Blondie will play at Manchester’s AO Arena next year as part of their first UK tour in over four years.
The seminal rock band are booked to perform 10 dates over 15 days in November 2021 – visiting cities across England, Wales and Scotland.
Blondie will be supported by Garbage – the Shirley Manson-fronted rock group with more than 17 million album sales to their credit – for the second time, having already performed side-by-side on their “Rage and Rapture” tour of North America in 2017.
Blondie frontwoman Debbie Harry said: “Next year’s UK tour is more meaningful to me perhaps than the very first time Blondie played there in the mid ’70s.
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“The UK has always been a special place to us, and being able to come back to perform there after sitting out most of 2020 is very exciting.”
She added: “All tours are rarely the same, however, I really hope the new Blondie/Garbage concert events are even better. I have always been a fan of Garbage (and of Shirley Manson dating back to her days in Goodbye Mr Makenzie).
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“Along with Butch, Steve, Duke and Eric this band set the stage on fire. I can’t wait to play these shows with them!”
Crowds will get the chance to see live performances of ‘Heart Of Glass’, ‘Atomic’, ‘Tide Is High’, ‘Maria’, ‘Sunday Girl’, ‘Rapture’ and ‘Call Me’, with the band also set to play songs from the latest album Pollinator– which reached Number 4 on the UK charts.
Garbage
Harry’s bestselling autobiography, FACE IT, was released at the end of last year to overwhelming praise, with the paperback edition set for release in Autumn 2021.
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Also coinciding with the new tour is the first Blondie Archive project in the band’s history: “BLONDIE 1974-1982: Against The Odds”. This will be released in four formats and include extensive liner notes, “track by track” commentary by the entire band, complete discography, and unreleased bonus material.
Tickets for the Against The Odds tour go live to pre-sale customers on Wednesday 21 October at 10am.
A second pre-sale will take place on Thursday 22 at 10am, before a general sale 24 hours later.
The full tour dates for Blondie are as follows (all dates are in November 2021):
Sat 6 – M&S Bank Arena Liverpool
Mon 8 – Utilita Arena Birmingham
Tues 9 – AO Arena Manchester
Thur 11 – Bonus Arena Hull
Fri 12 – Motorpoint Arena Nottingham
Sun 14 – The Brighton Centre
Tues 16 – Motorpoint Arena Cardiff
Thu 18 – The O2 Arena London
Sat 20 – The SSE Hydro Glasgow
Sun 21 – First Direct Arena Leeds
What's On
Full list of road closures announced as IRONMAN 2026 takes over Bolton next weekend
Emily Sergeant
The official route and full list of road closures have been announced, as Bolton prepares to host the IRONMAN next weekend.
Bolton has been the proud home of the UK’s IRONMAN race since 2009, and the world-renowned triathlon is all set to take over the Greater Manchester town once again in a couple of weeks time – with participants and spectators in thousands all preparing to flock to all four corners of the borough to the catch the action.
People of all ages and abilities – even including kids – are training to take part in three different events across the weekend.
And, as is always the case, residents and road users are being urged to plan ahead.
Bolton Council says a series of temporary road closures are needed to ‘ensure the safety’ of competitors and spectators.
⚠️ Road closures alert for IRONMAN 2026.
📆Friday, June 5 to Sunday, June 7.
For the safety of residents, visitors and athletes, roads will be closed at various times, and unfortunately some disruption is unavoidable.
Road closures are set to be the same as last year and will be in place for Night Run Bolton on Friday 5 June and IRONKIDS Bolton on Saturday June 6, before IRONMAN 70.3 then officially arrives on Sunday 7 June, extending from Pennington Flash in Leigh to Bolton, where Chorley New Road and the town centre will be most affected.
The town centre and Middlebrook retail park will be open as normal all weekend, but anyone driving into the town centre is advised to park at one of the car parks – which will be open as normal – rather than elsewhere or in the surrounding areas.
Anyone heading to Middlebrook from Bolton is advised to use Wigan Road (A676 / A58), to Manchester Road / Chorley Road (A6), and then use De Havilland Way (A6027) to reach the retail park.
