Odder Bar Closes as The Blue Pig Extends

Odder Bar, part of the Odd family that includes Manchester’s Odd & Oddest bars plus recent addition the Blue Pig, has closed its doors and will not be reopening for the new student year.

Since 2006, Odder has served the Oxford Road corridor food, drinks and entertainment on a daily basis and it was one of the first bars to open in the now oft-dubbed Southern Quarter.

Since the launch of the Function Room, the venue on the second-floor of Odder that took its name from the custom-built Funktion One system housed there, Odder expanded its entertainment offer from quizzes and bar sessions to become an intimate late night club venue.

In recent years, Odder has been home to popular club nights such as Murkage, Pop Bubble Rock, Overproof, Revolver, Chow Down and More Bounce, welcomed special guests including Foals, Raekwon, Fantastic Mr Fox and Jaques Greene and hosted after-parties for the likes of Jurrasic 5, Wu Tang Clan, Pharcyde and Kendrick Lamar.

The closure comes as other changes are underway in the Odd Group. Odd and Oddest Bars see new food and drink menus this summer and into the autumn, the DJ and entertainment lineups will be re-launched.

Oddest Bar in Chorlton is undergoing a full interior & exterior refurbishment, designed by hip agency No Chintz – revealed this week. And brand new websites for both Odd and Oddest, designed by Manchester agency Pin, are due 1^st September.

Plans are also underway for a full refurbishment of the Blue Pig, the latest addition to the Odd family, and an extension into the basement below to create a larger bar and event space.

Next month, both Odd Bar and The Blue Pig will feature in this Manchester Food and Drink Festival this year with Odd Bar serving Cubanos, burgers and a variety of pulled pork delights in Albert Square, whilst The Blue Pig will host a cocktail bar for up to 100,000 people also in Albert Square.

Cleo Farman, Director of the Odd Group said: “After many happy years on Oxford Road, it’s time to call it a day.”

“We’ve had some fantastic times at Odder, however, the area has changed completely from when we first started out and it feels like the natural time to move on.”

She added: “I shall miss Odder loads and it will leave a big hole in the group, but I’ve had an offer I can’t refuse which is enabling me to do some exciting new projects which are happening as we speak.”