Co-Op Arena

[Mondsley]

Anyone else on here impacted by the utter shambles surrounding the opening of this new arena? We should have been seeing Keane on Sunday and still waiting to hear about any rescheduling. I really feel for people who had booked hotels and travel for the cancelled shows. Personally, I'm not surprised. Anyone who has been in the vicinity recently could see it still looks like a building site.

[burnmark]

It’s turning out a bit of a shambles! Take That have moved their upcoming shows to the AO Arena so that’s a double kick in the teeth.

Did Manchester really need another arena? It’s got the aforementioned AO, three sports stadiums that can hold concerts (Old Trafford rarely does however), Castlefield Bowl and then the mid sized venues of The Apollo, Academy, Ritz, Victoria Warehouse and the very impressive Aviva Studios.

[Mondsley]

It’s turning out a bit of a shambles! Take That have moved their upcoming shows to the AO Arena so that’s a double kick in the teeth.

Did Manchester really need another arena? It’s got the aforementioned AO, three sports stadiums that can hold concerts (Old Trafford rarely does however), Castlefield Bowl and then the mid sized venues of The Apollo, Academy, Ritz, Victoria Warehouse and the very impressive Aviva Studios.

Plus Bridgewater Hall which is a favourite of mine.

[wilks_bfc]

Mrs W was meant to be going with a friend next week for Take That but will now be going to AO Arena instead.

As burnmark says, you do wonder why another venue was needed

[AmbleClaret]

Mate of mine working as a joiner on site,said a month ago it had no chance of being ready,so why did management allow the fiasco to unroll.

[TheFamilyCat]

Anyone else on here impacted by the utter shambles surrounding the opening of this new arena? We should have been seeing Keane on Sunday and still waiting to hear about any rescheduling. I really feel for people who had booked hotels and travel for the cancelled shows. Personally, I'm not surprised. Anyone who has been in the vicinity recently could see it still looks like a building site.

I reckon you've had a lucky escape.

[TheFamilyCat]

Maybe this was part of the problem.

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[burnmark]

Plus Bridgewater Hall which is a favourite of mine.

Of course! Shouldn’t have forgot that one - I had my uni graduation ceremony there!

[Chester Perry]

I find it interesting how CFG have managed to keep their name out of all the furore about this situation, it was their power and hold over Manchester City Council that got this built - Officially the arena is owned by Oak View Group who share an investor with CFG - Silver Lake. but this is on the Etihad campus and is a model for what CFG are hoping to recreate alongside some of their other football investments.

It needs to be remembered that CFG is not just about football, it is an extension of Abu Dhabi political and economic development around the globe and the whole package is what led to Professor Simon Chadwick to describe the objective as being the Disneyfication of Football - though Disney do not make these kind of fiasco's

[jdrobbo]

Anyone else on here impacted by the utter shambles surrounding the opening of this new arena? We should have been seeing Keane on Sunday and still waiting to hear about any rescheduling. I really feel for people who had booked hotels and travel for the cancelled shows. Personally, I'm not surprised. Anyone who has been in the vicinity recently could see it still looks like a building site.

Really sorry for you. In the past we’ve seen Keane in Manchester and Leeds. We’re going to Leeds Arena tomorrow night. Really bad do. Hope you get to a gig soon.

[chipbutty]

Maybe this was part of the problem.


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I'd like to have seen that

[nig1954]

We’re due to go at the end of this month to see The Eagles Final Tour but, as yet, we haven’t got a clue as to whether this will proceed or there’ll be a change of venue

[Dyched]

Had The Black Keys last Saturday cancelled the day before. Due to happen again in 2 weeks which it more than likely won’t.

How they are still announcing acts for future dates is beyond me?

[CaptJohn]

During my working life I worked for an Abu Dhabi government company, which is basicallly what this amounts to, and believe me heads will roll as they won't accept incompetence on this scale. I note that one of the senior managers has already gone but he most likely jumped ship before it really hit the rocks and a few more of those responsible will be axed in the near future. They have "lost face" due to this fiasco and it's the one thing that they do not tolerate.

