O2 Ritz Manchester

Review from US Citizen. 1st, Manchester is a great city!!! The downtown area is VIBRANT. Wonderful, people of all ages packing the sidewalks going to all types of different venues and restaurants. As a side note, some of the best Italian food I've ever had has been in England and Manchester was no exception. And with Wales and Snowdonia and Liverpool as a day trip away, along with many other cool places, Manchester, a clean and safe place, I will be back. Oh, that's right, this is about The Chameleons! Reg was back!!!! Where the hell are you Dave?? Life is too short!! OK, the SHOW!! Two days of amazing Chameleons' music. Mark still has everything he was gifted at, at 63!!!!!! I've seen him in different cities and never disappoints, but you can tell Mark loves his home town. 9 years in a row the December Manchester show, and he promised a 10th!! Mark also treated us to these 4 gems. Membranes, The Battery Farm, Ruts DC, Evil Blizzard. IDIOTS in the States pay $400 a ticket to see over rated acts in venues where they need to watch the screen to see anything. WHAT A JOKE!! Look up these great bands, and others, see them in AWESOME venues, at reasonable prices. Thank you Mark, keep it going please!!! The O2 Ritz venue is PERFECT. Smaller, takes 30 seconds to get another pint!!! And the balcony is a great asset too, and they take care of people with illness and disabilities with excellent upfront seating. Thank you all!! As Mark said, life is about experiences, go get em!

An incredible show! The Wedding Present are absolutely ‘now’. Despite the longevity of David Gedge his songwriting and collaborations within the band are brilliant. They are as fresh as ever and the original energy remains unfaltering! They are a tour de force and serve up a kick-ass gig that leaves ears ringing and smiles on faces. Job done and long may it last!

Fantastic show. Gevevieve Artadi's music felt so much more impactful live (that could just as easily be my perception). Louise Cole was on fine form despite a couple of glitches with a new looping pedal.😉 Apologies for forgetting names but the bassist and keyboarder were phenomenal players. Massive talent on display all round and the chance to hear Louis Cole play drums Live was even better than I could have expected. I would love a scotland gig next time though as it's a bit of a trek to Manchester. 😉

I must that I was very much looking forward to this gig, especially when Vinnie announced this is his last tour. Generally, was a little disappointed with a playlist which was very very similar to what I saw/heard in the previous gig a few years ago, but was still entertained by JMT's great hits. Personally, I am angry, that Stoupe didn't arrive again. I am not blaming him because he is probably no longer doing gigs, but to see him behind the turntable supporting Vinnie is my dream. One big thumb down is for the Sound engineer as the sound was terrible for all night. Imbalanced and not adjusted properly.

The concert was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING of course! Talent just runs in our family ☺️ BUT If you want to get “close to close” 😉 to Shayne then VIP Package (meet and greet) is well recommended guys!! A signed picture and plenty of pictures of you and him on your own phone😮 not to mention Tour T-Shirts to purchase “Dream Shayne Ward” I mean not only was this an absolutely Awesome concert at the o2 Ritz Manchester but it was a very special one too… it was a FIRST concert for some little ones but it was on EASTER SUNDAY!!🐣😁

Seen them before and they were awesome. So went to MCR with high expectations. Sadly, I found this performance a bit lacking. Sure it had its moments, but on the whole it was lacklustre. Plus I found Anton NewCombes constant criticism of his bandmates insufferable. Proper mardy git. Apparently he apologised to them after the gig. Nice. He should apologised to us instead. Looking at other reviews, die hard fans loved it. So job done. I probably won’t see them again. Been there, done that….. but might still buy the t-shirt

Vip session was magical! Such a warm and lovely atmosphere. The opening band were incredible, THANK YOU DEAD PONY ☆ Such an 'out of this world' experience by mothermother! lucky enough to get the barrier and it was the most great performances ever! Also great staff (THANKS JOHN) keeping everyone hydrated during the show. Can't wait for you to come back to the uk again! ♡♡♡

Absolutely MAGIC! This was my first time seeing Mark live. He's a consummate performer. He owned the stage! The set list was a perfect balance of old and new. I was sitting right next to the confetti machine and got covered- made me feel like I was part of the show! Thank you Mark for taking us with you to the Land of Dreams!

