Eurovision, outdoors theatre and science! It's your events round-up for the month ahead
This month is going to be a big one for the city as Liverpool FC have a historic quadruple win in their sights, going into May with the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup all taking place.
Meanwhile, Everton find themselves scrapping to stay in the top flight. Whether you're red, blue, Marine, or you really couldn't give two hoots about football, May is packed with plenty of boss events to keep you busy. As ever, please check listings with the venue before you head out. We won't be held responsible for everything getting moved when the LFC homecoming parade hits The Strand.
Read on for our pick of the top events and things to do in Liverpool this month...
SMITHDOWN WEEKENDER | SMITHDOWN ROAD | 29 APRIL - 2 MAY
Bevvies, a BBQ and boss tunes all weekend. A free multi-venue festival showcasing local music and independent business at Black Cat, Beehive, Beeswing, Franks, Defend Vinyl and Handymans. The line-up includes Ali Horn, Anna Mae, Dead Raze, Dog Flambe, Edgar Jones DJ, The Mollys, and loads more.
Various venues (Free entry, more info at Smithdown Festival)
SPRING BREAK | PINS SOCIAL CLUB | 29 APRIL - 2 MAY
US Spring Break is all about embracing the good times, when American colleges break from their studies and let their hair down. Following in the tradition, PINS Spring Break Weekender will focus on the rooftop and feature live bands, duos and DJs every day - plus there's a BBQ menu, along with beer pong tournaments and non-stop tequila in partnership with leading tequila brand, Patron.
45-61 Duke St, Liverpool L1 5AP (Free entry, advanced tickets recommended from Skiddle)
SOUND CITY | VARIOUS VENUES | 30 APRIL - 1 MAY
The place to discover your new favourite band, Liverpool Sound City brings some of the most exciting breakthrough artists to this urban festival. This year’s line-up includes Self Esteem, The Lathums, Alfie Templeman, Yard Act, Everyone You Know, The Reytons, Matilda Mann, The Royston Club, Abbie Ozard and loads more.
Various venues (Day tickets £29.50, weekend tickets £55, from See Tickets)
LITTLE LTF | ST LUKE’S CHURCH | 3 - 8 MAY
With 12 shows over six days, The Little version of the Liverpool Theatre Festival features Megan Hindley and Beth Amos’ murder mystery comedy Not Drunk But Disorderly; heartwarming musical play Grandmother by Asa Murphy; comedy Keeping Mum by Karl Voden; Mark Heller’s drama Killing Mice; Paul Daley’s saucy, warm-hearted romantic comedy It Must Be Love; and Angie Waller and Claire Jones’ cabaret show An Evening With Nana Funk.
St Luke’s Bombed Out Church, Leece Street, Liverpool, L1 2TR (Tickets from Liverpool Theatre Festival)
RADICAL LANDSCAPES | TATE LIVERPOOL | 5 MAY - 4 SEPTEMBER
Featuring over 150 works including Ruth Ewan’s Back to the Fields 2015, an installation of live plants, and Jeremy Deller’s green neon Cerne Abbas sculpture, this show expands on the traditional, picturesque portrayals of the landscape, presenting art that reflects the diversity of Britain’s landscape and communities. The show also considers the human impact on the landscape and ecosystems by featuring works that reflect on the climate emergency, such as Gustav Metzger’s dazzling Liquid Crystal Environment 1965/2005.
Royal Albert Dock Liverpool, Liverpool L3 4BB (Adults £13.50, advance tickets from Tate Liverpool)
SPINN | O2 ACADEMY | FRIDAY 6 MAY
One of our faves from last year’s Sound City, Liverpool-based four-piece SPINN returned with their second album Outside Of The Blue. The record sees SPINN distil their sound and deliver an LP overflowing with live-ready indie-pop anthems, earworm hooks and feel-good guitars. On the back of the release, the Liverpool daydreamers play this homecoming show as part of an extensive UK tour.
