Critically-acclaimed novel Ridley Road – a love story set in the ‘Swinging Sixties’ – is getting its very own television adaptation for BBC One.
Aggi O’Casey and Tom Varey star in the lead roles, as award-winning writer Sarah Solemani puts Jo Bloom’s popular book on the small screen.
Ridley Road tells the story of a young Jewish woman, Vivien Epstein, who falls in love a member of the 62 Group – a coalition of men who stood up against rising neo-Nazism in post-war Britain.
The series sees Vivien reject her comfortable middle-class life in Manchester and sign up to join the fight against fascism.
As Vivien descends further into the organisation, her courage and loyalties are challenged.
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The Ridley Road series is set to bring together an all-star cast including Rory Kinnear, Tamzin Outhwaite, Tracy-Ann Oberman, Eddie Marsan, Samantha Spiro, Rita Tushingham and Danny Hatchard.
Writer, Sarah Solemani, says: “A young hairdresser from Manchester makes an unlikely hero in this little known slice of British history. But in these unprecedented times, it is the unlikely heroes whose stories are now worth telling.
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“Britain’s relationship with fascism is closer and more alive than we like to think. Fortunately, so too is our rich heritage of beating it. Honoured to bring the story of Ridley Road to the BBC and Masterpiece.”
Ayela Butt, BBC Commissioning Executive, says: “Sarah’s brilliant scripts have drawn together an extraordinary ensemble cast of some the finest actors in the UK and we are delighted to have exciting new talent, Aggi O’Casey, in the lead role.
“We are thrilled to be working with RED to tell this hugely compelling and inspiring story about an ordinary woman risking everything to fight against fascism.”
The Ridley Road premiere date is expected to be announced soon.
What's On
Liam Gallagher says he’s ‘ready’ to make a surprise appearance at the World Cup final
Danny Jones
Liam Gallagher has said that he is “ready” to play at the World Cup final should England make it all the way to the last two later this month.
He may have just been having some fun on social media as usual, but you never know – after all, we never actually thought we’d see him and his brother reconcile, but look how that turned out…
In his words, he may have “Irish blood”, but the Manchester-born Britpop and rock icon has an English heart, and after one person online said it’d only be right for him to fly out for the conclusive fixture if Thomas Tuchel’s side make it all the way, he gave a typically off-the-cuff response:
You could argue there’s not much in this besides an impromptu comment from a famously keyboard-happy lead singer, but stranger things have happened.
For instance, it may have come after a gradually increasing barrage of old tweets, pestering and a bit of positive peer pressure in full view of the public eye, but we did at long last get to witness an Oasis reunion with the ‘Live ’25’ world tour; however surreal it felt, it’s soon set to be relived in a documentary.
This reply comes as a response to LG’s initial post on X, in which he wrote: “It’s hard work that singing Harry Kane cmon ENGLAND cmon WONDERWALL.”
It also isn’t the only time he stoked the fire of this still only pie-in-the-sky idea, either, as after another user similarly asked if he’d fly out and sing it at the final, he simply responded, “Oh I’ll show Harry how it’s done.”
He’s not the only one to have made a rather big public proclamation this tournament, either.
The England and Man United legend set himself up for a fall.
As for the 53-year-old musician, he also jokingly quipped at the expense of those less keen on the idea with just as straightforward a clap-back: “Stop crying your heart out.”
Now, obviously, we’re taking this one with a big pinch of salt (enough to season ‘some lasagneee’, you could say), but who knows? There’s been plenty of big and strange showbiz stuff happening at this year’s competition in North America.
Maybe we all need to just keep tagging the Burnage boys, FIFA, England and the official World Cup page as much and hope for at least some kind of Oasis-centric surprise.