Full list of road closures for IRONMAN 2026
All weekend:
Le Mans Crescent, Howell Croft North, and Howell Croft South will be closed from 6am on Friday 6 June to 9am on Monday 9 June, due to the course set up and build for the weekend events.
Friday 28 June – Night Run:
Moor Lane, Deansgate, Knowsley Street, Chorley Street, Spa Road (eastbound), St Edmund Street, Helena Road, and Bridge Street will all be closed from 5:30-9pm.
Saturday 29 June – IRONKIDS:
Le Mans Crescent will be closed all day
Deansgate will be closed from 6am-5pm
Sunday 30 June 30 – IRONMAN 70.3:
St Helen’s Road, Sandy Lane, Byrom Lane, Slag Lane, and Lowton Road will be closed from 6-10am
Wigan Road/Warrington Road (A573) will be closed from 6-10am
Bickershaw Lane, a short section of the A578, Nel Pan Lane, and Westleigh Lane will be closed from 6-10:45am
Atherleigh Way (A579) between St Helen’s Road and Kirkhall Lane, will be closed northbound only from 6-9:45am, and between Kirkhall Lane and the Talbot roundabout from 6-10:45am
Gibfield Park Way and Gibfield Park Avenue will be closed from 6-11am
North Road from the junction with Gibfield Park Avenue, Platt Lane and the A58 from Platt Lane to the Chequerbent roundabout will be closed from 6:30-11am
Park Road and Manchester Road (A6) will be closed westbound only from 7-11am
Chew Moor Lane / Tempest Road to Regent Road, and Regent Road to Chorley New Road, will be closed from 7-11:15am
De Havilland Way will be closed northbound from 7am-1pm
Victoria Road (A58) and Old Kiln Lane will be closed from 7am-1pm
Chorley New Road, from Beaumont Road to the Beehive Roundabout, will be closed eastbound from 7am-1pm but there will be access westbound throughout the day.
Chorley New Road, from Beaumont Road to Waterslea Drive, will be closed from 7am-1:30pm
Chorley New Road, from Waterslea Drive to St George’s Road (B6226), will be closed 7am-5:30pm
Chew Moor Lane, St John’s Road, Tempest Road, and Regent Road will be closed from 7-11:15am
Chorley Street, Bark Street, St Helena’s Road, Blackhorse Street, and Queen Street will be closed from 7am-3:30pm
Spa Road will be closed from 6am-6pm
“Facilitating events of this scale is not easy,” a spokesperson for Bolton Council explained ahead of the events arriving next weekend, “and it’s essential we put the health and safety of the participants and spectators as a priority.
“To ensure this requirement is met, temporary road closures will be put in place across the town, so we strongly urge residents and visitors to plan their trips with this in mind.”
More information on the course and diversions to avoid road closures – including maps and timings – can be found on the IRONMAN website here.
Featured Image – David J H Sun (Wikimedia Commons)
What's On
Manchester reveals plans to ‘recognise and celebrate’ Armed Forces Day 2026
Emily Sergeant
Plans to mark Armed Forces Day 2026 in Manchester next month have been revealed.
As the country prepares to honour Armed Forces Day – which is taking place this year on Saturday 27 June – and show support for those who make up the Armed Forces community across the country, Manchester has revealed how our city will mark the annual event.
Armed Forces Day sees Brits commemorate and celebrate those who are currently serving troops, their families, serving reservists, veterans, and cadets.
Manchester will also be paying tribute to the hundreds who have ‘fearlessly served’.
The day will begin in St Peter’s Square with a short ceremonial moment of reflection, led by Armed Forces personnel, offering those in attendance a chance to pause, remember service and sacrifice, and honour those who protect our freedoms.
Manchester will be celebrating Armed Forces Day on Saturday 27 June.
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) May 27, 2026
The event will be attended by the Lord Lieutenant of Greater Manchester and the Lord Mayor of Manchester, marking the city’s official tribute to the Armed Forces.
There will be live music throughout the day, with bands and performers.
On the day, there’ll also be a pop‑up military museum with artefacts, uniforms, and stories from across the services, as well as military vehicle displays, live demonstrations and performances, and a whole host of other family‑friendly activities and interactive displays to make the most of.
Visitors can also visit the dedicated armed forces display inside Manchester Central Library if they would like to learn more.
The Manc -
20th October 2020 
