Manchester City Council has recruited the help of an uncanny Game of Thrones character lookalike to encourage residents to get their jabs ready for winter.
It’s not something you see everyday, or even at all – but a lookalike of one of the characters from the iconic and much-loved HBO fantasy drama series Game of Thrones stopped by the city last week to reminded locals that “Manchester’s Winter is coming”.
Have you guessed who it was? That’s right, Jon Snow was in town.
The lookalike legend was there to lend a hand to Manchester City Council with a campaign to boost local knowledge on COVID vaccines, boosters, and the flu jab, and all while encouraging residents to keep up with relevant testing.
The ‘King in the North’ was also keen to point out where they get help with all of this.
ADVERTISEMENT
But, while ‘Jon’ was in the city, he was also sure to make the most of the walk-in vaccination site at Manchester Town Hall, so that he too could have his COVID vaccination.
🐺❄️ Manchester’s Winter is Coming ❄️🐺
Protect yourself by getting vaccinated against Covid and flu and taking regular Covid tests.
James Martin – the actor who played the Jon Snow lookalike – explained: “I wanted to have the vaccine, so this was the perfect time and a case of life imitating art.
ADVERTISEMENT
“It was quick and easy, and absolutely nothing to worry about.”
“This call-out to the city is so vital,” added Dr Manisha Kumar – Medical Director at Manchester Health and Care Commissioning.
“Please don’t put off having your vaccinations [as] early evidence suggests that people who get COVID and flu at the same time can be twice as likely to die [and] this can be prevented [so] we have to do everything we can so that people don’t face the prospect of serious illness, or even death.”
ADVERTISEMENT
David Regan – Director of Public Health in Manchester – continued: “In our view, everyone is a hero who has the vaccine to look after themselves and others [as] there’s no doubt that this winter is going to be tough, with all the extra cold and respiratory viruses, flu and of course, COVID, as people are out of lockdown.”
While ‘Jon’ was in the city, he also made the most of the walk-in vaccination site at Manchester Town Hall / Credit: Manchester City Council
“I thank everyone in advance for keeping on with all those key things that can keep the the whole city safe,” he concluded.
Councillor Joanna Midgley – Executive Member for Health and Care at Manchester City Council – was also quick to point out how appropriate it was that ‘Jon Snow’ stopped by to help with the campaign, as “in terms of medicine, there is another John Snow – who was a London physician, famous for his work on anaesthesia and finding the source of a cholera outbreak in the 1800s.”
What are the chances? It was meant to be.
For more information about the vaccines on offer this winter, check out the Manchester City Council website here.
Police are searching for a missing bride-to-be, with CCTV from the day she vanished released
Daisy Jackson
Police have ramped up their appeal to find missing bride-to-be Eren Wright, releasing CCTV of her on the day she vanished.
Eren has been missing since 27 October, when she left her home address in Lytham St Annes.
Since then, her desperate fiancé has shared that her phone was last detected in Birkdale Southport at around 5.30pm that same day, and her bank accounts are empty.
He said last week in a post on Facebook: “Myself and the pets are freaking out not knowing where she is and if she is ok, she has been missing for nearly 12 hours.”
Eren was last seen just after 10am leaving her home on St David’s Road South.
She is described as white, 5’7″, slim, and with blonde hair. She also has tattoos of vines and a tree on her hand and arms.
Police have ramped up their appeal to find missing bride-to-be Eren Wright. Credit: Fylde Police
Eren was last seen wearing a light olive green hoodie with a painting on the front, beige/cream wide leg pants, and worn white trainers.
Police have now shared the new CCTV image of Eren in the hopes that someone might know where she is, or have seen her.
Fylde Police also said they were ‘worried’ about her.
If you see Eren or know where she might be, call 999 quoting log 1309 of October 27th.
Leigh drug dealer jailed after being ‘caught red-handed’ by police
Emily Sergeant
A drug dealer known around the Leigh area has been jailed last week after police caught him ‘red-handed’.
Dawid Bialek, of no fixed abode, has been jailed after pleading guilty to four counts of possession with intent to supply Class A drugs (heroin and crack cocaine), and handling stolen goods.
It comes after, on Monday 11 May 2026, officers from Greater Manchester Police (GMP) who were patrolling on a canal towpath, near Quayside in Leigh, spotted 30-year-old Bialek attempting to discard a package in the water.
The package was subsequently recovered, and according to GMP, was found to contain multiple wraps of suspected Class A drugs.
Further enquiries then led police to an address in Leigh, where additional evidence linked to drug dealing was recovered – including suspected drugs, scales, empty wraps, and mobile phones.
Bialek was later bailed as police conducted further enquiries, but while that work was continuing, on Friday 19 June, officers carrying out plain-clothes patrols in the town centre saw Bialek in an alley just off the canal tow path, handing out wraps of heroin and crack cocaine to others.
He was once again stopped, searched, and found to be in possession of drugs and cash.
This time he was charged and able to be remanded. He appeared at court over the summer and plead not guilty to the charges brought against him, but as the investigation continued, examination of seized mobile phones uncovered further evidence of drug dealing activity – including messages, videos and notes consistent with the supply of Class A drugs.
Due to the quantity of evidence gathered and submitted to the CPS, Bialek changed his plea to guilty and was sentenced at Liverpool Crown Court last week.
He has been jailed for a total of four years and nine months.
Following the sentencing, a spokesperson for GMP’s Leigh Neighbourhood Policing Team said: “The supply of Class A drugs causes significant harm within our communities and often exploits vulnerable people who are struggling with addiction.
“This result demonstrates our commitment to targeting those responsible for bringing drugs into Leigh and disrupting the criminality associated with them.”
Emily Sergeant -
25th October 2021 
