Gareth Gates Headlines New Concert For Live at Arley 2026

Music fans are being invited to return to the early ‘noughties' for a new Friday night party which is set to launch the 2026 Live at Arley series of open-air concerts.

Gareth Gates and Adam Rickitt will headline the amazing Mega Y2K concert on Friday, 15 May, which will officially open the weekend of fantastic live music in the stunning grounds of Arley Hall near Knutsford. Tickets go on sale today.

The singing stars will be supported in the night of millennium magic by award-winning tributes to Celine Dion, Five, Blue and the Backstreet Boys.

Singer-songwriter and actor Gareth Gates rose to fame as runner-up on the first series of Pop Idol in 2002. He enjoyed a stellar pop career which included four UK number ones, including his first chart-topper Unchained Melody, while his debut album What My Heart Wants to Say reached number two in the charts. To date he has sold more than three-and-a-half million records.

Gates is also a successful star of musical theatre. He took over the title role in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat in the West End before forging a stage career which has included Marius in the international 25th anniversary tour of Les Misérables and in the West End, Loserville, Legally Blonde and Footloose. Away from the stage, he has been a contestant in Dancing on Ice and in 2023 he won the grueling Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins.

Meanwhile actor, singer and entrepreneur Adam Rickitt is well-known for playing Nick Tilsley in Coronation Street and, more recently, Kyle Kelly in Hollyoaks. Stage appearances include the musical Rent on a UK tour and in the West End.

Rickitt has also enjoyed a successful music career, both as a solo artist and as a member of supergroup 5th Story – alongside Gareth Gates, which was formed for ITV reality series The Big Reunion. In 1999 he released his debut solo album Good Times which included the hits I Breathe Again, which reached the UK top five, Everything My Heart Desires and The Best Thing.

Gareth and Adam will be supported by a brilliant collection of top tribute artists including January Butler, the world's number one tribute to Canadian singing star Celine Dion, and Boyz Beyond who celebrate and recreate the chart-topping music of some of the world's best boy bands including Backstreet Boys, Blue and Five.

Mega Y2K is a fantastic addition to Live at Arley 2026 which also includes the previously announced Back to Boogie and Glam Rock Revival nights.

Saturday, 16 May sees the return of the hugely popular Back to Boogie, a glittering celebration of disco, funk and soul.

The line-up of iconic 70s and 80s superstars includes Imagination featuring Leee John, 5 Star, The Real Thing, Jacki Graham, Italian dance-house group Livin' Joy and Romina Johnson.

Then on Sunday, 17 May there is the chance to dig out those flares and platform boots for a day of stomping 70s anthems in a Glam Rock Revival headed by the Bay City Rollers. The line-up also stars Mud ft Ray Stiles and Rob Davies, and sensational Marc Bolan tribute Total Rex.

The event will come to a spectacular end with a fabulous firework finale.

Live at Arley will also feature a food and drink square featuring amazing local outlets serving everything from wood-fired pizza to gourmet burgers and authentic Jamaican cuisine, and a Shopping Village with pop-ups from local makers, bespoke gifts and treats for all the family to buy.

Meanwhile this year the VIP area will include access to a Golden Circle offering space close to the stage, as well as access to the VIP marquee with premium seating, premium offerings and posh loos!

Live at Arley event organiser Max Eden, of Cheshire Concerts, says: “I'm absolutely delighted to announce a brilliant new addition to the programme for Live at Arley in 2026.

“Mega Y2K brings the ultimate early-2000s Friday night party to Arley Hall's stunning grounds next May, with a high-energy concert headlined by pop favourites Gareth Gates and Adam Rickitt and supported by award-winning tributes including Celine Dion by January Butler and the unbeatable boyband nostalgia of Blue, Five and Backstreet Boys' tributes by Boyz Beyond.