A huge homecoming concert will be held at the AO Arena this weekend to welcome back our Team GB athletes from the Paris 2024 Olympic games.
The National Lottery event on Saturday 17 August will feature huge music acts like Clean Bandit, Jess Glynne, Pete Tong and Rag’n’Bone Man.
And the best bit – tickets are still available thanks to a final batch being released, and they’re free (bar a £2 booking fee).
Teaming up with the National Lottery, Team GB will be getting a hero’s welcome when they fly back from the games this week.
The show will be a moment for the nation to party alongside the athletes and toast their incredible achievements, dedication and passion with pride.
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Set to take place at Manchester’s legendary AO Arena, The National Lottery’s Team GB Homecoming will be hosted by Emma Willis and Vernon Kay, with interviews and appearances from Olympic legends and rising stars.
This year’s events are also to thank National Lottery players whose funding helps support Team GB and Paralympics GB athletes to be the best they can be.
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A sister event for the Paralympics will also be hosted at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham on Thursday, 12 September, with coverage of both being broadcast on BBC One and iPlayer.
Since the National Lottery began funding to help support elite sport in 1997, Team GB has never fallen out of the top 10 in the medal table and came fourth at the Tokyo Olympics, winning a stunning 22 golds.
During the Tokyo 2020 English swimmer Adam Peaty won Team GB’s landmark 100th gold medal since National Lottery funding began, with a total of 117 golds won so far.
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And in Paris 2024, Team GB won 65 medals, including 14 gold, 22 silver and 29 bronze. Our athletes achieved the third-highest number of medals won by any country (beaten only by the USA and China), but ranked seventh overall.
TV presenter and host Vernon Kay said: “I’ve seen first-hand how amazingly dedicated and talented our athletes are and the difference the support of National Lottery players makes to their ability to be the best they can be.
“The National Lottery’s Team GB Homecoming event will be a moment to recognise the achievements of the athletes and thank National Lottery players who have helped them on their journey to Paris. I can’t wait to celebrate together!”
National Lottery players in Manchester and all over the country are helping power the Paris 2024 team and their homecoming event.
Co-host Emma Willis added: “There’s a fantastic buzz during the Olympics and The National Lottery’s Team GB Homecoming event will be the perfect way to celebrate and welcome home our phenomenal athletes.
“The National Lottery plays a key role in supporting them all to get to the Games, so everyone involved is ready for a big old party packed with athletes, artists, and of course, the public! I’m super excited to be asked to host, along with Vernon. I have no doubt it’ll be a very fun and special evening.”
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National Lottery players have the opportunity to enter a ballot to win a pair of free (barring a £2 booking fee). The ballot is now open with a total of 6,000 tickets up for grabs and those entering for tickets will be required to confirm they have a National Lottery ticket that they can present on the day of the event.
Team GB’s Manchester Olympic homecoming is due to take place on Saturday, 17 August with the broadcast set to go live the following day. You can grab your tickets here.
Manchester bar announces huge giveaway of margaritas to celebrate first birthday
Daisy Jackson
A cocktail and shuffleboard bar in Manchester city centre is throwing a weekend-long party to celebrate its first birthday, and there are free cocktails up for grabs.
Electric Shuffle is kindly offering to give all of us presents for its birthday, with an epic free margarita giveaway.
That’s alongside an almighty party that includes resident DJs, live music performances, giveaways, exclusive offers, a cracking happy hour and a free photobooth.
The Deansgate activity bar, which has 15 interactive high-tech shuffleboards to play, each one loaded with different game modes, is celebrating one year in the city centre between Friday 20 and Sunday 22 June.
They’re throwing a three-day-long celebration, kicking off at 5pm on Friday with a giveaway of margaritas for the first 250 guests through the doors.
Then there’ll be an Electric Shuffle birthday prize game, where each slide of the puck could unlock prizes like bar tabs, brunch tickets, branded merch, cocktails, pizzas and more.
Singer-songwriter Luke McColl will be playing live during the evening, and you’ll be able to dive into a free photobooth all evening.
Electric Shuffle ManchesterFood and drink at the premium gaming barElectric Shuffle Manchester turns one
Moving on to Saturday’s celebrations – expect happy hour deals all day long, like £4 pins and £7 Sarti Spritzes, complimentary shuffleboard hire (you need to pre-book HERE), a special late brunch session between 5pm and 7pm, and more prize giveaways.
This part of the birthday party will be soundtracked by resident DJs and a live set from Elle Graham.
And if you thought that was the end of the party, you’re mistaken.
On Sunday, Electric Shuffle will host free shuffleboard all day long.
All summer, there’ll be a Margs and Margs deal, where you can get two margarita cocktails and a margarita pizza for just £25.
Electric Shuffle’s first birthday celebrations take place between 20 and 22 June.
Ashton town centre is hosting one of Greater Manchester’s ‘wildest’ street parties this summer
Emily Sergeant
One of the ‘wildest’ street parties is arriving in a popular Greater Manchester town centre this summer.
From giant Star Wars machines to a full-scale wrestling ring, life-sized dinosaurs roaming around, and everything in between, a bold new community celebration hits Market Avenue in Ashton-under-Lyne early next month… and as you can tell, there’ll be something for visitors of all ages to get involved with on the day.
This is Street Life – a brand new one-day community festival taking over the Tameside town.
Free to attend and open to all ages, event organisers are promising that it’ll be an ‘explosion’ of creativity, culture, and big day-out energy, all to celebrate the very best of what Ashton has to offer.
It may sound like something out of a Comic Con, but it’s all happening in Greater Manchester, and at the centre of the spectacle is a rare appearance from a towering eight-metre Scout Walker, which is a jaw-dropping mechanical build direct from the Star Wars universe.
The build was previously exclusive to private exhibitions, but this is the first time it will be appearing at a community event free for all to see.
That’s only the beginning of all the action happening though, as some of the other things visitors can look forward to include a pop-up cinema screening family classics, a performance from Britain’s Got Talent finalist dance troupe of disco stormtroopers, Boogie Storm, live music and DJ sets from a wide range of genres, and so much more.
There’ll be free face painting, festive hair braiding, and temporary glitter tattoos for kids, as well as local businesses showcasing on market stalls, and loads of pop-up street food by local vendors.
“We want to give Ashton something to be proud of,” says the Street Life team.
“This is about creating joy, spotlighting local talent, and reminding people how fun and vibrant a town centre can be. There’s truly something for everyone.
“Following the huge success of a last-minute VE Day street party last month, which brought the community together in the most brilliant, unexpected way, we saw the opportunity to scale it up, dream bigger, and create something beyond anyone’s wildest expectations.”
Danny Jones -
13th August 2024 
