Manchester Pride Festival has just announced its day-by-day lineup of artists and events for 2023.
In case you missed it, the UK’s leading LGBTQ+ charity event revealed its highly-anticipated 2023 lineup back in March, and it’s set to be the iconic Festival’s most inclusive roster of local and international queer talent to date.
Undoubtedly back with a bang this summer, and co-created in collaboration with Manchester’s diverse queer communities, Festival organisers say this year’s lineup champions “representation, inclusivity, and community celebration” over the four-day extravaganza.
The legendary Gay Village Party is back, and will light up with performances across three stages – The Village Stage, MancUnity Stage – which is in partnership with Gaydio – and the Alan Turing Stage.
Drag sensation Pabllo Vittar is headlining this year’s Gay Village Party, as is singer-songwriter and Scissor Sisters frontman Jake Shears, RuPaul’s Drag Race UK winner Danny Beard, and a mystery headliner still yet to be announced.
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Aside from those headline performances, the four-day August bank holiday weekend Festival also includes a whole host of other special events including Queer Asian Takeover headlined by Gok Wan, Trans Filth & Joy headlined by drag artist BIMINI, Black Pride MCR headlined by Raven Mandella, and the Queer Women’s Takeover headlined by Monki.
Here’s a quick run-down of the official Manchester Pride Festival stage splits for 2023.
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Manchester Pride Festival is back for 2023 this August bank holiday weekend / Credit: Manchester Pride
Friday 25 August
Village Stage – Headlined by BIMINI, with additional performances from Tito Bone, Midgitte Bardot, Cyro, The BollyWitch, An0maly, Finley Odin, Darnell, Denon, Xzan, and DJ Jess Rose.
MancUnity Stage, in partnership with Gaydio – You can expect an evening of “dancing, partying, showing off and feeling good” with Fat Pride, featuring The Niallist, Ivy Profemme, The Fat Britney, Joe Spencer, Miss Lei-Lei, Sam Buttery, and Joanna Cuddle.
Alan Turing Stage – hosted by Donna Trump, with La Discothèque Orchestra, Queeriosity Cabaret, Pecs Drag Kings, The Enby Show featuring Cyro, Flick, and Carrot.
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Saturday 26 August
Village Stage – Headlined by Pabllo Vittar, with additional performances from Jodie Harsh, Black Peppa, Monopoly Phonic, Tom Aspaul, Violet Blonde, and Jsky – and a special multi-platinum selling headliner soon to be announced.
MancUnity Stage presents Black Pride MCR, all brought together by Darren Pritchard with headliner Raven Mandella, as well as Swagga, Kele Le Roc, DJ Stacy Bee, DJ NKay, DJ KL, Queens in Kicks, Goodie Magnum, and Dymond.
Alan Turing Stage welcomes the Queer Asian Takeover hosted by Lucky Roy Singh, with headliner DJ Gok Wan, alongside Gracie T, Reeta Loi, The Bitten Peach, Bollyqueer, House of Spice, Club Zindagi and more.
The UK’s leading LGBTQ+ charity event announced its diverse lineup earlier this year / Credit: Manchester Pride
Sunday 27 August
Village Stage – Headlined by Danny Beard and Friends, alongside Jake Shears, Natasha Bedingfield, Lisa Scott-Lee, Cheddar Gorgeous, Barb, Kelly Llorenna (N-Trance), Jonbers Blonde, Bailey J Mills, Lady Bushra, Banksie, The BollyWitch, Lill, and Ginny Lemon’s Dog Show.
MancUnity Stage presents the Queer Women’s Takeover with Monki, Kim Lana, Blasha and Allatt (Meat Free + Frixxxion), Mix-Stress and Friends, SWAGGA featuring DJ Stacy Bee, Queens in Kicks, Freequency3, Club Clam, What She Said, Vanilla, and Fat Camp.
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Alan Turing Stage – Cutie-POC Cabaret hosted by Rikki Beadle-Blair, Angie Brown, The Cocoa-Butter Club, NoirTones, and Ghetto Fabulous, as well as Your Manchester hosted by Belinda Scandal.
Monday 28 August
Village Stage – Closing the festival with the Misty Chance and Friends, and Disabled Queer Joy Cabaret.
MancUnity Stage – THE RUNWAY by Banksie, and Firehouse with Dakota Schiffer.
Alan Turing Stage ends the event with Disney Classics performed by The Untold Orchestra.
Day-by-day stage splits for the 2023 Festival have been announced today / Credit: Manchester Pride
Closing the four-day Festival is the Candlelit Vigil with George House Trust, which is a moment of reflection in Sackville Gardens.
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As the home of Alan Turing, The National Transgender Memorial, and the Beacon of Hope, the gardens are set to be transformed into a sea of flickering candles to remember and honour those lost to, and stand in solidarity with, those who are living with HIV.
It also provides the space to reflect on and remember those who have been persecuted in the LGBTQ+ community, both here in the UK and around the world.
Find out more about Manchester Pride Festival 2023 and grab tickets here.
