Boss of Manchester's new £350m arena quits after Peter Kay shows were cancelled, he insulted grassroots music venues and opening of 23,000-seater had to be delayed

The boss of the soon-to-be biggest music venue in the UK has quit after a slew of issues led to a delay in opening.

Gary Roden, general manager of the £365m Co-op Live Arena in Manchester, resigned on Thursday.

The venue had been due to open on April 23 and is expected to compete with the 02 Arena for the some of the world's biggest sporting and music events. 

But headaches for the arena became patently clear after capacity for a test event last Saturday was reduced with just hours' notice due to power issues. 

Bolton comedian Peter Kay's opening shows at the 23,500-seat venue were also cancelled.

In addition, Mr Roden was accused of being 'disrespectful' and 'disingenuous' after claiming that grassroots music venues were often 'poorly run'. 

A statement from the arena said it did not 'share the sentiment' expressed by its now-former general manager and that 'Co-op Live remains committed to grassroots music in Manchester and beyond'.

The statement also thanked Mr Roden for his 'help bringing the UK's newest arena to live entertainment fans and wish him the best for the future'.

Rebecca Kane Burton, an ex-boss of London's O2 Arena, will step in as interim general manager.

The Music Venue Trust hit out at Mr Roden in a statement of its own, telling NME grassroots music venues are not 'poorly run', and it is 'disrespectful and disingenuous to suggest otherwise'.

It added: 'Obviously, the irony of making ill-judged, unnecessary and misleading comments about grassroots music venues on the day that the launch of their new arena has unfortunately fallen into such difficulties is not lost on anyone in the music industry, on artists, or on audiences.'

On Kay's shows, the  arena announced that his performances would instead take place on April 29 and 30, with the comedian saying he was 'truly gutted' by the delay.

In a statement posted on X by Co-op Live, Kay said: 'I'm truly gutted as I know how disappointing this will be for everyone with tickets, but obviously it's a brand-new venue and it's important that everything is finished and safe for full capacity audiences.

'Fortunately we've been able to reschedule the shows to next week, (I'll have to miss my Bums and Tums class) but hopefully I'll see you then.'

The venue is currently expected to open with The Black Keys on Saturday, April 27, in front of a reduced capacity crowd of 10,000.

Ahead of that show, it is understood venue bosses are working to satisfy various agencies on concerns around safety. 

Photos of the venue from Tuesday also show it still partially resembled a building site. The main car park for the arena is a storage area for building materials. 

A spokesman for the arena, which is next door to Manchester City's Etihad Stadium, said: 'It is critical to ensure we have a consistent total power supply to our fully electric sustainable venue, the completion of which is a few days behind.

'Rescheduling gives us the extra time we need to continue testing thoroughly.

'This is vital to satisfy the rigorous set of guidelines and protocols that are necessary for a venue of this size.'

The venue, built by developer the Oak View Group, was given planning permission in 2020 and boasted an investment from popstar Harry Styles.

US rock band The Black Keys are still set to play at the arena on Saturday, with Kay now taking up the second and third-ever performances at the new venue.