A red-faced mum went viral this week with an apology she was forced to make after her “mischievous” cat brazenly stole someone’s cooked beef joint.
Meanwhile, her neighbour had also taken to social media to report that his tea had gone missing.
Can you tell where this is going?
Haydn Lawson – 20, from Colne in Lancashire – captured the attention of the community when she shared an apology to anyone who had “just had their tea pinched” in a local Facebook group earlier this week, and it didn’t take long before other eagle-eyed social media users spotted another Colne resident, Ryan, share a post claiming his beef dinner had gone missing after leaving his window open and questioned who would steal it.
Haydn had spotted her five-year-old cat Eclipse with what at first appeared to be a dead animal, but upon taking a closer look, found it was actually a “nicely cooked piece of brisket”.
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The embarrassed full-time mum said she’s “never known” anything like her cat’s greed and suspects Eclipse had a whiff of a neighbour’s dinner and seized the opportunity to take it home, leaving Haydn to track down the stolen dinner’s rightful owner.
She said she’d even buy them a new joint if she’s successful in finding the hungry victim.
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“I came into my bedroom where I was greeted by Eclipse just sitting there on my bed eating this hunk of meat.” Haydn said.
“I just laughed at first and was in shock. I thought ‘what animal am I looking at here?’, [as] she brings home rats, pigeons, crows, mice [and] she’ll bring home bits of rubbish that she’s found, [so] my first thing was to shout at her and say ‘Eclipse, what are you doing?’ just to get her away from whatever it was.”
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Haydn still has her doubts about who the beef joint belonged to though.
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She continued: “[Ryan] lives at the other side of town. He told me where his street was and there was no chance my cat got there and back with meat in her mouth, and also, she wouldn’t have been able to get there without getting lost on the way back as it’s easily a mile or so away.
“He told me his street name and straight away I knew there was no way on this earth that my cat would have walked so far there, grabbed the meat and then walked so far back with the meat in her mouth.
“There’s so many busy roads and stuff, there wasn’t a chance”.
Despite the questioning over who’s tea had actually been stolen, the hilarious incident has still gone on to cheer up plenty of people across the region and beyond, with a picture showing the two posts side by side receiving thousands of interactions on social media, including more than 4,000 on one Instagram page.
“Looking at the comments, I thought it was absolutely hilarious,” Haydn continued.
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“I was just sat giggling at the pure thought of her sneaking into someone’s house and grabbing this meat. I had so many comments on it saying ‘thank you so much for sharing this – you’ve brightened my day’.
“I put a comment on the post and said ‘right, am I going to have to invest in a cat collar camera?’
“I don’t know whose beef joint it was – all I know is that she was on my bed eating it. I was well embarrassed. If I was to really truly find the person, I’ll buy them a new joint of beef.
“This cat, honestly – she’ll be the death of me.”
Although Haydn has been unable to actually track down the owner of the beef joint, she explained that there was a comment saying ‘God knows why you would have left your meat outside anyway to cool’, with a reply to it saying ‘I only turned my back for two minutes to plate up the roasties and it was gone’.
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“Now that to me sounds a hell of a lot more likely that this is their meat than [Ryan’s].” Haydn concluded.
This really is some proper internet beef.
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Stretford’s free neighourhood festival returns this weekend
Danny Jones
Stretford’s still fledgling and completely free all-day festival is BACK for 2026 and is happening this coming weekend.
So, if you didn’t have plans this Saturday, you do now.
Simply named StretFest, this is the third edition of the now annual celebration in one of Manchester’s fastest growing neighbourhoods – and an increasingly up-and-coming one at that.
Kicking off in the morning and running right into the wee small hours thanks to a healthy dose of varied daytime activities, evening events and de facto afterparties, there’s plenty on the cards.
🎉 It's the big one on Saturday! Stretfest is back & we're thrilled to have a fab selection of LIVE Music on from 3pm – 8pm for it!
We can't wait to greet loads of faces, old and new. #Stretford will be buzzing with activity so come on down & make a day of it ! 🍻 pic.twitter.com/16Rnn5w1qj
StretFest only started back in July 2024, but it has quickly grown into a cult favourite not only among locals living in and around the Trafford town, but also among plenty of people from all over Greater Manchester, with last year seeing more visitors than ever.
Based not just over at Stretford Mall but the surrounding parks, Public Hall, across the bridge and an area they dub ‘The Beach’, there are several distinct but equally vibrant hubs, all offering something different.
For instance, venues like Longford Tap, Head Bar and Stretford Canteen are all involved, as are the likes of the Library and Martin Luther Church, but also recently opened cafes like Swig and Cuppello’s, as well as many, many more.
To be honest, we’ll probably be popping over for all the food and drink alone.
And, of course, there’s going to be plenty of live music, DJ sets, other bits of entertainment, and all-around fun to be enjoyed; there’s even going to be everything from arts, crafts and workshops, to pirates and boat rides.
Getting underway from as early 9am – thanks to the likes of the regular Stretford parkrun crew teaming up with the festival, and Mr & Mrs hosting a coffee morning for their first birthday – there really is going to be something for everyone from start to finish.
You can see the full StretFest schedule or build your own personal day-into-night programme HERE.
As for what else is on the cards for the final few days of March (give or take a couple), you can find out what else is on in and around the ten boroughs down below.
Featured Images — Publicity pictures/Adrian Michael (supplied)/The Manc Group
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Stockport County defender Brad Hills ruled out for the rest of the season
Danny Jones
In a big blow to their promotion push, Stockport County have been hit with a major injury and loss to their first-team squad, as defender Brad Hills has been ruled out for what looks to be the remainder of the season and then some.
Not what Hatters will want to hear with crunch-time in and around the playoffs now well underway.
Having emerged as even more of a starring centre-back this year, following his initial loan spell with the club during the previous campaign, Brad Hills has arguably been one of Stockport’s best and most reliable players in 2025/26 thus far – but not County will have to do without him.
Although the exact severity is yet to be fully revealed, the former Norwich City youth academy graduate is said to have hurt his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).
Confirming the news on social media, the Greater Manchester side stated: “We regret to inform supporters that Brad Hills sustained an ACL injury in Saturday’s draw at Luton Town that will rule him out for the foreseeable future.
“Our full focus is on supporting Brad throughout his recovery – we know he’ll come back stronger”
For anyone unaware, ACL tears/ruptures are among some of the worst injuries in football, and depending on the extent of the damage, it can take anywhere between six months and a full year to bounce back.
Safe to say, therefore, that supporters have been left gutted by the update, with one commenting, “Awful, awful news”; another simply wrote, “FFS”.
After typing a very long expletive following the show news, fan podcast The Scarf Bergara Wore wrote: “Wishing Bradley Hills a speedy recovery – come back stronger!
Since becoming a permanent signing back in August, he’s earned multiple man-of-the-match awards in blue and white, not to mention contributed to a decent number of clean sheets. He’ll be a big miss in their backline.
While it’s no doubt a big setback as the League One team looks to get promoted into the Championship, the absence could see manager Dave Challinor reshuffle the pack and perhaps even the formation for the remaining fixtures.
One option is Louie Barry, who – depending on the setup – could finally be set for a return to the pitch after he was signed on a third loan deal this past January, but is still continuing his own rehab following a knee operation.
Put it this way, with not many games left, lots of County fans are probably wishing that the pending and potential further changes in the EFL could have come sooner…