11-13 Hotham St, Liverpool L3 5UF (7pm, tickets from £15 at Ticketmaster)
HORSE MEAT DISCO DAY PARTY | 24 KITCHEN STREET | SATURDAY 7 MAY
Initially established in 2004 at The Eagle, an innocuous gay bar in London's Vauxhall, Horse Meat Disco has evolved into a powerful force in queer and club culture as a whole, while staying local to its original home. Expect a night of classics, Italo, disco, house, oddities and punk funk as Horse Meat Disco brings it back to Liverpool.
24 Kitchen Street, Liverpool L1 0AN (2pm - 10pm, tickets from £11.20 at Skiddle)
PINT OF SCIENCE | VARIOUS VENUES | 9-11 MAY
The world’s largest festival of public science talks, with events in over 25 countries and hundreds of cities around the world. 27 Liverpool researchers will be showcasing some of the latest, exciting research happening at the University through a unique line up of talks, demonstrations and live experiments. Talk topics this year include the future of healthcare and work, gut microbes, cancer, air pollution, climate change, COVID-19 research and much more.
Leaf / Tempest on Tithebarn / The Longshot (Tickets cost £5 from Pint of Science)
EUROVISION PARTY 2022 | CAMP & FURNACE | SATURDAY 14 MAY
Can Sam Ryder sing it home for the UK? Probably not, but that's not what Eurovision is really about anyway. The most anticipated night of the year is here and nobody does it quite like Camp & Furnace. Fear not Redmen and Redwomen, the FA Cup Final between Liverpool FC and Chelsea is also being shown live on the big screen. How the hell that's going to work out is anybody's guess, but this is definitely a night you don't want to miss.
67 Greenland Street, Liverpool L1 0BY (7pm, last few tickets £13.20 from Skiddle)
THE ROCKY HORROR SHOW | LIVERPOOL EMPIRE | 16 - 21 MAY
Ready to thrill you with fun and naughty moments, Richard O’Brien’s legendary rock ‘n’ roll musical returns as part of a sell-out worldwide tour, having been seen by over 30 million theatregoers. Starring Strictly Come Dancing winner Ore Oduba as Brad and directed by Christopher Luscombe, the Rocky Horror Show is a guaranteed party and features timeless classics, including Sweet Transvestite, Damn it Janet, and of course, the pelvic-thrusting, show-stopping Time Warp.
1 Lime St, Liverpool L1 1JE (Tickets from £13 at ATG Tickets)
CORINNA, CORINNA | EVERYMAN THEATRE | 17 MAY - 4 JUNE
The world premiere of a new thriller from award-winning Liverpool playwright Chloe Moss. Corrina, following in her seafaring father’s footsteps, boards a cargo ship set for Singapore. Not everyone is pleased to have her aboard - and not everyone will make it to their final destination. This gripping thriller set at sea explores what happens when we think no one is watching us. A story of power dynamics, superstitions and revenge.
5-11 Hope St, Liverpool L1 9BH (Tickets cost £10-£35 from Everyman Playhouse)
RADIO CITY HITS LIVE | M&S ARENA | FRIDAY 20 MAY
The star-studded line-up includes multi-platinum selling artist George Ezra, Queen of pop, Anne-Marie and soulful singer-songwriter, James Bay. Joining them at Liverpool’s biggest radio event with a hit packed set will be electronic trio, Clean Bandit, BRIT Award winning Becky Hill, Head and Heart hitmaker Joel Corry and Grammy nominee Jax Jones.
King's Dock, 16 Monarchs Quay, Liverpool L3 4FP (7.30pm, tickets from £37.18 at Ticket Quarter)
DUR-DUR BAND | PHILHARMONIC MUSIC ROOM | FRIDAY 20 MAY
Originating from the Mogadishu disco scene, Dur-Dur Band disbanded in the early 90s, as the country plunged into a civil war. Now, Dur-Dur are a time capsule, transporting audiences to the 1980s and the legendary Hotel Juba with their unique brand of Somalian disco-funk. Though their music never travelled far beyond Somalia in their original run, Dur-Dur’s party-stirring spirit has found a new audience on the back of recent re-issues from Analog Africa and Awesome Tapes from Africa, championed heavily by world music maestro Gilles Peterson.
