The beautiful villages of Saddleworth in Oldham are pulling out all the stops for Christmas this year, and making the sometimes-stressful process of doing the Big Shop a whole lot more magical.
The independent businesses that are based in villages including Greenfield, Uppermill and Delph will be selling everything from beer to veg to tea to trees.
Promising to tick off all those fiddly trimmings on your festive to-do list, the local shops, delis and breweries are poised and ready for Christmas.
Once you’ve ordered your main event from Meat in the Middle at Tommyfield Market, or from the award-winning butchers at Albion Farm Shop in Delph, it’s over to the likes of Weaver & Wilde’s Groceries and Provisions.
Here, Cal Rowson-Codd and his husband Thomas can finish off your Christmas Day dinner with the finest sides, including veg boxes starting at £20 which can be collected fresh during Christmas week.
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Cal says: “It has everything you need from a veg aspect then we have a massive range of really cool little bits that are special and make a difference to your dish and your party.
“We do pickled pears, wild garlic bulbs, we’ve got all your cured meats, cheeses and chutneys – everything you want so you can gorge and go over the top.”
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Weaver & Wilde’s Groceries and Provisions opened in Greenfield in June after great success selling produce from their coffee shop in Uppermill during the pandemic.
Cal continues: “It kept the doors open and people needed it, plus they didn’t have to queue for an hour to get into Tesco – and the more we did it, the more we realised the demand in Greenfield was buoyant because people missed Stanford’s greengrocers.
“We had lost that commercial amenity in the village and [when that happens] it starts to lose its soul, so it was important for us to [preserve] that.”
As well as providing a local service, Cal and Thomas pride themselves on supporting homegrown brands, like Saddleworth Honey and loose-leaf teas from Oldham-based The Tea Keepers in Uppermill, and small suppliers from as far as way as Cheshire and North Yorkshire in Greenfield, all perfect for Christmas week.
Cal says: “We focus on quality products and ethics, we know our farmers are getting paid the right price to sustain their crop, we employ people that live in the area because it pays for their kids’ school uniforms.
“It’s part of what moulds community – if there weren’t small local producers, villages like ours would lose their identity and because we partner with a lot of local suppliers, it helps keep the small cottage industries alive.”
The Greenfield shop will also sell low needle-drop Christmas trees from mid-November. He hopes that after a tough couple of years, people will choose quality over convenience.
“People are returning to normal-ish life so it’s an online shop and a supermarket drop at your door – for smaller indies, it’s a big financial impact,” Cal says.
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“We want to be here long-term and want people to have the quality and flavour of the Christmas dinner they grew up with, which you don’t get from the big commercials.”
Just a stone’s throw from the greengrocer’s is the Old Cobblers, a one-stop community shop selling award-winning coffee, natural wine, craft beer and locally produced gifts.
“We do as much as we can in terms of getting produce in from the area,” says owner Dave Bell, who opened the store two years ago.
“Our coffee is from six miles away, we have lots of beer from breweries in Manchester, our gifts are from very local makers – the more local the better.”
Dave’s shop is packed from floor to ceiling with stocking fillers and delicious eats from nearby suppliers, such as baked goods from Little Saddleworth Pie Company and Saddleworth Brownies, and chilli jam for the charcuterie board from Oldham maker Jam Hot.
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Nearby Donkeystone brewery has a huge selection of artisan ales and IPAs, with a 26-strong line of products brewed at their Wellington Road unit, which is also home to a 200-capacity taproom and on-site shop, Palate.
They moved in last June after outgrowing a previous site in Greenfield when they diversified from supplying pubs with kegs to canning their own products.
“We jumped at the chance for the new site, and we’ve been building up the business,” says founder, Stephen James. “There’s a good tradition of decent beers being made in Oldham over the centuries, so we wanted to carry that on.
“It’s proper craft beer that’s been produced on a small scale, but we’ve got a massive range and we try to suit every taste. And in our shop, we don’t just sell beer, we have a range of artisan products that we try to keep as local as possible.”
As well as a taproom and shop open seven days a week, Stephen and his team hope to resurrect production at their gin distillery Grail, which they paused during the pandemic, and are soon to open a dedicated bakery on-site to produce the bread they’ve recently started making and selling.
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These little independent businesses are what breathe life into local communities, but they rely heavily on regular custom from the communities they serve.
Cal from Weaver & Wilde said: “Probably the best reason to shop local this year is that if you really like anyone that is trading, go and help them because this winter they’re going to need it.
“It doesn’t matter if they’ve been there 30 years or three, any small purchase will make the difference.”
Manchester’s biggest free music festival is back this Easter bank holiday weekend
Danny Jones
Sunnier days are well and truly on their way and better still, that means Manchester’s biggest free music festival and one of the best event series on the annual calendar is returning: that’s right, it’s time for Manifest 2024.
