The 1975 frontman Matty Healy reportedly tried to buy the flat at the centre of the Night & Day Cafe noise dispute in an effort to help save the venue.
The venue’s future was put under threat over the past couple of years, after it faced a noise complaint from a resident who had moved to Manchester during the lockdown. The partner of the man who raised the noise complaint against Night & Day told a court that he’d become a “recluse” and lost 30kg due to stress.
Now, the man has given his side of the story to the media for the first time and told The Manchester Mill about the time Healy offered to buy the flat as a means of resolving the dispute.
Healy had grown up in Alderley Edge, 12 miles south of Manchester, and had previously pledged his support for the venue when it first came under threat. “This CANNOT happen,” he said in an Instagram post shared by the venue in November 2022. The council need to drop the case.”
Healy first reached out to the man – referred to as ‘Alex’ – over email in July 2023, writing: “It’s true I am very interested in purchasing your flat. It would be awesome!”. Alex added Healy was “very charming and very interested”: “He essentially said: ‘This is the best outcome for everybody.’”
Apparently, Healy went to look at the flat in late August and took a considerable interest in the property. “He was just talking about architecture and interior design,” Alex said, adding that he had a conversation with the artist during the viewing. “He spent a lot of the conversation talking about how I felt and how my partner felt. He wasn’t very political about next door.”
After the viewing, Healy wrote a letter reaffirming his desire to buy it and had a survey done on the flat. He offered to buy it with £275,000 in cash, which was £55,000 more than Alex and his partner had paid for it. While Alex was tempted to sell the flat to relieve his partner, whose mental health had been “crucified” by the noise issues and the subsequent dispute, he was reluctant to go through with it. Despite the issues, he still said living there was “my dream” and “where I’m happy”.
Circumstances changed, however, after Healy and The 1975 were sued for £2million by Good Vibes Festival in Malaysia. Their performance in July, in which Healy criticised the country’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws and kissed bassist Ross MacDonald in protest, led to the festival being called off early. Because of the lawsuit, Healy was advised not to purchase any property.
NME has contacted The 1975’s representatives for comment.
Earlier this week, following a lengthy court battle, it was ruled that Night & Day could continue as a music venue and nightclub.
In District Judge Margaret McCormack’s ruling (via Manchester Evening News), she said that a nuisance was being created by the venue, particularly due to it running from 11am to 3am on Friday and Saturday nights. That being said, she did go on to state that the Northern Quarter is a “lively, vibrant” area, but as the city evolves, its “usages are changing” – which means the area can now be considered mixed-use.
The judge also said that her two options were to either dismiss the appeal or vary the notice, and she opted for the latter.
As highlighted by Manchester Evening News, the variation put forward was called “test profile one”, and is a set of restrictions put upon Night & Day.
The venue has previously claimed that the restrictions would limit over 50 per cent of its events. It now has 28 days to make the required changes.