And this year’s instalment was even more impressive, with a target of 16 (SIXTEEN!) cans in his sights.
Once again, what starts off as a fairly ordered and logical Twitter thread soon descends into madness, including dancing videos, puns, swearing, and plenty of typos.
Rob’s tradition, now coined ‘Boddmas’, has even drawn support from Ed Gamble this year.
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And for 2022, he worked out how to set up a crowd-funded hangover recovery fund, with more than 100 people donating to get him through his Boddingtons hangover.
Highlights from this year included an impassioned rant about Declan Rice (‘a sound as f*ck geeza, heart of gold, wonderful sprit, we can’t get enough’), a break for hoisin duck pancakes, and a desperate bid for the attention of whoever manages Boddingtons’ social media channels.
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Rob’s Boddingtons Boxing Day mission reached 16 cans this year.
The ‘official’ rules of Boddmas include sticking to a 12pm-12am window for the binge-drinking marathon, tweeting an update each time a can is opened, and ‘having fun’.
Reaching the halfway mark, Rob tweeted: “Number 8 is making me sentimental, how far we’ve come how far we have to go. It’s all the same when you’re rushing on Boddingtons.”
The typos really kicked up a notch after this, with him adding: “Feeling cockey about how fine I feel after 10… but then realised I’ve got 6 to go… Have a feeling I might be humbled in the final striaght.”
As things went on, he posted: “No13! Come at me! Like Ally McOist I’m mosit for it! I hope to have a face so red and booze bitten one day. One can only dream. We love you Ally!” – which is… definitely words.
The mental no-context celebrity mentions continued after that, including this: “Fifteen. Reckon I could beat 50 cent in a wrestling match at this point. He must be old by now no? Get rich for die wrestling the Boddingtons guy! What’s his name Curtis Jackson right? Bring it on Curtis!”
And then this morning? Rob says he ‘woke up sweating yellow’.
During the Boddmas celebrations, one person Photoshopped Rob’s head into a World Cup photo as a mark of encouragement, writing: “You are Messi and number 16 is your World Cup Final.”
Someone else said: “If you only do one thing this Boxing Day, make sure it’s watching @Robertdcopland drink a mountain of Boddington’s (16 cans). Last year’s 15 cans was utterly glorious. #BODDMAS2022”
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Another person posted: “For the second year in a row i am fully emotionally invested in @Robertdcopland trying to drink 16 cans of boddingtons.”
Dozens more shared photos of themselves watching along with a can of their own in their hands.
Here’s hoping this is a tradition that never ends – and we’re looking forward to the 17 can mission in 2023.
Manchester’s 2025 Christmas Parade in pictures as tens of thousands turn out for festive event
Emily Sergeant
Tens of thousands of residents flocked to the city centre this past weekend for Manchester’s annual Christmas Parade.
Over the past few years since it first took place in 2022, Manchester Christmas Parade has become a festive favourite with both locals and visitors alike, and with more than 400 participants and performers gracing the city’s main shopping streets this year, it’s really not hard to see why it’s a much-loved fixture in the city’s countdown to Christmas.
Seen by many as the heartwarming event of the festive season, Manchester Christmas Parade was even ‘bigger and better’ than last year’s fantastic crowdpleaser.
Even a drop of the classic Manchester rain didn’t stop play on the day, as the fabulous festive Parade made its way through the packed city streets to the smiles and cheers of all those watching.
Despite the Manchester weather, tens of thousands of you turned out to make Sunday’s Christmas Parade truly magical. 🎅 👼 🥁
A huge thank you to everyone who joined us for the heart-warming event of the season.
“I remember thinking at the end of our fabulous Manchester Christmas Parade last year that we would never be able to top it,” commented Cllr Pat Karney, Manchester City Council’s Christmas spokesperson. “But this year’s parade has been off-the-scale brilliant – it was so much fun and you could see how much all the children loved it.
“The city centre was heaving, it felt like millions of Mancs had turned out for the parade, and what a performance we put on for them.”
The streets were filled with music and laughter this year, as well as the return of Manchester’s very-own Elf Express, complete with VIP passenger Santa hitching a ride on his way to the North Pole, together with his trusty team of elves.
Tens of thousands of people turned out for Manchester Christmas Parade 2025 this past weekend / Credit: Manchester City Council
Not only that, but Nutcracker-inspired toy soldiers also sweept their way through the Parade on segways, alongside a roaming Christmas tree, a pair of gentle giant-sized reindeer, a stunning arctic fox, and Jack Frost himself.
Brand-new for this year will be the fantastic Festive Fantasy Candyland Castle, which stood over three-meters tall and truly was the stuff of fairytales.
“Manchester once again helped make the magic and the memories for a whole generation of families from across the city and beyond,” Cllr Karney concluded.
Featured Image – Manchester City Council
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A big battle of the bands is happening in Manchester this week – and it’s all for charity
Danny Jones
A massive battle of the bands event is happening in Manchester this week, and it’s helping raise money for crucial grassroots organisations.
Better still, it’s happening at one of our favourite venues in the city centre: Band on the Wall.
Now, the beloved Northern Quarter institution hosts all kinds of live music throughout the year, so they’re no strangers to events like a battle of the bands competition. Teaming up with homegrown charity Forever Manchester and some other well-known faces, this is set to be a big one.
This brand new event will see local businesses and employees come together to form a band for one night only, to see who is the best of the best up on stage. Who knows? You could be about to see the best-kept secret…
Yes, Manc worker bees are banding together (quite literally) to form the exclusive super group and will be judged by a panel of audiophile aficionados.
It doesn’t matter whether you work in the industry, you do office admin or work in a cafe all day long; at the debut ‘Forever Manchester Rocks‘ competition, consider yourself a music god in the making.
The live on-stage battle is open to pre-existing bands who have already played together, but we’ll confess, we’re looking forward to seeing what those cobbled together specifically for this contest are going to sound like.
Finalists not only have the opportunity to perform at the most iconic venues, but the winners of this year’s competition will claim the inaugural ‘Manchester Business Rocks Legends’ trophy, as well as being invited to play the annual Forever Manchester Birthday Party at the Kimpton Clocktower in February.
Once again, the best part of this new battle of the bands event at Band on the Wall is that it’s all for the greater good, with important funding being generated for local community groups – a cause that both pursue with 24/7, 365 days a year.
If you’re interested in a last-minute sign-up, the rules for entering the competition are as follows:
A majority of band members must work at the same company or in the same industry
Covers or originals welcome – just bring your best 15-minute set
You bring the instruments and tunes – the backline, PA and sound engineer will be provided
Acts will be judged on talent, energy, crowd reaction, showmanship and amount of money raised.
Nick Massey CBE, chief exec at Forever Manchester, said: “As a region famed for its musical prowess, entrepreneurial spirit and its sense of community, Forever Manchester Rocks just made total sense to me as our next big occasion.
“It is a battle like no other, and we’re calling for businesses across the region to trade their KPIs for killer riffs to show us how they shine on stage… And it’s all in support of a fantastic cause, with the money raised helping to fund vital community initiatives in the Greater Manchester region.
“We can’t wait to see colleagues from across the region unleash their hidden talents and bring that Manchester energy to Band on the Wall on 10 December!”
For those looking to come along this Wednesday (10 Dec), you can grab your tickets HERE.
Daisy Jackson -
27th December 2022 
