We’ve always prided ourselves on being the people’s voice of Greater Manchester. For two years, The Manc has been both the region’s mouthpiece and info desk – providing a local media platform for Mancunians that covers the biggest stories in the region.
Now, we’re adding another string to our bow.
The Manc is delighted to confirm the launch of our new series – a very Manc podcast for the people of Greater Manchester.
Every week, the show will cover all things Manchester – dissecting and discussing the region’s news, food & drink, sport and music scenes… and we’ll have a laugh whilst we do it.
The Manc Podcast will be presented by the terrific trio of Joe McGrath, Tim Hoyle and Steph Stone – with a special guest sat alongside them each week.
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Joe is a radio host renowned for his work at local station XS Manchester – having spent his media career interviewing many of the region’s key figures.
Tim is Head of Video at The Manc – the man behind the camera at many of our big shoots and co-host of our Takeaway Champions series; whilst Steph is our social creative – a famous local face having amassed more than one million views on her comedy channels.
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The show’s format will be fluid for the first few weeks as the guys find their rhythm – but what we will promise is an authentically Manc show every single time we’re on air.
Our pilot episode – featuring the star of our smash-hit Scran Review series and food blogger Fat Sam Eats – is live right now. So, dive in and have a ganders.
Thanks for listening, Manchester!
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We’ve got a lot more where that came from.
Stay tuned for massive guests in the coming weeks.
Be sure to follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date with all the latest episodes.
You can also subscribe to our channel on YouTube so you never miss an upload.
Audio
Heavy mental band Disturbed announces HUGE arena show in Manchester this year
Thomas Melia
American heavy metal band, Disturbed, have released dates for their UK arena tour and they’re stopping off in Manchester later this year.
‘The Sound of Silence’ performers are bringing their high energy over the pond, as they’re set to play the impressive AO Arena.
The band have seen quite the success since entering the rock scene 25 years ago with monumental album ‘The Sickness’ in 2000, before joining Marilyn Manson’s European tour the year later.
As well as selling over 17 million records worldwide, the legendary Chicago band are two-time Grammy nominated, and are ranked by Billboard as one of the most successful rock bands of the 21st century, spanning all rock genres.
This tour the band are embarking on later this year, titled ‘The Sickness 25th Anniversary Tour’, of course celebrates a landmark anniversary for the group – 25 years since their debut album was released to the world.
This album was revolutionary for Disturbed and for metal music in Chicago, as the city was previously full of alternative music lovers who championed acts like Smashing Pumpkins and Local H.
Disturbed join the likes of Sean Paul,The Wombats and Katy Perry as acts who have upcoming shows at the same Manchester venue later this year.
Unfortunately, the band was meant to visit arenas around the world in 2020 to celebrate 20 years since the album entered our ears, but due to COVID-19, these plans were soon put on halt.
Manchester, @Disturbed announce The Sickness 25th Anniversary! Plus, Special Guests @Megadeth !
Instead, fans are being treated to two sets this time around, ‘The Sickness’ in its entirety and a second one stacked with all their greatest hits.
The Sickness 25th Anniversary Tour will be coming to AO Arena in Manchester on 24 October 2025, with tickets going on general sale this Friday 28 February and additional pre-sales running throughout the week.
Review | Snow Patrol roll back the years at Co-op Live for a mini-Manc’s first gig
Danny Jones
This weekend we enjoyed a new kind of live music experience: rediscovering the joy of listening to a childhood favourite by watching it through the eyes of the next generation – that was how we witnessed a fully-fledged arena return to Manchester for Snow Patrol at Co-op Live.
And it was special for lots of reasons.
Taking a little one to their first gig is something you’ll never forget and sharing a new-found connection with a band that you loved when you were their age is one of those magical things about music that we’re eternally grateful for.
You might assume the Snow Patrol crowd one skews a little older for the most part but we were pleased to see there were more than a few kids and teenagers donning tour tees, looking wide-eyed at the sheer size of the Co-op Live arena, and singing the words back better than Gary Lightbody at times.
Sees the sign: ‘Race you there!’ (Credit: Audio North)
Yes, the Belfast-born frontman made a few mistakes on the night, but it did add a rather laid-back quality to what many acts might have found a daunting performance: playing a sell-out night to around 23,500 fans inside the enormous state-of-the-art venue.
But, obviously, there wasn’t even a whiff of nerves from these lads.
You don’t get to have been around for this long and become as successful as they are without being able to relax on stage and lean into those idiosyncratic perfections that feel more like private moments shared between the artist and the crowd.
The young lad sat watching it with us certainly got a kick out of it and though we might not have been able to cover his ears in time to censor some light but ever-charming swear words (it always sounds better in Irish, don’t you think?), it made for some nice banter between him and the crowd.
Big props must go to Johnny McDaid on the keys too, who besides having written for the likes of Ed Sheeran, Robbie Williams, Alicia Keys, Biffy Clyro and countless others over the years, also managed to impress by playing the majority of this entire tour after having trapped his hand in a train door. OUCH.
Credit: The Manc Group
Not only was that little interlude up there with one of the most applause-worthy parts of the entire show, but we were always pretty blown away by what we saw, as we all as what we heard.
Be it watching a digital tree come to life, shed its leaves and then fall as petal confetti, two sheer semi-opaque paper-thin screens swirl to create the album cover art for their latest album, or kicking the gig off with ‘Take Back The City’ as a multicoloured skyline appeared behind them, it was all pretty incredible.
We even got to hear a personal favourite of ours, ‘Set Fire To The Third Bar’, complete with a virtual performance from the voice that truly makes the song: Martha Wainwright.
It was in moments like this when we turned to see a 10-year-old’s face not quite sure of what it was seeing but an open-mouthed expression confirming they were finding it as stunning as we were.
We thoroughly enjoyed going through the back catalogue and working our way right up to plenty of the songs from The Forest Is The Path – which Gary himself firmly believes is their best work yet when we interviewed him – but it was as visually stunning as it was to the gorgeous sonically.
Up there with one of the prettiest gig snapshots in our memory.Not quite a hologram but very cool nonetheless.The production levels are always top-tier at Co-op Live but the Snow Patrol set was much more impressive than we expected.
Both proved to be a brilliant way to see the contemporary rock, indie and alternative veterans, but there’s something about giving them a stage as big as this that reminds you of just how much they deserve it.
Last but not least, thanks to Co-op Live not just for having but for creating a little boy’s memory that he’ll never forget.
The Manc -
20th December 2020 
