Strictly Come Dancing Live is coming back to Manchester for a double-header this weekend and we can’t wait to be back in the AO Arena.
There are very few things that make us as happy as getting in the mood for a full day of ballroom dancing, pageantry, more than a few glasses of fizz and all-around good vibes.
For anyone who hasn’t soaked up every last detail of the programme or might be tagging along to one of the two dates last minute, we thought we’d put together a quick event guide for you so you know what’s going on and when.
With Strictly Live‘s first Manchester date of 2024 taking place this Saturday, 3 February and then again on Sunday, here’s everything you need to know.
Are there tickets left for Strictly Come Dancing Live?
You’re in luck: there absolutely is! You can still grab a fair few tickets in the back sections of the AO Arena from £42.50 as well as a handful in the lower tier of seats for around £65 on Saturday, but don’t worry if you’re busy that day, there are plenty of seats still going for Sunday’s showings.
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You can even spring for the VIP suites in Electric Lounge if you fancy feeling a bit bougie and having been lucky enough to try it out a couple of times ourselves, we have to admit it’s well worth treating yourself for a special occasion.
Directed again by Craig Revel Horwood and co., the 2024 Strictly Live Tour showcases all the choreography, live music and sparkle of the much-loved TV series, hosting both an afternoon and evening show on each day.
Seven celebrity contestants and their professional dance partners will twirl and shimmy their way across the AO Arena ballroom floor, ready for the tour judges to provide their wisdom and scores. Just as with last year’s tour, there will also be sign language interpreters for each show.
But it’s the audience who ultimately call the shots, voting for their favourites via text from within the arena, with a champion crowned at the end of every show. Just like the real thing only more compact.
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Who’s dancing this year?
Whilst Strictly legends Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke, and Craig Revel Horwood are returning to their judging seats once, with It Takes Two’s Janette Manrara also back as tour host, the lineup for Live performances changes each and every year and, just like show itself, that’s all part of the fun.
Taking the stage this year, the celebrity dancers include actor and model Bobby Brazier, dancing with Dianne Buswell; tennis champion and presenter Annabel Croft with tour partner Graziano Di Prima, journalist and broadcaster Krishnan Guru-Murthydancing with tour partner Jowita Przystal, as well as fellow presenter Angela Scanlon dancing with Carlos Gu.
Rounding out the 2024 Strictly Live Tour lineup are Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola, Angela Rippon and Kai Widdrington, along with Layton Williams and Nikita Kuzmin.
What are the stage times for Strictly Live Manchester?
As for when you’ll get to see all of the glitz and glamour, AO Arena will be opening its doors from 1pm and 6pm for the morning and evening shows, respectively, on Saturday and around 12 noon and then again at 5pm for the Sunday show.
That should give you plenty of time to make your way around the concourse, grab any food and drink you want for the show, as well as some stylish Strictly merch we hope, before finding your seat.
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Saturday’s matinee show is due to start around 2:30pm and then reset for the evening show at 7:30pm, with Sunday’s programming kicking off from 1:30pm and then again at 6:30pm.
Parking and public transport for AO Arena
If you’re driving in for the show, there’s a large multi-storey car park based right next to the AO Arena, with access through the car park to the main entrance of the venue.
Trinity Way will be closed southbound between Great Ducie Street and Cheetham Hill Road for up to an hour as guests leave, but if you’re parking at the Arena itself you’ll still be allowed to exit during this time — just turn right and follow the diversions.
As for getting there via public transport, your nearest stop is Manchester Victoria, with trains and trams going directly into the station where you can then walk directly up the steps and straight into the attached Arena entrance, with plenty of bus stops and taxi bays right outside too.
And that should just about do you, the only thing left for you to do is get all dolled up and sparkly, sit back and enjoy Strictly Come Dancing Live in Manchester.
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The AO Arena absolutely smashed when it came to keeping Mancs entertained last year and you can find out more about all the other big events happening at Manchester’s AO Arena in the first half of 2024 right here on The Manc.
Featured Images — Marc Brenner/Strictly Come Dancing (via Instagram)
What's On
An innovative new Macbeth stage production is being put on at an unlikely venue in Oldham
Danny Jones
A brand-new innovative take on Macbeth is coming to a rather surprising venue in Oldham as part of a new production by the Coliseum.
It may be BY Oldham Coliseum Theatre, but this new stage show is taking place at a rather different kind of location entirely.
Teaming up with North West actor Nick Bagnall and director, who has already served in an associate role at the Liverpool Everyman and Playhouse, this will be his very first production, and unlike most other Shakespeare performances you will have come across.
With his various plays serving as ever-perfect pairings for adaptation, his version of arguably the world’s most famous tragedy is coming to an iconic site in its own right, which just so happens to be a nightclub.
Yes, Nick Bagnall and Oldham Coliseum Theatre‘s twist on Macbeth will be coming to none other than Liquid and Envy on Retiro Street.
A legendary local institution known for more late-night entertainment, the native artist is using it as a staging ground for a very unique interpretation.
While this version will still revolve around the same themes of ambition, masculinity, power and identity, it will instead be set against a late-1970s backdrop, in a world filled with gangsters, casinos and similarly shifting social codes.
Perhaps not as contemporary as current modern-day (we’ve seen plenty of that even in the past couple of decades alone), but it still looks set to be a creative take on the timeless tale; a retelling of Romeo and Juliet is also part of their autumn/winter programme.
Speaking ahead of the debut, Nick said picking Macbeth was a no-brainer. “Macbeth asks profound questions about power, identity and what it means to be a man,” he said. “Those questions feel urgent in a proud industrial town like Oldham that is navigating huge social and economic change.