Hope St, Liverpool L1 9BP (8pm, tickets £20 from Liverpool Philharmonic)
COMIC CON LIVERPOOL | 21 - 22 MAY | EXHIBITION CENTRE LIVERPOOL
An event to remember for comic, tv, and film culture fans across the globe - Comic Con is a massive pop culture gathering where you can meet the stars, and likeminded movie geeks. This year's guest line-up includes Vampire Diaries, Cobra Kai, Guardians of the Galaxy, Sharknado, The Walking Dead, Harry Potter, Grease, and One Tree Hill. Not forgetting Mark Lester and Shani Wallis from Oliver! Consider yourself at home.
King's Dock, Liverpool L3 4FP (Tickets from £8.80 child / £21.45 adult from Ticketquarter)
THE TUDORS: PASSION POWER & POLITICS | WALKER ART GALLERY | 21 MAY-29 AUGUST
Exploring the fascinating politics, powerful family connections and unique culture of the most famous royals in history. The exhibition presents the five Tudor monarchs: Henry VII; Henry VIII; Edward VI; Mary I; and Elizabeth I. Together, they represent some of the most familiar figures from English history. Their instantly recognisable portraits – among the most famous in the National Portrait Gallery’s Collection – have preserved their likenesses for 500 years.
William Brown St, Liverpool L3 8EL (Tickets start at £13 from National Museums Liverpool)
NO SUGAR IN OUR TEA | INTERNATIONAL SLAVERY MUSEUM | 22 MAY
Join Migrant artist Mutual Aid (MaMa) to perform a song from their exhibition's soundscape No Sugar in our Tea. Participants are welcome to practice with the choir before a performance on the steps of the MLK (Martin Luther King) building at 3pm and join the Choir for refreshments after the event.
Royal Albert Dock, Liverpool, United Kingdom, L3 4AQ (2pm-4pm, free event)
THE HANGING STARS | ST MICHAEL IN THE HAMLET CHURCH | FRIDAY 27 MAY
The St Michael's Live sessions have rapidly become the hottest ticket in town for gigs set within this Grade I-listed church. Promoters Nothingville Music are behind this line-up at the end of May, with The Hanging Stars celebrating their latest album release, Hollow Heart. The London five-piece bring their captivating amalgam of blissful psychedelic folk and harmony-laden cosmic country to venues across the UK including this intimate setting in South Liverpool. Support comes from local favourites, Motel Sundown.
St Michael's Church Rd, Aigburth L17 7BB (7.30pm, tickets start at £14.55 from Skiddle)
LIVERPOOL CHAMBER CHOIR | FRIDAY 27 MAY | VICTORIA GALLERY & MUSEUM
Liverpool's Victoria Gallery isn't just a pretty face. The iconic red brick gothic building off Brownlow Hill houses the University of Liverpool’s amazing collection of fine art, silver, furniture, sculpture, ceramics, fossils, scientific equipment, and zoological specimens. They also hold special events throughout the year, including this series of relaxed concerts that are fully accessible and open to all. Liverpool Chamber Choir sing the classics and anything else that takes their fancy, from holy masses to Gershwin and McCartney.
Ashton Street, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3DR (3pm, tickets £7.50 including cake and a hot drink, from the University of Liverpool)
NEIGHBOURHOOD WEEKENDER | WARRINGTON VICTORIA PARK | 28 & 29 MAY
A weekend of live music across three stages, from the biggest acts such as headliners Courteeners, Kasabian and Blossoms to the best breaking new bands, alongside a hub of local concessions and food traders. The line-up includes DMAs, Becky Hill, Example, Manic Street Preachers, Razorlight, Jamie Webster and loads more. Returning to Neighbourhood is the infamous Cornershop providing some of the best tunes across the weekend from local DJs and The NBHD Inn with karaoke and a pub quiz.
Knutsford Road, Warrington WA4 1DG (Tickets from £66.45 at See Tickets)
Read next: Liverpool's top eating out offers: May 2022
Read again: 'Dining under the stars' - Seaham Hall is a spa break with a difference
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