Christmas

The Coca-Cola Christmas truck is coming to Manchester – and it’s very soon

Get your skates on.

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 30th November 2022

The arrival of the Coca-Cola Christmas advert is always the klaxon to suggest that the festive season has properly arrived – and the iconic truck is going on tour.

It was announced last week that the big festive truck would be visiting cities around the UK this winter.

But the exact locations and dates are finally being revealed.

The fizzy drink giant has been drip-feeding its upcoming tour dates and has at last announced when it will roll into Manchester.

The Coca-Cola Christmas truck is set to park up in our home city on Friday 2 December – so it’s not a lot of advance warning.

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It will be at Asda Sportcity, just north of the city centre.

The truck is on a mission to visit as many cities around the UK as possible as part of ‘The Magic of Giving’ Christmas campaign.

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There’ll be a ‘magical winter market’ setting with activities, festive food huts, an ‘elfie selfie’ photo opportunity and a chance to purchase personalised Coca‑Cola Zero Sugar and Coca‑Cola Original Taste.

Every visit made to the Coca‑Cola Christmas Truck will also help to support people experiencing food poverty, with the brand working with FareShare.

It will be donating the equivalent of up to 100,000 meals to those in need throughout the festive season.

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Coca-Cola is also collaborating with the Royal National Institute of Blind People and NaviLens to make its Christmas packaging accessible for blind and partially sighted people.

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Laura Moon, senior brand manager at The Coca‑Cola Company, Great Britain, said: “Coca‑Cola has always been synonymous with Christmas, particularly the iconic Truck Tour and Holidays Are Coming advert. This year, the magic of Christmas is needed more than ever, and we are excited to bring back our famous truck tour to fans nationwide.

“We’re also extremely pleased to continue our relationship with FareShare and for every person that visits the Truck Tour, we’ll donate the equivalent of a meal on their behalf, supporting those most in need this festive season.”

The dates confirmed so far are:

  • November 25 – Bluewater Shopping Centre, Kent
  • November 26 and 27 – Sainsbury’s, Beckton
  • November 29 – Farmhouse Inns, Glasgow
  • December 1 – Wembley Park, London
  • December 2 – Asda Sportcity, Manchester
  • December 8 to 10 – Dublin
  • December 16 and 17 – Belfast

Featured image: Coca-Cola

Christmas

‘Glittering winter adventure’ set to take over Tatton Park this Christmas

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

The magnificent grounds of Tatton Park will be transformed into a ‘glittering winter adventure’ this festive season.

With spooky season now a thing of the past, and Christmas merely a few weeks away, families will soon be whisked away into a world of folklore, enchantment, and enthralling performances as they enter the gardens of the stunning Tatton Park in Cheshire for an immersive, festival-like experience known as Yuletide.

Organisers say the captivating event promises to be a “truly magical experience” where folklore stories come to life through storytelling and live music.

A ‘glittering winter adventure’ is set to take over Tatton Park this Christmas / Credit: Supplied

All set to transport visitors right into the heart of Yuletide tales, the exciting new event – which opens next weekend, and runs through until late December – is produced by Wild Rumpus, who you may know for other magical local events such as ‘The Lanterns’ at Chester Zoo (2018-2022) and Just So Festival.

The highlight of this new event has to be The Glittering Trail, where beautifully-illuminated puppets and performers bring legendary stories of Yuletide to life as visitors wander through the park’s popular Japanese Gardens and make the most of the stunning winter landscape.

Families can gather around an open fire to toast marshmallows, all while they watch live performances that add even more magic to the evening.

Yuletide will be running at Tatton Park on selected dates from Saturday 16 November through to Monday 23 December, and tickets are on sale now – with adult tickets costing £20, children paying just £12 each, and free personal assistant passes are also available.

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Find out more and book your tickets here.

Featured Image – Supplied

Christmas

Why Big Santa WON’T be in Manchester when the Christmas Markets open this week

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Why Big Santa WON'T be in Manchester when the Christmas Markets open this week

The sheds have taken over the city centre already, with the huge Christmas Markets officially opening on Friday 8 November.

A big character during the festive season in Manchester is, of course, our light-up Big Santa.

He’s taken on a few different forms over the years, from the huge inflatable character who used to scale the Manchester Town Hall to the piercing gaze of the city’s legendary ‘Zippy’.

The newest Big Santa is a large fella sitting on a big present, sporting a white handlebar moustache and holding a Manchester bee in his hand.

Over the years, this festive figure has been joined by several other glowing installations, like twinkling baubles you can walk through and huge stars.

And when the markets were held at Albert Square, they normally opened with Big Santa proudly already in position.

But this year the arrival of the Manchester Christmas Markets doesn’t mean the start of the festive light trail, or the return of Big Santa – so don’t go looking for him on Friday.

That’s because he won’t be installed on his perch at St Peter’s Square until after Remembrance Sunday, with a poignant service being held at the Cenotaph in the square next weekend.

Manchester Christmas Markets 2024 - dates, locations, times and stalls confirmed
Big Santa won’t be there when the Manchester Christmas Markets open on Friday. Credit: The Manc Group

Father Christmas will be installed at St Peter’s Square in the days after Remembrance Sunday.

Speaking of the Manchester Christmas Markets, councillor Pat Karney said: “Nowhere does Christmas quite like Manchester and with more than a quarter of a century of our world-famous legendary Christmas markets under our belts, we reckon we’ve got everyone’s Christmas wrapped.

“The number of people who’ve visited our markets over the years must be well over the fifty million mark by now and twenty-six years on from our first-ever Christmas Market in 1998 we regularly attract visitors from around the globe.

“We can’t wait to welcome everyone back again to Santa’s favourite city to enjoy the markets and share in all the festive fun. Grab some tinsel, find a friend or round up the family, and come and join us!”

The Manchester Christmas Markets open on Friday 8 November and close on Sunday 22 December, with Big Santa arriving in mid-November.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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