Elbow frontman Guy Garvey appeared to quip about Co-Op Live’s previous woes last night as he took to the stage for the crisis-ridden music venue’s first gig.
The beleaguered arena in Manchester was the subject of ridicule after being forced to call off three concerts at the last minute but its belated grand opening appeared to go off without a hitch on Tuesday.
Structural issues with the building were among a host of issues previously raised, with reports suggesting its ventilation system was falling from the ceiling.
One worker said ‘there were loads of wires hanging down’ with exposed lighting on the floor which looked ‘very messy’.
In an apparent nod to those woes, Garvey welcomed the audience by quipping: ‘There was already electricity in the air before you lot got in here… and now it’s fully amped up. I hope you can feel it.’
The rocker added that those who had been working on the building had been ‘so excited today, so nervous and so excited’.
Garvey was also seen telling the crowd before the end of Elbow’s set: ‘You’ve house-warmed this beautiful new venue, shall we sing one last song together?’
The £365m venue finally opened after an inspection gave the arena the all-clear, with boss Tim Leiweke adding he is confident it is now ‘the safest building in the world.’
Elbow frontman Guy Garvey has hailed the ‘beautiful’ Co-op Live arena, as the crisis-ridden venue finally hosted its first gig. Pictured at the Manchester arena last night
The Co-op Live arena is pictured last night as Elbow performed at the troubled venue
The band boosted fans confidence that the night will go ahead as planned
Pictured is the beleaguered arena in Manchester last night as it finally opened for its first gig
The beleaguered arena in Manchester opened with the rock band after it was forced to call off three concerts at the last minute. Pictured is the gig last night
Before concluding their set, Garvey told the crowd: ‘You’ve house-warmed this beautiful new venue, shall we sing one last song together?’ in a video on X
The troubled arena said it has completed an inspection and will open after a string of delays
The problem-plagued Co-op Live arena finally launches with Elbow gig after being forced to call off three concerts at the last minute. Pictured: Queues from outside the arena last night
This comes after the arena, which boasts being the largest in the UK, was forced to postpone opening shows three times because of concerning structural issues with the building, including parts from the ventilation falling from the ceiling. Pictured: Fans queuing for Elbow
Students Paul Chester and Clara Curtis were ‘confident’ that all the issues will have been sorted out by now, otherwise the concert would have already been called off
Fan queuing up outside the mammoth stadium that can hold 23,500 people told MailOnline last night they were sympathetic to the issues the arena has faced.
And despite the long wait, the gig seemed to go ahead without a hitch.
Elbow were celebrating the release of their 10th studio album, Audio Vertigo, with their first tour since 2018, as they made history as headliners of the opening night at the arena.
John Thomson, 60, said from the queue last night: ‘For a four year build, being four weeks out is not that bad. They have gone through Covid and through flooding. We are sure it’s all going to be fine tonight.’
His wife Fiona, also 60, added: ‘I have been a massive fan of Elbow for 25 years. I feel confident that we will see them here tonight.
‘Elbow were pretty sure that it was all going to be ok. If anything went wrong I would be disappointed and upset but I wouldn’t be cross and especially not with the staff.’
Queues snaked back about 300 yards, as the first lucky fans started to go into the venue.
Students Paul Chester and Clara Curtis added that they were ‘confident’ that all the issues will have been sorted out by now, otherwise the concert would have already been called off.
Clara, 20, said: ‘I was a bit nervous with all the news but they have been giving us some good updates so we are hoping for no bumps in the road.
‘We would have preferred them not to go ahead unless they are ready anyway for safety. It’s nice they haven’t sugar coated what happened and have kept us informed.
Paul agreed, saying: ‘I have been following it since the first concerts were postponed but hopefully they have done some thorough checks. We would be disappointed if anything went wrong as we are excited to see Elbow.’
However, some fans were growing frustrated at the lengthy queues meaning they might miss out on some of the performance.
Daniel Morgan, 64, from Liverpool, and a self-professed lifelong Elbow fan, is angry about the length of the queues.
He said: ‘I don’t want to swear but this is ridiculous. My last train is 11.30pm. If we eventually get in, we are only going to see a quarter of the show. I have a van so I left it in St Helens and got the train.
