A lot can happen in 12 months. And in 2024 it feels like we packed tonnes in.
At the end of 2023, it felt like all eyes were on Manchester. Factory International was unveiled and Chanel chose the city’s Northern Quarter as the backdrop for its Métiers d’art show – further adding to the city’s cultural capital.
It’s easy to think we could have peaked, but over the last year Manchester has dominated the news headlines once again. From the stalled opening of Co-op Live – The UK’s largest entertainment venue – to the return of Oasis and the city’s hosting of the MTV EMAs, there’s been a lot to talk about.
Here we take a look at some of the biggest What’s On stories from Greater Manchester in 2024.
“Let’s open this venue properly shall we?” – Co-op Live opens its doors
(Image: Manchester Evening News)
Those were the words of Elbow frontman Guy Garvey echoing off the walls of the new Co-op Live arena, as the group officially opened the UK’s largest entertainment venue on May 14.
Let’s just say the launch of Co-op Live wasn’t without a few hiccups. Plagued by delays, cancellations and rescheduled gigs, the shiny new arena had seen it all before it even opened its doors.
Peter Kay was due to open the venue, which cost close to £450 million on April 23, but a test event held days before and headlined by Rick Astley highlighted that it was far from finished. And the Bolton comedian couldn’t resist a little joke at its expense: “I know I can’t believe it either.”
The Street area at Co-op Live where those with general admission can access the venue
(Image: MEN)
Over the next two weeks, the venue would try two more times – once with American rockers The Black Keys and again on May 1 with rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, the latter of which was called off at the eleventh hour as a component of the heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) system fell from a ceiling, and the gig was cancelled.
Thankfully, and rather serendipitously, it was a Greater Manchester band that had the honour of ‘housewarming’ the venue when it finally opened its doors. All things said and done, it’s a rather impressive space, boasting a state-of-the-art bowl design, a number of luxury lounges and bars, and great acoustics. Already, the stage has been graced by Liam Gallagher, Eagles, Sir Paul McCartney and The Killers – and they’re only just getting started.
Thousands pour into Heaton Park for Parklife 2024 as Doja Cat, Sugababes and Disclosure headline
There was sunshine and then there were showers…. but come rain or shine the smiles continued at Parklife this June as the UK’s biggest metropolitan festival returned to Heaton Park.
Doja Cat brings Parklife 2024 to a close
(Image: MEN)
The first Parklife Festival was held in Platt Fields in the summer of 2010. It’s roots lay in a student festival, Mad Ferret, an end-of-year party run by students for students.
After a couple of years, its founders, realising they needed to some help – and financial backing – turned to Warehouse Project boss Sacha Lord and collaborators. A new company was formed, and the Parklife we know today, was born.
In recent years, the UK’s largest metropolitan festival has welcomed a variety of international and homegrown talent. In 2023, the likes of Aitch and The 1975 shared the headline spots with The Prodigy, Wu-Tang Clan and Nas, and Little Simz, while the year before saw 50 Cent, Tyler Thee Creator and Chase & Status all perform.
Fast forward to 2024 and Saturday saw the likes of Peggy Gou, Four Tet, Nia Archives, Mahalia and Sugababes, Becky Hill and Disclosure lead the entertainment on the stage.
Becky Hill closed day one of Parklife 2024
(Image: Gary Oakley/Manchester Evening News)
On Sunday it was the turn of Kaytranada, Barry Can’t Swim, Children of Zeus, Ella Henderson, Rudimental, Anne-Marie (with special guest Aitch who just can’t stay away from Parklife), and Doja Cat to bring the vibes.
Some 80,000 revellers headed along this year, and ponchos became almost ubiquitous as body glitter and shades by Sunday night when the worst of the weather hit the park.
“Enjoy it lads, but enjoy it being disciplined…” Oasis are back
Liam and Noel Gallagher will tour next year
(Image: Mirrorpix)
Following years of speculation, on August 27 Noel and Liam Gallagher finally confirmed their long-awaited reunion. The band said in a statement: “The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned. The great wait is over. Come see. It will not be televised.”
It was the news fans of the Burnage brothers had been dreaming of – a huge world tour set for 2025. Next year they will perform in Manchester, Cardiff, London, Edinburgh, and Dublin, and will also tour the US, Canada, Australia and South America.
