Afro Celt Sound System at Manchester Folk Festival

Chris Horkan

Book now

Afro Celt Sound System

The Ritz, Manchester
20 October 2017

Always double check opening hours with the venue before making a special visit.

Afro Celt Sound System by Tom Oldham
Book now

A ground-breaking group of musicians, drawing inspiration from Irish and West African folk traditions, Afro Celt Sound System headline the largest show at this year’s Manchester Folk Festival.

The innovative collective – formed in 1995 by producer-guitarist Simon Emmerson – celebrated their 20th anniversary with The Source, their most ambitious record to date, and one described as ‘a colossus of an album’.

Live, long-term members Emmerson, N’Faly Kouyaté and Johnny Kalsi are joined by new core member Griogair – plus a host of talented folk musicians. With Robert Plant, Sinead O’Connor and Peter Gabriel among Afro Celt Sound System’s previous collaborators, the group’s strength is evidently in its eclecticism.

Support on the night comes from The Nightjar – who have drawn comparisons to Midlake and Simon & Garfunkel – and Sound of Sirens, aka Exeter-based singer-songwriters Abbe Martin and Hannah Wood.

Where to go near Afro Celt Sound System at Manchester Folk Festival

Rain Bar pub in Manchester
City Centre
Bar or Pub
Rain Bar

This huge three-floor pub, formerly a Victorian warehouse, then an umbrella factory (hence the name), has one of the city centre’s largest beer gardens. The two-tier terrace overlooks the Rochdale canal and what used to be the back of the Hacienda, providing an unusual, historic view of the city.

City Centre
Bar or Pub
Peveril Of The Peak

Iconic Manchester pub adorned with the sorts of bottle green, yellow and brown Victorian tiles that are a reclamation yard’s dream – this gem of a boozer is named after Sir Walter Scott’s novel of the same name and was a favourite hang-out of Eric Cantona.

HOME Manchester
Manchester
Theatre
HOME Manchester

Offering a packed schedule of events and things to do, HOME Manchester is one of the city’s leading hubs for arts and culture.

Manchester
Bar or Pub
The Briton’s Protection

Standing on the corner of a junction opposite The Bridgewater Hall, The Briton’s Protection is Manchester’s oldest pub. It has occupied the same spot since 1795, going under the equally

Manchester
Café or Coffee Shop
Burgess Cafe Bar
at IABF

Small but perfectly-formed café – which also serves as the in-house bookstore, stocking all manner of Burgess-related works, along with recordings of his music. It’s a welcoming space, with huge glass windows making for a bright, welcoming atmosphere.

Manchester
Restaurant
Indian Tiffin Room, Manchester

Indian Tiffin Room is a restaurant specialising in Indian street food, with branches in Cheadle and Manchester. This is the information for the Manchester venue.

City Centre
Bar or Pub
The Temple

Originally called The Temple of Convenience owing to its former life as a public toilet block, this is a tiny bar with some of the finest bathroom graffiti in town.

What's on: Music

MusicManchester
Thundercat at Aviva Studios

From cult hero to global collaborator, Thundercat is back with his first album in six years, and a headline show at Aviva Studios.

From £37.50
deathcrash Press Image
MusicManchester
deathcrash at YES

Quiet introspection and cathartic eruptions – the mysterious kids in the corner of the Brixton Windmill scene bring their new album Somersaults to YES.

From £17.45
MusicManchester
Sounds From The Other City

One of the country’s foremost festivals showcasing new and emerging talent, Sounds From The Other City is back over Early May Bank Holiday.

From £30

Culture Guides

A busy image created using generative AI. The image depicts a man at the centre with grey hair and rosy cheeks, surrounding him are fairies that appear to be created in his own image with multiple limbs and unique bodily proportions. Around them are hundreds of vials, microscopes and dated scientific equipment.
Exhibitions

Across Manchester and Salford, exhibitions are thinking hard about how things are made – and how materials carry stories.

Theatre

Closer, riskier, more immediate. Our small-scale theatre picks stretch from unsettling fables about nationhood to the inner workings of a mind trying to hold itself together.

A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night
Cinema in the North

There's no shortage of great films out at the moment, whether you're looking for the latest blockbuster, that hot arthouse flick fresh from Cannes or a cosy classic.

Fatoumata Diawara by Alun Be.
Music

This month’s live music picks move between ambitious new work, grassroots celebrations and a few memorable settings.

Food and Drink in the North

Spring has arrived, bringing with it al fresco dining and a rush of high-profile food and drink-related events in Manchester.

Emily Lloyd-Saini as Grace in Space and Harrie Hayes as Lieutenant Strong in Horrible Science
Family things to do in the North

Whether you’re after storybook theatre, museum wanderings or illusion-bending play spaces, there’s plenty to keep curiosity ticking through winter and beyond.