Pop legend Pink is in Manchester as we speak ahead of her massive gigs at the University of Bolton Stadium this week, set to play not one but two shows at the Wanderers’ home ground.
Having been around since 1995 if you can believe that, the legendary Noughties singer recently released her ninth studio album, Trustfall, back in February and is now set to embark on a huge world tour entitled ‘Summer Carnival‘.
The UK leg, her first since 2019, consists of six big shows across Britain, but Manchester has the honour of not only hosting Pink for the first time in 10 years but being the one to kick off her world tour, which already consists of over 70 dates, nine different countries and runs all the way into 2024.
It might surprise a few to see that Pink’s playing at a football stadium in Bolton to get things started, but she’s played there multiple times before and while she might not have heard about the recent name change, it’s somewhere she’s more than familiar with. Here’s everything you need to know about it.
It’ll be no surprise to hear that tickets to see one of the biggest pop artists of the past 20+ years aren’t exactly abundant but, fear not, if you’re a big Pink fan there are still some available for both nights.
The bad news is, given they’re in such high demand and the gigs are literally around the corner, they’ll cost you a fair few quid, to say the least.
The cheapest seats remaining on Wednesday, 7 June will set you back £135 per person; as for the following Thursday, 8 June, not only are there still some seats available at the same price but there are even a handful of Gold Standing Tickets in The Circle that will cost you £162.
Even the VIP packages for these gigs are all sold out as there are literally hundreds of people set to raise their glass to the pop sensation’s return.
Credit: Pink (via Instagram)
Pink support acts at Bolton Stadium
As if seeing Pink wasn’t enough, the Pennsylvania songstress will be accompanied by three different support across her double-header at the UniBol Stadium.
For those of you who do manage to get a ticket, she will be joined by fellow American singer-songwriter Gayle, rising DJ and producer KidCutUp who played her last tour, as well as fellow pop hit-makers, The Script.
Talk about a warm-up act — seeing The Script is a pricey ticket on its own, let alone a trio of exciting artists and then Pink!
Their appearances on Pink’s impending tour are also among the first the Irish group will play following the passing of their guitarist and co-founder Mark Sheehan back in April, having got back on stage in Blackpool earlier this week. It’ll no doubt be just as emotional an occasion for them on Wednesday.
Now, as for what Pink will be playing on her opening night in Bolton, we don’t really have any other gigs this year to go off, however, you can bet you’ll be hearing plenty of the new album as well as plenty of the classics from down the years.
We’re not going to lie, this setlist is adjusted from her last big show at Austin City Limits back in October 2022 and based on the stuff she’s played most this year according to Setlist.fm, so there’s a fair bit of guesswork here but here’s an idea of what you might get to hear:
TRUSTFALL
Get The Party Started
What About Us
When I Get There
F**kin’ Perfect
Just Give Me a Reason
Never Gonna Not Dance Again
Please Don’t Leave Me
Who Knew
Just Like a Pill
Me and Bobby McGee (Kris Kristofferson)
Nothing Compares 2 U (Prince cover)
Try
Turbulence
Funhouse
Raise Your Glass
So What (encore)
So long as we hear ‘Get The Party Started’ we’ll be happy, to be honest — top-tier banger.
As for set times, the University of Bolton Stadium’s doors are set to open at 4.30pm, with the first of the warm-ups, KidCutUp, beginning an hour later — one of three occasions he’ll be keeping the crowd entertained over the course of the evening.
Then at 6.45pm Gayle will play a roughly half-an-hour set before KidCutUp returns for the interval. As for the big support, The Script will be taking to the stage for an hour from 7:30-8:30pm.
Making a final appearance for 20 minutes as the main event, KidCutUp will once again get the crowd ready and raring to go before Pink arrives at around 8:50pm, will the show set to end no later than 11pm.
With such an early start time and so much music to enjoy on Wednesday and Thursday, it’s going to be a brilliant couple of nights in Bolton.