[Dyched]

It’s not losing face, it’s beyond that now. The first acts were cancelled days before. Then a day before for the one I was going to and now this week people were queuing up before it got cancelled. They’ve come out with reasons why yet workers were visible still laying paving. They just needed to be honest from the start and say it won’t be ready for x amount of weeks.

[martin_p]

It’s a shambles, but once it’s ready it won’t have any detrimental effect on its future. People go for the band not the venue, this whole sorry mess will be forgotten days after it opens.

[Swizzlestick]

Will artists and promoters want to use them again though? I imagine somebody like Olivia Rodrigo won’t want to be associated with a venue that was willing to press ahead and open despite obvious safety issues. Never mind the logistics and money that have probably already been dedicated for such a show pulled literally days before. They’ll just end up playing the AO Arena (as some already are doing). Can’t imagine how much this has cost them just in terms of legal issues. Also Co-op themselves probably considering their sponsorship. What a nightmare.

[claptrappers_union]

It’s a shambles, but once it’s ready, it won’t have any detrimental effect on its future. People go for the band not the venue, this whole sorry mess will be forgotten days after it opens.

Exactly, Wembley was a shambles, there were strikes and a construction worker even died. It went so over budget the FA spun it to have FA Cup semi-finals there ever since to help recoup the costs. It was headline news.

Spurs fans were furious on radio phone-in shows complaining about Levey and all the delays on their new stadium too. All forgotten now.

[Mondsley]

Really sorry for you. In the past we’ve seen Keane in Manchester and Leeds. We’re going to Leeds Arena tomorrow night. Really bad do. Hope you get to a gig soon.

Thanks John. I'm sure something will get sorted. Not heard a dicky bird from Ticketmaster yet. I suppose they're busy at the moment!

[THEWELLERNUT70]

Here's my review of the place as I was lucky enough to not only have a freebie for the opening night but also managed to gain access to the venue ( originally 11000 were supposed to attend but 7000 had their tickets cancelled on the day, some in the actual queue due to power supply issues ! )

Firstly I'd be parking at one of the out of town tram stations where it's free parking and not the £25 being asked if you park at the venue ( to my eye parking seemed limited for the size of venue), obviously that is unless you have a hotel booked. We parked at the Ashton tram stop Which I think was £3.60 return and around a 15 minute transfer

In the venue you firstly go through an airport scanner system then up and turn left where you stand at the top of some stairs where you are greeted by the sight of the concessions hall. There's one massive full length bar to it's right with plenty of individual bar positions all the way along it, service was prompt with hardly any queuing time and you certainly didn't feel packed in tight like you do at many of the older arena's when you go for a pint.

The main stage auditorium is quite impressive TBF and the sound was very impressive too for the varying styles of performers that played on the night, probably the best I've heard at an arena tbh.

Now I feel the stage sits a little bit lower than your standard arena stage, perhaps to give it a smaller venue feel when you are standing. That's great if you are standing up to a third way back however I moved to various points of the floor area just to test things out and tbh I wouldn't want to stand any further back than a third way back as viewing for me ( I'm 5 10) became increasingly difficult and you then had to rely on the giant screens either side of the stage.

Seating wise I'd opt for the 1st level as it appears to have quite a shallow rake and is quite deep, again beyond that some people might struggle as tier 2 and ( and significantly more ) tier 3 are really steeply raked, particularly at the back of the arena facing the stage, I suppose this is to make the customers feel closer to the stage regardless of where they are in the arena.

