On Saturday, 8 July, one of the biggest names at the box office and on the music scene arrives in Manchester as actor Johnny Depp and his supergroup, Hollywood Vampires, continue their UK tour.
And not without controversy, of course, as the Hollywood superstar himself is gradually returning to the spotlight following his long-running and high-profile court case against his ex-wife Amber Heard.
Forming Hollywood Vampires in 2012 alongside rock legends Alice Cooper and Aerosmith’s Joe Perry, the bad are undoubtedly bigger now than they have ever been and having kicked off the UK leg of their tour earlier this week in Scarborough, it’s time for the Mancs to show them what a real crowd looks like.
Are there tickets left to see Hollywood Vampires in Manchester?
If you’re a Hollywood Vampires fan or simply just a Johnny Depp stan (we know there are a lot of you out there) and you’re hoping to grab yourself a last-minute ticket, you’re in luck, as there are still a fair few seats available.
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While all the standing spaces have sold out, the AO Arena still has room in five different sections around the venue ranging from between £45 and £56.50 without fees — though they are all in the very top tiers.
Nevertheless, if you want to grab a ticket, you can grab yours HERE and if you’re looking for a spare in a prime location, you can always keep your eye on resale sites but, as always, proceed with caution and only ever buy from trusted sites.
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Support acts
You only have one support act to warm you up for Hollywood Vampires’ Manchester gig, but boy aren’t you lucky with who you’re getting: San Francisco cult heroes, The Tubes.
Hitting their heights of popularity in the 1970s and 80s, they were never the biggest band and (in this author’s case) we only know of them because of our parents’ exquisite music taste, but they had some serious bangers in their time — Depp and co. certainly seem to think so too.
Contemporaries, former bandmates and friends of Alice Cooper himself, many of the original members may have passed away, but The Tubes are still playing to this day and we’d be happy to see them for this absolute bop alone.
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Hollywood Vampires’ AO Arena stage times
It’s gonna be a pretty straightforward affair this weekend: doors to the venue open at around 6pm and the music itself with be starting from 7:30pm as rock veterans The Tubes take the stage.
Looking set for around an hour-long set followed by a half-hour break, you can expect the main event to start around 9pm, with the Hollywood Vampires playing until the usual 11pm ballpark curfew.
Then again, they are vampires so maybe they’ll stay up all night.
Predicted setlist
As mentioned, Hollywood Vampires kicked off their latest run of shows in Scarborough earlier this week and played Swansea on Friday, so we have a pretty good idea of what they’re going to be playing for the Manchester audience.
According to Setlist.fm, with a mix of originals and covers of rock classics, here’s your best guess:
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I Want My Now
Raise the Dead
I’m Eighteen (Alice Cooper cover)
Five to One / Break On Through (The Doors cover)
The Boogieman Surprise
My Dead Drunk Friends
You Can’t Put Your Arms Round a Memory(Johnny Thunders cover)
Baba O’Riley (The Who cover)
Who’s Laughing Now
People Who Died (The Jim Carroll Band cover)
The Jack (AC/DC cover)
As Bad as I Am
Heroes (David Bowie cover)
Jeff Beck Tribute
Bright Light Fright (Aerosmith cover)
The Death and Resurrection Show (Killing Joke cover)
Walk This Way (Aerosmith cover)
The Train Kept A-Rollin’ (Tiny Bradshaw cover)
Encore:
School’s Out (Alice Cooper cover)
What a way to finish and with so many recognisable music names touring with them as Tommy Henriksen of Warlock, drumming veteran Glen Sobel, as well as Chris Wyse who has played with the likes of The Cult and Ozzy Osbourne, you’re in for a treat. Who knows, you may even get a guest appearance…
Depp spent much of last year playing with both the Vampires and Jeff Beck, so he’s grown more than accustomed to British crowds — let’s not forget he lives here now.
We’re already looking forward to seeing people inevitably bumping into Captain Jack, The Mad Hatter, Willy Wonka or whatever character you choose to associate him with at some random pub in town like it’s the most normal thing in the world.
God, it’s been a big few days of Manchester gigs, hasn’t it?!
Sterephonics frontman Kelly Jones reveals that Noel Gallagher is back in the studio
Danny Jones
Stereophonics lead singer Kelly Jones has graciously revealed to music fans that new Gallagher tunes could be on the way, as he confirmed that Noel has been back in the studio and working on new material.
The big question is, has Liam been in there with him?…
Broken rather nonchalantly in an interview with NME, Jones didn’t so much let the news slip as much as he seemingly just casually dropped it into conversation, mentioning that he bumped into the older Gallagher brother recently.
