Performances of Magic Mike, Celine Dion, and Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe live podcast tours set to take place in Manchester next May might have to be rescheduled if the city is chosen to host next year's Eurovision Song Contest.
This morning, August 10, BBC News reported that no major arena in the UK has a big enough gap in event listings to host the popular contest, as organisers have reportedly said venues must be available to producers six to eight weeks ahead of the show. On Friday, cities who have put themselves forward as potential hosts will find out if they have been shortlisted for the event.
Potential dates set out for the 2023 Eurovision shows range from April 25 for the first semi-final through till May 27 for the grand final, with three shows set to take place in the same week. If Manchester is chosen as the host city, the Manchester Evening News understands the AO Arena would be the most likely venue selected - as it meets the capacity requirements laid out by organisers.
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The arena is set to host Celine Dion on April 5 and 6, before a live episode of the Rob Beckett and Josh Widdicombe's Parenting Hell podcast is recorded in front of a crowd on April 14, and Magic Mike's arena tour hits the venue on May 2. Tickets are still available for purchase for all of the dates as no final decisions on where the show will be hosted, or when the competition is set to take place, have been made yet.
According to the BBC, organisers would need access to the venue for a prolonged period before the show with weeks of set-up and rehearsals before the week of the show.
The UK will be hosting next year's event as although the winning country traditionally hosts the following contest, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) decided that it would not be possible to host Eurovision 2023 in Ukraine due to the ongoing war in the country.
Instead, the United Kingdom, who placed second, will host, with cities such as Glasgow, London, Birmingham, and Leeds putting themselves forward to host the show. Last week, Cardiff confirmed they were dropping out of the running to host the contest, as a "significant number" of events would need to be cancelled, including the European Wheelchair Rugby Championships.
To be eligible to bid, cities must have an arena that can fit at least 10,000 people inside, meaning most other venues will face similar cancellation or rescheduling pressures. As no information has been released about the shortlist, no firm decisions around rescheduling can be made yet, so tickets will be available for every event until further notice.
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