The Royal Exchange Theatre has announced that it has entered into ‘redundancy consultation’ with staff members and may be forced to make up to 65% of permanent roles redundant.
The theatre, in the heart of Manchester city centre, has cited the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the uncertainty around when it may be able to once again reopen doors for live performances, as having a detrimental effect.
Theatre directors said “there is nothing on the table which gives us confidence or clarity to be able to restart any activities in the immediate future” and that they “simply can’t trade” at this moment in time, even with social distancing measures in place, as it is “just not financially viable within our current structure”.
Announcing via a formal statement on its website yesterday evening, the Royal Exchange Theatre said that the impact of the pandemic has been “monumental” and they have been “working incredibly hard to ensure the survival and the future of our theatre”.
The statement continues: As a direct result of this, and the dramatic loss of income associated with it, we have no other choice than to scale back the organisation and reduce our overheads in order to survive. This means that we have been forced to make the incredibly hard decision to enter a period of redundancy consultation with our staff.”
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“At the end of this period we may have to make up to 65% of permanent roles redundant.”
“We have explored all other possible options and this is the last resort in protecting the future of the Royal Exchange Theatre. The primary focus now is our duty of care to our staff [and] we have an incredible team of people who have shown enormous commitment and resilience.”
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“This is a very sad and difficult time for everyone involved.”
“As a company, we remain committed to our vital role as a key cultural organisation for Greater Manchester, the North West and the national theatre ecology.”
“We will emerge from this period as a different organisation in a very different landscape, but we are determined to deliver the best cultural experiences for our audiences and communities once more, and we will do our utmost to bring our stages back to life as soon as it is safe and economically possible, opening our spaces, inviting communities and presenting bold and inventive work from vibrant and original voices”.
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Bryony Shanahan, Artistic Director, said “It’s been heart-breaking to come to the realisation that this is the action we have no choice but to take.”
“Our staff are dedicated, talented, loyal and they don’t deserve this – and neither do the thousands of people in our industry who are facing job loss and uncertainty. It is an awful time for us all, and it’s also hugely frustrating that government support simply hasn’t reached us in time, despite clear warning signals and cries for help.”
“Access to culture for all should not be a luxury but a right, and so we must value it as such as we heal and move forward from this time.”
Roy Alexander Weise, Artistic Director, said: “The only way through this tremendously difficult time is to have unwavering optimism; keeping our eyes firmly on the goal of building again a vibrant hub of creativity and connection for Greater Manchester.”
“This catastrophe sadly forces us to change drastically to brace the world’s uncertainty but we look further ahead with hope to becoming a theatre which benefits more people than ever before, brings our community relationships into sharper focus, and helps us to employ and sustain more talent in the future.”
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“Theatre will survive because as human beings we crave stories to make sense of our existence and imagination will help us to create a future. Our Engagement work with community participants never stopped during lockdown, and we have been committed to people remaining connected with us and each other.”
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“We have learnt through this time that we can do and be so much more for the people of this great city. Theatre, arts and culture will be needed more than ever to support our collective recovery [and] when we eventually open our doors, we will be a pillar of strength, love and resilience for all.”
Steve Freeman, Executive Director, said: “The current economic landscape is desperate for theatres up and down the country, but we remain committed to being able to bring joy and entertainment to peoples’ lives once more. In the short-term, this means that we are having to take the most drastic and painful actions now.”
“However, we know that our role in providing people with the space to congregate for cultural experiences will be all the more important in the new world we are all facing.”
The Royal Exchange Theatre has started the #RXConnect hashtag on social media, which has seen much interaction and support from members of the public over the past few months since closing its doors back in March.
Never imagined that we'd be hair-line deep – 5 months in – but I feel like with everyone's support I can imagine us getting through this!#RXconnecthttps://t.co/StpUIXBnv5
The Royal Exchange Theatre closed out its statement thanking everyone for their continued and invaluable support and vowed to “be back as soon as we can”.
For more information, visit the Royal Exchange Theatre website here.
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Microdot exhibit for BRITs 2026: the artwork of Oasis, Verve and more up in Manchester Piccadilly
Danny Jones
If you’ve passed through Manchester Piccadilly of late, you might have noticed two things: one, it’s really quiet, and two, there’s loads of cool Britpop merch and memorabilia on display, including original Oasis, The Verve, Inspiral Carpets art and more – all courtesy of Microdot.
