO as the new headline sponsor and rebranded as the AO Arena with a fresh new look.
The partnership is said to highlight AO’s commitment to bringing live music and entertainment back to the heart of Manchester.
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🔁 @BlossomsBand will now perform Manchester's @AOArena on Saturday 18th September 2021.
As well as the Bolton-born brand’s famous green smile, visitors to the arena will have the opportunity to enjoy exclusive ‘money-can’t-buy’ experiences, as well as on the spot ‘surprise and delight’ activations on the arena’s concourse, courtesy of the retailer.
In preparation to make the event as inclusive as possible once doors reopen for the big welcome back, the venue has been working hard behind the scenes over the past few months, and back in June 2020, it was even awarded GOLD status by Attitude is Everything – the disability-led charity with over 20 years’ experience improving Deaf and disabled people’s access to live entertainment.
AO Arena has said that its number one priority for the Blossoms gig is making sure that everyone’s visit is as safe and enjoyable as possible, and so has activated its ‘VenueShield’ programme – a comprehensive and best-in-class hygiene protocol that’s in practise at more than 325 ASM Global facilities around the world.
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Blossoms will take to the stage at their hometown arena to conclude their most recent UK tour / Credit: Facebook (Blossoms)
And through the arena’s partnership with Unilever brand, Lifebuoy, there are plenty of hand sanitiser dispensers around the venue to make it easy for everyone to sanitise their hands as they move around the arena – which will “inspire confidence” in the return to live events.
As restrictions have been lifted, the venue is asking music fans to enjoy themselves on Saturday with consideration to others by wearing a mask if possible and being prepared to show, if requested by a member of staff, proof that they do not currently have COVID-19, or that they have had both doses of the vaccine, or that they have previously had COVID-19 within the last six months.
Also in the name of safety, specialist detection dogs will be helping the venue to deliver a safe and secure environment for all visitors and employees.
It’s going to be a heck of a return to live music on the biggest stage in Manchester.
Featured Image – AO Arena
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Andy Burnham to begin rolling out new ‘everyday fixes’ for Brits amid cost of living crisis
Emily Sergeant
A series of ‘everyday fixes’ to help combat the rising cost of living crisis are soon to be rolled out nationwide.
Kicking off with two measures today, new Prime Minister Andy Burnham has announced that he plans to ban retailers from making ‘misleading’ claims to customers about discounts.
The Government says shoppers have ‘increasingly complained’ about outlets artificially inflating prices to give a false sense of value, such as increasing prices only to then immediately advertise ‘discounts’ to make savings look larger than they really are, which goes on to create an uneven playing field for honest competitors.
The Prime Minister also wants to see an end to so-called ‘subscription traps’, where people find it hard to cancel their subscriptions, and contracts are automatically renewed at a higher cost.
Set to come into force in January 2027 and saving people an average of £14 a month for every unwanted subscription, the changes will mean businesses will need to provide clearer up-front information, regular reminders. and a ‘much easier’ exit to contracts.
Andy Burnham to begin rolling out new ‘everyday fixes’ for Brits amid cost of living crisis / Credit: gov.uk | Piotr Cichosz (via Unsplash)
A new 14-day cooling-off period will also be introduced to let consumers cancel after a trial or long-term contract renews.
Certain charitable memberships, like the ones for cultural and heritage organisations for example, will be excluded from the new subscription rules due to the fact they have a unique role in preserving the nation’s history, landscapes, and cultural collections.
The Prime Minister says he is ‘determined’ to use every chance he gets to restore fairness and take pressure off people.
“I know people are sick and tired of rip-off discounts and subscription traps,” Andy Burnham said. “Westminster has got used to telling people that everyday hassles like this are just part of life, but I don’t think that’s right, especially when the cost of living continues to weigh heavily on so many people’s lives.”
He concluded: “These are just two of the everyday fixes we’re going to be rolling out.
“We want to put more money in people’s pockets and give people hope that politics really can work for them and their everyday lives.”
Featured Image – Piotr Cichosz (via Unsplash)
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Bury man jailed for life after being found guilty of murder at New Year’s Eve party
Emily Sergeant
A man has been handed a life sentence following the murder of another man at a New Year’s Eve celebration in Bury.
Antony Junior Murray, aged 25 of Tarn Drive in Bury, appeared at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court last week (7 August) where he was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of 18 years after being found guilty of murder.
It follows the death of 23-year-old Joe Burton on New Year’s Eve last year.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that emergency services were called to reports of a disturbance at an address on Tarn Drive at approximately 11:56pm on New Year’s Eve (31 December 2025), and upon arrival, officers discovered Joe ‘unresponsive’ at the bottom of a staircase with a significant amount of blood around him.
Despite the best efforts of paramedics, Joe was pronounced dead at 12:43am on New Year’s Day (1 January 2026).
A post-mortem examination later confirmed he had died from a single stab wound to the back.
At the scene, Murray initially denied any involvement and claimed he had returned home from a pub to find the victim unresponsive, however officers quickly identified inconsistencies in his account.
Initial enquiries – including phone and location data – showed that Murray had been at the address throughout the evening.
Joe had been in a relationship with Murray’s sister and had been invited to the address earlier that evening, and then further investigation revealed that Murray, Murray’s sister, the victim. and another individual had been at the property together, drinking and setting off fireworks to see in the New Year.
CCTV footage recovered from the scene captured the events leading up to the incident, including the fatal attack, and showed Murray assaulting Joe and placing him in a headlock, before proceeding to stab him in the back.
Following a detailed police investigation, Murray was charged with murder and was subsequently found guilty at court.
“Murray carried out a brutal attack on Joe and then attempted to mislead officers about his involvement,” explained Duncan Thorpe, who was the Senior Investigating Officer on the case.
The Manc Audio -
16th September 2021 
