Jason Baird has become somewhat of a local superhero since the pandemic first hit back in March of last year.
And we mean that both figuratively, and literally.
Alongside his friend Andrew Baldock, Jason has proudly become one half of the now-famous Stockport Spider-Men, and has been donning his spidey suit to weave a web of joy and lift the spirits of the community while out on his daily jogs for the past 11 months.
The dad-of-two and martial arts instructor has backflipped his way through three lockdowns, and has earned himself international recognition and tens of thousands of fans in the process.
Spotting spidey on his travels has become a popular activity for the people of Stockport, with children making special ‘stop here’ signs for their front windows, dressing up in masks and spider suits themselves to join in on the fun, and just generally looking forward to his arrival.
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While putting smiles on faces at a time when it’s needed more than ever has ultimately been Jason’s goal over this past year, the character’s most-famous quote has remained firmly in his mind.
“With great power comes great responsibility”.
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It was these important words that inspired Jason to not just make a positive change through his actions, but to create a lasting legacy with them.
A lasting legacy that has seen him raise over £75,000 and counting for charity.
The organisation most-significantly benefitting from Jason’s achievements is youth suicide prevention charity PAPYRUS – a cause that is very close to his heart, especially after admitting that he has struggled with his own mental health in recent months, and has sadly lost a friend to suicide during the first lockdown.
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The charity says that suicide is the biggest killer of under 35’s in the UK, and it’s believed that around 200 school-aged children take their own lives each year.
Jason Baird
And it was in the name of PAPYRUS that Jason completed his most impressive feat yet this past weekend.
He set himself the challenge of running an ultramarathon – equivalent to 50 miles – by making his way across the entire Greater Manchester borough, and after taking 100,000 steps, burning 6000+ calories, being accompanied on different legs by other socially-distanced comic book characters, including Batman, Wonder Woman, Iron Man and more, and running for a total of 11 hours and 19 minutes, he completed that challenge last Saturday.
Jason raised well over £8,000 for PAPYRUS just from the run alone, but it was as he crossed the finish line of his astounding achievement over one of the town’s major motorway bridges, that he set his eyes on what would become his most important mission yet.
To transform that fateful bridge into a “bridge of hope”.
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While the 40ft bridge over the M60 on B6167 Lancashire Hill currently goes not have a name, it has sadly become known to many in the town as the site where several people have both attempted to, and have taken their own lives in recent years.
“The bridge as a whole has seen far too many people take their own lives,” Jason told us.
“Running across it as I neared the finish line just brought home that something had to be done to try to prevent others doing the same.
“As I crossed [the bridge], the barriers felt so low [and] I knew I had to make some sort of plea to at least try to make them taller [and] at the same time, try to take away the stigma of ‘that bridge’ where people jump, which it has sadly got”.
And so, in an attempt to “make a difference for our future generations”, Jason contacted both Stockport Council and Highways England yesterday to discuss the possibility of not only making the railings higher, but also giving the bridge a makeover.
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He wants to transform the bridge into “a cheerful place”.
“I want to make it a place of remembrance for those who have taken their own lives there and a place to celebrate those who have tried to and survived.” Jason continued.
“I [also] want to try to name the bridge, as I don’t think it has a name, and I personally would like to name it ‘The Bridge of Hope’, as my vision is to have superheroes holding a purple heart with the names of those who lost their lives [and] purple is the PAPYRUS youth suicide prevention colour”.
To help make his vision a reality, Jason enlisted the work of Stockport-based artist Neil Roche to create an impression image of what the bridge could look like if the plans are accepted.
The colourful design sports the words ‘Marvellous Stockport’ in large lettering below the superheroes.
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Neil Roche
Jason’s vision was also further inspired after he was “blessed with company” and cheered-on by two young survivors of the 40ft fall from that bridge as he crossed the finish line.