Set up as part of the city’s own BRITs celebrations, along with a raft of other nationwide festivities, as the annual music award ceremony prepares to make its Manc debut at the Co-op Live this month, the showcase features special edition frames and more, all pride of place in the middle of the train station.
This collection, simply entitled ‘A Microdot Design’, is all done by the legendary Brian Cannon, the graphic designer and art director behind so much recognisable visual material within the genre.
We recently had the honour of speaking to the man himself in person ahead of Piccadilly’s temporary closure; you can see our interview with him right here:
The Wigan-born artist and visionary didn’t just make promotional materials for some of the biggest bands in the 1990s; he’s responsible for what has gone on to become some of the most familiar iconography in British music history.
With this pop-up exhibit available for a limited time only, we strongly urge you to go along and, for once, take your time rather than rushing around the station as you peruse the boards placed right near the main entrance.
Charting his work from circa 1990 up until now, it’s crazy to see just how many of Brian and Microdot’s fingerprints are all over so many different bands and artists.
From native names like Oasis, The Verve and the Inspirals, as mentioned, as well as the likes of Cast, Super Furry Animals, Suede and Ash, plus so many more, this guy has been nothing short of prolific over the past few decades.
Audio North took a little tour of the King Street South unit last year in the lead-up to Oasis Live ’25 reunion world tour, and we felt like kids in a Britpop sweetshop.
While this site has sadly since closed, shutting up shop back in July, Brian’s mini, modest, but nevertheless magic Microdot Boutique up in the Lake District is still standing.
Located in the popular North West town and tourist attraction, Kendal, it’s worth a trip there to see more of his portfolio alone.
Currently on display at Manchester Piccadilly ahead of the full 2026 BRITs Week and shindig at Co-op Live, it’s one of the best completely free things you can do in town at the moment – but the exhibition finishes on Sunday, 1 March, so make sure you don’t miss it.
Speaking of the BRIT Awards, if you’re wondering what else is on as 0161 gets ready welcome them for their two-year stint (at least), look no further…
Two brothers from Oldham are beating out the likes of Taylor Swift in the iTunes charts
Danny Jones
A pair of brothers from Oldham who simply go by Two Connors are now holding on to the top spot in one of the biggest iTunes charts, and they’re beating the likes of Taylor Swift, Bruno Mars, Bad Bunny and many more.
Stuff your global music stars, we’ll back a duo from Greater Manchester all day long.
Danny and Callum Connor, a couple of blokes from Oldham in their mid-30s, are currently number one in the iTunes singles charts with their latest song, ‘Familiar Faces’, but this isn’t the first time they’ve gone big with a release online.
Carving out their own little corner not only in the old Lancashire borough but a small pocket in the UK’s wider grime, drill, rap and hip-hop scene, they’ve only gotten bigger over the last 18 months or so.
After releasing their first two tracks back in 2024, Callum and Danny have been on a very gradual rise, but they quickly gained a cult local following in and around Oldham.
Writing about life and around the area, with high personal and anecdotal lyrics that feel like niche references and in-jokes specifically for‘Roughyed’ residents – it’s not just music by them but FOR them.
In addition to recording their own unique cover of ‘Bad Habits’ by Ed Sheeran, they also went fairly viral for releasing a music video featuring crowds of local children.
Putting their own chant-based chorus slant on ‘Hi Ho, Hi Ho, “It’s off to Work We Go”‘, written by Mitch Miller and The Sandpipers (yes, as in the main theme from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs), it was a fairly radio-friendly tune that was easy for kids and more to sing along with.
With various other natives getting involved in the music video, joining them on the town centre streets and lip-syncing the lyrics, it was circulated online all over Britain and beyond.
You can watch it in full down below.
Fast forward to February 2026, and not only have they grown their following across the region, but even further afield now, as it turns out; currently sitting ahead of ‘Opalite’ from worldwide smash-hit album, The Life of a Showgirl, who needs big label backing, eh?
Bringing smiles to even more Greater Mancs by quite literally shining the spotlight on ‘Familiar Faces’ and punters from nearby pubs such as The Up Stepps Inn and former nightclub Sruples, it is a real tribute to their homeland.
Only time will tell how long they’ll cling to that iTunes top spot, but with nearly 73,000 monthly listeners on Spotify and counting, they might be one of the biggest music names to come out of OL in some time.
In other big news over in Oldham, on the sporting side of things, RLFC are staring down yet more uncertainty, with local hero Bill Quinn also wrapping up his time at the club.
The Manc -
2nd July 2020 