Come on, just imagine how much this would go OFF if even one of the Gallagher brothers was in the crowd, let alone this unthinkable hypothetical…
We Are Football Fest – Europe’s largest World Cup fan park gets even bigger as ‘Big Sam’ joins the party
Daisy Jackson
The largest World Cup fan park not just in Manchester or the UK but all of Europe just got even bigger, as the latest ambitious project from 4TheFans is seeing them expand from Freight Island into Depot Mayfield.
In fact, the former has already sold out in just four hours, and with a former England manager set to turn up, you’d better be quick about booking your tickets…
We Are Football Festival, in partnership with Freight Island and Broadwick, will bring together 13,000 football fans in front of the biggest screens in the country to cheer on England as they continue their race for World Cup glory.
The already enormous fan park opened at Freight in June, but now they’ll be opening up the iconic Depot next door, further transforming the space into an unrivalled celebration of football, with the one and only Sam Allardyce even set to turn up on stage.
The outdoor screen has been box office vibes since minute oneWe Are Football Festival by 4TheFansThe fan park spills over into Depot MayfieldCredit: Vision Seven
We know he was only in charge for one game, but he’s still the only England boss to boast a 100% win record, after all.
Fans have been utterly immersed in the action thanks to a massive sound system, pyrotechnics, CO2 cannons, DJs, and entertainment around the games themselves – providing just about the closest thing you can get to a big game atmosphere.
The venue is open for all late kick-offs, too, and with England now through to the quarter-final stages following that dramatic 3-2 thriller against Mexico, the heat is really starting to ramp up.
Fans can head to Freight, as well as the rooftop or garden at Depot Mayfield from 5pm kick-off on matchdays in the sunshine, now with room for even more supporters to flood into the famous Manc Warehouse for those late-night games in the warehouse.
Here’s hoping it doesn’t get much later than a 4am full-time whistle again, eh?
There’s also the dedicated ‘Footy Fun Village’, which includes sponsored activations, games zones, and more family-friendly areas, creating a safe space for fans of all ages to enjoy the tournament no matter the time of day.
4TheFans and Freight Island have also hand-picked a great selection of food traders from around the world, not to mention a top-shelf bar selection.
We Are Football Fest’s 2026 World Cup coverage also comes with dedicated 4TheFans hosts, plus Sky Sports presenters, and the matches thus far have even seen England football legends providing quality match analysis at each screening.
Since launching, 4TheFans has welcomed hundreds of thousands of fans, and camera crews from BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Sky News, Sky Sports, England TV, and Match of the Day, to fan parks across the UK.
It’s now chosen Depot Mayfield for its World Cup fan park, where they can fill the huge space at Freight Island first before scaling into the rest of the Depot as the fan community grows and the Three Lions march on.
4TheFans is the UK’s original and biggest fan park brand, and it’s working with Freight Island and Broadwick to deliver this game-changing We Are Football Festival – the biggest and best fan park in Europe.
5,000 early bird tickets are available from just £4.50 per person, each coming with one beer included, and are on sale right HERE.
4TheFans presents We Are Football Festival runs at Depot Mayfield until 19 July 2026.
General admission tickets include
4TheFans interactive show with on-stage banter from a Sky Sports presenter
Football legend in attendance
Guaranteed entry to the event
The most enormous anti-glare screens in the UK and a monster sound system
Special effects, lighting, DJ sets and music from doors till close
Access to Footy Fun Village with games, activations and family areas
Food from around the world and an exclusive bar traders
VIP table tickets include
VIP table section with the best view of the giant screens and the event
Meet and greet with a football legend
4TheFans interactive show with on-stage banter from a Sky Sports presenter
Guaranteed entry to the event
The most enormous anti-glare screens in the UK and a monster sound system
Special effects, lighting, DJ sets and music from doors till close
Access to Footy Fun Village with games, activations and family areas
Food from around the world and an exclusive bar traders
It’s been packed for every England game up to this pointHow the indoor Depot warehouse room will lookCredit: Supplied via 4TheFans
The Manc -
23rd September 2020 
