Early Doors Club gigs to be trialled across Leigh, Atherton, Tyldesley

While many workers enjoy a post-work pint or gig in city centres, opportunities are few and far between in Leigh, Atherton, Wigan, and Tyldesley, and many business owners have grown concerned at worryingly low Friday night footfall.

With a noticeable drop-off in after-work spending across the borough, a council and government-backed 'Early Doors Club' pilot will be launched in four independent venues in an attempt to reverse these trends.

READ > Ella Toone: Lionesses 'all stand by Jenni Hermoso' after Spanish kiss controversy

The Snug is well known for hosting a variety of live events (Image: The Snug)

With the Snug Coffee House experienced in hosting a variety of live events, the Atherton venue will take the lead in the 'Early Doors Club', which will rotate free live gigs across four borough venues every Friday.

The Early Doors Club, which is part of a two-year Government-backed project, will travel from The Snug to The Coffee Stop on Railway Road, to St George's Church in Tyldesley, and onto Hideout Cafe in Wigan.

With the cost of living crisis continuing to impact businesses, the project hopes to incentivise more people to visit venues in the early evening and stay out to further boost the night time economy.

Ben said that the free gigs will serve as the 'warm up act' for the evening (Image: The Snug)

Ben Morgan, Events Manager at the Snug said: "The Early Doors Club has come about after the council noticed quite a drop-off in Friday night spending across the borough.

"We've felt this in Atherton as Saturday nights can be bustling but then it's dead on a Friday, it's really like night and day at times.

"So the project aims to be the 'warm up act' for the evening which bridges the gap between after-work spending and the regular night time economy, where people can enjoy a free gig and then go on to support other local venues."

Neil Fallows will host gigs in his music themed coffee shop on Railway Road (Image: Leigh Journal)

With the project spanning for an initial two-year period, Ben said that there are high hopes for the Early Doors Club and the opportunities it can present across the borough.

"It's a pretty groundbreaking project really, and I think we're lucky to be a part of it here", Ben added.

"There is a massive scope of what we can do with the project and hopefully we can grow it in each of the four venues and extend it for years to come."

The Lottery Winners played intimate gigs at St George's Church after their recent album release (Image: Adrian Rose)

With the Snug lending high quality equipment to the other venues involved in the project, the Early Doors Club begins with at the Market Street venue on Friday, September 1.

Ellen Beth Abdi and her band will be the first performers of the project, followed by Shrouded in Leigh and Tyldesley, with Ellen returning for a solo gig in Wigan on week four.