Featured Image – Manchester Pride
Audio
Kings of Leon at Co-op Live Manchester – tickets, times, setlist and more for UK tour
Thomas Melia
American rock band Kings of Leon are making their way to Manchester for a second visit to Co-op Live as part of their current EU/UK arena tour.
Formed in 1999 by brothers Caleb, Nathan, Jared, plus their cousin Matthew Followill, the rock band has gone on to achieve nine top 40 singles and six UK number one albums.
The rockers have two singles in Spotify’s Billions Club, including their standout hit ‘Sex on Fire’, which has amassed over 2 billion streams and ‘Use Somebody’ with 1.2 billion – two tracks that helped skyrocket them from cult favourites here in Britain to global superstars.
This four-piece’s latest LP, Can We Please Have Fun, dropped mid-2024 and knowing how energetic crowds were at the previous Manc gig, it’s safe to say we’ve got this covered.
They even let us know the England score last time out (read our full review), too.
Gig guide – Kings of Leon at Co-op Live, Manchester
Kings of Leon UK tour dates
Fri 3 July – Glasgow, UK – Bellahouston Park
Sat 4 July – Manchester, UK – Co-op Live
Mon 6 July – Leeds, UK – First Direct Bank Arena
Are there any tickets left for Kings of Leon at Co-op Live?
If you’re wondering where you’ll ‘Find Me’ on Saturday 4 July, it is probably watching these four relatives play their two decades’ worth of hits at Co-op Live.
Don’t ‘Waste a Moment’ as there’s only a limited number of tickets left if you’re after catching a glimpse of Kings of Leon live – get yours HERE.
Kings of Leon are gearing up for their Manchester gig at Co-op Live this July (Credit: Press shot)
Kings of Leon setlist for 2026 UK tour
These American rockers have been performing all across Europe, switching up a couple of songs at each show; however, the hits below have featured at most of their appearances.
Slow Night, So Long
Waste a Moment
Find Me
On Call
Radioactive
The Bucket
Revelry
Manhattan
Use Somebody
Wait For M
Split Screen
Closer
Molly’s Chambers
Razz
MyParty
Supersoaker
Fans
Back Down South
Seen
Pyro
Black Thumbnail
To Space
Knocked Up
Sex on Fire
What are the stage times for Kings of Leon in Manchester?
Doors for Kings of Leon at Co-op Live in Manchester are set to open at 6pm with a kick-off time of 7pm from a huge indie rock band.
Supporting the US rockers is a band who have received comparisons to Kings of Leon, the loud-and-proud Scottish stars The Snuts, known for their tracks like ‘Glasgow’, ‘Elephants’ and ‘Maybe California’.
For those of you heading to Co-op Live, you’ll be glad to know it’s right next door to a rather famous big blue stadium and its integrated Metrolink stop.
Head along the light blue or orange lines directly to the Etihad Campus or Ashton-under-Lyne, and you can get off the tram literally spitting distance from the arena. You can find the full map HERE.
Trams run frequently on the Ashton-Eccles line to the Etihad stop, with services leaving every six minutes from the city centre and until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Bus
You can find the full list of bus routes HERE, with the one in closest proximity to the venue being the 53 bus, which runs from Cheetham Hill through to Higher Crumpsall, Old Trafford and Pendleton, leaving just a two-minute walk to Co-op Live.
If you’re driving, there is limited parking available at the venue, but this must be pre-booked ahead of time, and there are designated drop-off areas.
The postcode is M11 3DU, and you can follow the signs towards the wider Etihad Campus as you get closer; directions to the adjacent drop-off points will also be signposted.
Keep in mind that congestion on the roads close to the stadium is expected to gather around two hours prior to any event, so if you are travelling on the road, these are the suggested times they provide on event day, though estimates will obviously vary:
Alan Turing Way (both directions): plan an additional 20 minutes into any journey by road.
Hyde Road (eastbound): expect an additional 15 minutes to be added to your journey.
Mancunian Way (westbound): plan for an extra 10 minutes of travel time.
There are also three park-and-ride facilities near Co-op Live, but be advised that the Velopark and Holt Town stops will be closed post-event to help safely manage crowds:
Ashton West (Ashton line) – 184 spaces and 11 disabled spaces
Ladywell (Ashton-Eccles line) – 332 spaces and 22 disabled spaces
Walk/cycle
Lastly, Co-op Live is only a half-hour stroll from Manchester Piccadilly, and you could even walk along the canal all the way to the front door if you fancy taking the scenic route.
Greater Manchester now also offers the option to hire bikes on the Beryl app, with riders able to locate, unlock, get to their destination and then safely lock up the bike all through an easy-to-use app. There are hire points just near the south-west corner of the Etihad Stadium on Ashton New Road.
For more information on all travel options, you can check out the enhanced journey planner.
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Tickets for Kings of Leon’s UK tour dates are selling out fast. (Credit: Raph_PH via Wikimedia Commons)
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied)/Raph_PH (Flickr/WikiCommons)/Audio North
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The best Northern music artists of the month | June 2026
Danny Jones
It’s that time again: we’re back with more fantastic musical artists from across the country’s incredibly creative and talented Northern reaches.