The shows will coincide with the 30th anniversary of the band’s second album Morning Glory? The reunion also ends a 16-year feud between the two brothers after they broke up in 2009 following a backstage brawl at the Rock en Seine festival in Paris.
Some fans have criticised the Oasis ticket ballot for the two newer Wembley dates – saying they were not ‘given a fair chance at tickets’
(Image: Getty Images)
While news of the reunion was warmly welcomed by fans of the Manchester-born group, the sale of tickets was far from plain sailing. Everyone was stressing about a pre-sale ballot and who Oasis’ original drummer was, and then, when tickets actually went on sale for the UK and Ireland shows, some standard tickets more than doubled from £148 to £355 and the situation was blamed on “unprecedented demand”.
Fans expressed their outrage, and the controversy led to promises from the Government and the UK’s competition watchdog that they would investigate the use of dynamic pricing.
“With everything that’s going on in the world, this is what we need” – Manchester Prides puts on a joy-filled party
(Image: Getty Images)
As one of the UK’s biggest LGBTQ+ celebrations, the four-day event is part of a global movement that highlights equality and challenges discrimination against members of its community.
Storm Lillian may have hit the North West on opening night, but it wasn’t going to get in the way of the celebrations. The four-day event kicked off on Friday when people descended upon the Gay Village to catch headliner Jessie J, a DJ set by Gok Wan and a performance by The Greatest Showman star Keala Settle.
On Saturday it was the annual Pride Parade and this year’s was the biggest to date. It weaved its way from Deansgate to Gay Village. This year’s parade featured a stellar line up including Russell T Davies, Su Pollard, Danny Beard and Charity Shop Sue.
And as a sleepy Sunday morning turned into a buzzy afternoon at the heart of this year’s event, the M.E.N went out into the village to ask, ‘what does Pride mean to you?’
(Image: Carl Sukonik | The Vain Photography)
Enjoying one of Manchester Pride’s iconic family-friendly events, we spoke to Oliver Russell at Ginny Lemon’s Dog Show in Sackville Garden who told us why celebrating Pride was so important to him.
“Pride for me is all about being yourself and being the most unapologetic version of yourself. Manchester Pride is brilliant because it’s a city of inclusivity and diversity. It’s about smashing life and being fabulous.
“With everything that’s going on in the world right now, I think this is really really needed just to be yourself, be awesome, and be the best version of yourself. That’s Pride to me.”
Bringing the celebration to a poignant close, on Sunday night, it concluded with the annual Candlelight Vigil in Sackville Gardens for people to come together and pay their respects and honours those who have fought for quality and those lost to HIV.
‘I went to the MTV EMAs in Manchester and this is what really goes on behind the scenes’
Rita Ora hosting at the MTV EMAs 2024 held in Manchester
(Image: Getty Images for Viacom Internat)
What do Jedward, Busta Rhymes and Greggs all have in common? Not a lot really, but in November they all had a presence at the MTV EMAs in Manchester.
Busta, a doyen of the Hip-hop world was bestowed the Global Icon accolade, while Jedward infiltrated every nook and cranny of the Co-op Live building, and Greggs gave out sausage rolls to everyone from MTV execs and LL Cool to the press bench.
All in all it was a momentous night for the city, as it stepped up to hosting duties for the very first time. The red carpet was rolled out, the stars assembled and the awards were carefully lined up ready for the recipients, all in preparation for what was truly a spectacular show.
Taking place at Co-op Live, the event was hosted by popstar Rita Ora and saw performances from Raye, Shawn Mende, Busta Rhymes, Benson Boone and Teddy Swims, amongst a handful of others. They didn’t perform but Manc legends Bez and Shaun Ryder also made an appearance and kept Rita Ora on her toes.
The MTV EMAs in Manchester had a clear Hacienda vibe in the staging
(Image: Getty Images for Viacom Internat)
A host of celebrities and artists also appeared throughout the show to present the awards. Whilst some winners weren’t able to be there in person, stars such as Tyla and Raye graced the stage to collect their gongs.
This year’s EMAs nominees were led by Taylor Swift, who scooped four awards, Tyla who won two as well as Ariana Grande who won Best Pop, Sabrina Carpenter who won Best Song with Espresso and Liam Gallagher who was awarded Best Rock.
There was also a special tribute given to former One Direction member Liam Payne during the show, who sadly passed away in October this year.