As for how you’re going to get to Pink’s Bolton gigs, one of the best parts about Greater Manchester is our brilliant public transport networks mean you can always get around.
With a shuttle bus running from Bolton Interchange, Chorley Railway Station and Wigan Robin Park to the stadium on both nights between 2-8pm, Big Green Coaches available from various locations, as well as Horwich Parkway as your nearest train station, there are several options for travelling to the gig.
As for if you’re driving in, there are plenty of places to drop gig-goers around the stadium and if you’re looking for parking, there are around 1800 spaces available at the stadium per night.
Parking spots, including 120 blue badge disability spaces, will be first-come-first-serve and bookable via the Evology app for £25. You can find out more information about pricing and how to book, as well as plenty of other travel information down below.
We can't wait for @Pink to kick off her tour here this week! 🎤
How will you be travelling to the University of Bolton Stadium?
Pink was one of the first big musical artists to ever play at Bolton Wanderer’s home stadium and helped usher the likes of The Killers, Little Mix, Coldplay, Elton John and more to join her.
With that in mind, it’s only fitting that she’s returned to the venue that she’s remained so fond of, declaring, “Manchester, I am so in love with you” after arriving in Manchester at the start of this week.
Writing in a statement on the University Bolton Stadium Hotel website, Pink said: “It’s been a long three years and I’ve missed live music so so much… So it’s finally time! I am so excited to get back to the UK and Europe to sing, cry, sweat and make new memories with my friends. It’s going to be magical!”
The mum of two even took her daughter Willow out in Trafford Park to celebrate her 12th birthday. Even hearing her name next to random Manc boroughs still sounds a bit surreal but we’re absolutely here for it — roll on Wednesday night!
US rising star Reneé Rapp announces huge Manchester arena gig as part of European tour
Emily Sergeant
Reneé Rapp has just announced a European leg to her upcoming tour, and she’ll be stopping off in Manchester for a huge arena gig.
In just a few short years, Reneé Rapp has become a star… and her star is only rising higher.
At just 25-years-old, the critically-acclaimed musical theatre and TV actress has pivoted to become an undeniable pop sensation and film star – and an iconic figure in interviews too… which isn’t a job, but it should be – after landing her breakout role as Regina George in the Mean Girls musical on Broadway back in 2019.
Even though she chose to reprise her role as Regina George in the 2024 movie adaptation of the Mean Girls musical, since 2022, Rapp has largely turned her attention to her solo music career.
Reneé Rapp will be performing at Manchester’s AO Arena next March / Credit: Supplied
2022 saw Rapp release her debut EP, Everything to Everyone, before she then went on the channel her raw talent and authentic voice even further, and release her first full-length studio album Snow Angel in 2023.
Both 2024 and 2025 have been big musical years for Rapp too – so much so that she has now amassed more than 1.4 billion streams and counting across her entire discography.
An already-successful 2025 is about to become even more successful, as Rapp’s second album, Bite Me, is expected to be released on 1 August, and she’s also heading out on a highly anticipated US tour from late September through to late October.
Following on from her US tour, Rapp has today announced that she’ll be heading across the pond to Europe in the new year, and will be making her way over to Manchester to take to the iconic AO Arena stage in March 2026.
Amsterdam, Berlin, and Paris are just some of the other cities Rapp will be visiting before Manchester, ahead of closing out the tour at London’s Wembley Arena.
Reneé Rapp will be playing a huge gig at the AO Arena in Manchester on Wednesday 18 March 2026 as part of the ‘Bite Me Tour’, and tickets officially go on sale next week – with both pre-sales and general sale available.
The Three+ presale will begin on Wednesday 30 July at 10am, and the AO Arena presale will start on Thursday 31 July, again at 10am, before general sale launches on Friday 1 August at 10am.
