Hotels for Deep Purple

Deep Purple built the template for hard rock, and their live shows still lean on the same organ-and-guitar interplay that made them famous. A Saturday teatime start makes for an early evening out rather than a late one, with plenty of time afterwards for food or a drink. Expect a set drawn from decades of material, played by a band that has always treated the stage as its natural habitat. Long-time fans will know the songs; newer listeners will hear where a lot of rock music actually came from.

An indoor arena within Birmingham's sprawling NEC complex, bp pulse LIVE hosts concerts, comedy and live events beside the exhibition halls on the city's eastern edge. The setting is a self-contained events campus, with on-site hotels, restaurants and lakeside walks rather than a traditional high street.

Birmingham International station and the nearby airport make arrivals straightforward, with fast trains into the centre. Booking a room on or near the complex lets you walk to the show and avoid the post-event car-park crawl.