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Manchester unspun: How a city got high on music
At the end of the 1970s, Manchester seemed to be sliding into the dustbin of history. Today the city is an international destination for culture and sport, and one of the fastest-growing urban regions in Europe. This book offers a first-hand account of what happened in between.
Arriving in Manchester as a wide-eyed student in 1979, Andy Spinoza went on to establish the arts magazine City Life before working for the Manchester Evening News and creating his own PR firm. In a forty-year career he has encountered a who’s who of Manchester personalities, from cultural icons such as Tony Wilson to Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and influential council leaders Sir Richard Leese and Sir Howard Bernstein.
His remarkable account traces Manchester’s gradual emergence from its post-industrial malaise, centring on the legendary nightclub the Haçienda and the cultural renaissance it inspired.
Arriving in Manchester as a wide-eyed student in 1979, Andy Spinoza went on to establish the arts magazine City Life before working for the Manchester Evening News and creating his own PR firm. In a forty-year career he has encountered a who’s who of Manchester personalities, from cultural icons such as Tony Wilson to Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson and influential council leaders Sir Richard Leese and Sir Howard Bernstein.
His remarkable account traces Manchester’s gradual emergence from its post-industrial malaise, centring on the legendary nightclub the Haçienda and the cultural renaissance it inspired.
- GenresMusicNonfictionHistory
376 pages, Hardcover
Published February 7, 2023
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231 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews
May 1, 2024
while this book definitely took me longer than expected to get through, it was so worth the read. to discover the origins of the city I have made a home in during my final few months here is so incredibly cathartic ❤️❤️❤️ love u mannymoo ❤️❤️
January 27, 2024
Brilliant insight into the rebirth of Manchester. Andy provides a fascinating ride through his first-hand experience of seeing the Hacienda and Factory act as the catalyst for Manchester’s regeneration. His intimate knowledge of the key characters from music, politics and real estate brings real depth to the book. Surely this will become a primary set text for students of regeneration wanting to understand the contribution cultural disruptors can play in changing the landscape and character of a city.
April 10, 2024
The story of modern Manchester brilliantly told.
September 22, 2024
Such an interesting first hand account of the rebirth of my fave city ever. I now have soooooo many facts to chew people's ear off with.
December 15, 2024
Starts very well and then gets bogged down in the minutiae of consultancy companies and property deals
February 28, 2023
Manchester Unspun is a remarkable record of the city’s emergence from industrial decline over the past fifty years. Author Andy Spinoza, a fly on the wall for the majority of that period, explores every nook and cranny of the journey, gamely citing the creative and cultural forces behind Factory Records/The Hacienda as a catalyst. It’s a good angle, but the true thrust of the book is provided by the title: Pop, Property and Power in the Original Modern City. As Spinoza recounts, there was a lot more going on behind the scenes, and a multitude of significant figures forging the city’s future; in this book he explores exactly how these often diverse influences intersected in a unique way.
As an ex-reporter turned PR, the author lays out the story in an accessible, informative and entertaining manner - no mean feat given this is a weighty, in-depth historical account, yet it’s never dry. Given the people he’s rubbed shoulders with along the way there’s a surprising lack of ego as Spinoza recounts a string of personal encounters and anecdotes over five decades. Nor does he take sides (although there will probably be some names in there smarting) and mercifully avoids the nostalgia and over-sentimentality associated with certain bandwagoning ‘I was there’ accounts of the city (thankfully for the reader, the author hadn’t yet arrived in Manchester when the Sex Pistols played the Lesser Free Trade Hall).
Spinoza, a latter day Mancunian Pepys, has obviously relied upon a considerable amount of personal notes, contacts, memories and archive materials in putting this impressive account together but that’s what makes it such an engaging and essential read.
Unspun is an important slice of Manchester (make that Greater Manchester) history and will provide the quickest route into the city for years to come.
As an ex-reporter turned PR, the author lays out the story in an accessible, informative and entertaining manner - no mean feat given this is a weighty, in-depth historical account, yet it’s never dry. Given the people he’s rubbed shoulders with along the way there’s a surprising lack of ego as Spinoza recounts a string of personal encounters and anecdotes over five decades. Nor does he take sides (although there will probably be some names in there smarting) and mercifully avoids the nostalgia and over-sentimentality associated with certain bandwagoning ‘I was there’ accounts of the city (thankfully for the reader, the author hadn’t yet arrived in Manchester when the Sex Pistols played the Lesser Free Trade Hall).
Spinoza, a latter day Mancunian Pepys, has obviously relied upon a considerable amount of personal notes, contacts, memories and archive materials in putting this impressive account together but that’s what makes it such an engaging and essential read.
Unspun is an important slice of Manchester (make that Greater Manchester) history and will provide the quickest route into the city for years to come.
August 23, 2025
Very interesting in parts but tails off from about page 200 onwards - it felt almost like reading someone's weekly planner. Lots of restaurant launches and PR assignments at quangos. I'm not having the idea that Australasia was ever anything other than a complete monstrosity, though. Pretty snide way to treat Anna Friel too.
My frustration with the book is that it all feels quite one-eyed. I suppose fair play to the author, they've obviously made a good living from providing a service to those who have done very well out of the city centre's transformation, but I thought there wasn't much in the way of real engagement with any criticism of where the city has ended up.
Does he think the unabashedly pro developer process was the only way it could be done, or could the majority of positives have been captured in a way that resulted in more positives for low income Mancunians? Was it desirable to work so closely with Osbourne when austerity caused so much harm to the non city centre parts of Greater Manchester? Is it actually good that motivated, talented but seemingly fundamentally self-interested people like Tom Bloxham and Sacha Lord hold so many roles? I'd be genuinely interested in his take, but it never really comes....
