There’s not long to go until Parklife festival returns to Heaton Park, drawing tens of thousands of music fans to the fields.
This year’s event will be headlined by global talent including 50 Cent, Tyler the Creator, Megan Thee Stallion and Lewis Capaldi, as well as returning festival favourites Chase & Status.
Parklife has taken place at Heaton Park since 2013, when it outgrew its original home in Platt Fields Park.
The massive party is attended by some 80,000 people each day and is one of the biggest events in Manchester’s cultural calendar.
Here’s everything we know about this year’s Parklife so far.
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When is Parklife festival 2022?
Parklife festival. Credit: Parklife
Last year, Parklife had to shift to September because of the restrictions placed on the events industry.
But it’s business as usual this time around, and the festival’s back in its usual June position.
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Parklife 2022 will take place on 11 and 12 June.
There’s normally an extra gig on the main stage on the Friday night – previous years have seen the likes of New Order and Noel Gallagher perform – but nothing has been announced for 2022 yet.
In Da Club rapper 50 Cent will be performing in a UK festival exclusive, and Tyler, The Creator will make his long-awaited UK headline debut after Parklife’s 2020 edition was cancelled.
Music heavyweights Lewis Capaldi, Bicep (headlining The Valley for the first time) and Chase & Status (with their largest festival show yet) will all be taking to the stage.
Parklife’s line-up also includes Loyle Carner, Jamie xx, Arlo Parks, Folamour (Live), Headie One, Central Cee, Fred Again.. ArrDee, Caroline Polachek, Tom Misch and PinkPantheress.
DJ sets across the weekend will come from Four Tet, Eric Prydz, Peggy Gou, Carl Cox, Marco Carola, Camelphat, The Blessed Madonna, Andy C, DJ EZ, Sonny Fodera Annie Mac, Jayda G, Mall Grab, Ricardo Villalobos and many more.
You can see the full line-up and stage break downs here.
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Can you still get tickets for Parklife?
Parklife festival. Credit: Parklife
Tickets for Saturday – which is headlined by 50 Cent, Chase & Status and Jamie XX – have sold out.
But you can still grab tickets for the Sunday portion of the festival, with the last few on sale now.
Day tickets are priced at £84.50 plus booking fee for standard admission, or £109.50 for VIP.
You can also pick up the last few tickets for the whole weekend at £155 general admission or £199.50 for VIP.
This year’s VIP zone will be called the Luxury Lounge, with all sorts of luxuries to jazz up your festival experience.
As usual, you’ll get fast track through the queues, and access to an exclusive VIP area with luxury loos, a separate street food village, and The Smugglers Inn bar.
Very Important Parklife-goers also have their own DJs and special guests on a dance floor that’s separate from the rest of the festival site.
New this year is the ‘northern lights’, a light tunnel installation, plus VIP lockers and free phone charging points.
Parklife is even adding a ‘Cloud 9 VIP spa’.
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Where is Parklife and how do I get there?
Parklife festival will be back in 2022. Credit: Parklife
Parklife will be back in Heaton Park, to the north of Manchester, taking over a corner of the 600-acre park.
There’s a Metrolink stop right outside the park’s gates at Heaton Park, though most fesitval-goers will be directed home via Bowker Vale instead.
The festival also puts on shuttle buses to help people get back home safely.
This year, there’s a combined Travel Pass which you can use on either the Metrolink or the shuttle buses.
You can also try to book a taxi, but with 80,000 people pouring out of the festival site, things can get busy – and a lot of people end up walking back to town if it’s safe to do so.
Featured image: Parklife
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Oldham mansion that starred in an iconic pop music video is up for sale
Thomas Melia
A Greater Manchester mansion that’s featured in one of the most famous music videos of the past decade is now up for sale.
Situated in the picturesque village of Uppermill, Oldham, Ashcroft House is currently listed at £2,350,000 accepting offers in the region of this figure.
The property has six bedrooms, six baths and five reception rooms – this mansion is a party host’s dream.
Ashcroft House has four storeys with the lower ground floor currently set up as a gym space and the ground floor boasting an eye-catching grand entrance hall.
This isn’t everything the lower ground floor has to offer. There are a number of breakout rooms such as a wine store, cinema room and your own personal steam room.
