The former home of the BBC on Oxford Road is now home to Manchester’s highest private dining space.
Boasting stunning views across the city, at 35 storeys high Circle Square’s top-floor Astronomer private dining space is officially the highest private dining space in Manchester – sitting a staggering 14 floors above the dining room at Spinningfields’ restaurant 20 Stories.,
Inside The Astronomer, Manchester’s new highest private dining space and roof terrace / Image: Vita Group
Housed at the top of the new residential development, the dining space also features a bookable private roof terrace, which stands tall at over 110 metres above city level and celebrates breath-taking views across the city.
It has been built as part of the huge regeneration project Circle Square, a joint venture between Vita Group and Bruntwood SciTech that is currently one of the north’s largest urban regeneration projects.
The development will also bring the first and largest public park created in the city in a decade, by way of a beautifully designed new green space created to be enjoyed by residents and passers-by.
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Called Symphony Park, the new green space is open to the public and brings some much-needed greenery to the busiest bus route in Europe.
Inside The Astronomer, Manchester’s new highest private dining space and roof terrace / Image: Vita Group
As the joint venture nears completion and heads into its final stage, tenants are now being welcomed to take residence in the building’s luxury apartments designed by Vita Living.
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As well as the breathtaking top floor dining room, the snazzy new building also features three more private dining rooms which have been purpose-built for the enjoyment of residents.
First launched in January 2021, Vita Living East is now nearing full occupancy with only a handful of the 266 apartments still available.
Vita Living North also boasts 417 design-led apartments across 35 storeys, with class-leading amenity space over three floors, bookable suites, a 24-hour gym, communal lounges, and casual workspaces.
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Inside The Astronomer, Manchester’s new highest private dining space and roof terrace / Image: Vita Group
Boutique fitness studio TRIB3 has also now to officially opened its doors to the public, alongside a host of retail and leisure brands such as Canvas and Hello Oriental all heading into their final stages of fit-out ready to open.
They join Circle Square’s thriving urban village of quirky independent retailers at Hatch, which has been bustling since it first opened in 2017 and now welcomes over 55,000 visitors each month.
Inside Circle Square, the home of Manchester’s new highest private dining space and roof terrace / Image: Vita Group
Vita Group’s Mark Stott said: “The sheer sense of occasion really hits you when you arrive at Circle Square now that park is open, and work draws to a close. Symphony Park, Manchester’s first public park to open in decades creates a harmonic escape from the hustle and bustle of Oxford Road.
“Vita Living North completes the puzzle, boasting some of the very best luxury apartments in the city with unbeatable views. The scale of investment which has gone into Manchester’s Circle Square is something which hasn’t been delivered in a city outside of London and Vita Living North apartments offer the very best in terms of place, amenities, and location. As such, we’re expecting unprecedented demand as these apartments launch to market for the first time.”
Feature image – Vita Group
Manchester
Blossoms to play special ‘intimate’ 10th anniversary gig at The Deaf Institute, Manchester
Danny Jones
Local indie and alternative lads Blossoms have announced a special one-off anniversary show at none other than The Deaf Institute right here in Manchester.
Coming to the iconic small-cap venue this summer, the Stockport band will be marking the 10th birthday of their self-titled debut album by playing one of the smallest gig spaces in the centre, but one that was a massive milestone for them back in the day.
Now a full decade on from the breakout LP, released on 5 August 2026, Blossoms will be rolling back the years by playing the biggest hits from the record, along with a selection from the many other bangers that they’ve gone on to release since.
This is going to be one very special night for the SK natives.
We’re playing an intimate gig at The Deaf Institute on Weds 5th August to celebrate 10 years of our debut album! We’re going to record the show & release it as a special edition double CD of our new album. Pre-order it now for exclusive pre-sale access. https://t.co/ztAkh95RWspic.twitter.com/kuZNnJJBok
Blossoms have never shied away from championing their Stopfordian roots, but neither have they forgotten the city that helped establish them as one of the biggest bands in Britain.
For instance, this upcoming Deaf Institute show – which promises to be a much more intimate show than they’re used to doing these days – comes not even two years on from the mini Manc residency, when they played five nights here in Manchester over the course of a single week.
As we come up to the sixth studio project, Songs From The Wedding Cake, and already have two singles from the next release, we have no shame in admitting we still listen to those first tracks as much as ever.
With that in mind, it’ll be a surreal full circle for everyone, we’re sure, when Tom, Chaz, Myles, Josh and Joe take the stage in that hallowed hometown room with a capacity of just 250 next month; they’re even playing it EXACTLY 10 years on the precise date that maiden outing dropped: 5 August 2026.
Combine this with them pulling stunts like playing people’s weddings and popping up with a surprise set from inside a van outside 42s nightclub on Deansgate, and it’s hard to think of an artist nailing it as well as Blossoms are right now.
Fans can enjoy exclusive early access by pre-ordering the new Blossoms album on their website, and those who have already done so qualify for presale automatically – just keep an eye out for the code in your email inbox.
This limited window will open from 9:30am this Thursday, 30 July, with general admission tickets for their return to Deaf Institute going live at the same time the following Friday (31 July).
Oh, and in case you somehow missed it, they’re also set to play their biggest ever arena shows across the UK later this year, including a huge gig at Co-op Live. Find out all the info down below.
Andy Burnham responds to Manchester bride-to-be who begs him not to ‘ruin’ her wedding next month
Emily Sergeant
A woman who is getting married in Manchester next month has taken to social media to beg Andy Burnham not to ‘ruin’ her wedding.
And after the video has gone viral, Andy Burnham has responded.
First off, you’re probably wondering how the new Prime Minister could even ‘ruin’ a wedding to begin with, so let’s bring you up to speed a little bit. In case you hadn’t heard, Number 10 North – the Government’s new northern answer to Westminster – has now opened for business here in Manchester city centre inside Heron House, just off Albert Square.
Heron House isn’t just the home of Number 10 North, though. Before Andy and his ministers arrived last Friday, it was also the home of GCHQ, and popular retailers like Greggs, Slug & Lettuce, Vibean, Matcha Kyoto, and more.
Andy Burnham has responded to a Manchester bride-to-be who has begged him not to ‘ruin’ her wedding next month / Credit: Saz Burwin (via TikTok) | Wikimedia Commons
Oh, and crucially, while Manchester Town Hall has been going through its multi-million-pound restoration these past eight years, Heron House is also where the City Registrar’s Office is based… are you starting to piece things together now?
After seeing the launch of Number 10 North on the news last week, bride-to-be Saz Burwin became a bit concerned about her big day and took to TikTok to speak directly to Andy Burnham himself.
In a video titled ‘Andy Burnham please don’t ruin my wedding’, Saz said: “I saw you set up your new gaff, Number 10 North, at Heron House. I saw it on the news, gorgeous, love what you’ve done with the place. But I’m actually getting married there on 21 August, and on the news today, the place was surrounded with police, bollards, all sorts. A lot of stuff that wasn’t there before.
“My trouble is, I was planning to get nice photos after, like at the registry office, outside, and I’m just a bit worried that all of this is kind of ruining the vibe.
“So I would really appreciate it if you were maybe not there that day. I mean, you’re welcome, you’re invited, but maybe without the police escorts, and the guys with the rifles and s**t, because I’ve got a content creator coming.”
Saz’s plea quickly went viral on TikTok not long after posting, with the video having now amassed a million views and more than 500 comments.
One of those 500+ comments was from Andy Burnham himself.