Oasis are clearly doing something very deliberate for the as-yet-unconfirmed Live ’25 reunion album
Danny Jones
We’ve still not emotionally recovered from Oasis’ five homecoming nights in Manchester, and after seeing that the band just released a live recording of ‘Cigarettes & Alcohol’ from Heaton Park, it’s taken us right back to Friday, 11 July, and we can’t stop thinking about a Live ’25 album.
In fact, while the live record of the reunion world hasn’t been confirmed just yet, we’re becoming increasingly convinced that this is exactly what fans are going to get – and following the second Live ’25 concert capture dropping this week, we’re almost certain we know what they’re doing.
And if so, you can consider the vinyl of the ‘Oasis Live ’25‘ LP already in the basket.
Many of you might have already thought the same thing, but for anyone it hasn’t yet clicked for, let us explain; we got the live taping of ‘Slide Away’ from the Principality Stadium in Cardiff to start with, i.e. the first stop on the world tour. Here’s a snippet of how it sounds:
Have we listened to it pretty much non-stop ever since? Yes, but concentrate, that’s not the point we’re getting at; we think Oasis are doing something very specific for their almost inevitable Live ’25 album.
Up next was the aforementioned ‘Cigs and Alcohol’, performed and recorded on home turf right here in 0161, and released in honour of their magnificent Manc comeback.
More accurately, the live version of the song is plucked from their unforgettable opening evening at Heaton Park, as opposed to any of the other five dates.
Can you see where we’re going with this yet?…
With their place of birth having waited more than a decade and a half to hear the first few iconic chords that signal the start of the timeless Oasis classic and a pure rock and roll blowout, you can literally hear the energy from the crowd in your ears.
If you haven’t heard it dozens of times already, take a listen for yourselves and feel free to Poznań wherever you happen to be reading this:
That first Poznań for #OasisManchester hit like a chuffing freight train. 🔥
Upon checking the date of the Cardiff recording of ‘Slide Away’ was taken from, we noticed that they had also chosen the inaugural night of the entire Live ’25 tour, i.e. their very first live show in 16 years.
While we’re aware an official Oasis reunion tour album is technically still TBC, if you see a third live track released after the first of their SEVEN shows in the capital get underway this Friday (25 July), you can pretty much bank on the special live release being all but nailed on.
So, not only are we getting an Oasis Live ’25 reunion documentary from the man behind Peaky Blinders, but it looks like they’ll be providing fans with a virtual tour and a chance to experience/relive the gigs aurally, with each of the 23 tracks on the setlist being pulled from a different city on the world tour.
Now, while this isn’t an entirely unheard of idea in the world of live albums, that’s not all.
Better still, if our suspicions are correct and the next drop is taken from night one of Oasis Live ’25 in London (bonus points if you can guess which tune they go for), then the entire thing will capture the sonics and atmosphere at its best: propped up by the utter euphoria of a dream finally being realised.
We’re sure they could pull the audio at any part of the set, from any old date, and it would sound great, but nothing is like the palpable ecstasy you could quite literally hear on the opening nights in Cardiff, Manchester and, no doubt, Wembley. Having said that, the final farewell was pretty biblical too.
Put simply, isolate any night of the world tour and there’ll be something unique in the master.
Die-hards have been waiting what feels like a lifetime to finally see their favourite band in the flesh again; actually, like many of us here in Greater Manchester and indeed all over the world, some were simply too young to experience the Britpop craze and ‘Oasis Mania’ the first time around.
They obviously have a huge following not just in the UK and Ireland, but all over: the US, Japan, across South East Asia and throughout most of South America – you only have to watch clips or even hear Noel Gallagher talk about Buenos Aires to not how ‘mad fer it’ they are over there.
For a lot of fans, this IS their 1990s moment, and even those who sadly didn’t manage to get tickets have a chance to almost feel like they were there.
One thing’s for sure: if/when the Oasis Live ’25 album arrives, that Manchester buzz will take some beating in the unofficial contest to see who loves the legendary British rock band the most.