“I want to blow the dust off Shakespeare. This isn’t about putting the play on a pedestal; it’s about creating an experience that grabs people by the throat, whether they have seen Macbeth ten times or never encountered it before.
“We want people who have never set foot in a theatre to walk into Liquid & Envy and feel this story belongs to them. Staging Macbeth inside a working Oldham nightclub creates its own intrigue.”
Martina Murphy, Chief Executive of Oldham Coliseum Theatre, went on to add: “This is a huge moment for the Coliseum. Nick’s Macbeth is uncompromising, thrilling and unmistakably of this place, and it announces exactly the kind of theatre we intend to make.
“As we continue our journey back to Fairbottom Street, we are determined to keep creating ambitious work that surprises audiences and reaches people wherever they are. Macbeth demonstrates that the Coliseum isn’t waiting for its building to return before making theatre of national significance.”
Check out the full list of scheduled performances set to arrive later this year:
Macbeth at Liquid and Envy in Oldham – 2026 dates
October
Friday 23 – 1:30pm (preview)
Saturday 24 – 1:30pm and 6:30pm (previews)
Monday 26 – 7pm (preview)
Tuesday 27 – 7pm (press night)
Wednesday 28 – 7pm
Thursday 29 – 1:30pm and 7pm
Friday 30 – 6:30pm
Saturday 31 – 1:30pm and 6:30pm
November
Monday 2 – 7pm
Tuesday, 3 – 1:30pm and 7pm
Wednesday, 4 – 7pm
Thursday, 5 – 1:30pm and 7pm
Friday, 6 – 6:30pm
Saturday, 7 – 6:30pm
It’s also worth noting that these shows have been put together with accessibility in mind, with the two-week season including a relaxed performance, an audio-described version, a fully captioned version, as well as two interpreted with British Sign Language. Things we love to hear.
The Coliseum’s new Creative Director has also ensured that tickets remain affordable, with £15 concessions and preview passes costing just £20, as well as a discount for Oldham locals.
You can see the full list of ticket options and find out more information about this exciting production right HERE.
Safe to say that we can’t wait to see how this thing turns out. It’s not the only inventive theatrical take on a classic that’s coming to Greater Manchester later this year, either; find out more down below.
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied/Nick Bagnall (via Instagram)
What's On
Manchester Day 2026 – all the road closures set to be in place across the city centre
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Day is back for 2026 this weekend, and the full list of road closures set to be in place has been confirmed.
Now that schools are officially out across Greater Manchester, and the summer holidays are well and truly here, the hugely-popular Manchester Day is making a return once again this Sunday 26 July, and as always, it’s set to be ‘the day summer officially starts’ in the city centre – with organisers going all in to make this year’s event one of the very-best yet.
This year’s Manchester Day is promising to have a ‘distinctly Catalan flavour’, as performers from Barcelona head to Manchester to join in the festivities in what is a first for the event.
The day will be packed full of free events and activities to get involved with.
Heading into the city centre for Manchester Day this Sunday 26 July?
Some transport services will be affected by planned works and road closures, so plan ahead. 🚋
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) July 23, 2026
As always, activities will be taking place right across the city centre – from St Ann’s Square to Cathedral Gardens, and everywhere in between.
Organisers say there will be plenty of chances throughout the day for visitors, both young and old, to get stuck in, with city’s streets and squares filled with Catalan spirit, along with some surprising links to books and reading along the way.
But of course, in order for the all the fun to go ahead as safely as possible, and as tends to be the case for events like these, Manchester City Council says it will need to make some temporary road closures to facilitate it.
The full list of road closures has now been confirmed by the Council, and there’s some major city centre thoroughfares set to be out of action.
Here’s everything you need to know.
A number of road closures and parking suspensions will be in place / Credit: Manchester City Council
Manchester Day 2026 – Road Closures
Sunday 26 July
From 11am to 3pm, Manchester City Council has confirmed that the following roads will be closed:
Peter Street (Hall Street to Deansgate)
Mount Street (Windmill Street to Albert Square)
Deansgate (St Johns Street to Cateaton Street)
From 11am to 4pm, the following roads will be closed:
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
Market Street (Cross Street to Exchange Street)
St Ann’s Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
Cross Street (Corporation Street to Princess Street)
All accessible bays, bus lanes, and taxi ranks within the closed areas will also be suspended during from 9pm on Saturday 25 July to 9pm on Sunday 26 July.
The parking suspensions set to be in place are:
Peter Street (Portland Street to Deansgate)
Mount Street (Windmill Street to Albert Square)
Deansgate (St Johns Street to Cateaton Street)
Central Street (Southmill Street to Mount Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
Market Street (Cross Street to Exchange Street)
St Ann’s Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
Cross Street (Corporation Street to Princess Street)
Princess Street (Cross Street to George Street)
John Dalton Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
Clarence Street (Princess Street to Booth Street)
St Mary’s Street (Southgate to Deansgate)
Southgate (King Street West to St Mary’s Street)
Museum Street (Peter Street to Windmill Street)
Southmill Street (Windmill Street to Lloyd Street)
Lloyd Street (Southmill Street to Deansgate)
Dickenson Street (Portland Street to George Street)
George Street (Princess Street to Dickenson Street)
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
St James’ Square (John Dalton Street to End)
Booth Street (Cooper Street to Clarence Street)
Kennedy Street (Cooper Street to Clarence Street)
King Street (Spring Gardens to Cross Street)
Queen Street (Deansgate to Lincoln Square)
On the day, full traffic diversion signage will be in place across all areas affected by road closures, and the Council says it will do its best to ‘minimise’ their duration.
Manchester Day 2026 is taking over the city centre on Sunday 26 July, and will be kicking off at midday right through to 5pm.
Danny Jones -
3rd February 2024 