Toilets on the night seemed limited too ( situated bizarrely behind the bar area with staff walking in and out of the bar )but I later found out not all blocks were up and running

Another thing that wasn't running either were the cash terminals so we had the added bonus of all our food and drinks being free on the night ( but that also meant that none of the draught pumps were working either )

I've read an insider say that at the time only 20% of the power cables were in and there was around 6 months work still to do ( no completion certificate has been issued so far ) so this could explain the escalating issues at the venue

It will be an excellent addition to large scale indoor events when fully operational, however I wish they'd just pull every event until it can function correctly and stop messing people around, some who will be a few hundred quid out of pocket due to booking travel and accommodation

[THEWELLERNUT70]

Will artists and promoters want to use them again though? I imagine somebody like Olivia Rodrigo won’t want to be associated with a venue that was willing to press ahead and open despite obvious safety issues. Never mind the logistics and money that have probably already been dedicated for such a show pulled literally days before. They’ll just end up playing the AO Arena (as some already are doing). Can’t imagine how much this has cost them just in terms of legal issues. Also Co-op themselves probably considering their sponsorship. What a nightmare.

It comes down to £££££s that's the be all and end all, most performers won't give a toss if they can make more money at the bigger CO-OP venue

[martin_p]

It comes down to £££££s that's the be all and end all, most performers won't give a toss if they can make more money at the bigger CO-OP venue

This!

[Juan Tanamera]

It’s turning out a bit of a shambles! Take That have moved their upcoming shows to the AO Arena so that’s a double kick in the teeth.

Did Manchester really need another arena? It’s got the aforementioned AO, three sports stadiums that can hold concerts (Old Trafford rarely does however), Castlefield Bowl and then the mid sized venues of The Apollo, Academy, Ritz, Victoria Warehouse and the very impressive Aviva Studios.

I went to my very first live gig at the Apollo to see 10cc, they were a great live band.

[THEWELLERNUT70]

It’s turning out a bit of a shambles! Take That have moved their upcoming shows to the AO Arena so that’s a double kick in the teeth.

Did Manchester really need another arena? It’s got the aforementioned AO, three sports stadiums that can hold concerts (Old Trafford rarely does however), Castlefield Bowl and then the mid sized venues of The Apollo, Academy, Ritz, Victoria Warehouse and the very impressive Aviva Studios.

The Victoria Warehouse is an horrific venue to attend imo, I avoid it at all costs

[beeholeclaret]

Really sorry for you. In the past we’ve seen Keane in Manchester and Leeds. We’re going to Leeds Arena tomorrow night. Really bad do. Hope you get to a gig soon.

Enjoy Keane tonight.

We are heading off to Leeds this afternoon and looking forward to seeing Keane also.

[aggi]

I find it interesting how CFG have managed to keep their name out of all the furore about this situation, it was their power and hold over Manchester City Council that got this built - Officially the arena is owned by Oak View Group who share an investor with CFG - Silver Lake. but this is on the Etihad campus and is a model for what CFG are hoping to recreate alongside some of their other football investments.

It needs to be remembered that CFG is not just about football, it is an extension of Abu Dhabi political and economic development around the globe and the whole package is what led to Professor Simon Chadwick to describe the objective as being the Disneyfication of Football - though Disney do not make these kind of fiasco's

Surely this is Portsmouth.

[CaptainKirk]

During my working life I worked for an Abu Dhabi government company, which is basicallly what this amounts to, and believe me heads will roll as they won't accept incompetence on this scale. I note that one of the senior managers has already gone but he most likely jumped ship before it really hit the rocks and a few more of those responsible will be axed in the near future. They have "lost face" due to this fiasco and it's the one thing that they do not tolerate.

Unfortunate choice of phrase in that first sentence!

[jdrobbo]

Enjoy Keane tonight.

We are heading off to Leeds this afternoon and looking forward to seeing Keane also.

Cheers,

We’re big fans and naturally, 20 years of H&F is significant. Nice that we don’t have to travel and worry about parking etc. we have a secret spot three minutes from the arena

[burnmark]

The Victoria Warehouse is an horrific venue to attend imo, I avoid it at all costs

Been twice, firstly to see Ocean Colour Scene and then last Friday for The K’s. Never had an issue with the sound etc but it certainly feels dilapidated and very ‘ad hoc’. Going back in December to watch Shed Seven.

