Manchester has been named as the best city in the UK for bees, and it’s probably our most appropriate title to date.
We all know that Manchester and bees go hand in hand, as they have been an emblem for our city for over 150 years, and it’s fair to say that we’re quite-rightly proud of our links to this hard-working insect.
And now, a new study has named the city as being the best for bees in the UK.
As part of its study, floral delivery company Flying Flowers has analysed key cities across the country to find out which are the best for bees in the lead up to the warmer months, as throughout the spring and summer, bees keep our nature growing by spreading their pollen, but to do this successfully, they need a clear air space to fly and a large proportion of flowers and green space to navigate and spread their pollen efficiently.
The study analysed UK cities based on a number of metrics including pollution, green space, the number of flower gardens, allotment sites, individual allotment plots, and the number of parks.
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Here’s how the top 10 cities ranked:
Rank
City
Pollution Rank 2020 average
Green Space %
No. Flower Gardens Per Sq Mile
Allotment Sites per Sq Mile
Allotment Plots per Sq Mile
Parks/Green Spaces per Sq Mile
1
Manchester
8.1
13.13%
0.18
0.92
56.55
3.56
2
Coventry
7.4
8.81%
0.05
1.16
63.35
1.84
3
London
9.6
1.20%
0.15
1.21
59.31
4.94
4
Birmingham
7.7
15.58%
0.06
0.76
46.82
0.81
5
Newcastle upon Tyne
7.7
9.87%
0.02
1.57
79.51
0.75
6
Bristol
10.2
6.76%
0.07
2.05
102.47
0.99
7
Nottingham
8.6
15.34%
0.10
0.97
32.07
1.01
8
Edinburgh
4.7
9.26%
0.11
0.29
15.39
1.46
9
Glasgow
5.2
13.49%
0.12
0.24
10.36
0.37
10
Cardiff
7.6
8.04%
0.06
0.52
46.15
0.33
Explaining why Manchester takes the top spot, Flying Flowers said: “The city benefits from a high percentage of green spaces which make it a welcome area for bees, but what really sets Manchester apart is its parks, with an average of 4.94 parks per square mile, which helped it take the top spot.”
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But where did Manchester’s link to the worker bee begin exactly?
Well, it all started in 1842 when, as part of a traditional Victorian branding exercise, the early city fathers had to decide on a coat of arms that would tell the world who Manchester was, so they settled upon including a globe with seven worker bees in to show how hard Mancunians worked, and then traded it across the seven seas.
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Manchester has been named as the best city in the UK for bees / Credit: Piqsels
The Manchester bee was born of industry, and the city’s people have fought to make this place thrive.
While there is said to be over 250 species of ‘solitary bee’ buzzing around in Britain, Manchester’s worker bee reflects the city as a hive of activity, and represents a sense of unity at times when it’s needed most.
So it’s no wonder that we’re happy to take the title as the best UK city for bees.
Featured Image – Pinterest
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Benson Boone has announced a headline gig in Manchester – and it’s a big one
Danny Jones
American pop sensation and unrivalled king of unnecessary front flips, Benson Boone, has just announced his first-ever headline Manchester arena gig as part of a new arena tour.
The solo artist and acrobatic chart-topper has seen a meteoric rise in the US and, as is usually the case across the Atlantic, he’s become increasingly popular over here too.
Benson may have performed here in Manchester before as part of the 2024 MTV EMAs and for a small show at The Deaf Institute, but now big fans have the added Boone of getting to watch a standalone show at one of Europe’s leading indoor entertainment venues.
Announced on Friday, 30 May, the 22-year-old will be making his way across the pond from Washington for a limited run of UK concerts, with a date at Co-op Live arena being one of just five dates.
Extending his ‘American Heart Tour’ ahead of the release of his eponymous sophomore record, with this autumn leg, Co-op Live will mark his individual visit to 0161.
The Grammy-nominated artist has earned several nods of recognition already for his first album, Fireworks & Rollerblades, which was released just last spring.
He has been described as among the current trend of male singers who fit into the American Idol and ‘Voice audition pop’ genre (a term recently coined online), along with the likes of Teddy Swims, Shawn Mendes, Alex Warren and others.
Regardless of the slightly tongue-in-cheek term, he’s become a huge hit around the world and landing him is still a big coup for the venue that has already welcomed similarly massive pop contemporaries like Swims, Sabrina Carpenter, Olivia Rodrigo and more.
In case you’re wondering just how big a deal he is over in the States, even this early in his career, his domestic headline dates sold out in seconds, quite literally…
The last time he visited Co-op Live was to perform at the most recent MTV EMAs
Benson Boone is coming to Manchester on Monday, 27 October and will be playing just two other British venues: The O2 in London (two nights) and the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.
Safe to say you don’t want to miss this one if you like soaring vocals and lots of flipping.
General admission tickets go live at 10am on Thursday, 5 June, but Co-op Members can gain access via the arena’s official pre-sale window from the same time on Tuesday (3 Jun).
Manchester City plotting spending spree ‘before’ Club World Cup
Danny Jones
Manchester City are set to embark on somewhat of a spending spree this summer transfer window as the club’s higher-ups are looking to get business done before the 2025 Club World Cup.
With FIFA’s intercontinental club competition set to get underway in mid-June, the Blues don’t have too long to welcome in new players, but Man City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has reiterated their urgency regarding recruitment.
Despite having brought in four new acquisitions in a very short space of time last season, the 50-year-old argued that he wasn’t completely happy with the extent and speed of their business.
Giving a lengthy interview this week, CFG‘s founding chairman has imposed an internal deadline ahead of the lucrative knockout competition.
Speaking with club media, Khaldoon recognised that while there were incomings in January of this year, he believes they “should have been more aggressive in some of the changes we needed to do, adding that he believes it “cost [them].”
“I can tell you today, we have clearly identified who exactly [the targets are], in what positions, and we have our clear number one option, our clear number two option”, he continues.
More importantly, he goes on to add: “We’ll go about our business, and it will be very clear, very swift. Our objective is to try to be ready with the new squad for the Club World Cup.”
He also suggested the flurry of activity this past January was not just atypical of the administration, but felt the squad fell into a crisis state with the number of injuries, insisting they “had to act.”
City have already been linked with a hugely talented and highly-rated European target in the wake of Kevin De Bruyne‘s departure and a lack of strength in depth in midfield.
An initial bid is said to have been received already and will likely be the first of many City summer signings.
He also insisted that the players who joined last season weren’t scattershot, emergency transfers (perhaps barring the resigning of İlkay Gündoğan) but were the start of the rebuild and “gives [fans] an idea of what’s coming this summer.”
Another player linked with a move to the Etihad Stadium is Lyon star Rayan Cherki, who scored in big moments during their Europa League run this year, registering 32 goal contributions across all competitions throughout the 24/25 campaign.
Who would you like to see added to Pep Guardiola’s side this summer, then, Man City fans?
You can watch Khaldoon Al Mubarak’s interview in full down below:
Emily Sergeant -
14th April 2022 
