The concept – which was first coined by physiologist Cliff Arnall back in 2004 – suggests that the third Monday of every January is “the most depressing day of the year”, with a theory that essentially claims that this is the time of year when we’re all cold, broke and riddled with guilt that our New Year’s resolutions to get fit, drink less alcohol, and be a better human being, have fallen by the wayside.
It’s certainly been met with its skeptics over the years for a number of reasons, but of course in 2021, we’re also dealing with yet another national lockdown on top of those annual January difficulties.
One Manchester-based business is proving to be the perfect antidote to those dreary days though – and it “exists to remind people that we are all just humans”.
If you’re local to the city centre, you may know the Feel Good Club from the success of its brand-new wellbeing-focused cafe – which opened in the heart of the Northern Quarter in October of last year – but the movement actually started humbly as an Instagram page filled with uplifting messages and top tips by founders Kiera and Aimie Lawlor-Skillen.
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The carefully-curated social media page is aimed at normalising the stigma around mental health and has since flourished into a successful platform of 177K+ followers.
And through consistently posting inspirational quotes to live by, daily reminders to keep you in check, and “things you need to hear” all in aesthetically-pleasing pastel-coloured squares, alongside picture updates from the coffee house and the owners themselves – even their four-legged friend – following Feel Good Club on Instagram is one of the biggest favours you can do yourself this Blue Monday.
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We don’t know exactly what this year ahead will bring, but we know that becoming a member of the Feel Good Club community with just one simple social media follow is something you won’t regret.
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Whether you believe the concept of Blue Monday to be somewhat of a myth or not, there’s no denying that repetitive lockdowns and ongoing restrictions amid the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic have had a detrimental effect on mental health in the UK, with the latest studies by leading mental health charity MIND finding that more than half of adults (60%) and over two thirds of young people (68%) said their mental health got worse during the first lockdown.
And both people with and without previous experience of mental health problems reported poor mental health and wellbeing during that period too.
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Google search data compiled by Feel Good Club also showed the increasingly-worrying rise in mental health searches, with a 25% uplift in the UK overall, and searches for how to deal with anxiety also up by 53%, how to cope with OCD up 89%, and searches for tips on how to cope with depression up 67% too.
So yes, while it is true that these “unprecedented times” we are living through are affecting some of us more than others, it is nevertheless taking its toll on us all – and it’s absolutely okay to acknowledge this.
Help is out there.
If you or anyone you know is struggling right now, please know that you are never alone and there are many different places you can reach out to for support right here in Greater Manchester.
Suffering in silence never need be the way.
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Manchester Mind – An organisation that has supported people in Manchester for over 30 years. Most services are now available over the phone, by email or video call. The number is 0161 769 5732 and the opening hours are Mon – Fri 10am – 2pm.
The GM Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust – The local NHS helpline is open 24/7 which you can call any time, day or night, if you feel your mental health is beginning to suffer: 0800 953 0285.
Andy’s Man Club – A group dedicated to starting conversations about mental health, assuring people that it’s ok to talk. You can contact them by email on: [email protected].
CALM – The Campaign Against Living Miserably supports people via phone and webchat. You can call 0800 58 58 58 or speak to a support worker online. Open 5pm to midnight.
Samaritans – The Manchester & Salford Samaritans offer emotional support by telephone and email. The phone lines and email support are available 24/7. Call 116 123 or visit the website.
And remember, no matter how many times it may have been said before, it cannot be said enough – it’s okay not to be okay, and your emotions are always valid.
‘Hefty’ Foo Fighters ticket prices for surprise Manchester gig divide opinion
Danny Jones
Foo Fighters fans, gig-goers and all-round music lovers in general have been left up in arms after the legendary American rock band announced some surprise shows in the UK and Ireland – including here in Manchester – as ticket prices have labelled ‘shameful’ by some.
In case you missed the news that sent us here in Manchester and all over the nation into bedlam, Foo Fighters recently revealed they would be playing just a handful of shows up and down the country, all at smaller venues than their usual arena tour dates.
Sharing the news fairly last-minute over the weekend, with tickets going on sale this past Sunday and (shock) selling out almost immediately, many have taken issue with the band’s and/or promoters’ approach to the event.
While lots have revelled in the excitement of a show scheduled for this week being dropped on our laps in the eleventh hour, lots of others feel the price point for the tickets is ‘ridiculous’.
Although they’re not quite on the level of the controversial Oasis/Harry Styles sagas, at £99 including all fees, they’re still up there with the most expensive gig tickets venues like these will ever charge.
