Stockport Music Tours

The Stockport Music Map Tour, hosted by John Barratt, takes you on a fascinating walk through Stockport’s Old Town to all the significant places of interest in Stockport’s musical history with an entertaining commentary rich in detail and passion for the town.

Whilst doing the research for the Stockport Music Map, John has met some of Stockport’s musical luminaries who have been special guests on the tours – including the rock and roll singer Pete Maclaine and Dee Christopholus, the lead singer of Wimple Winch, the resident band at The Sinking Ship who supported The Jimi Hendrix Experience.

Often a music tour will have a theme due to a significant date, such as the anniversary of David Bowie playing at the Poco A Poco in Heaton Chapel or Jimi Hendrix performing at The Sinking Ship on the Underbanks. A regular guest on the tour is Dr ‘Strawberry’ Peter Wadsworth, who curated the Strawberry 50 exhibition at Stockport Museum.

Each music tour starts and ends at different Stockport Old Town venues. These include Syndikat on Great Underbank, The Plaza in Mersey Square, the Angel Inn and Stockport Museum in Stockport Market Place, and the Red Bull on Middle Hillgate.

The Red Bull is a particularly significant venue, as it was a favourite watering hole of musicians who were recording at Strawberry Studios in the 1970’s including Paul McCartney, Neil Sedaka and the members of 10cc, who used to visit the pub regularly for their famous steak and kidney pie.

Please always allow two hours for the tour experience or longer if there is a talk or social event to follow. You can find upcoming tours listed below.