Greggs is the bakery that’s adored across the nation – but one common grumble is that sometimes the food just isn’t served as warm as we’d all like.
It’s a uniquely soul-crushing experience to be eyeing up that perfect golden glossy pastry, all in neat rows, dreaming of the moment you sink your teeth through its flaky layers into the meaty middle, only to bite into a cold, limp, claggy sausage roll.
And it’s not a one-off – it’s pretty normal to be handed a lukewarm baked good in Greggs.
On Twitter, one person said: “The day I go to Greggs and don’t get given a cold steak bake will be the best day of my life”
Someone else said: “@GreggsOfficial is so sh*t. Why do we keep this cold pasty flogging business open? Never have I ever, left greggs and thought ‘wow what a nice hot pasty’.”
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Sausage rolls aren’t kept warm at Greggs.
But it turns out there is a perfectly good reason that Greggs doesn’t keep its food piping hot for its customers – and it’s a pretty smart business move.
The bakery giant chooses not to heat its food because of a tax loophole.
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In the UK, businesses are charged VAT on hot food to take away, but they aren’t charged it on cold food to take away.
John Thomson, who narrated the documentary, said: “They’re not being lazy, they’re being clever.”
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James Oldfield, a former store manager, revealed: “Most places will be keeping their product warm. The reason Greggs can have such reasonable prices is because they don’t have to charge VAT because they’re not keeping them warm, just baking them fresh.”
Instead of keeping their food heated, Greggs teams choose to bake their pastries (which are delivered frozen) in small batches, little and often, in the hopes that customers always get a freshly-baked lunch.
Greggs has confirmed a way to get yourself a hot sausage roll though – you just have to ask the question.
They said on Twitter: “We don’t serve our Bakes as hot as we’d need to charge VAT if we did.
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“You can always ask our Shop Team what’s fresh from the oven.”
Featured image: Greggs
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A Queer Eye favourite is bringing his first-ever UK comedy tour here to Manchester
Danny Jones
A much-loved member of the Queer Eye cast is set to embark on his debut UK comedy tour and is bringing his live stand-up gig to Manchester crowds.
If you’ve ever seen the successful Netflix reboot of the original Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, which aired its first season back in 2003, you’ll know that one of the biggest characters on the show is Jonathan Van Ness.
Known as the grooming expert on the series, Van Ness is just as popular a TV personality among fans as he is on the programme and in the entertainment industry itself.
He’s also got a pretty decent funny bone on him, too, and we’re glad to see he’s finally bringing his comic chops across the pond.
This is by no means the first time ‘JvN’ has leaned into the comedic side of his talents, having previously worked on the cult favourite digital web series Gay of Thrones, as well as his own Netflix documentary, Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness, which also has plenty of humour.
It’s also not his inaugural hour of stand-up either, as he released his maiden special, Fun & Slutty with Jonathan Van Ness, in his hometown of Austin, Texas, this past December.
Since then, he’s also started his own podcast called Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness – available via BBC Sounds – which also features a fair few jokes every week.
Put simply, the 38-year-old hairstylist and presenter is much more than that: he’s becoming an increasingly convincing jack of all trades, and we’re absolutely here for it.
You can hear the kind of material he last put out down below.
My first live comedy special is here! Mom worked so hard on this and is so excited to share her with you! You can watch her now on @Veeps: https://t.co/1i0vLvuT02 (on web, TV app, mobile, wherever!!) Plz share, watch w friends, tell your friends!! pic.twitter.com/b9n8PcmrfO
Speaking of his multi-talentedness, the Emmy-winning television personality, three-time New York Times best-selling author, podcaster, founder of JVN Hair AND now comedian might be one of the most prolific public figures on the planet at the moment.
He’s already sold out two critically acclaimed global tours, and with a whole new raft of European dates now announced, Jonathan’s UK and Ireland leg is sure to do the same.
Aldi is selling limited-edition ‘carrot’ gold engagement rings to celebrate Kevin’s Christmas proposal
Emily Sergeant
Can’t afford 24-carat gold? Don’t worry, Aldi is here to offer you a very clever solution instead.
In a world where celebrity proposals are making headlines on the regular, from Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce, to Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodriguez, showing off their with dazzling carat rocks like the prized possessions they are, Aldi has put its own spin on things – proving there’s room for more carrot and less carat.
The leading budget supermarket retailer has finally released the first part of its long-awaited Christmas advert for 2025, and that calls for celebration.
Although this year, there’s more to celebrate than ever before, as not only is it a decade of having the legend that isKevin the Carrot on our screens, but he has finally popped the question and proposed to his beloved Katie the Carrot.
To mark this milestone, Aldi has launched a range of exclusive, limited-edition ‘carrot’ gold engagement rings, designed to help Kevin fans stage their own proposal.
Aldi is selling limited-edition ‘carrot’ gold engagement rings to celebrate Kevin’s Christmas proposal / Credit: Aldi
Crafted in collaboration with British jeweller, Jessica Flinn Fine Jewellery, the bespoke rings feature a carrot-shaped orange cubic zirconia at its heart, complemented by two delicate marquise peridot accents.
Fancy getting your hands on one? The rings are now available through and exclusive shopper competition, and will be completely free for the lucky winners.
“This is the next step in Kevin and Katie’s journey,” explained Julie Ashfield, who is the Chief Commercial Officer at Aldi UK. “So we wanted to create something truly unique to commemorate the carrot couples’ love story – and what better way than with a truly unique ‘carrot’ ring.”
To be in with a chance of winning one of the limited-edition rings, all you need to do is share your festive proposal plans with Aldi and explain why a carrot-shaped ring is perfect for your partner.
Running up until 19 November, to enter, you just need to email [email protected] with your full name, your festive proposal plans, and the preferred ring size for your partner – Small (15.6mm), Medium (17.2mm), or Large (18.8mm).
You can watch the first part of Aldi’s Christmas for 2025 in full here:
Daisy Jackson -
15th April 2022 
