Yahoo News The Mancunian Way: 'It can only be good for business'
Hello
The opening of Co-op Live might have been plunged into chaos, leaving thousands of disappointed music fans in its wake. But pub landlords near the new arena hope that - when it's finally up-and-running - the £365m venue will provide a welcome boost to trade.
With more than 23,000 people set to pack out Co-op Live several nights a week, local boozers in nearby Beswick and Bradford are hoping gig-goers will pop in for a few pints before the show. And with drinks prices a fraction of what's being charged inside, they'll be saving a few quid if they do.
"It can only be good for business - I can't see it not being good," said Tony Carroll, long-serving landlord of The Townley on Albert Street in Beswick. "If we get 100 people in and they all spend a fiver that's £500 that we wouldn't normally have. If we get 10 people in it's 10 customers we wouldn’t normally have.”
Tony has run The Townley for 27 years and says the arena's opening is just the latest step in the remarkable transformation of this once run-down and neglected corner of east Manchester. "Thirty years ago nobody wanted to know east Manchester - look at it now," he said. "Houses are going for £300k.
"Back then you could have bought the whole of Beswick for £300k. The area is just getting better and better."
Hundreds of times stronger than heroin
Nitazene is a super-strength street drug that can be hundreds of times more potent than heroin. It’s already been linked to more than 100 deaths across the UK since last summer.
And while there are not thought to have been any nitazene-linked deaths in Greater Manchester and the synthetic opioid has so far not shown up in tests of substances seized in the region, experts are bracing themselves for its arrival. Michael Linnell, who runs Greater Manchester's Local Drug Information System, said drugs services and the authorities were 'prepared for the worst'.
"It's not unusual for heroin users to overdose and die,” he said. “It's not unusual for heroin to be adulterated. But it is unusual for it to be adulterated with something that's stronger than the heroin itself.
"We could get 20 deaths tomorrow. Anyone who tells you they know what's going to happen is not telling the truth.
"It is a concern. It's certainly something we are taking very seriously.” Read more
The life of Riley
From portraits of Nelson Mandela and the Duke of Edinburgh to a dying recluse and a meths drinker, his art ran the gamut of human life. And now a retrospective of the late Harold Riley’s work is being staged at Salford Museum and Art Gallery.
“It is a story of two lives,” writes chief reporter Neal Keeling, who was given a private viewing of the show. “That of the artist and his city.
“Riley's work does not shy away from the sadness and brutal nature of living as well as its joy. The vivid red shirts almost beat with pride as George Best and Bobby Charlton celebrate a goal at Old Trafford. But paintings of Riley's father near death and a dishevelled meths drinker slumped in a street are powerful and haunting.”
Salford-born and bred, Riley’s art is intertwined with his Catholic faith, a passion for recording his city's streets and people, humour, and the fact he was 'blessed' with a talent.
“His genuine determination was to simply portray what he saw in Salford, from its streets, buildings, shops, hospitals, families, children and its dogs,” his wife Ashraf Danesh told Neal. “His city cemented in him admirable qualities of love, loyalty and an unstoppable sense of duty and honest service.” More here
A slice of Naples
Staying in Salford for the moment, and just down the road from the museum, restaurateur Francesco Fumo is bringing a slice of Naples to his adopted home. Being Neapolitian he takes his pizza very seriously.
And it seems to be working. In a city which has no shortage of top class pizzerias, Francesco has customers queuing out the door.
“It's a tribute to the rich, culinary traditions of Napoli, brought to life right here in Manchester,” he explained.
“Our mission is to create a space where the authentic flavours of Neapolitan cuisine are accessible to everyone, from the fiery zest of our spiciest pizza to the classic simplicity of our margherita." Jenna Campbell has more here
‘Hopefully Martyn would be proud’
As you read this Figen Murray will be somewhere on the road to London. Figen, mother of Manchester Arena bombing victim Martyn Hett, is walking to Downing Street as she takes the latest steps in her campaign for the introduction of stronger protections against terrorism in public places.
Martyn's Law would require venues and local authorities in the UK to have training requirements and preventative plans against terror attacks. Shortly before setting off from the Arena yesterday she told the Manchester Evening News: "I think Martyn would be really touched that I'm starting it here where he died, more or less where he stood. It's important to me that I start here - it brings it full circle.
"But I also think he'd smile that his little mother is doing this big task. And hopefully somewhere along the line he'd be proud."
Over the 16 day walk Figen will be joined by friends and family, politicians, security industry experts, and members of the public. She is set to arrive on May 22, the seventh anniversary of the attack. Read more
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Weather etc
Thursday: Cloudy changing to sunny intervals in the afternoon, 21C.
Roadworks: Church Street in Eccles is closed in both directions due to gas main work between the cenotaph and The Show Market until May 14.
Manchester headlines
Teacher in dock: A teacher allegedly groomed one of her pupils with a Trafford Centre shopping trip before having sex with him and then fell pregnant by another teenage pupil, a jury was told. Rebecca Joynes, 30, denies six counts of having sexual activity with a child. The allegations concern two teenage boys who she met through her job as a teacher at a Greater Manchester school. Read more
Hate crime: There has been a huge increase in anti-Semitic hate crimes recorded by Greater Manchester Police in the months following the Hamas attack, new figures show. Between October 2023 and February 2024, GMP recorded 228 anti-Jewish hate crimes - up 231 per cent from 69 crimes recorded during the same period the previous year. It comes amid heightened political tensions across the UK surrounding the war in Gaza.
Airport queues: An issue with the Border Force eGates at Manchester Airport and other major airports across the UK has been resolved, the Home Office has confirmed. The eGates crashed at major airports across the UK yesterday. The issue caused long delays at the border, with some passengers complaining of 80-minute waits in Manchester. Read more
Worth a read
Living with cancer and days away from homelessness, Emma is trapped in a crisis. She moved to Manchester, looking for a new beginning near to where her long-distance partner was living.
Emma settled into a £1,300-a-month ground-floor apartment with her cats, Luna and Sunny, in one of the city’s most sought-after locations. Yet now she is counting down the days until bailiffs will arrive at her front door - and says the council has effectively told her to sit tight until they arrive.
“It’s all a bit like a Channel Five documentary,” Emma, 50, told Stephen Topping. “I didn’t expect my life to get like this.”
