Beyond The Music 2026, the global conference and music festival in Manchester, will feature actor Steve Coogan and Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham in its lineup. The event, co-founded by Oliver Wilson—son of Factory Records pioneer Tony Wilson—will take place from October 6 to 9 at MediaCity for the first time.
24 Hour Party People Anniversary Screening
The festival will open with a 24th anniversary screening of the 2002 film 24 Hour Party People, in which Steve Coogan portrayed Tony Wilson. The screening will be followed by a keynote conversation with Coogan and director Michael Winterbottom.
Winterbottom said: “24 Hour Party People was made as a celebration of the spirit and music of Manchester and Factory Records under the chaotic leadership of Tony Wilson. So, Beyond the Music is the perfect place to premiere the re-release of the film, just 24 years after we made it.”
Coogan added: “24 Hour Party People is the work that is closest to my heart. I haven’t seen it for nearly 25 years. It captures the creative spirit of the town I am proud to have grown up in. I feel very sentimental about it all which Tony Wilson would have deplored.”
All Content AI Summit
Closing the opening ceremony will be the first-of-its-kind All Content AI Summit, convened by Andy Burnham and other key figures in the creative industries. The summit aims to align the music and creative sectors on a shared, rights-based position for artificial intelligence.
Beyond The Music will feature a series of summits, keynotes, in-conversations with leading artists and industry figures, lectures, and networking events. Highlights include a Manchester Music Dance keynote from Mike Pickering and an address from Tom Gray, chair of the Ivors Academy.
Industry Discussions and Live Music
Other sessions include “Is The Music Industry Now Too Posh To Push The Envelope?”—following Sam Fender’s comments on class barriers—and “Stop The Votes: Challenging The Political Value of the Creative Industries,” which questions why creative sectors receive less governmental support.
On the festival side, more than 150 emerging acts will perform across MediaCity, dock10 studios, and other Salford venues over three days. Curators include The Line of Best Fit, SXSW 2026, Dot to Dot, and BBC Introducing.
Tickets for Beyond The Music 2026 are available now as conference or festival passes, with a limited number of allocated tickets for specific keynotes.
