Gorillaz Kick Off Manchester Residency

Gorillaz exploded into life last night in Manchester with a host of guests joining them on stage.

Shaun Ryder, Roots Manuva, De La Soul, Neneh Cherry, Ike Turner and Martina Topley Bird all performed alongside 3-D animations of the four-piece at the Manchester Opera House in the first of five gigs at the venue. Life-size puppets of Murdoch and 2-D sat in one of the royal boxes watching the action, mimicking the grumpy old men from the Muppets and showering the crowd with popcorn.

Damon Albarn led the band on piano, but for much of the night appeared simply as a silhouette in front of the giant screen the animations were projected onto.

JH