Jason is keen to shine a light on the importance of Olivia and Luke’s stories within the wider community, and in a message posted to the Stockport Spider-Men Facebook group yesterday evening, he said: “I’m using our platform to get the word out further, but I’m taking a back seat to Olivia and Luke, as I believe they are both meant for this role to impact others.
“These two amazing human beings have bravely told me they are open, willing, and ready to share their stories to hopefully save others via our group [so] I will be posting what is going to be very emotional content from [them] in the coming days,
“Personally, I cannot thank them enough [and] it has deeply touched me more than anyone will know.
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“It’s an honour and privilege to have even met [them], let alone be a person to share their darkest hours, [so] they both have my upmost love and respect.
“And it goes without saying that when we get the go-ahead to transform the bridge, both Olivia and Luke’s portraits will be featured”.
Jason is thrilled to see that his mission to create ‘The Bridge of Hope’ has already received massive encouragement from the Stockport Spider-Men group and the wider community.
He’s even revealed that he’s had two parliamentary cabinet members reach out to him in support as well.
Now, he’s currently in the process of trying to speak directly to a representative at Highways England that can “hear my plea and hopefully work with me on this”, and has admitted that the Stockport Spider-Men group will even work together and raise funds to have the works completed if needs be.
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It’s clear to see that this transformation is something Jason is truly passionate about, and there’s no doubt the public are on his side every step of the way.
We’ll just have to cross our fingers, and wait and see.
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If you’ve been inspired by Jason’s story and his outstanding achievements over this past 11 months, you can show your support for an extremely worthy cause by contributing to the goal of raising £100,000 for PAPYRUS via his JustGiving page.
You can also follow along with the Stockport Spider-Men adventures here.
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And don’t forget to keep your eyes peeled and stay tuned for more Stockport Spider-Men missions coming in 2021 too.
Vanilli’s – the Manchester bakery and dessert spot that has carried on the tradition of an old Italian favourite
Danny Jones
Vanilli’s Cake Company is one of those names whose reach extends far and wide, with a history that goes way back into the past, and a deeper Greater Manchester heritage than you can imagine.
It’s one almost as rich as the desserts they’ve been making across the city centre and beyond for decades, but it also begins back in Italy.
Formerly San Marco Products, a fellow cult-favourite bakery, suppliers and catering company from way back, owner Sapna Kumar took over their old premises on Crown Industrial Estate over in Ancoats more than six years ago, and has been carrying on their sweet treat traditions ever since.
The difference these days is that it’s gone from more of an Italian ‘pasticceria’ to a Mancunian bakery with both local and Indian roots.
Born out of pregnancy cravings ahead of her third child, ironically, Vanilli’s Cake Co. went from an unfortunately timed passion project conceived on the cusp of the pandemic to a mainstay of Greater Manchester and North West markets and now part of a mini Manc empire in the making.
After taking control of the old commercial premises back in 2020, their understated but impressively high-output unit still has lots of regulars in the know coming in for the good stuff, but still operates somewhat under the radar.
Maybe that’s part of the reason their quality control has remained at such a high level: although they provide to plenty of vendors all across the city and wider region, they’ve never overextended themselves to the point that even the slightest of standards slips.
If you’ve met Sapna before – the charismatic matriarch behind this brand and others like spin-off Cake Bar Co. and most recently, Punjabee – you’ll know that she doesn’t do anything by half measures.
And yes, there are Vanilli’s desserts on sale here, too.
A familiar face at the likes of Foodie Friday and various other street food stalls across the 10 boroughs and even further afield, she’s been doing some of these events since the very outset.
Sadly, without going into too much detail, she admits that there have been instances where her generosity has been “taken advantage of on more than one occasion”, but they will never stop her continuing to offer a helping hand.
The difference this time, however, is that she’s not simply putting others before herself all the time anymore; the Manc mum who’s played mother to many through her work over the years is finally shouting about herself and her unsung but nevertheless dedicated and talented team more.
