Bradford Live: Tribute bands 'not the opening acts' at new music venue in former Bradford Odeon, councillors told

Earlier this month the NEC group finally made the first announcements regarding acts that will be playing in the 3,800 capacity music venue in the city centre – due to open this autumn.

They included ABBA tribute “Thank You For The Music” and another tribute act – Legend – The Music of Bob Marley.

Although both are highly regarded acts, many in Bradford were disappointed that the first announcement for the venue – which has been in the planning stages for years, were tribute acts.

This concern was seemingly addressed at a meeting of Bradford Council on Tuesday. In a question asking for an update on Bradford Live, the Council’s Executive responded: “The various works to redevelop the venue are going well. The venue is scheduled to open in the autumn, although an exact date has yet to be confirmed.

“The project celebrated a significant milestone last week as the first shows of the launch season were announced by the NEC Group.

“We understand that while these may be the first shows announced, they are not the opening acts, and over the coming weeks and months many more events will be announced, including original artists and shows.

“This is an extremely exciting time for the district and like everyone else we’re eagerly awaiting the next announcements.”

The Bradford Odeon was built as a cinema in the 1930 and was called the New Victoria. It underwent many transformations before becoming an Odeon cinema but tis closed in 2000.