As England’s final game of the group stage looms, we can’t help but feel stressed and apprehensive — especially after seeing what these poor sods in Newcastle had to put up with the last time out.
In a series of viral clips circulated on social media following the England vs USA game, fans watching the match (or at least trying to) at the NX Newcastle music and events space were left in limbo and utterly furious as the venue struggled with audio and video issues throughout the 90 minutes.
Punters resorted to throwing drinks, hopping barriers; shouting abuse at the staff, as well as chanting “we want our money back” and “you’re getting sacked in the morning”.
At least someone got a chuckle out of it… Well, mainly us and the rest of football Twitter.
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Even despite some more positive pint launching when they eventually got the game on, albeit sarcastic, you can only imagine the sheer frustration expressed by so many who not only chose to watch the game there but also had to pay even just to enter the Newcastle fan zone.
As detailed above, the organisers issued an official statement apologising to fans for “such a disappointing experience”, adding that they are now looking into exactly why the various technical issues occurred. We’d definitely not trust the remote to whoever was holding it on Friday night.
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Either way, the damage was already done and hundreds of Geordies were left incensed. I mean, you would be, wouldn’t you?
NX went on to assure that further information regarding refunds would be shared and seemed to intimate that the lion’s share of the blame lies with the promoter Box 2 Box, who despite having a “long-standing track record of delivering sports events” clearly fell desperately short of the mark on the night.
We also resisted the urge to make a ‘they didn’t miss anything’ joke given the disappointing 0-0 result, as those present were kept in the dark for so long that they didn’t know what was going on in the game.
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Moreover, we’re sure they were only further annoyed once they did learn of the score and even when partial coverage did return, they were ultimately forced to watch it without sound. Pain.
Anyone got the score?
Screens went off and now we are watching Angels of the North briefly.
After a while, football is back on but with no sound at all. Fans are calling for a refund and, to be honest, they probably deserve one… #ThreeLionspic.twitter.com/pL3EDN0fy7
We can only sympathise with those unlucky enough to be present for the shambolic screening and pray nobody else suffers the same for the England vs Wales game on Tuesday, as the Three Lions look to secure qualification into the knockout stages of Qatar 2022.
While the promoters have insisted the screen is now fixed and are trying to tempt supporters back with an after-party, we imagine locals will be steering clear of this particular Newcastle fan zone for the rest of the tournament.
To make sure you avoid any similar dramas round this end, it’s probably best you check out our list of the best places to watch the World Cup in Manchester — we’ve given them all the Manc seal of approval.
High School Musical at Lowry, Salford – a night spent reliving our childhood | Review
Amy Williams
What a night spent reliving our childhood.
Now, I don’t want to exaggerate or seem biased, considering this is one of my favourite film trilogies of all time, but this could be the best stage show I’ve seen in a long while.
We all know how High School Musical goes, right? Set at East High, we follow Troy and Gabriella (the star basketball player, and the geeky new girl) who meet over New Year, and then become ‘star-crossed lovers’ when back at school as they’re part of two different ‘cliques’.
The duo mess with the ‘Status Quo’ when they audition for the school musical. But will they stick to what they know? Or become stars of the stage? I’m sure you know the ending.
High School Musical is currently on stage at Lowry, Salford / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
From the costumes and the characters, to the memorable songs (there’s actually 52 songs in this production, including a mega mix at the end), they’ve kept right to the script of the films – and that’s exactly what we wanted to see.
Of course, the biggest throwback of them all is Kaycee Stroh – who originally featured as Martha Cox in the film trilogy – taking the role as Ms Darbus, and she was just as incredible as we expected her to be. And to see her do the iconic dance in the finale was unbelievable, 13-year-old Amy was screaming.
Also featuring Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton, Tobias Turley as Troy, Leonor Correia as Gabriella, Caitlin Tipping Sharpay, and Luke Bayer as Ryan, it was a proper impressive cast all round.
It’s a night to properly relive your mid-00s childhood / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
There was crowd interaction right from the off, as they taught the crowd a cheerleading routine to be included later in the show, plus for the finale, they had the lyrics on the big screen too so everyone could sing-along.
If we could go and see this show every single night, we would – it is absolutely brilliant.
Fontaines D.C. announce massive return to Manchester on new European tour
Daisy Jackson
Fontaines D.C. have just announced their biggest headline tour to date, including a massive arena gig here in Manchester.
The wildly popular Irish rock band are set to play a whopping 20 arena shows across Europe and the UK this autumn.
The tour has been announced in celebration of their upcoming fifth studio album, Dopamine Chamber, which is set for release this October.
Fontaines D.C. will hit the road just five days after the album drops, kicking off their European tour in Lisbon on 21 October.
Then they’ll make their way over to the UK, with shows in Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Glasgow, Birmingham and London.
Fans in their home country of Ireland are told to stay tuned for live news very soon.
As we speak, Fontaines D.C. are warming up to play one of the country’s biggest festivals, with headline slots at Reading & Leeds Festival.
They’ve already released Marianne, the first single from their new album, and frontman Grian Chatten says of the album: “The album itself is a dopamine chamber. You step inside and we test these different mind- or mood-altering pieces of music on you.”
The new record has been recorded between London, the English countryside, and Palermo, where Chatten recorded vocals in a makeshift booth built from mattresses and cushions.
He said: “There’s a poignant sense of us being on the brink of some other kind of form of humanity, or non-humanity.”
Tickets will go on general sale at 10am on Thursday 3 September, with pre-sale live from 10am on Tuesday 1 September.
You can access tickets for Fontaines D.C. in Manchester HERE.
Fans who pre-order Dopamine Chamber from the official store by 6pm on Monday 31 August will gain access to the UK pre-sale.
Fontaines D.C. UK tour dates in full
Friday 20 November – Liverpool, UK – M&S Bank Arena
Saturday 21 November – Manchester, UK – AO Arena
Sunday 22 November – Glasgow, UK – OVO Hydro
Tuesday 24 November – Leeds, UK – First Direct Bank Arena
Wednesday 25 November – Birmingham, UK – Utilita Arena
Danny Jones -
28th November 2022 
