Fans of rock band Elbow have admitted feeling "apprehensive" ahead of the Co-op Live arena's opening concert following a series of issues at the venue.
The £365 million arena in Manchester postponed its opening show for a third time after part of the ventilation and air conditioning system fell to the ground from the ceiling during a soundcheck in early May. Elbow are now set to open the venue on Tuesday after the venue announced it was "satisfied" the issue was an "isolated manufacturing default" following an inspection.
Ahead of the reschedule opening, the boss of the troubled venue has admitted an incident with its ventilation and air conditioning system could have been “catastrophic” if it had happened just 15 minutes later.
Tim Leiweke, chief executive of the arena’s operator Oak View Group, said the fittings have since been “triple checked”. He told BBC News he was confident it was “the safest building in the world”, adding there had been “no way” they could have known the ventilation was not installed correctly.
“They didn’t put the bolts in. It wasn’t visible to the eye,” he said. “And it fell out. So we [have since] got that double checked and triple checked. We’ve looked at thousands of bolts up in that ceiling now. We’ve looked at the life safety lines. And we were going to take our time to make sure we did this right.
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“There was no way we were opening the doors until we checked every screw and every bolt and every one of those 95 shafts.”
Rock band Elbow, who hail from Manchester, are now set to open the £365 million venue on Tuesday after it announced it was “satisfied” the issue was an “isolated manufacturing default” following an inspection.
The band shared a picture of what appeared to be the stage inside the venue ahead of the scheduled show, writing on X: “Ready for tomorrow at @TheCoopLive arena. See you there.”
Issues at the Co-op Live arena began after a test event in April led to the rescheduling of comedian Peter Kay’s stand-up show dates.
Kay, who was meant to be the “first artist in the world to perform at Manchester Co-op Live” according to promotional posters, had his shows postponed twice as the venue was still not ready to open.
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.
The issue 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 in Manchester.
Last week, East Sussex rock band Keane announced their postponed gig has been rescheduled for October 19, while new dates are yet to be announced for Rodrigo.
At the time, Co-op Live said an inspection would need to take place to ensure it was a one-time default.
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.
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The venue is a joint venture between Oak View Group, co-founded by Leiweke and US music mogul Irving Azoff, and City Football Group, owned by billionaire UAE royal and deputy prime minister Sheikh Mansour.
Harry Styles is among the other investors.
Manchester band Elbow will be the first band to take to the new stage (Getty Images)Leiweke told the BBC he’d had “a couple of conversations” with the singer in recent weeks, adding: “Harry was just checking in on us because he knows what we went through.
“And look, this was hard. So he’s a good friend and a good partner, and he’s cheering us on and he’ll be here soon.”
Fans of the band Elbow have today been airing their concerns in the hours before the big opening.
Samantha, 51, from Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire, said she had booked tickets to see the band to celebrate her birthday on Tuesday.
"I'm hoping to go tonight, it all seems to be going ahead but I won't feel fully sure until I'm standing there and actually watching the gig," Samantha, who did not want to share her surname, told the PA news agency.
"I've seen (Elbow) about 20 times so I'm used to seeing the band but I'm reticent to see them somewhere that hasn't been fully tested, that's a bit of a worry."
"I am a bit apprehensive when you go anywhere you want to know about the structural integrity of the place you're going to."
"I think it's just because it's new as well, nobody is sure that everything is going to be OK with it being the first official gig."
"I know all venues have to start somewhere but as long as they say everything is fine, that's as reassuring as it can be."
Samantha, who works at the British Museum, added that she had received "very little" communication from Co-op Live and "nothing actually to reassure people that everything was going ahead".
"I'm sure it will be a good evening, it was just the sort of communication in the lead up," she said.
"There was nothing really in terms of updates, there were things about the gigs that were cancelling or moving, but nothing actually to reassure people that everything was going ahead."
"I've had very little in the run-up at all I'll be able to relax more when I actually get there and they start the show and I hope it goes off without a hitch."
Manchester's Co-op Arena has been plagued with issues (PA Wire/PA Images)Craig, 38, from Radcliffe, Greater Manchester, said he is feeling "hopeful" the Elbow concert will go ahead after he was due to see two concerts at the Co-op Live arena earlier in May but they were postponed.
"We're hopeful it will go ahead but we have been joking amongst ourselves about when it will get cancelled," Craig, who did not want to share his surname, told PA.
"I was due to go to the Take That concert on May 7 and I was due to go to the Keane concert on May 5 so after both of them not going ahead, there is a feeling of wondering if it will happen again."
He added: "For a new venue I think you can expect and accept a few teething problems, but not to the extent where events are cancelled, and not so last minute."
"I feel it should have been fully tested and ready at least a month beforehand, rather than only a week."
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."
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