Manchester: One Year On From The Terror Attack

22 May 2018, 11:18 | Updated: 16 November 2018, 11:06

We mark one year since the atrocity, which saw 22 music fans killed at Manchester Arena.

Today marks a year to the day that the city of Manchester was forever changed.

On 22 May 2017, a lone bomber targeted an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena, killing 22 people and physically and psychologically injuring over 800 more.

The people of Manchester responded with courage and solidarity, proving their strength and resilience in the worst of circumstances.

The following day, crowds gathered at landmarks across Manchester, with vigils held outside the Cathedral and St Ann's Square.

Unforgettable moments came from Tony Walsh, who captured the city's spirit by reciting his This Is The Place poem, and a woman whose spontaneous decision to sing Oasis's Don't Look Back In Anger in St Ann's Square touched people around the world.

Watch the moment below:

Speaking to John Kennedy just days after the attack, Noel Gallagher gave his reaction to the devastating attack in his hometown.

Reflecting on Don't Look Back In Anger, Noel also told Radio X how the song had become so much bigger than he'll ever be.

Watch our video here:

Just eight days later, Ariana Grande announced that she would be hosting the One Love Manchester concert on Sunday 4 June to commemorate the victims of the attack and raise money for the We Love Manchester Emergency Fund.

True to her word, the pop singer returned with a host of artists and celebrities from across the music world.

Marcus Mumford kicked off proceedings with a moving version of Mumford And Sons' Timshel.

After seeing performances from the likes of The Black Eyed Peas, Miley Cyrus and Robbie Williams, Chris Martin led the crowds in singing a rousing rendition Don't Look Back In Anger to Ariana Grande.

The surprise of the night came from Liam Gallagher, who sang an acoustic performance of the 1994 Oasis track, Live Forever, while accompanied on guitar by the Coldplay frontman.

Ariana Grande was commended for her courage and the huge amount of funds that were raised from her concert and she was made an honorary citizen of Manchester.

While the tributes continued throughout the summer, Liam Gallagher surprised fans once again during his Glastonbury Festival appearance when he sung Don't Look Back In Anger for the first time ever.

The former Oasis frontman dedicated the noel penned and sung track to the people of Manchester and the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire.

Re-live the moment here:

With Manchester Arena still set to re-open, the venue announced that We Are Manchester would take place on Saturday 9 September.

Boasting a star-studded line-up and featuring homegrown talent from the likes of Bugzy Malone, Blossoms and The Courteeners, the night culminated in an electric headline performance from Noel Gallagher and - you guessed it - his 1996 Oasis track.

Despite being deeply moved, Noel denied he was crying at the event, and instead told Radio X's Chris Moyles he was very nervous and concentrating on getting the performance right.

"It’s the only time I’ve ever got nervous before going on stage," he told the Radio X DJ.

"I never, ever, ever get nervous, never have done. And as the night was coming up to my bit, I didn’t go on 'til - maybe it’s because I went on late - I didn’t go on until half ten, and because of Don’t Look Back in Anger and what it became around that, I was kind of thinking I hope you’re kind of worthy of the moment, do you know what I mean? 

"And I shouldn’t have worried a bit. You just play the first note and you know, bring the house down, and that was it".

Despite Manchester Arena re-opening last year, the tributes were far from over, with Liam Gallagher standing in for Ariana Grande at the BRIT Awards 2018 and performing Live Forever once more.

One year on, and the city of Manchester has already begun to pay tribute to the victims of the terror attack, their families and brave staff who helped them.

Last weekend already saw a one minute silence observed at the Great Manchester Run, followed by a mass singalong of the Oasis track.

Today the tributes will continue from all walks of life, representing a city and its people who remain united and defiant.

The 22 member venues of the National Arenas Association (NAA), which include include Alexandra Palace, The Royal Albert Hall, Glasgow’s SSE Hydro, and Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff, will join government buildings in observing a national one minute’s silence.

An invite-only tribute service is set to take place at Manchester Cathedral from 2pm, with live screenings taking place in multiple locations across the UK.

7.30pm will see the With One Voice event hosted at Albert Square, with choirs from across the UK set to perform the likes of Ariana Grande's One Last Time and Elbow's One Day Like This together.

Manchester City Council has also confirmed that at exactly 10.31pm tonight, bells will ring across Manchester's churches and buildings to commemorate the moment of the attack.

Today, we stand together with Manchester in honouring those who were affected by the tragedy.