[Darthlaw]

We had Black Keys tickets last weekend which was cancelled but thankfully we got a refund same day as we can't make the rearranged gig.

What I have noticed (and I don't know if this is specific to Co-op live) but some of the prices for the acts are extorsion. The Eagles is around £275 a ticket and Eric Clapton not far off that, to name a few. By Comparison, I'm seeing AC/DC in Dublin for less than half that.

The £25 parking seems a bit of a joke, although this is offset I suppose by the free metro travel to/from the venue if you produce your ticket.

I don't think I'll be booking anything there until a few acts have gone ahead and the teething issues sorted.

[THEWELLERNUT70]

Been twice, firstly to see Ocean Colour Scene and then last Friday for The K’s. Never had an issue with the sound etc but it certainly feels dilapidated and very ‘ad hoc’. Going back in December to watch Shed Seven.

I've been there a few times over the years but after the last visit to see Placebo that was that for me. It's in the middle of nowhere, poor access, poor sightlines ( especially if you are near the back near the arches), poor facilities, poor toilets and below average sound, it became a bit of a death trap too which lead to the venue having to reduce it's capacity by 500 due to the unsafe nature of the balcony area. The operators were warned time and time again about this issue and it very nearly cost them their operating licence!

[quoonbeatz]

Completely unnecessary venue.

[Chester Perry]

Surely this is Portsmouth.

As I am sure you are aware the term pre-dates the Eisner involvement at Portsmouth, though not by much, and more specifically was referring to the activities of CFG, as this Financial Times article (written post the Eisner involvement) clearly illustrates

Manchester City and the ‘Disneyfication’ of football
The team’s Arab owners are developing a business model based on a global network of clubs that could upend the sport
https://archive.ph/i7wv8

[dandeclaret]

I reckon the Co-Op are delighted with this sponsorship deal - pay out big money just to take all of the flak from the horrendous delivery of the venue.

The way it has been handled has been shocking. I considered heading over for the Black Keys (they play Dublin tonight, which is a lot closer) and would have lost on flights, hotels the lot with the late cancellation. There must be plenty of people well out of pocket for the rescheduling. No comment from the Mayor of Manchester - which is a surprise, even though it is local election times.

[TheFamilyCat]

The Victoria Warehouse is an horrific venue to attend imo, I avoid it at all costs

Great, I'm there tomorrow night.

[AfloatinClaret]

...this whole sorry mess will be forgotten days after it opens.

Not by the Contract Lawyers and Quantity Surveyors.

[Big Vinny K]

The Coop continue their run of disastrous decisions in the last 10 years.
From a chairman found to be on crystal meth and paying rent boys to having to sell the most profitable parts of their business to remain afloat and now spending a fortune on naming rights for something that should have been a really positive thing for the Coop and Manchester.

[StuffyClaret]

I understand that it is now being rebranded Co-Op - Dead and sponsorship has been taken over by their Funeral Services division

[beddie]

When you buy a ticket for the Co-op do they give you stamps?

[beeholeclaret]

Cheers,

We’re big fans and naturally, 20 years of H&F is significant. Nice that we don’t have to travel and worry about parking etc. we have a secret spot three minutes from the arena

We are not devotees of the band but have enjoyed their stuff over the years. Booked it as a Christmas pressie for the missus. I know how to treat her well so we are having a burger in The Griffin (Spoons) and checking in at the Hilton for overnight stop).

Can’t have a lie in tomorrow as catching train back for Newcastle game. All go.

[1989_claret]

I had a tour of the arena in January and a meeting at their Manchester office which had a virtual walk through of the arena. I was very impressed however, none of this comes as a surprise to me as it felt like they were up against it then timings wise.