Back and bigger than ever, Manifest over at The Oast House in Spinningfelds returns this Easter Sunday and we cannot wait to get soaking in the sun, tunes and good vibes.
The biggest and most popular free music festival you’ll find anywhere in Greater Manchester, Manifest has been going for a few years now and it’s become such a staple of the warmer months here in the city centre that we don’t consider spring/summertime as having even started until it rolls around again.
Set to deliver an all-day line-up of live music with various acts playing from Sunday, 31 March at 1pm onwards and well into the early hours of Monday, 1 April, we can’t think of many better ways to spend the bank holiday.
Taking place on The Oast House’s large outdoor terrace complete with its dedicated stage and the big beer garden providing both coverage and plenty of room for Mancs to turn it into one giant dancefloor, thousands turn up to this series of events every year now.
Kicking off this season’s festivities on Sunday, 31 March, the first Manifest event of 2024 has a packed roster of musicians lined up including bands, solo artists and duos, as well as interludes from their resident and ever-reliable DJs.
Guests can expect not only a vibrant party atmosphere all day and night but tastes of pretty much every genre, from rock, pop and soul to R&B, funk, disco and blues.
Again, part of the reason this music festival series has become so popular is that it’s completely free, with space inside the venue dished out on a first-come, first-served basis. There were plenty of queues at every single date last year, so we recommend getting there early. Seriously, it packs out quickly.
You’ll have everything you need to keep you sorted throughout the day when it comes to food and drink too, by the way.
The Oast House’s street food-style menu will also be on offer for those looking to line their stomachs during the festivities.
We’re talking katsu chicken fries, Northern poutine with bone marrow gravy and Shorrock’s Lancashire cheese, chicken or plant-based gyros, stacked burgers, hot wings and hanging kebabs. We’ve tried it all and trust us, some seriously good scran this.
Festivalgoers can also keep cool with plenty of cold pints and house-made cocktails, including twists on the classics such as Watermelon Margaritas, Passionfruit Coladas and Pink Gin Punch. Phwoar.
The best part is, even if you’re already busy this weekend (obviously, scrap your plans and come here), you’ll have plenty more opportunity to enjoy Manifest this year with the free music festival returning every bank holiday weekend throughout the spring and summer.
There’s also set to be an extra few Saturday Manifest dates this year which are still yet to be confirmed but we’ll keep you posted as and when we know more – see you there, Manchester!
And to keep track of the other latest music news going on here in Manchester, keep your eyes peeled over on The Manc Audio.
You can take the kids to meet Kung Fu Panda in Manchester this weekend
Emily Sergeant
If you’re looking for something a little different to entertain your mini Mancs this weekend, then how about taking them to meet Kung Fu Panda?
In case you hadn’t heard, the fourth installment in the beloved DreamWorks Animation film franchise, Kung Fu Panda, has just been released today, and there’s no better way to celebrate the long-awaited new flick than taking the kids down to meet the legendary Dragon Warrior himself right here in Manchester city centre this weekend.
Po will be setting some time aside from his busy schedule of Kung Fu mastery to make his way over to Manchester’s landmark entertainment complex, Printworks, this Saturday (30 March) for a very-special meet and greet.
He’ll be meeting his Manc fans every hour, on the hour, from 11am right through to 3pm, and families will need to head to the ‘Printworks Pumpyard’ to grab a selfie with the popular character.
You can also expect loads of FREE giveaways to be up for grabs throughout the day too.
“We are always looking for exciting new experiences for families at Printworks, and are thrilled to bring the fun of Kung Fu Panda to our venue,” commented Kristian Brennan, who is the Marketing Manager at Printworks, ahead of this weekend’s meet and greet.
“As part of the recent re-launch of Printworks following extensive refurbishment, Kung Fu Panda 4 has been the first commercial partner to take space on the giant ceiling screen amongst a host of unique content.
“This partnership will spark a whole host of entertainment, fun and adventure with our young visitors, and we can’t wait to welcome them this Bank Holiday weekend.”
And then, once you’ve met the main man (or main panda, we should say), you can even extend your bank holiday family fun by sitting down to watch the film itself, as Kung Fu Panda 4 finally arrived on the big screen at Vue in Printworks.
Manchester’s landmark entertainment destination Printworks is the place to meet Po himself / Credit: Printworks
It means that, for the first time in almost a decade, you’ll get to see comedy icon Jack Black return to his role as the world’s most unlikely kung fu master.
With regular screenings available to book throughout the Easter school holidays, families are encouraged to grab some popcorn, kick back, and get ready for a hilarious butt-kicking experience.