Meet the Manc doing a kebab-themed ‘Supersize Me’ to raise money for his little girl living with nerve tumours
An ordinary guy with an extraordinary appetite, Derek has decided to put his taste for junk food to good use - attempting to eat 60 kebabs in November.
The secret to a successful fundraiser? Capture the imagination.
Charity 10ks and mountain treks will always get donations from friends and family. But to grasp the attention of the wider public, you need to move the goalposts a bit.
Just ask Derek Breakey: The Manc who’s swapping a marathon for a ‘kebabathon’.
An ordinary guy with an extraordinary appetite, Derek has decided to put his body through a very different kind of test in exchange for charity donations.
Instead of hitting the pavement, he’ll be hitting the takeaway – putting his fondness for fatty foods to good use by attempting to eat 60 kebabs in a single month.
Throughout November, Derek will be scoffing down at least two kebabs a day to hit his target.
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A bold mission, especially given the fact that finishing a single kebab can leave many ordinary people curled up in the fetal position.
For many, kebabs are just greasy dishes whipped up to satiate the messy appetite of our drunken alter egos after dark.
But Derek, a self-professed kebab connoisseur, is hungry to change that perception.
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“The kebab game is much deeper and spans much farther than Joe Bloggs thinks,” he declares.
According to Derek, kebabs are far more complex than many people are willing to give them credit for. He’s one of the biggest posters on the Manchester Donner Connoisseurs social media group – and he’s even got his own criteria as to what makes a truly great kebab (quality meat, permeated bread, fresh salad, made-in-house sauce, depth of flavour).
But Derek’s month-long Kebabathon isn’t just a spur of the moment dive into flour-wrapped decadence. It’s an important journey with an even more important purpose.
With every bite he takes, Derek will be helping out his daughter.
The 34-year-old has taken on this challenge to raise funds for Nerve Tumours UK – a charity very close to heart.
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Derek’s little girl suffers from a genetic condition known as neurofibromatosis – which causes abnormal cell growth in the nerves.
By conquering 60 kebabs in less than a month, he’s hoping to turn a few heads – and support an amazing charity.
“I have set the target at £1,000, but realistically any amount of money I raise I will be happy with,” Derek tells us.
“I am basically giving myself 30 days to eat two kebabs every day. Totalling in 60 kebabs in 30 days in November.
“The most I have eaten in one month before was 39 in 28 days.”
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Taking on so many kebabs at once comes with risks, which is why Derek going to be eating healthily outside of the gorging windows – a little like Adam Richman used to do on Man v Food.
“I am indefinitely going to reduce my intake of unhealthy foods during this time,” Derek says.
“The intake of calories and fats have to be taken into account. And I am very much aware of the pros and cons of such an intake.
“I will be frequenting various establishments that me and the guys on the kebab connoisseurs group all know and love. And ones I haven’t tried yet. Each one will be getting a full review from me!”
You can follow every mouthful of Derek’s Kebabathon progress by joining the Manchester Donner Connoisseurs group, and you can donate to his worthy cause by visiting the fundraising page online.
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Fundraisers don’t come much more curious than this, so it should come as little surprise that he’s already attracted hundreds of pounds in donations before the challenge has even begun.
The viral factory in Oldham that sells £2 Colin the Caterpillar cakes
Thomas Melia
A factory in Oldham has gone viral online after sweet fiends discover they sell ‘Colin the Caterpillar’ cakes for less than half price.
There are some things that just go hand in hand: a brew and a biscuit, peanut butter and jelly and Brits and their crazy obsession with a character chocolate cake from M&S called Colin the Caterpillar.
Since hitting the shelves in 1990, more than 15 million Colin the Caterpillars have made their way from supermarket shop floor to our sweet-treat-awaiting plates.
Who would’ve ever guessed that the home to this cheeky chappy, who M&S have made their unofficial mascot (after Percy Pig, of course), has been crafted and created right here in Oldham?
The utterly delicious Colin the Caterpillar cake which you can get for £2 at Park Cakes.The shelves at Park Cakes are stacked with Colins and Connies.Credit: The Manc Eats
Established in 1937, The Park Cake Bakeries – or just Park Cakes, colloquially – has been serving up this critter-inspired cake for over 30 years, and savvy shoppers have flocked to their factory shop to get their hands on some very sweet savings.