[1989_claret]

The Coop continue their run of disastrous decisions in the last 10 years.
From a chairman found to be on crystal meth and paying rent boys to having to sell the most profitable parts of their business to remain afloat and now spending a fortune on naming rights for something that should have been a really positive thing for the Coop and Manchester.

It's a monster deal as well, around £100m for the naming rights for 15 years.

[Cirrus_Minor]

Mrs CM and daughter are due to see 'Take That'. It has been rescheduled for AO arena now. Although this has less capacity so someone will miss out

[jdrobbo]

We are not devotees of the band but have enjoyed their stuff over the years. Booked it as a Christmas pressie for the missus. I know how to treat her well so we are having a burger in The Griffin (Spoons) and checking in at the Hilton for overnight stop).

Can’t have a lie in tomorrow as catching train back for Newcastle game. All go.

Well have a lovely evening. I hope your good lady enjoys her present. #Keaaannnoooo!!

[Roger1960]

I got tickets to the test event and was lucky to not be one of those told as they got off the tram that their tickets had been cancelled. Unless they add more food and beverage outlets I think the ground floor concessions will struggle , also you have to fight through this area to get to some of the seating areas so unsure how that will work. Overall my impression was of a bog standard indoor arena just VERY black . My main gripe however and why I thought it wasn’t needed is that if you want to go into Manchester on the train , have something to eat and drink before a gig and then get the last train back as you usually can do at the AO as it’s straight out and onto the train you can’t at this new venue. It’s 15 min min back from it to town on the tram and then same again to Victoria so you are either likely to miss the last Burnley train or leave before the end of the gig.
The area around it is a food and drink dessert so unless you pay whatever they charge inside , it was free at the test night , you are a bit stuck. I think Manchester City council did their own city centre a massive disservice allowing it to be built out there. The spin off the city gets now from the AO is great and there won’t be anywhere as much from this new place.

[wilks_bfc]

Mrs CM and daughter are due to see 'Take That'. It has been rescheduled for AO arena now. Although this has less capacity so someone will miss out

Same as Mrs W, and now on the Thursday instead of the Wednesday (so that’s my champions league evening out the window)

Was wondering how the seats will be allocated for the new venue

[AlargeClaret]

Maybe this was part of the problem.


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I’d have paid good money for that ! Perhaps they’ve rescheduled the erm “ bumming “ for the Arena so all’s well that ends well

[beeholeclaret]

Cheers,

we have a secret spot three minutes from the arena

Morning JDR

Did you enjoy Keane last night? We did. Our first visit to this Arena and we loved it. Well organised, sufficient room for access in and out and even the toilets worked efficiently despites hundreds on the queues. (Not like North stand upper at Turf).

Enjoyed the show - he was on top form working the audience and performance topped off with our favourite “Sovereign Light Cafe” at the end.

I presume your secret spot is “somewhere only we know”

Breakfast at our hotel now and then the 11:57 train to Burnley.

Are you at Turf today?

Regards BHC

[jdrobbo]

Morning JDR

Did you enjoy Keane last night? We did. Our first visit to this Arena and we loved it. Well organised, sufficient room for access in and out and even the toilets worked efficiently despites hundreds on the queues. (Not like North stand upper at Turf).

Enjoyed the show - he was on top form working the audience and performance topped off with our favourite “Sovereign Light Cafe” at the end.

I presume your secret spot is “somewhere only we know”

Breakfast at our hotel now and then the 11:57 train to Burnley.

Are you at Turf today?

Regards BHC

It was absolutely sensational. Musically, I don’t think there’s a more pitch perfect lead vocalist in the world than Top Chaplin, in this genre of music.

Glad you liked the arena: it’s very different but always seems to work wonderfully.

A great set and I’m glad they played some of your favourites. I was so pleased that they really went to town on the first album too…obviously with it being twenty years, that was the hope (and fears).

Hope your good lady enjoyed it!

J

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[jdrobbo]

Ps. Yes at the Turf!

Next time you’re at the arena, I’ll give you my secret space, IF you’re in the car