Chicken wing fans, unite – Wing Fest is coming back to town and we couldn’t be more excited about it.
This summer, the world’s biggest wing festival will return to Manchester, bringing together the UK’s very best to serve a whopping 200,000 wings over a two-day period.
Here, you’ll find 20 different street food traders, restaurants, BBQ teams and pop-ups from across the country serving up their signature bites – be they deep-fried, spicy, baked, sweet or sticky as all hell.
Image: Wing Fest UK
There’ll also be a number of bars selling different bourbons and beers, axe-throwing stations, fairground rides and live music to set the party atmosphere across the weekend.
In fact, Manchester Wing Fest-goers can dance along to killer DJs, live blues and brass bands, with a chicken wing in each hand, as the festival stretches late into the night.
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Taking place this year at The Trafford Centre, the UK’s finest chicken experts will be showcasing their culinary skills by means of cooking demos and a festival-wide competition – all bidding to be crowned the Wing King or Queen.
Image: Wing Fest UK
This year’s competition is split into two categories: The Best Buffalo Wing and The Best Wild Wing.
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The first, rather self-explanatorily, will see food traders battle to have their spicy sauce crowned the best, whilst the wild category will encourage chefs to let their creativity run wild with different flavours and toppings.
2021 champions Chicken George ft The Rib Man, The Bok Shop and Poor Boys, and local favourites Kong’s Chicken Shop and Yard and Coop, will be amongst those competing to win your vote.
In total, 8,000 lucky chicken wing fans will have the opportunity to cast their vote for their favourite wings across the weekend.
True wing aficionados should also consider taking part in the very saucy wing eating competition, where brave and hungry individuals compete against one another on the main stage to see who can eat the messiest wings.
The ‘Get Heated’ lava wing challenge hosted by, The Food Review Club and Clifton Chilli Club will be causing carnage, with only the brave entering the UK’s hottest wing challenge.
Taking place across Saturday 24 and Sunday 25 September 2022, those heading down can expect a day full of chicken-eating, as well as plenty of music and entertainment.
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To get your tickets for the giant Wing Fest, click here.
Feature image – Wing Fest UK
News
Investigation launched after man ‘brutally’ murdered at Peak District stone circle on summer solstice
Emily Sergeant
A murder investigation has been launched after a man’s life was taken in ‘the most brutal way’ following a summer solstice event.
The investigation has been launched after Derbyshire Police were called to reports of a man’s body being found at Nine Ladies Stone Circle in the Peak District at 1:38pm on Monday 22 June, and when emergency services attended the scene, a 26-year-old man was found and pronounced dead.
The man has been named as Isaac Clare-Watts, from Nottingham, and police say his family are aware and are being supported by specialist officers.
Police are now searching to understand the circumstances around his death.
A 41-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the incident, and he remains in custody for questioning.
Investigators say they remain ‘keen’ to hear from anyone who was at the site over the weekend – which was notably the weekend of the summer solstice – as well as anyone with video footage from the event, and dashcam footage of vehicles arriving and leaving over the weekend.
A Major Incident Public Portal (MIPP) has been set up where members of the public can send information to police directly.
“I am urgently appealing for anyone who attended the summer solstice event over the weekend to please speak to officers as soon as they can,” commented Detective Inspector Tony Owen from the East Midlands Special Operations Unit (EMSOU), who is leading the investigation.
“A young man’s life has been taken in the most brutal way, so it is vital that myself and the team build up a clear picture of the exact circumstances surrounding his death and this is why we urgently need to speak to everyone who was at the scene over the weekend.
“You may have only been there briefly and think you can’t help but you could hold the key piece of information we need to understand what has happened and help us to get justice for this young man’s family.
“So I would ask, please, that if you attended the event, you contact us urgently so we can build up a picture of the event itself and what has led to this man’s death. I also really urge anyone who captured video footage from the event over the weekend to please come forward.
“You could play a key role in helping us with this murder investigation.”
Featured Image -Wikimedia Commons
News
Prestigious Edinburgh TV Festival to move to Manchester for first time in 50 years
Emily Sergeant
Greater Manchester will become the new host city for the TV Festival from 2027 onwards it was announced today.
For the first time in five decades, following an extensive consultation and competitive bidding process – which was launched in 2025 – the prestigious festival is set to move from its home in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh to our region from 2027 onwards, beating out other major northern cities like Newcastle in the process.
As part of a UK-wide strategic review into the event’s long-term future, the Festival’s board of directors say the review was undertaken in order to ‘examine how the TV Festival could continue to grow’ amid increasing challenges around accessibility, affordability, and sustainability across the television industry.
Greater Manchester‘s ‘successful and comprehensive’ bid included commitments around affordability, infrastructure, industry partnership, and long-term growth potential.
Plans include holding the Festival in locations in the newly developed St. John’s creative and cultural district.
“Greater Manchester presented a vision for the Festival that combined genuine creative ambition and future-facing energy with practical accessibility and affordability for delegates,” commented Campbell Glennie, who is the CEO of the TV Festival and The TV Foundation.
“This means we can radically reduce the costs associated with attending the Festival as well as the cost of passes.
“The city reflects the expanding ambition of the UK television industry, while still offering the scale, connectivity and unique cultural identity needed for an event of this significance – it gives us the strongest platform to grow the Festival’s reach and impact in the years ahead.”
Cllr Bev Craig, who is the Leader of Manchester City Council, said being chosen as TV Festival hosts is ‘brilliant news’ for Greater Manchester, adding: “It speaks to the growth, success and strength of our screen sector in the city region and the strong partnerships and talent we have here.”
The final Edinburgh edition of the TV Festival will take place this August, and dates and further details for the TV Festival in 2027 will be shared later this year.
Georgina Pellant -
31st March 2022 