The staff at the venue are so helpful and kind nothing is a problem. The security were outstanding especially Johnny from showsec he was such a sweetheart nothing was too much trouble for him, and of course the star of the show the main man himself MARK OWEN I'd give home a million stars he just blew me away best gig I've ever been to he is the worlds greatest entertainer ever I hope he comes back to do more solo stuff I'm already QUEING 😀

Genuinely one of the best put-together gigs I've ever been to. Almost 2 hours of every banger in the band's catalogue, with some presented as the studio versions, but a few remix-style or re-arranged performances. The lighting was amazing, as was the use of staging which saw the band spread out or gather in, depending on the mood of the song. I cannot overstate how amazing this gig was, and £20 is an absolute bargain to be surrounded by 1500 people all transfixed by such a talented band. Wow

Alec is an amazing singer and storyteller, you can't help but get lost in his songs. First time I have seen him live and he didn't disappoint at all. Would definitely recommend if you like real live music with real instruments. The venue is small but has a great balcony which is a little quieter if you prefer as in front of stage is very busy and be quite hot

Midland were absolutely phenomenal from the first song to the last. They seemed genuinely touched by the fans reaction to them, Jonathan Terrell who opened for them joined on stage for the concert in place of Jess who was unable to make the trip. I hope Midland play the UK again in the not too distant future

I really like the Orielles but the gig was just ok. They made the mistake, made by many bands previously, of playing all the new album and very little old stuff. I can understand they’re proud of the new album but playing live, especially at a bigger venue than previous, needs those fans’ favourites to get the crowd going.

the band put on an amazing show, but venue sucked. they had restrictions that stopped them from doing an awesome gig and security was super late to react to anything. crowd was so rude everyone was getting injured and not in a typical gig way, in a way i’ve never seen before. most of the crowd ruined the experience for me.

Fantastic as always! The new songs were as integral to the cohesion of the set as the older tracks usually are, and the sound was wonderful, as usual. What more can I say to that? ;) They added 'Naughty Christmas' to the setlist for once, to tease since they were playing in November. Cristina dived at me & hugged me when the band came off stage between their main set and the encore, which was a lovely surprise, and I got fistbumps from Andrea and Maki at the same time. Andi and I had a pic taken hugging outside the venue, and he gave me a pick to take home since I so rarely have a chance to get any anymore (being a wheelchair user & unable to stretch up my arms to catch stuff). Cri and I had another selfie together - a sort of 10th anniversary thing comparing to the last one we did! - and I got to meet & chat with Richard, the new guy, before the show as he'd been having a smoke break by the access door. The only band member I didn't really get to meet or talk to this time was Didi, but... sometime in the future! I always love how down to earth Lacuna Coil are, especially when interacting with fans. :) Eluveitie were truly excellent in their supporting role, and Infected Rain showed promise, though I think some of their instruments may have been a little over-miked. Lots of lovely merch, though ouch at the bill at the end of the night, unusually high. I'd have posted before, but my father died the following night (13 November). But the whole concert was wonderful and is still a very happy memory for me, regardless of the timing. It's a shame I can't add more than one photo.

It was the best experience of my life. They sound incredible live, and the atmosphere was incredible too. You can tell they love their fans, their performance makes it obvious, they perform with such energy and happiness. I would love to go to any concerts they do in the future, as I’ll never forget that night

Unbelievable power and energy from these three musicians, I've listened to the album prior and on the way to the gig in Mcr, but live - immense, can't get enough of the album, it took me back to the late 70s/early 80s this time with the passion & bewilderment of the crap what's happening now to all & everyone - c'mon The Blinders & keep doing what your doing guys & on to the next gig, Stockport havin it ..... 🤘

What a fantastic night, we had accessable tickets and it was our 1st visit to the o2 Ritz. Stewards outside were great and told my husband and I how to access the building. We were greeted by Alex who was lovely, she took us to meet John who was looking after us for the evening but said she'd also be around if I needed anything. The bands were great and we had a fab time, My view was obstructed a little by a speaker and a couple of stewards due to me being in a wheelchair but John tried made sure he got us the best possible view. We didn't let it stop us enjoying ourselves. Showsec staff were great, so on the ball and put up with a lot from over excited fans. Will definitely be back. Thank you all Regards Jackie

Would've been a great gig as Citizen played an amazing set but then The Story So Far decided that they didn't really need to make much of an effort. I'm unsure why the front man thought he felt the need to dress and then attempt to act like Liam Gallagher. There was little interest in the crowd from any of the band. Just because you're in Manchester doesn't mean you need to try and be British in the most cringe inducing way possible. I left 3 songs in. Shocking performance from what I thought was a great band.