For anyone who’s ever seen them before, you’ll know The Clone Roses are no joke — they’re arguably the best tribute act on the planet — and for anyone who their massive headline show at Heaton Park is your chance.
Not just imitating much-loved Manc band The Stone Roses but faithfully recreating their tunes to thousands of people across the UK year-round, 2023 marks their 25th anniversary together as a band, so it’s only fitting that they celebrate the occasion with a big gig.
Admittedly, it doesn’t get much bigger than their now iconic ‘Spike Island – The Resurrection’ show in 2021, where they recreated The Stone Roses’ legendary open-air show (it might genuinely be just as famous as the original now), but they’ve managed it with a roughly 6,000 capacity Heaton Park.
If you’re struggling to picture exactly how mint this thing is going to be, this should give you an idea:
Returning to the scene of one of the UK’s most legendary gigs in its own right — Stone Roses’ ‘Second Coming back in 2012, which sold out 220,000 tickets in a record-breaking 68 minutes — their hugely popular tribute band will bring their 25th-anniversary tour to a close in a similarly epic fashion.
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The St Helen’s-based band were there for the 2012 reunion themselves and described it as the perfect setlist; taking up the mental themselves next month, frontman Gav Scott says they want to do the same and “celebrate their 25th Anniversary in the city that have been so loyal to us from day one”.
Moreover, the band promises “an absolute feast of Manchester music” as many other tribute bands will be playing on the day such as The Smiths Ltd, The Courtbetweeners and Happy Mondaze, not mention fellow legends Bez and Clint Boon in the flesh, and many more.
‘Heaton Park – The Resurrection’ arrives at the beautiful Manchester garden and gig venue on Saturday, 13 May, and is sure to be a sellout.
Its precursor event at Spike Island broke records by selling over 5,000 tickets on the first day of sale alone, making the biggest tribute-themed festival the world has ever seen, and with even more room to play with at Heaton Park, we expect another landmark musical event of near mythic proportions.
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Grab any remaining tickets for The Clone Roses at Heaton Park HERE whilst you still can.
James Blunt announces huge Manchester gig on new European arena tour
Daisy Jackson
Singer-songwriter James Blunt is heading back out on tour next year, and has announced a massive Manchester gig as part of his run of arena shows.
The singer, perhaps best-known for his iconic 2005 pop ballad ‘You’re Beautiful’, is hitting the road again in 2027.
The newly-announced European tour is in celebration of his new album Airplane Mode, which is set for release this autumn.
James Blunt will kick off his tour in Leeds next spring, before heading over for a night at the almighty Co-op Live in Manchester.
Then he’ll head to more cities including Newcastle, Birmingham and London.
His new album, Airplane Mode, is being released on 6 November and will, according to his press release, be ‘exhilarating’.
James has already released the first single, ‘Tastes Like Summer’, and ‘Weight Of It All’, with 10 more songs to come on the record.
Airplane Mode was recorded with James’ brilliant long-standing live band, who’ll be back on tour with him next year.
Speaking of the new album, and recording in Pig Music Studios, he said: “Somewhere back there, I lost my way, but found it again in a studio in Banbury.”
James Blunt will be at the Co-op Live Arena in Manchester on 3 April, 2027. Tickets go on sale from 10am on 9 September.
Major pop star crowns humble rice and three cafe as ‘Jewel of Manchester’ ahead of sold-out gig
Thomas Melia
A beloved city centre takeaway has been given the title of ‘Jewel of Manchester’ by chart-topping UK singer Sam Smith.
Known for hits like ‘Stay With Me’, ‘I’m Not The Only One’ and more recently ‘Unholy’, UK pop-ballad act Sam Smith also likes to drop a food review every once in a while.
Currently on the road with a run of shows in Manchester and London for their ‘To Be Free’ live shows, Sam Smith is stopping off at some of our city’s much-loved spots.
On their food-reviewing account titled ‘Sam Served’, where they adopt the aptly-fitting nickname ‘Ham Smith’, Sam has visited restaurants across the globe – and most recently turned their attention to Manchester’s own This & That.
Smith decided to pop in and grab a cheeky rice and three from long-standing backstreet food business This & That, and it certainly went down a treat.
After sampling their amazing selection of meat, vegetable and vegan curries, the musician crowned this family-run Indian takeaway a ‘Jewel of Manchester’.
The hitmaker described this Northern Quarter Indian eatery as ‘Everything food should be’ and definitely enjoyed all the curries on offer ‘leaving belly and heart full’.
This & That prides itself on affordable and comforting food with its ‘Rice and Three Curries’ starting from just £6 – not bad for a city centre foodie spot.
Sam has racked up an impressive 490k followers via their ‘Sam Served’ profile, with famous faces like Lily Allen, Denise Welch and CMAT all wanting to know the superstar’s foodie thoughts.
After enjoying a curry or three, Sam Smith also made sure to feed their soul to by venturing down to Afflecks and getting lost in the music at Mars Tapes.
Recognised as one of the UK’s only cassette and tape shops, Mars Tapes lets you flick through their crates of physical media and even preview tracks before you buy with its dedicated listening areas.
It’s safe to say that Smith has ‘Latched’ onto Manchester’s independent business scene and we’re here for it.
The London-born artist has just released their latest album Hazel Eyes and is currently amid a UK residency tour with two dates in Manchester’s Albert Hall and eight shows set for London Coliseum.
Danny Jones -
18th April 2023 
