Co-op Live boss reveals exact reasons behind delays to venue's opening as The Black Keys concert re-scheduled the day before - and Peter Kay gigs moved again
26.04.2024 - 14:03
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
The man behind Co-op Live has revealed exactly why the opening of Manchester's new arena has been delayed again. In an exclusive interview with the Manchester Evening News, Tim Leiweke explained why the £365m venue has pushed back Peter Kay's two performances for a second time and rescheduled The Black Keys' show tomorrow (April 27).
The Bolton comedian's officially opening show was supposed to take place on Tuesday (April 23). But with just one day to go, it postponed to a week later. Now, the two Peter Kay gigs are set to take place on Thursday, 23 May and Friday, 24 May, while a performance by The Black Keys scheduled for Saturday (April 27) has been moved to May 15.
Mr Leiweke, who is the managing director at the American Oak View Group, told the M.E.N. he is confident the 23,500 capacity arena will be ready for Olivia Rodrigo's two nights starting on Friday (May 3). That will follow a performance by Boogie Wit Da Hoodie planned for Wednesday (May 1), at which the upper tiers will be closed.
READ MORE: Emergency services reveal exact Co-op Live problems after Peter Kay shows postponed again
The Co-op Live boss blamed Brexit, Covid and a record amount of rainfall for the delays to the construction of, what he describes as, 'the best arena outside of North America'. He admitted the company knew the deadline for the original opening show by Peter Kay scheduled for Tuesday (April 23) would be 'tight' as some testing still had to be completed.
Mr Leiweke said bosses at new venue discovered there was still 'a lot of work to do' following a test event on Saturday (April 20), which saw by Rick Astley take to the stage. Hours before the event, ticket holders were told the capacity had been cut from around 11,000 to 4,000,