The Night & Day opened in 1991 as a chip shop in what was one of the rougher parts of town. Owned by Jan Oldenburg, it slowly developed into a music venue and gained a reputation for pioneering live music and supporting alternative bands. When the venue faced the threat of closure Elbow’s Guy Garvey told radio station XFM that the venue had been crucial to his band's career and that it deserved protected status and a blue plaque.
Live music
The café has played an important role in the Manchester music scene with many successful bands playing early gigs there. Elbow played at the venue before it had a proper stage and lead singer Garvey claims he used to give out Night & Day's phone number as a contact number because members of the band were so often in the venue. Other artists who have played at the venue include Kasabian, Jessie J, Paulo Nutini, the Arctic Monkeys and the Manic Street Preachers. It was also used as the filming location for the music video which accompanied Johnny Marr's single "Dynamo".
Threat of closure
In January 2014 the Night & Day was threatened with permanent closure after a resident in the neighbouring flats complained about noise and Manchester Council issued a nuisance notice. Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, the Night & Day's promoter and booker Gareth Butterworth said that having to turn noise levels down would discourage bands from playing and that a fine would ruin the venue. Musicians including Johnny Marr, Frank Turner and Tim Burgess stepped in to show their support for the venue and a petition was set up which gained thousands of signatures. However, the fight quickly became inflamed with owner Jan Oldenburg saying that he felt he was being portrayed as uncooperative and the complainant revealing that he had received death threats. In May 2014 it was reported that the Music Venue Trust had lent their support to the Night & Day's campaign with a national petition which called for an urgent review of noise abatement legislation for bars and venues in the UK and in September of the same year it was reported that the Night & Day would be able to keep its licence if staff agreed to regularly meet with residents to discuss any issues.