Yes, in case you missed the switch-up in our last edition, with our Audio North team’s work only ramping up by the minute, we’re no longer just sticking to Manchester acts.
After last month’s edition, which saw us gather five different recommendations from all over the North, we’ve got five more bands and artists for you.
Whether it’s an up-and-coming act or one you’ve just forgotten about – maybe they’ve got some notable new material for the first time in a fair while – so long as they’re from up this direction, we’re trying to give props wherever we can. Let’s get stuck in, shall we?
Names from the North we’ve been listening to lately
1. Aaron Dinning
First up, of course, we most certainly will be starting with our official Audio North Artist of the Month for June: Aaron Dinning – a wonderful singer-songwriter who straddles roots in the North East, Yorkshire and now Greater Manchester.
A fast-growing LGBTQIA+ figure, this Durham-born solo artist reflects plenty on what it was like growing up gay on Wearside, as well as how he’s begun to carve a career path of his own thus far, studying and finding his feet in Leeds before moving to 0161.
There’s simply so much both we and, more importantly, HE has to say about his work: which is why you can read our full write-up about this talented young artist right HERE.
In at number two is a name who’s been steadily growing in popularity and who also has her foot in more than one camp; the Glasgow-born adopted scouser that is Brooke Combe is someone we think is only one or two big moments away from blowing up, so enjoy her as ‘your new thing’ while you can.
From seeing her live at the since-closed Canvas (now Ambers) in Manchester city centre as part of Neighbourhood Festival years ago, to catching her playing one of the bigger slots at 2026’s Weekender version in Warrington, the momentum is building.
So much so, we even saw her opening up for showbiz star Jeff Goldblum earlier this year – she even got him to drink IRN BRU. ‘Are You With Me? is the first song we ever heard, and we’ve been hooked ever since, be it ‘How Can I Tell You? (To Love Me More)’ or her new single ‘Tears Won’t Lie’.
Just by chance, a few years ago, we came across a unique gig series by INNSide North UK and Meliá Hotels, where budding artists were being invited to play intimate stripped-back sets from a bedroom: it was here that we first stumbled upon the Geordie charmer, Andrew Cushin.
We think this lad has the voice, lyricism, style and kind of soon-to-bloom following to go to the next level, especially with the right support shows and festival stages; having his song feature on the BBC’s World Cup 2026 coverage certainly hasn’t hurt.
Recommendation-wise, ‘Where’s My Family Gone’ never gets old and we enjoy the upbeat, summery rock energy of his latest track, ‘Goodbye’, and we love the passion locals show for the cult favourite ‘Wor Flags’ in honour of beloved Newcastle United and the dedicated supporters group of the same name.
4. Keyside
Another Liverpudlian entry, rising quartet Keyside have a fervent and super-engaged fan base that’s developing much faster than most recently formed four-pieces you’ll find within this already oversaturated genre; having only been around since 2022, they’re already doing bits.
Whether it be the somewhat high-pitched and perfect level of nasally vocals, the often folky-sounding style of guitar, or at least three out of four haircuts reminding us of The Kooks, there’s something very attractive about their particular jangly brand of indie revival.
I promise that my own personal passion for anything citrus-related isn’t the only reason I enjoy ‘Lemon And Lime’, and as for other standouts, we’d recommend trying out ‘Angeline’ and ‘Runaway’ from their upcoming self-titled debut album in just a few weeks’ time.
See us live on our UK Instore tour
06 Aug – Bury – 5pm sold out – 9pm show just added ‼️ 07 Aug – Leeds – low tickets ‼️ 08 Aug – Liverpool – selling fast ‼️ 09 Aug – London 10 Aug – Nottingham 13 Aug – Glasgow 14 Aug – Edinburgh – low tickets ‼️
Last but not least, we want to heap some long overdue praise on West Yorkshire‘s very own Embrace, a.k.a. the eternal underdogs of domestic alternative rock but one for which our soft spot will never go away. Call it post-Britpop, ‘dad rock’ – call it whatever you want, all we know is we still love these lot.
Perhaps a slight victim of breaking through right after one of the golden eras of guitar-driven music this country has ever seen, it feels like five-piece has never quite been given the plaudits they deserve for consistently putting out beyond solid studio material for the best part of three decades.
We’ve found that they sometimes fall into the category of band where you know their tracks even if you don’t know it’s the – think ‘Gravity’ and ‘Ashes’ – but we’re still eagerly awaiting the day we get to hear the likes of ‘Road to Nowhere’ and our new obsessession, ‘Funny’, in the, at times, genuinely anthemic stadium rock setting they deserve. Just watch them celebrate another top 10 album this month.
There’s something very charming and old-school about this music video.
Sadly, that’s all she wrote – at least until next month anyway.
As always, we sincerely hope you enjoy our picks, and please do drop in any suggestions of what we should listen to next ahead of July’s round-up.
We’re already totting up a few names, and truth be told, we’re still listening to plenty from May’s list, too.
Emily Sergeant -
26th May 2023 