When going up another flight of stairs, the first floor’s main selling point besides the very large balcony is the matched walk in wardrobes paired with each of the six sleeping quarters, yes please!
The girls styling themselves in one of the many walk in wardrobes at Ashcroft House.The bold statement front door in the Oldham mansion.Credit: Youtube (@littlemix)
Finally, if that wasn’t enough to draw you in, there is another flight of stairs leading to the second floor which is currently acting as the house’s ever-impressive storage area.
With the rolling hills of Saddleworth nearby and a local pub a ten minute walk away, how could life possibly get any better?
Oh wait it does! In 2016 one of the UK’s best selling girl groups of all time shot a music video for their worldwide hit right here in these very four walls.
X Factor prodigies and three time BRIT award winning girl group Little Mix perched up with their film crew to spend 21 hours recording the video for their groundbreaking single ‘Hair’.
The video itself has amassed nearly 500 million views on social media platform Youtube since being released eight years ago.
The grand staircase that greets you as you enter this Greater Manchester property.The Little Mix girls having a bite to eat in Ashcroft House.Credit: Youtube (@littlemix)
The previous owner of the house even revealed that once the music video shoot wrapped up, the girls stayed with the family to share a slice of pizza or two.
If you’re interested in owning a piece of pop culture history or just as nosey as we are you can take a virtual tour of this mansion in Oldham here.
Where to go before and after a gig in the musical city of Manchester
Danny Jones
Manchester is a music city through and through, especially when it comes to the live scene, but one question we hear time and time again is ‘Where should I go before and/or after a gig?’
In fairness, if you’re from the area or have lived here long enough then you’ll have your answer or certainly a few tried and tested go-to places but, for anyone still new to Manchester, there’s some serious concerted effort that goes into planning these things. Get it?
Seriously though, you’ll be pleased to know that not only do we boast some of the best acts to have ever come out of the UK and some of the best venues to watch live music in the country, but we also have some of the best spots to enjoy yourself before and after seeing your favourite artists.
You’ll never need to wonder where to go before or after a gig in Manchester again.
10 of the best pre and post-gig bars and venues in Manchester
A top-tier choice either before or after any Manchester gig. (Credit: The Manc Group)
1. Big Hands
First up on our list is a long-standing favourite among students and gig-goers alike: Big Hands, a.k.a. one of the coolest little boozers you’ll find anywhere in the city centre. It also happens to be right near all the Manchester Academy venues, which is handy.
With decent prices catering to those gigging on a budget along the busy university strip of Oxford Road, a lovely dimly-lit aesthetic complete with gig posters galore; a rooftop garden terrace adorned with twinkly lights and plenty of plants, it’s a pure vibe in here.
They also hold live music and DJ set nights of their own, as well as currently serving up great Italian street food from Rizzo’s – formerly T’arricrii) – like pizza by the slice and their famous arancini, it’s quite simply one of our happy places.
In a number two is a twofer of sorts because we love them both as much as each other really, but if you’re looking for some solid scran and pre-gig fuel on the cheap, then Bunny Jackson’s is the answer.
Comfortably the best dive bar on the planet, the playlist in here is literally undefeated if you like rock, pop-punk, emo and some good old-fashioned Americana. They also regularly host afterparties following live shows and even the likes of Olivia Rodrigo, The 1975 and more have sampled the goods.
The only thing it has over its sister site Junior Jackson’s or the new country-style karaoke bar (both in Northern Quarter) is the 25p wings. In fact, we’ve got the perfect plan: Bunny’s before the gig, karaoke after and Junior’s well into the small hours.
In at number three is another Manc music institution and arguably one of the most important venues of the past two decades or so that has given so many big names their start. It also happens to be a great place for before and after a gig in Manchester.
Should you be starting your pre-concert ritual super early, you can grab breakfast, brunch or pizza all the way up until 2pm, as well as some pretty darn good coffee too, but the reason to head here is to soak up the history and culture literally dripping from the walls – oh, and boogie until 2am, of course.
With artwork and Stanley Chow prints to be studied, as well as that warm red, orange and yellow paint scheme, we always feel welcome walking in here. It may have had a tough time keeping the doors open over the past couple of years, but live music lovers have kept it alive and will continue to do so.
