Seven Bro7hers has teamed up with a rugby league legend to launch a limited-edition lager for an extremely worthy cause.
The Salford-based brewery – which was founded in 2014 by McAvoy brothers, Guy, Keith, Luke, Daniel, Nathan, Kit, and Greg, after being inspired by their dad’s home-brewing – has joined forces with former Leeds Rhinos star, Rob Burrow, for the creation of this 5% ABV “classic and crisp” craft pilsner.
Rob Burrow’s illustrious career saw him win the Grand Final eight times from 2004 to 2017.
Fans will know that Burrow famously played in the number seven position during his career – which the brew pays homage to – and was always quick on his feet, despite being one of the smaller players on the field.
But in December 2019, he was sadly diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease.
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Since then, Burrow has become a high-profile ambassador for the Motor Neurone Disease Association (MNDA) and was awarded an MBE in the latest new year honours.
He was also the inspiration behind his ex-teammate and close friend’s – Oldham-born former Leeds Rhinos captain, Kevin Sinfield – mammoth mission of running seven marathons in seven days, which raised over £2.7 million for research into Motor Neurone Disease.
Burrow requested that the vegan pilsner be called ‘Roadrunner’ after a playful nickname he was coined on the pitch.
“I’m so proud to have a beer named after me,” Rob said.
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“The name came from Rugby League commentator Michael Stephenson MBE, he would often refer to me as the ‘road runner’”.
Burrow admitted that while his condition is sadly “slowly deteriorating”, his head is in a good place, he is “feeling really good” about his future, and is most-importantly “thrilled that some of the people suffering from MND will be able to benefit from the proceeds of this beer.”
Nathan McAvoy – founder of Seven Bro7hers, who is also a former England rugby league star – added: “To us, Rob is one in seven million – an amazing player and family man, doing a fantastic job to raise awareness in the fight against this awful disease [and] it has been an honour to collaborate with Rob to bring to life his sporting legacy on the can.
“It is hard to not be incredibly moved by his story, and we hope everyone supports the beer as all proceeds will help to tackle MND and fund research for cures”.
Viral chicken shop Wingstop is opening inside the Manchester Arndale
Daisy Jackson
Wingstop, the chicken shop famed for its vast range of wing flavours and sauces, is opening another spot in Manchester city centre.
The brand will be taking over the old Yo Sushi site in the Manchester Arndale, which shut down just last month.
It’ll mean there’ll be two Wingstop locations within a few minutes’ walk of each other, with another takeaway already well-established on Piccadilly Gardens.
Wingstop UKI has found viral fame with people taste-testing its wide range of hand-sauced chicken wing flavours, ranging from garlic parmesan all the way up to the eye-watering ‘Atomic’.
As well as chicken wings, it serves delicious tenders and burgers, all cooked to order.
There are also a range of sides, including loaded fries, sweet potato fries, and cajun fried corn, plus dips like ranch, honey mustard, and blue cheese.
Wingstop is also famed for its thick milkshakes – which are a necessity if you order your chicken down the spicier end of the scale.
Established in Texas in 1994, Wingstop rose rapidly to become one of the fastest-growing restaurant chains in the US.
The brand launched in the UK market in 2018, and into Ireland last year, and now operates more than 85 locations.
Wingstop is opening in Manchester Arndale
Wingstop will be moving into the 5,928 sq ft unit upstairs in Manchester Arndale, just opposite Next.
Scott Linard, Portfolio Manager for M&G Real Estate, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Wingstop to our vibrant F&B offer; an addition we’re sure will resonate with our younger visitors.
“With the additions of popular restaurant chains like Wingstop, coupled with the arrival of new retailers such as Arc’teryx, Alo Yoga, Pro:Direct and Sephora, we are strategically creating a destination where people across the North West and beyond want to spend their time.”
Steve Gray, Head of European Retail Asset Management at Global Mutual, said: “Wingstop will join Manchester Arndale’s varied F&B mix, including Popeyes, Sides, Hotel Chocolat, Joe & The Juice and Café Nero.
“In-demand operators like this help create energy and momentum that allows the brands across the scheme to thrive, driving increased footfall, longer dwell times and a more compelling offer for visitors.”
The best cheese tasting party in the North is BACK at a new Manchester venue
Danny Jones
That’s right, one of the biggest and best cheese tasting nights in the entire land is returning to Greater Manchester at a brand new city centre venue.
Not to be over-the-top, but this isn’t just another experience sampling possibly the greatest foodstuff on Earth, it’s a fully-fledged cheese-lovers’ party.
Some of you may have come across Homage2Fromage before, but for anyone unaware of the Yorkshire-born event, it started out as a monthly cheese tasting club and went on to expand across the dairy-adoring North at large.
Relaunching here in Manchester for 2026, all you lactose-intolerant people better watch, because Home2Fromage is coming back with a vengeance and heading to the Northern Quarter. Here’s how it went down the last time we visited one in Leeds:
Leeds, Sheffield, Harrogate, Manchester and who knows where else next.
Posting up in a relatively recent addition to NQ‘s bar and restaurant scene, The Faraday – a pub on Lever St that replaces the old Seven Sins back in October – it looks set to be an ideal venue for the regular evening series.
Homage2Fromage will be making its Manc return this month, and better still, they’re holding a cheeky little giveaway to sweeten the pot.
As in the deal, we mean – not the inevitable bowls full of olives, chutney, oil and various other dips…
To welcome this celebration of all things cheese coming back to Manchester city centre, they’re giving away a bunch of free tickets: 20 pairs in total.
Worth over £50 a piece for each twin set of tickets, you’d be a fool not to at least throw your hat in the ring for this one.
As you can see, the competition closes this Thursday, 19 February, ahead of the full relaunch party next week (Wed, 25 Feb), and all you have to do to enter is fill out this super quick survey.
It really is as simple as that; a few quick words are all that stand between you and a potential mountain of cheese and more.
You can find all you need to know about the event right HERE, and in case you haven’t popped into The Faraday just yet, see more down below.
It’s still somewhat early days, but we can see ourselves spending a fair bit of time in this up-and-coming Manchester watering hole, especially when there’s cheese nights involved.
Emily Sergeant -
23rd March 2021 