There’s a whole range of cakes on offer at this Oldham dessert factory shop, including slabs, sponges, loaves and even sweet pies too.
Whether you’re a firm believer that the birthday person deserves all of Colin’s white-choc face or you precisely cut it up so everyone gets some, Park Cakes has the solution, selling bags of the character’s chocolatey face so you can have one all to yourself.
The cake isn’t the only thing that leaves a sweet taste in your mouth, as the prices will too. Colin the Caterpillar, who normally retails for just under a tenner, is sold for around £2 at this Oldham factory shop.
It’s always the ones that look unassuming, isn’t it?
Alongside producing one of the most adored cakes in the UK, they’re also responsible for lots more of your favourite supermarket sweet treats, and we’re definitely not complaining.
You can let your sweet tooth go wild in this factory shop as they sell everything from rainbow birthday cakes to sticky toffee puddings.
There’s so much on offer too, how about a giant bag packed to the brim with misshapen golden flapjacks that’ll last you over a week and cost you less than a fiver? Sounds like a plan to me.
If you haven’t had enough of your Easter chocolate fix, why not trek over to Oldham and stock up on even more chocolate and sweet treats? Trust us, there’s plenty to choose from.
Park Cakes factory shop can be found on Ashton Road in Oldham and is open from 10am-4pm, so go and grab yourself a seriously sweet deal before everyone else beats you to it.
Mini Colins, small in size but still packed with all that chocolatey goodness.Flapjacks and cookie dough bites are just some of the wonderful treats you might be able to get hold of.Credit: The Manc
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Adam Higgin (via Facebook)
Feature
Taemin at AO Arena: Take the K-pop world’s ‘Advice’ – you need to watch him live
Thomas Melia
This time last month, South Korean star, SHINee and SuperM boyband member, Taemin showed Manchester the real meaning of ‘The Rizzness’. It was our first K-pop gig and won’t be our last.
Normally, if you ask me what I’m getting up to on a Tuesday night, I’d respond with the usual: “Nothing.” Ask me this random but eye-opening night back in March 2025, and I’d say, “Watching the ‘Ephemeral Glaze’ tour”.
Opening with a song labelled ‘Déjà vu’, ironically, felt from the truth, as the minute the performer stepped onto the stage, the whole crowd was watching what felt like an all-new spectacle come to life – even for some of the already inducted K-pop fans inside the AO Arena.
Following up with ‘Guilty’, I’d be lying if I told you we didn’t love this performance. It wasn’t overshadowed by that unbelievable grand opening either – if anything, it was even better.
A majestic pose from Taemin at AO Arena in Manchester, performing to a lively crowd.Credit: Audio North
This was a setlist that just keeps on giving: after this, ‘Advice’ greets our ears and fans erupt in various screams and cries, to which Taemin, 31, certainly appreciated.
It’s high energy through and through, as the next song, ‘Idea’, felt like the missing piece of the jigsaw puzzle for those of us not so used to this kind of music, well and truly captivating the Manc crowd.
Closing what was merely his opening segment with this song was definitely a good ‘Idea’… (sorry).
Its title may draw from a comedic viral term used to describe someone with great flirting skills, a.k.a. ‘rizz’, but ‘The Rizzness’ is no laughing matter.
Fans caught on quickly, and as soon as the first note was pumped out into the arena, the atmosphere reached whole new heights and those familiar screams at an other-worldly pitch returned.
I never thought I’d see the day where AO Arena screamed, “You know I got the rizz, the rizzness”, but there’s a first time for everything, I guess.
Taemin and his dancers were electric at AO Arena.Credit: The Manc Group
Being from Korea, 31-year-old Taemin tried his best to communicate with the crowd throughout the night, taking breaks after back-to-back performances to gauge the audience’s reactions.
The South Korean superstar didn’t take long to warm up to the crowd and showed off his cheeky side, telling the arena, “Only 4 more songs” before finishing the sentence with “I lied”.
‘Criminal’ had me and the rest of Manchester weak in the knees; the choreography was flawless throughout, but this was a true highlight. Ending with ‘Say Less’, Taemin knew exactly what he was doing, putting a song that catchy right at the end, as this was all that replayed in my head on the train home.
Put it this way, we may still be relative newbies to the world of Korean pop music, but with another big name heading to Manchester, we’re definitely keen to find out more.
The Manc -
29th October 2020 