As he puts it – frustratingly briefly, might we add (sorry, fanaticism will do that to you) – the Oasis icon and High Flying Birds frontman has been doing some songwriting, but the details were scarce.
The 50-year-old ‘Phonics frontman, who was discussing the release of their 13th studio album as well as his own solo project last year, was asked his thoughts on the legendary Britpop band’s upcoming reunion shows and the impact they had on his own career.
“Funnily enough, I found some old pictures of me and Noel rehearsing when he used to have a studio down in Windsor recently, just before we toured America”, said Jones. “We were having a laugh about them and I asked him what he’d been up to and he said he’d been doing some writing in the studio.
The unmistakable Welsh vocalist went on to add: “I’m assuming he’s doing some writing for either his stuff or if they’re [Oasis] gonna bring out a couple songs, I don’t know.”
It seems the pair are still more than friendly, though he gave little away about his relationship with Liam Gallagher; the two British rock groups did share somewhat of a rivalry in the 90s and 2000s, with Stereophonics making no secret of Oasis inspiring their own music.
Describing the band in their heyday, Jones described the period “kind of chaotic and mayhem but it was all very joyous”, insisting that things are very different nowadays but that he is not the less excited than a whole new generations of fans are going to be able to see them live for the first time
As for whether he and his bandmates will be able to find the time, he revealed in a subsequent chat live on Radio X that their own tour clashes may mean they’ll miss out on the Live ’25 tour experience.
Further reflecting on the age of streaming, content overload and what some would argue is an overabundance of media, Kelly said of art and music in particular that “people need it now more than they’ve needed it in a long time.”
We don’t know whether or not Noel’s return to songwriting is for the next High Flying Birds record or whether the rumours are true and new Oasis music really is on the way.
As much as we love his solo stuff, PLEASE let it be the latter.
We do know that the siblings are said to be getting on swimmingly so far and even spent some of the Easter break together, according to LG himself. Here’s hoping they were throwing around ideas for another instant hit.
An old indie favourite is heading back to Manchester for a ‘Best Of Tour’ at a brilliant venue
Danny Jones
Time to roll back the years as old-school indie favourite The Pigeon Detectives are coming back to Manchester for a special show at one of the most stunning venues in the city.
We swear, if we could find our old iPod, their tracks would still be all over it.
Coming back to another part of the North that always showed them plenty of love, The Pigeon Detectives will be playing a special ‘The Best of Tour’ in line with their latest record, Still Not Sorry.
The Manc gig comes as the Yorkshire lads announced just six UK headline sets to support the album release, but let’s be honest, they were never going to skip 0161, were they?
UK TOUR! NEW RECORD! On Sale Friday 2nd May, but get pre-sale NOW when you buy a best of record (with 3 new tracks) or t-shirt from here: https://t.co/a1q44LYbD6 see you in Autumn! pic.twitter.com/HWA9ITS9Ii
— The Pigeon Detectives (@pigeonsofficial) April 25, 2025
With only half a dozen domestic dates confirmed so far, including the likes of Manchester, a homecoming night in Leeds and up in Glasgow, this really does feel like a return that long-standing fans won’t want to miss.
The new LP, which is a greatest hits compilation featuring the very best tracks from their discography that stretches over two decades, drops next month and we’re very ready to pump some adolescent nostalgia into our ears.
And best of all, they’ll be playing all the cult favourite Pigeon Detectives tracks at the simply stunning New Century Hall, marking just their second visit to the venue.
Boasting the food and beer hall downstairs as the ideal pre-gig location, not to mention a sprung dancefloor and those iconic, mesmerising lights, it’s a nigh on perfect space for live music.
We’re not exaggerating when we say we’ve had some of our best gigs in recent memory here.
Speaking in a lengthier statement on social media, the boys from Rothwell wrote: “If a band is lucky (and hardworking, and fairly decent at what they do!) there comes a time in their career when they realise that the journey they started as mates messing about on guitars has culminated in a hefty bunch of songs that people actually care about and connect with!
“At this point, the only logical next step is to take a breath, reflect back through the archives and assemble a ‘Best Of’ album. We’ve reached that point, Pigeon Heads!”
They describe the project as a collection of songs and memories that chart their career from their humble beginnings in Leeds to their “adventures around the globe”, where they have been fortunate enough to “some of the biggest stages on the planet.”
“As a band it’s always felt like we had to do things the hard way, even with an amazing set of supportive fans”, they go on to add, “but we just kept on writing songs, kept on playing gigs and kept on being The Pigeon Detectives. Us against the world. We weren’t sorry then, and we’re Still Not Sorry now!”
Maybe it’s our age showing but those last few lines alone have got us feeling all teary-eyed.
Danny Jones -
7th July 2023 