And not just a little bit, either (no half measures, remember?) – she proudly proclaims that not only does Vanilli’s serve up some of the most authentic traditional recipes, but she happily lays claim to whipping up “the best Manchester tart” you’ll find anywhere.
As for this location, specifically, she simply wants to give people like you a reminder that it’s been there for more than 30 years at this point
She’s also looking to rebuild support throughout the community by teaming up with local brands and creators moving forward. Again, it’s about time she finally got on the receiving end of ‘You scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours’, which sounds like it’s long overdue.
Having recently put on a speciality spread for us, showcasing not only the classic but some fresh new ideas and creative takes on familiar, we can assure you some very delicious things are coming from Vanilli’s throughout the rest of 2026.
So, if like Sapna, you love “indulging in the sweeter side of life”, give a Vanilli’s cake, pastry or one of their other tasty desserts soon.
Find all of these and more at Unit 8, Crown Industrial, Poland Street, M4 6BN. (Credit: The Manc)
Blossoms deliver most rock and roll performance in years as Declan McKenna joins them on stage
Danny Jones
Last night, we were fortunate enough to be there in the flesh not only to see Blossoms play a special anniversary show in Manchester, but to witness Declan McKenna join them on stage.
A tiny part of us was wondering if we’d see Rick Astley roll out into the venue, but let’s just say we’ll absolutely take this.
Celebrating a decade to the day since the release of the self-titled debut LP – yes, we feel old, too – Blossoms announced the one-off intimate show at The Deaf Institute, a venue they hadn’t played in 12 whole years (good lord…), and it served as much more than a night of nostalgia.
But we’ll admit, the highlight was almost certainly seeing the ‘Brazil’ and ‘British Bombs’ singer join Tom Ogden, Charlie Salt, Josh Dewhurst, Myles Kellock and Joe Donovan on stage for their smallest gig since god knows when.
We’ve gotten somewhat used to seeing the Enfield-born solo artist popping up at random venues across the country and even performing DJ sets at local pubs.
If you haven’t seen that Kylie Minogue clip before, you really need to…
However, we don’t think anyone in the crowd was expecting this cameo, let alone hearing them perform a co-written track off the new record live in front of the audience for the very first time.
As if all of this wasn’t already a bit bonkers and left-field, the song in question, entitled ‘Additional Driver’, was self-admittedly so surprising in SO many ways that Tom felt he needed to explain the full story behind it and why Declan shouted “shoulda got the 192” before they started playing.
Yes, in some kind of Greater Mancunian fever dream, we’ve finally got artists writing lyrics about the region’s most infamous bus route that we’re sure most, if not all of you, can relate to.
But it wasn’t just this moment that had us debating in our heads, ‘are they the best Manc or maybe in Northern band full stop going right now?’, it was seeing them slip so seamlessly back into the more straight-down-the-line indie rock from their first chapter of studio material that did it.
Everyone knows and loves the biggest bangers from that inaugural outing: ‘Getaway’, ‘Charlemagne’, ‘At Most a Kiss’, ‘Honey Sweet’, etc.; but it’s hard to forget just how quintessentially rock and roll tunes like ‘Blow Rose’, ‘Cut Me and I’ll Bleed’, ‘Texia’ and even some of the other deep cuts/early releases are.
Don’t get us wrong, we love how much the dressing up (musically and quite literally) they’ve done over the years as their production, creativity and experimentation has increased, but it’s always hard to beat that feeling you get when finding an artist’s first album – especially one as good as Blossoms‘.
In fairness, listening back to ‘Deep Grass’ all these years later, we’ll still remember how spacey, psychedelic and downright different that intro felt back in the day; it now feels like a fitting end to that maiden outing and the perfect jumping-off point for what has been a real sonic exploration ever since.
For a lad born in SK2 and lucky enough to have seen these lads right from the start, stuff like this will never not feel surreal to me.
Long live ‘Blossoms from Stockport‘, and roll on Songs From The Wedding Cake this October.
Emily Sergeant -
9th February 2021 