‘In my opinion they should have used the other arena.’
Elbow fans posted on X about the ‘fantastic night’ they had at the gig last night
Fan queuing up outside have been quite sympathetic to the issues the Coop live arena had
John Thomson (left) sympathised with the arena, he said: ‘For a four year build, being four weeks out is not that bad. They have gone through Covid and through flooding’
Inside the Coop Live arena last night where rock band Elbow are performing
The problem-plagued Co-op Live arena finally launches with Elbow gig after being forced to call off three concerts at the last minute
The £365m Manchester venue is headlining last night’s show with rock band Elbow (above), after an inspection gave the arena the all-clear
Meanwhile, Steve Jones, 58, from Rhyl in Wales said he was a ‘bit apprehensive’ about everything going to plan.
‘Hopefully everything goes OK,’ he said. ‘It’s been a long time in the coming, seeing all the other ones that have been cancelled, because we live 60-odd miles away and then you’re thinking ‘hope everything goes OK’.
‘Looking forward to it now.’
Nigel Thomas, who is 56 and from Chester, had come with family members to see Elbow perform, with one relative travelling from Hong Kong to see the band.
‘I’m so excited and I can’t believe it’s actually going to go ahead tonight, after all the worries – great to be here,’ he said.
Mr Thomas said recent cancellations of events at the Co-op Live arena had left him feeling ‘scared’ and ‘worried’.
‘We (were) worried if it would go to another venue, possibly have just be postponed and we wouldn’t all be able to meet and make it happen, so tonight feels a little bit weird, still a bit apprehensive that it hasn’t actually started yet, so we’ve still got a few hours to go.’
Peter Kay was supposed to be the Co-op Live’s opener on April 23 but problems had already shown themselves in earlier test events, leading to that being postponed.
The venue then planned for US rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie to open the arena on May 1, however it was called off just over an hour before his performance with fans queuing outside, due to the ventilation system becoming detached during a soundcheck.
The issue also meant scheduled performances from US pop star Olivia Rodrigo and British band Keane were postponed, while a slew of shows by Take That were moved to the AO Arena across town.
Fans were sent away 10 minutes after doors were due to open for the gig after a piece of aircon equipment came loose
There were chaotic scenes outside the new arena last night as fans of A Boogie Wit da Hoodie were told at the last minute the show had been canned
Stranded A Boogie Wit da Hoodie fans speak to police in Manchester after his Co-op Live show was cancelled at the last minute
Kay, who was meant to be the ‘first artist in the world to perform at Manchester Co-op Live’ according to promotional posters, then had a second show postponed as the venue was still not ready to open six days later.
The problems also led to the venue rescheduling a Black Keys gig.
The venue then planned for US rapper A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie to open the arena on May 1, however it was called off just over an hour before his performance with fans queuing outside, due to the ventilation system becoming detached during a soundcheck.
Co-op Live said an inspection would need to take place to ensure it was a one-time default.
At a Rick Astley test event on April 20, attendance was slashed from 11,000 to just 4,000 less than two hours before the start due to problems with the arena’s power – believed to have affected the fire safety and emergency services communication systems.
Insiders claimed ‘everything was run down to the wire’ ahead of that show and general manager Gary Roden quit that week.
East Sussex rock band Keane announced last week that their postponed gig is rescheduled for October 19, while new dates are yet to be announced for Rodrigo.
Bolton comedian Kay is due to make his pair of appearances next week on May 23 and 24, while The Black Keys’ rescheduled gig is tomorrow.
Last week, the venue confirmed Elbow would be opening the arena on Tuesday and added a headline performance from US rapper Travis Scott – who will be bringing his Circus Maximus Tour on July 13.
A Co-op Live spokesperson said: ‘Following the incident in the bowl on May 1 2024, an inspection and verification report was undertaken by SES subcontractors.
‘In consultation with Manchester City Council, responsible authorities and wider stakeholders, we are satisfied with the process and outcome of the investigation identifying the HVAC nozzle as an isolated manufacturing default.
‘This is a standard process of review in any venue when such an incident occurs.
‘We now look forward to welcoming fans to Elbow’s opening performance on May 14 2024.’