Most poignantly, the tickets were sold strictly in person via the box office, with fans queuing up outside a trio of venues.
Taking place at the O2 Ritz, which has a capacity of roughly 1,500, the Foo Fighters’ Manchester date is not only one of the most in-demand gigs, but also promises to be one of their sweatiest – and, apparently, most divisive.
For some, this is a very cool bit of marketing and at least an attempt to curb online ticket touts, plus helping support live music spaces directly; on the other hand, the significant fee remains a sticking point they refuse to move past.
Responding in the comments underneath the post by the Ritz, one person wrote: “That ticket price is f****** disgusting. It’s not costing them f*** all to play there, if Harry Styles can play the Co-op Live for £20 then they should”; another simply added, “99 quid is wild, do better.”
Safe to say it has split opinions across the board.
i really want to know who is paying £100 to see foo fighters at o2 academy ritz and what they do for work to justify that
Big fan of the foo fighters but having only in person tickets and then still charging £100 is a joke. Then to move other bands earlier to slot them in isn’t fair
As you can see, it’s also affected other acts set to play these same rooms this month, too.
Others have also doubted whether the ‘face value exchange’ tactic really works all that much, as a few people on social media reported having already found a number of tickets being listed on resale on certain platforms.
What do you make of artists charging these kinds of prices for exclusive one-off shows like this, or the cost of gig tickets in general these days?
Better yet, did any of you succeed in grabbing tickets to see Foo Fighters at the Ritz here in Manchester this Friday, 27 February?
Featured Images — Audio North/Publicity picture (via Foo Fighters/O2 Ritz)
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Manchester Sinners actress Wunmi Mosaku scoops BAFTA alongside other ‘surprise’ northern winners
Emily Sergeant
Manchester-raised actress Wunmi Mosaku was one of the well-deserved winners at the 2026 BAFTA Film Awards last night.
Born in the Nigerian city of Zaria to Yoruba parents, Oluwunmi Olapeju Mosaku – known professionally as Wunmi Mosaku – moved to England when she was just a year old, and settled in the Manchester community of Hulme, going on to be educated at Trinity Church of England High School and Xaverian Sixth Form College, before heading off to the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London to study acting.
The 39-year-old has been a celebrated actor of the screen for nearly 20 years this year, with some of her most notable roles being in TV series like Vera, Luther, and Lovecraft Country, as well as being a member of the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU).
But it was for her role as Annie Ryan Coogler’s 2025 hit horror film Sinners that has truly become one of her breakout roles – a role she won the Best Supporting Actress award for at last night’s BAFTAs.
Wunmi was already a BAFTA TV Award winner or her role as Gloria Taylor in the 2016 TV film Damilola, Our Loved Boy, but this was her first win on the Film side, and it was a win that has turned the Best Supporting Actress ‘Oscar race’ into one of the more up-in-the-air categories this Awards Season.
Taking to the stage to accept the award, Wunmi thanked her family, her fellow nominees and co-stars, director, and wider team, as well as explaining what the role of Annie meant to her.
“I found a part of myself in Annie,” she said in her speech. “A part of my hopes, my ancestral power, and connection, parts I thought I had lost or tried to dim as an immigrant trying to fit in. Through her, I deepened my belief in my potential, my capacity to love and hope in the darkest moments of grief.”
Wunmi’s win wasn’t considered the only ‘surprise’ win of the night in the major acting categories either – nor was it the only major win for a northern actor – as the Best Actor in a Leading Role award went to Hull-born actor Robert Aramayo for his role in the 2025 biographical drama film, I Swear, based on the true life story of John Davidson – a Scottish man with severe Tourette’s syndrome, and follows his life at a time when his condition was barely identifiable.
Robert’s win was considered so ‘surprising’ by many given the fact he is not nominated for any of the other major televised award ceremonies this year – including the Oscars – with the two main frontrunners of the season being heavy-hitters being Timothée Chalamet and Leonardo Dicaprio.
Aramayo also took home the EE Rising Star Award, which is voted on for by the British public.
Sean Penn was another shock – but again, well-deserved – winner of the night, taking home Best Supporting Actor for One Battle After Another, with his win being similar to Wunmi’s in that he is the third winner of the Best Supporting Actor category so far this season.
Elsewhere in the ceremony, some of the other big winners of the night were One Battle After Another, which scooped Best Film, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Director for Paul Thomas Anderson, among others, while Hamnet took Best British Film, and the film’s lead Jessie Buckley won Best Actress in Leading Role – with the latter being, arguably, the only expected and predicted acting win of the night.
Emily Sergeant -
18th January 2021 
