A recent report by the Music Venue’s Trust found that the total value of the GMV (grassroots music venues) sector was close to £500.3m last year, and that these venues employ more than 30,700 people. Whilst this may seem like good news, the report also found that 177k events staged by those venues attracted nearly 22 million people, which was down 16.7% from 2019 (the last year on record). Furthermore, the average number of weekly events per venue has fallen from 4.2 in 2019 to 3.5 in 2022 – with just under two of those ticketed live music shows – with events averaging 40% capacity, down from 51% in 2019.
It’s clear to us that grassroots venues are struggling and it’s important that we as live events fans highlight these issues and do what we can to help. This week we’re introducing a new feature at Twickets which will see us place different independent UK venue’s under the spotlight.
This week our spotlight venue is the fantastic Albert Hall in Manchester.
A Grade II listed Wesleyan chapel in Manchester City Centre closed and hidden for over 40 years, the Albert Hall is an unrivalled events venue, restaurant and bar. The grand and ornate chapel has been restored into a stunning music hall and has quickly become one of the most atmospheric music and events venues in the UK.
With a full calendar of live music and club events throughout the year the past twelve months has seen Albert Hall feature live shows from Beck, Sam Smith, Primal Scream, Manic Street Preachers, Placebo, Suede, Underworld, Tame Impala and has been an excellent home for club nights such as Bongo’s Bingo, La Discotheque, Warehouse Project, Glitterbox, Fatboy Slim, Community, Elrow, Steve Aoki & more.
Having attended the venue during Manchester Psych Festival this year we were enamoured with its high ceilings and gorgeous windows. The sound was fantastic too. The vibe in the room was brilliant and we’ll definitely be going back when we’re next in town.
We thought we’d highlight our favourite upcoming shows at the venue. Get down to one of them!
28th October – Shed Seven
9th November – Jorja Smith
10th November – Tangerine Dream
17th November – BC Camplight
18th November – The Cult
29th-30th November – Bakar
Full listings are available here