4. New Century
What’s better than a bar right near the venue you’re going to? How about one big bar within an even bigger food hall that’s already inside the same building as the concert?
New Century Hall only opened back in 2022 but it’s fast become not only one of our favourite live music spaces in the entire city – with that spring floor, top-notch sound system and stunning psychedelic illuminated disco ceiling – but it’s also the perfect place to go beforehand too.
With so many independent vendors inside serving up everything from pizza, parmos; Japanese, Vietnamese and plenty of other cuisines on offer, not to mention a great beer, wine and cocktail selection, this stylish 60s-inspired room is right below the venue itself and we love it from top to bottom.
5. Stage and Radio
Similar to fellow Northern Quarter fave Night and Day, Stage and Radio on the other side of the district feels like the equivalent for fans of electronic, dance music and DJ in general.
It acts as a bar in the afternoon and early evening, perfect for pre-drinks especially come happy hour, but by nighttime it hosts a wide range of its own shows, welcoming up-and-coming artists.
The star of the show, however, is the club room in the basement which serves up some seriously good late-night shows, so whether you’re just heading downstairs after a chiller on the ground floor or looking to rave into well into the next day, you won’t go far wrong with this gaff.
From EDM and clubbing to the old-school rock and roll haunt that is The Salisbury, which is arguably one of the very places that comes to mind when we think of where we like to go before and/or after the game, a gig and pretty much any other event to be honest. We’re big fans.
Full of rockers of all ages all either queuing up for the bar or the jukebox, Little Ireland’s little gem of a boozer is much more than just a pub, it’s one of the most well-trodden haunts on Oxford Rd to be found nearby and for very good reason: it’s mint.
Whether you like heavier stuff or just want a good boozer to get ready for a night of tunes, it’s well worth a go. They also have a somewhat secret outdoor area out back that not everyone stumbles across and their in-house New York pizza, Dough161 (fantastic name), isn’t just decent – it’s genuinely up there.
7. Grand Central
In a very similar vein to The Salisbury, next door or rather right in front of one rock pub is another recently renovated bar popular among students, those who enjoy the alternative scene and loved by a fair few of us here at The Manc.
No, we’re not asking you to imagine NYC or turn back to before Manchester Central was even called the GMEX, Grand Central is the name of the longstanding bar that promises a few things: cheap drinks, great music and now plenty of live performances too.
The name is fitting too given the central location for anyone travelling in the city, hence why it’s often heaving. We’ve also got a soft spot for another neighbour known for its Northern Soul nights, so if either or both of the last two suggestions are too busy you can always try Thirsty Scholar.
If you cross the road and make your way to Charles Street, just a few short minutes away you’ll find a multi-purpose venue that YES, with food, drink, music and more sprawling across four storeys.
You can do it all here. There are gigs in the Pink Room on the first floor, official artist afterparties and club nights down in the basement; bloody good butties from Micky’s and booze as well as dancing, pizza and tonnes more on the ground floor, plus a beautiful rooftop terrace. Something for everyone.
Students regularly pack this place out too but don’t worry, the various deals are available to everyone and you’ll find it busy with people pretty much all day and night – including our very own Will.
9. Rebellion
This is another one that we’d probably put in the post-gig column but Rebellion just opposite Deansgate Locks is arguably one of the most underrated music-related venues in Manchester.
It’s another city centre venue that (not so) quietly hosts some of the rowdiest nights you’ll come across; you’ll sometimes hear the noise booming from the walls on a walk home from a night out and we’ll admit it’s drawn us in on more than one occasion.
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We always remember bumping into local alt-rock and indie icons Everything Everything in here and losing our minds, so it gets bonus points for that interaction alone.
And finally, it’s possibly the very first shout we make on where to go most certainly AFTER a proper rock show, Satan’s Hollow is a haven for metalheads emos, goths – whatever arbitrary label you want to throw our way.
All we know is that if you like heavy music, we’re not telling you to go here, we’re considering it a Manc rockers rite of passage if you’ve still got the energy to headbang post-gig.
Tucked away behind Gay Village and strictly cash-only entry, what goes on behind these tall, demonic-looking gates stays behind them and we promise it’s better to leave it to your imagination and just enjoy the carnage once you’re in there.
Daisy Jackson -
30th April 2022 
