News
Storm Debi to bring strong winds with ‘significant impacts’ to Greater Manchester this week
We're in for a blustery one.
We could say it’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas here in Greater Manchester now… but that wouldn’t be quite accurate.
Sure, Manchester Christmas Markets may have kicked-off for 2023 last Friday, the city’s resident Big Santa has taken pride of place in St Peter’s Square for another year this morning, and the rest of the region has an events calendar that’s absolutely packed with all sorts of seasonal activities and celebrations over the next few weeks.
But the weather? Yeah, the weather is really not so festive at all.
That’s because the Met Office has officially named the next storm set to hit the UK as Storm Debi, and she’s on her way to northern England this week.
Storm Debi is first set to bring “very strong, potentially damaging winds, and heavy rain” to the Republic of Ireland from this morning, according to the Met Office, all before it goes on to “bring impacts” to other parts of the UK – including Greater Manchester.
With a number of yellow and amber weather warnings issued for wind and rain across the UK, forecasters say Storm Debi will “develop quickly” and “bring “potentially very strong and damaging winds” to parts of Ireland.
“The strongest winds are expected to affect parts of Ireland early on Monday, possibly coinciding with the morning commute, before then affecting parts of north Wales and northern England into the afternoon,” explained Jason Kelly, who is a Chief Meteorologist with the Met Office.
“Whilst the very strongest winds will have eased somewhat before reaching the UK, we are still expecting some significant impacts, and a wind warning has been issued.”
According to the Met Office, Storm Debi – which is the fourth storm named as part of the Met Office’s 2023/2024 storm-naming initiative – will develop, in part, because of a very strong jet stream crossing the Atlantic, which is said to be “responsible for the very unsettled period of weather we are currently experiencing” – with the core of the jet stream currently located to the south of the UK.
Storm Debi will move through into the North Sea during Monday evening.
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“Further areas of low pressure may develop and affect the UK during the coming week,” Mr Kelly concluded.
Featured Image – Matt Atherton (via Unsplash)
News
Former One Direction star Louis Tomlinson is heading to Manchester on a new world tour
Daisy Jackson
Ex-One Direction star Louis Tomlinson will perform a huge gig in Manchester next year as part of a newly-announced world tour.
The singer-songwriter will be heading to the Co-op Live arena with his ‘How Did We Get Here?’ tour in 2026.
The 33-year-old star, formerly one-fifth of hit boyband One Direction, announced the news hot on the heels of the release of his latest single Lemonade.
Doncaster-born Louis Tomlinson will visit UK cities including Leeds, Birmingham, Glasgow, Brighton and London, as well as that massive show in Manchester.
Louis continues to establish himself as one of the UK’s top live performers, with hits like Back to You, Just Hold On, and fan-favourite tracks from his critically acclaimed albums.
He launched himself as a solo artist back in 2020 with Walls, shifting more than 1.2 million copies worldwide and amassing nearly 1 billion streams.
He then went on to release Faith In The Future in 2022 (a chart-topping album in the UK and top five in the US).
This new world tour will showcase his evolution from global pop superstar to respected solo artist.
Louis Tomlinson will perform at the Co-op Live arena on Friday 24 April, 2026.
Tickets will go on sale at 9am on Friday 10 October HERE.
Louis Tomlinson UK and Ireland 2026 tour dates
- Fri 24 April – Co-op Live, Manchester
- Sat 25 April – Utilita Arena, Birmingham
- Mon 27 April – OVO Hydro, Glasgow
- Tues 28 April- First Direct Arena, Leeds
- Thurs 30 April – 3Arena, Dublin
- Sat 2 May – The Brighton Centre, Brighton
- Sun 3 May – The O2, London
Read more
Featured image: Publicity Picture
News
Heaton Park announces the death of another one of its beloved resident donkeys
Emily Sergeant
Another one of Heaton Park’s beloved resident donkeys has sadly passed away, the park has announced this week.
Back in May of this year, Heaton Park shared the devastating news that one of its well-known resident donkeys called Lenny had been diagnosed with an endocrine disease, and would therefore have to start undergoing specialist medical treatment moving forward.
The treatment Lenny would be receiving was to support his health during his retirement, as not long prior to his diagnosis, he had reached approximately 30 years of age.
Considering that The Donkey Sanctuary says the average life expectancy for a donkey is just over 30, reaching this age was said to be a ‘significant achievement’ for Lenny and everyone who cared for him.
Sadly though, as the months went on, things started taking a turn for the worse.
Heaton Park‘s Estates Team requested an onsite vet visit after identifying some changes with Lenny’s health, and these changes were subsequently linked to a condition called hyperlipaemia.
It’s with ‘great sadness’ that the park had to announce to the public that Lenny passed away later that same day.
“Lenny was a staple in Heaton Park and was a significant star in the memories of both staff and our visitors, he will be deeply missed by us all,” the Estates Team said in a touching tribute shared on the park’s social media.
Lenny’s passing unfortunately comes not long after the death of one of Heaton Park’s post well-known resident donkeys, Ralph, who died in early June of this year at the grand old age of 40 years old – with many tributes being paid to him.
Following both Lenny and Ralph’s deaths, the Estates Team has assured visitors that the remaining two resident donkeys, Bonnie and Josh, are ‘doing well’ and are being ‘monitored closely’
Bonnie and Josh are being monitored closely for ‘any changes in behaviour which could indicate stress’ as a result of Lenny’s unexpected passing, as the Estates Team says that visitors may notice them on ‘a few extra walks’ around the park over the coming weeks.
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Visitors are asked to ‘say hello’ to Bonnie and Josh if they see them on a walk around the park over the next couple of weeks.
Many tributes to Lenny have been flooding in on Facebook.
Featured Image – Heaton Park & Hall (via Facebook)
