Manchester Central’s latest podcast episode wraps up 2021

Manchester Central’s final podcast episode of the year has launched today, recapping on the highlights of the events industry and celebrating a 117% increase in listeners.

As one of the UK’s largest event venues, Manchester Central this year produced its third podcast series, focusing on topics including the re-opening of the sector and the unrivalled experience of hosting live events again. The latest episode, which is the fourth of the series and final one of the year, looks back on highlights for 2021 – with topics such as sustainability  and innovation in the industry.

It comes as Spotify Wrapped revealed that the podcast, called Central Chat, achieved a 117% rise in listeners this year compared to 2020. Central Chat is aimed at supporting event industry professionals in their career development. Listeners hear insights and viewpoints from a wealth of event professionals, as well as discussion points about collaboration, upcoming trends and how to overcome challenges in the profession.

During the latest episode, host Samantha Pike-Devlin reflects on her own thoughts of attending events again, sharing that attending an Arlo Parks gig at Manchester Central gave her goosebumps. She said: “We were so happy to be hosting events again but the real icing on the cake was seeing, hearing, and experiencing the audience reactions to once again experiencing live, in-person events.”

Pike-Devlin added: “Thanks to everybody who has tuned in to listen to this year’s podcast series; we hope you found it insightful and helpful during a very challenging year. Although we’re by no means seeing the end of turbulent times, there has been real progress made over the last 12 months as we’ve seen our industry come together and pull out all the stops to see the return of live events. And we had a busy year here at the venue too as we got ready to reopen our doors to an exciting new chapter at Manchester Central.”

Central Chat is available to listen to on centralchat.buzzsprout.com or on Spotify, Apple and all other podcast providers. Ideas for guests or topics can also be submitted to [email protected]