Capacity: 21,000
Who plays there: It's the biggest pop arena in Europe, so the venue lends itself to artists providing visual spectaculars with lots of hydraulics and pyrotechnics. From the Rolling Stones, Madonna and U2 downwards, pretty much every massive live act has played here at one time or another. This year has already seen sold-out shows by Michael Bublé (five nights), Beyoncé (two nights) and Drake (two nights). In September, Kylie Minogue will make her 30th appearance at the arena: she'll have performed there more than anyone else, and also more than anywhere else.
Cloakroom: Yes
Admission: Arena-level prices – most pop and rock tickets here cost £30 and above, with notable exceptions (such as Barry Manilow’s May appearance, which start at £15). The cheapest tickets for Miley Cyrus’s show in May are £47.50, although for a relatively economical £29.50 and £30 you can shortly see the Backstreet Boys and Elbow respectively. The most expensive upcoming concert is Robbie Williams, starting at a wallet-bothering £55.
Bar: Speed, not quality, is the aim, with a small array of generic draught beers (at £4.50 a pint), red and white wines in plastic bottles, and soft drinks, all which can be dispensed very quickly to avoid queues building up. Should the prospect of expensive warm lager in a plastic glass prove too disheartening, the pub inside Victoria station provides a wide selection of bottled beers, hand-pulled real ales and various spirits at very affordable prices for your pre-gig refreshment.
Food: You can get the typical range of arena fast food – burgers, chips and hot dogs, and so on. However, stalls around the building also provide a selection of affordable and amenable Indian delicacies such as vegetarian samosas.
Toilets: On every level.
Wheelchair access: Throughout the venue. The arena prides itself on being accessible to everyone and has special areas for disabled gig-goers. The Hunts Bank entrance has a lift.
Sound: Like the arena itself, big, brash and very, very loud. So loud that within 30 metres of the speakers, earplugs may be needed. However, such a huge space is always going to require a big sound system to fill it. There's no in-house soundsystem and touring artists bring their own, which can make for a variable experience – Morrissey's 2012 appearance was unusually muffled. However, the kind of acts that play here are usually more than used to the sonic requirements of playing a big arena and rarely disappoint.
Where to stand: The venue is divided into a floor area, which is usually standing (though occasionally seated) and two enormous circular banks of seats. It is a truly vast space. If you want to see the whites of your favourite artist’s eyes you are likely to be disappointed. However, the visuals are usually effective enough to entertain those at the very back, whether through video screens, production effects or a secondary stage – Drake had one suspended near the roof that descended into the venue. The lower tier in the half of the venue nearest the stage is optimal, unless you’re lucky or brave enough to have a floor ticket and be willing to brave the moshpit. Once you’re in place, though, you’re in place for the duration: floor standers cannot move into the seating areas or vice versa.
Overall: A place this size is never going to provide an intimate or particularly personal experience (unless you’re lucky enough to be whisked onstage by Drake or Bono), and Manchester doesn’t try. But it does present a huge arena experience very well. The venue’s vast size may mean the occasional bar queue and the odd slower-selling gig at which curtains shroud rows of unsold seats, but Manchester’s ace card is its atmosphere. When an artist yells “Make some noise, Manchester” and 20,000 voices scream, or when thousands of pairs of arms start a venue-wide Mexican wave, you know you’re in for a bona fide arena experience.
Address: Victoria Station, Trinity Way, Manchester M3 1AR
Telephone: 0161-950 5000
Website: phones4uarena.co.uk
Public transport: It adjoins Manchester Victoria station (national rail). Trains run from nearby Piccadilly and other Manchester stations and the area is well-served by bus. There's a taxi rank adjacent to the venue outside Victoria station.
