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Five Manchester bars have just been named in the UK’s Top 50 Cocktail Bars

Did you say Stray? I thought you said SLAY.

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 11th February 2025

Five bars in Manchester have just received one of the industry’s highest accolades – a place in the UK’s Top 50 Cocktail Bars.

In a glittering ceremony down in London today, the best in the cocktail industry were crowned, and our city has a lot to be proud of.

Manchester now has five cocktail bars in the Top 50, with two new entries this year.

And while Schofield’s has been toppled from the top spot this year, this award-winning bar on Quay Street is still heading home with a podium finish, now ranked the third-best bar in the entire UK.

One of the new faces on the prestigious list is Stray, a beautiful cocktail bar tucked into a corner of Mackie Mayor.

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Famed for its tomato vine margaritas, as well as the pain-staking effort the team goes to to infuse their own spirits and make their own cordials, Stray has deservedly debuted at number 25. And we have a feeling they’re just getting started.

Red Light is another new name on the list, after taking home the coveted ‘One To Watch’ award in 2024.

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Red Light in Manchester has been named in the Top 50 Cocktail Bars
Red Light
Stray in Manchester has been named in the Top 50 Cocktail Bars
Stray
Blinker in Manchester has been named in the Top 50 Cocktail Bars
Blinker

The gorgeous LGBTQ+ cocktail bar on Little David Street at Kampus has placed 40th.

Blinker has held on to a place in the Top 50 Cocktail Bars list, dropping down to 22nd – still a phenomenal achievement for the Spring Gardens boozer.

Blinker has a dedicated martini menu, and also serves them alongside retro Breville toasties.

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And finally, Speak In Code on Jackson’s Row jumped up into 11th place.

There were also amazing results for our sister cities in Sheffield and Leeds, with The Pearl at Parkhill at 44 and Public at 39 for the former, and Tabula Rasa at 27 and Below Stairs at 11 for the latter.

A huge congratulations to all these very worthy winners.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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Salford named one of the most expensive UK cities to rent in

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

One of Greater Manchester’s major cities has been named among the most expensive UK cities to rent a property in.

It was just last week that the Greater Manchester town of Swinton was named a ‘property hotspot’ for 2025 by Rightmove, after house prices there increased by nearly 10% on average last year, and now, the city of Salford itself is also being put under the property spotlight.

That’s because the leading property listing platform has highlighted the city as being one of the most expensive for renters in the whole of the UK.

With 2025 set to be a year of relocation for many, Rightmove has looked at rental costs across more than 50 cities in Great Britain in a bid to find the cheapest – and by contrast, the most expensive – places to rent right now.

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Salford has been named one of the most expensive UK cities to rent in / Credit: Benjamin Elliott | Pexels

When it comes to the most expensive UK city to rent in, we doubt it’ll come as a shock to you that the English capital of London takes the top spot.

Some of the other expected cities featuring in the top 10 list, according to Rightmove’s research, include Oxford, Brighton, Cambridge, and the Scottish capital on Edinburgh, but a more surprising entry for Greater Manchester residents is the fact that Salford takes up the eighth spot – with an average monthly rental price of £1,739.

Top 10 most expensive UK cities to rent in

  1. London (£2,695)
  2. St. Albans (£2,330)
  3. Oxford (£2,041)
  4. Winchester (£1,985)
  5. Brighton (£1,880)
  6. Cambridge (£1,870)
  7. Chelmsford (£1,857)
  8. Salford (£1,739)
  9. Milton Keynes (£1,641)
  10. Edinburgh (£1,620)

On the other end of the spectrum, the cheapest UK city to rent a property in is Hull, with the average monthly rental price there being £799, while some of the other North West cities featuring in the top 10 include Preston, Lancaster, and Carlisle.

When taking a look nationally, the average advertised rent per calendar month stands at £1,526, as of January 2025 – which is up 4.3% compared with this time year last year.

But Rightmove says that price changes, as well as average rental prices, vary significantly depending on the location.

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Take Salford for example, which is one of the most expensive cities for renting, the monthly cost of renting has jumped by 30.5% in the last year, whereas in Dundee, prices have dropped by 3.7% during the same period.

Featured Image – Wikimedia Commons

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Chester Zoo is giving away more than 30,000 FREE tickets to children

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Kids at Chester Zoo

Chester Zoo is giving away thousands of tickets to local schools to help inspire a new generation of young conservationists.

The UK’s largest charity zoo is on a mission to help nature to “survive and thrive”.

And so, in a bid to do just that, has announced that it will once again be handing out tens of thousands of tickets to schoolchildren for completely free of charge, so that they can explore the zoo up close and learn all about the inspiring work the conservation charity does.

Chester Zoo‘s free ticket scheme has been running since 2017, and has already seen more than 175,000 children get to experience all the wonders the zoo has to offer.

With the hopes of empowering as many youngsters as possible, and sparking their passion for saving species once again, the zoo has now opened the scheme back up for the 2025/26 season – with a whopping 33,000 tickets available for schools, nurseries, and colleges to claim.

Those who secure tickets will have the opportunity to visit the zoo between this November and February 2026.

Applications are open to any school in the UK that hasn’t already benefitted from the scheme within the last four academic years, while home educators are also eligible to apply as a group through a Home Educators’ Network.

Penguins at Chester Zoo
Schoolchildren at Chester Zoo
Chester Zoo is giving away more than 30,000 free tickets to children this year / Credit: Chester Zoo

“We’re offering thousands of children the opportunity to experience the wonders of the natural world firsthand at the zoo,” commented Charlotte Smith, who is the Director of Conservation Education and Engagement at Chester Zoo.

“Young people are more concerned than ever about nature decline and climate change, and by working closely with schools across the UK, we can provide them with the skills, knowledge and inspiration to make a real positive difference.”

She added that “every child has the potential to be a future conservationist”.

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Places are limited each day to ensure everyone can enjoy their zoo visit – with priority given to schools who have not benefitted from the scheme before.

You can find out more and apply for free tickets here.

Featured Image – Chester Zoo

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