Manchester’s Co-op Live cancels opening concert despite fans being inside of venue
Over the past couple of weeks, Co-op Live has endured several U-turns on its plan to stage a groundbreaking event. Last week, the state-of-the-art venue in Manchester was set to open with a comedy set from Peter Kay, then The Black Keys, and now, it has been postponed for a third time despite fans being inside of the venue.
An initial set-back forced the veteran comedian to postpone his shows and later in the week, organisers announced another setback with further postponements. Last week’s drama came following Gary Roden’s decision to step down as general manager. He resigned after receiving criticism for rejecting a £1-a-ticket levy to help the Music Venue Trust.
“En masse bills are going up and this, that and the other,” he told the BBC, “but ultimately, if there are 1,000 venues, one of them is going to be the best-run venue, and one of them is going to be the poorly run venue, and where does the money go?”
The Music Venue Trust, led by Mark Davyd, condemned Roden’s statement leading to an outpour across social media. Co-op Live didn’t address Roden’s controversial statement, opting for neutrality as it thanked him for his role in “bringing the UK’s newest arena to live entertainment fans and wish him the best for the future”.
Ronden’s resignation threw the project into turmoil, but with the appointment of Kane Burton, who previously managed the O2 Arena, the show looked to be back on the road. Peter Kay’s shows are rescheduled to the end of May, while The Black Keys have their gig slots pushed back to May 15th.
With these postponements confirmed, Co-op Live apologised to audiences, making assurances that the first concert would be held on May 1st. However, in a remarkable development, organisers have also postponed tonight’s scheduled performance by rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, hours before he was due to perform.
Co-op Live made the announcement at 6:40pm via a post to X, citing a “technical issue” for the last-minute cancellation. Audiences have ben told to “leave the arena” just as masses of Da Hoodie fans arrived at the venue.
At present, it is unclear exactly what the “technical issue” is, but having spent £365m on the Eastlands arena, Co-op Live clearly wants the first show to run without a hitch. Unfortunately, after a series of postponements, audiences have been alienated, with many demanding refunds.
In a statement, they shared on social media: “Due to a venue-related technical issue, tonight’s A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie show will no longer go ahead. We kindly ask fans to leave the area. Tickets holders will receive further information in due course.”
The venue continued: “We deeply apologise for the significant inconvenience this will cause for many.”
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.