Chris Kamara was left close to tears after football fans gave him a standing ovation during a return to one of his former clubs over the weekend.
The Middlesbrough-born ex-footballer, manager, and football analyst turned broadcaster was given a hero’s welcome when he returned to Leeds United’s ground Elland Road for a Premier League clash between the West Yorkshire side and Brentford yesterday afternoon.
The 65-year-old, who is affectionately known as ‘Kammy’, said his “boyhood dreams came true” during an emotional speech at the side of the pitch.
Kamara notably played for both London club Brentford from 1981-1985, and West Yorkshire side Leeds United from 1990-1991, where he collectively made hundreds of appearances as a tough-tackling midfielder for both teams during his career.
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Following his stint as a professional footballer, he has since amassed a huge following of fans from his time as a match correspondant and pundit over the past two decades.
And all of these fans came together to show their support to the broadcasting legend before the match.
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Kamara – who was given an MBE for his services to football, anti-racism and charity in the latest New Year Honours List – revealed that he is suffering from speech apraxia in March 2022, and announced at the end of last season that he was leaving Sky after the disorder has sadly left him with limited and difficult speech ability.
Chris Kamara receives standing ovation from supportive fans after emotional speech / Credit: Sky Sports
Since bravely speaking about his diagnosis, Kamara went on to receive an outpouring of support from key figures and fans in the footballing world.
After receiving a warm welcome and a standing ovation from both sets of supporters inside Elland Road on Sunday, a thankful Kamara addressed the crowd saying: “Unbelievable! When I played in this stadium for Leeds United it made my boyhood dreams come true, who would’ve thought 33 years later you would give me a reception like this?
He also addressed the away fans inside the stadium, and reminisced on the “great” spell he had at the club, before closing out his speech thanking everyone to even more rapturous applause.
“Thank you everybody,” he concluded with a wave.
Featured Image – Leeds United
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Home Bargains has announced a special two-day closure of all UK stores
Emily Sergeant
Home Bargains has, once again, announced it’ll be closing all its UK stores on both Boxing Day and New Year’s Day this year.
And it’s to make sure staff get a ‘well deserved break’.
After what has been yet another busy year for the retail industry, many workers have been left feeling like they could do with a little extra time off, which is why Home Bargains is following on with what has become a now-annual tradition by shutting up shop on two bank holidays.
All of our stores will be closing for Boxing Day & New Years Day.
Announcing the move in a post on social media, the discount retailer confirmed: “All of our stores will be closing for Boxing Day and New Years Day. We would like to thank all our colleagues for how hard you have worked this past year, and want you to relax and enjoy the Christmas break with your loved ones.”
Of course, this isn’t the first time the retailer has kept its doors shut on bank holidays.
Many shoppers will recall it has made the same decision to give hardworking staff a break every year since 2019.
Explaining a little more about the decision taken to close all its stores, Home Bargains said: “As a family-run business, we know the importance of being together at Christmas with those we care about most, now more than ever.
“This is our way of saying thank you to our colleagues for their continued hard work and dedication.”
Featured Image – Geograph
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Two Greggs in Manchester will be serving their breakfast menu in the evening next week
Emily Sergeant
Who says breakfast has to end at 11am?
In news that’s set to be music to the ears of breakfast lovers in Manchester, Greggs is giving them exactly what they want.
We all know that brunch is a ‘thing’ by now, so now it’s time for brinner to make a name for itself instead, as Greggs has teamed up with Heinz to bring its much-loved breakfast menu back for tea time, kicking off from 4pm onwards.
The move comes as a new survey has found that the majority of Mancs (69%) admit to enjoying eating breakfast food in the evening, saying it’s ‘convenient and comforting’ – even ranking breakfast as a ‘more important’ meal than tea, as well (38% vs 36%).
Two Greggs in Manchester will be serving their breakfast menu in the evening next week / Credit: Greggs (Supplied)
Greggs says it has ‘lost count’ of the amount of customers that have tried to order breakfast items after the usual cut-off time, especially in Greater Manchester.
But luckily for those breakfast-loving Mancs, they can finally get their favourite breakfast and sauce pairing long after the morning rush is over next… but only at two Greggs branches, and only for a very limited time.
On Wednesday 14 and Thursday 15 October, the Heinz x Greggs Brinner collab will be available at Greggs St Mary’s Gate and Greggs Oxford Road, from 4-7pm only.
“We’ve lost count of the number of customers who have tried their luck ordering breakfast after 11am, so when Heinz came to us with the idea of making Brinner a reality, it felt like the perfect excuse to give the people what they want,” explained Zoe Harris, who is the Customer Director at Greggs.
“And let’s be honest, a Greggs Bacon Roll just wouldn’t be the same without a squeeze of Heinz Tomato Ketchup.”
Emily Sergeant -
23rd January 2023 