My frustration with the book is that it all feels quite one-eyed. I suppose fair play to the author, they've obviously made a good living from providing a service to those who have done very well out of the city centre's transformation, but I thought there wasn't much in the way of real engagement with any criticism of where the city has ended up.
Does he think the unabashedly pro developer process was the only way it could be done, or could the majority of positives have been captured in a way that resulted in more positives for low income Mancunians? Was it desirable to work so closely with Osbourne when austerity caused so much harm to the non city centre parts of Greater Manchester? Is it actually good that motivated, talented but seemingly fundamentally self-interested people like Tom Bloxham and Sacha Lord hold so many roles? I'd be genuinely interested in his take, but it never really comes....
April 3, 2023
Like the author, I arrived in Manchester in 1979 to go to the University. I have lived in or close to the City ever since. I have witnessed the transformation of the City, for good and bad, over the last 40 odd years. This wonderfully written book acted as a reminder of the many events and people that shaped that transformation with lots of background and anecdotes which were either new or forgotten. Andy Spinoza is not just a narrator though because he has been ‘in the room’ for many of the events he describes. As a music lover myself, I loved the way he interweaves the story of the City and it’s influential figures, with the the iconic music and musicians of the same period.
Thank you Andy for a book that was a joy to read as well as being a trip back through my memories of Manchester, it’s buildings, it’s people and it’s culture.
Thank you Andy for a book that was a joy to read as well as being a trip back through my memories of Manchester, it’s buildings, it’s people and it’s culture.
May 8, 2023
For anyone living and working in Manchester from 1970 to the present day, Andy Spinoza's book is a must-read.
A fascinating and, at times, surprising history of how and why the dark, satanic and derelict mills of my youth have been transformed into Manc-Hattan and a superb history of the politics and culture of my home town.
The Hacienda is a focal-point and Tony Wilson a key character - but there is so much more.
It's not often that modern history becomes a page-turner but Spinoza's writing pulls that off.
A fascinating and, at times, surprising history of how and why the dark, satanic and derelict mills of my youth have been transformed into Manc-Hattan and a superb history of the politics and culture of my home town.
The Hacienda is a focal-point and Tony Wilson a key character - but there is so much more.
It's not often that modern history becomes a page-turner but Spinoza's writing pulls that off.
February 3, 2024
Wasn’t expecting what this book was actually about in a good way. I thought it would be very Hacienda and Tony Wilson focused, but instead it provided a really interesting depth view of how the current Manchester has developed the way it has. Both those topics had their place, but it was a fascinating insight into the mechanics of Manchester council and how it differed to other large cities at the time with the approach it took. What kept it interesting what that the facts were interspersed with some nice anecdotes of famous Manchester alumni who played their part in this story.
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February 17, 2024If the author arrived in 1979, then actually you missed most of the music scene , the real creativity and fun ( the start of punk ) …
I was put off the book by the first sentence - “sliding into the dustbin of history “ WHAT ? Manchester was a fabulous place to grow up in . If I’m honest the negativity of a “London boy” is very off putting - I would far rather the music history and history of Manchester be written by a Mancunian not a middle class southerner … and …
I was put off the book by the first sentence - “sliding into the dustbin of history “ WHAT ? Manchester was a fabulous place to grow up in . If I’m honest the negativity of a “London boy” is very off putting - I would far rather the music history and history of Manchester be written by a Mancunian not a middle class southerner … and …
June 24, 2024
Fantastic read summarising Manchester’s development and charting its rise alongside the music and nightlife scene.
1/3 autobiographical, 1/3 historical recount, 1/3 political polemic. Really well sourced, researched and written.
Leads readers to draw their own conclusion on the ‘neoliberal Manc-hatten. Personally, I’m all for the way the city has changed (for the better).
1/3 autobiographical, 1/3 historical recount, 1/3 political polemic. Really well sourced, researched and written.
Leads readers to draw their own conclusion on the ‘neoliberal Manc-hatten. Personally, I’m all for the way the city has changed (for the better).
March 20, 2024
Fascinating cultural snap shot that easily doubles as a love letter to the city, Having moved to Manchester recently, I found the book fascinating, illuminating and highly entertaining. Thoroughly recommended.
June 8, 2024
An amazing tour through 50 years of Manchester. Felt like I know the city and it's recent history much better as a result of reading and the anecdotes and richness brought it to life.
Impressed how it was more than just a music history and it captured the wider changes in the city.
Impressed how it was more than just a music history and it captured the wider changes in the city.
May 22, 2023
if you are interested in what has happened to manchester in the last 45 years, this is an essential read.
February 23, 2025
Some really interesting information but I sometimes wondered if I was reading a book about Manchester or an autobiography of Andy Spinoza. Definitely got more of a slog the nearer the end I got
June 16, 2025
It's a great book telling the behind stories of Manchester regeneration. It's full of colourful characters.
For non Mancunians it might be heavy to read because of the sheer quantity of names of people who contributed the city evolution alongside anecdotes, politics, places, intellectual foundations, music....
I like also that he acknowledges that the new city has nothing to do with the origins and it's evolving in something the new occupiers don't particularly care about.
For non Mancunians it might be heavy to read because of the sheer quantity of names of people who contributed the city evolution alongside anecdotes, politics, places, intellectual foundations, music....
I like also that he acknowledges that the new city has nothing to do with the origins and it's evolving in something the new occupiers don't particularly care about.
Displaying 1 - 17 of 17 reviews