Manchester brewery Squawk is opening a bar in the Northern Quarter
For the first few years it was just Ollie and his dog Bernie running the ship in Ardwick - but over time Squawk has grown into one of Manchester's best-loved indie breweries.
Manchester brewery Squawk is opening a new bar in the Northern Quarter this week, taking over the former Beatnikz taproom site.
Called Pelican, it is the first bricks-and-mortar site for the indie brewery favourite which first launched in Manchester ten years ago.
Until now, the brewery’s humble home has been located in an old railway arch in Ardwick and, for the first few years, it was just owner Ollie and his dog Bernie running the ship.
Over the years, though, it has grown into one of Manchester’s best-loved breweries – with Ollie slowly taking on new recruits along the way.
Now, as of this Friday, fans of Squawk’s locally-brewed beers will be able to head down to Dale Street for a taste of its famous fruity IPAs, light lagers and punchy sours.
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Image: Squawk
Image: Squawk
The new bar will sit next door to Idle Hands cafe and take over the former home of Beatnikz Republic taproom, which sadly closed its doors in April last year.
With 14 keg and 4 cask lines in total, there’s plenty to tempt craft beer and ale fans with lots of room to host Squawk’s own beers alongside a wide variety of rotating guest selections.
As for those who aren’t into craft beer, there’s more on offer too with a beautifully-curated selection of wine and spirits to choose from as well as a mean hangover-curing Bloody Mary.
The bar will also host live music and a number of fringe events, with DJs spinning beats throughout the opening weekend and going forward.
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Image: Squawk
Image: Squawk
Punters can also expect film nights, karaoke hosted by Andy Baukham of Wizard King fame, foodie offerings, games nights and Crafternoons for all and sundry to enjoy at Pelican when it opens its doors this Friday 31 March.
Oliver Turton, the head brewer and founder of Squawk, first set up the brewery in 2013 after following his own personal journey from barista to chef, to beer-obsessed brewer.
What first began as a hobby soon became a way of life, with Squawk soon moving into its own archway in Ardwick.
Whilst today those archways have become somewhat synonymous with indie breweries, back then Sqwuak was one of the early trailblazers – opening alongside the likes of Blackjack and Marble.
Featured image – Google Maps
Manchester
Review | ‘This is a night to remember, Manchester’ – Jason Derulo’s Co-op Live debut
Amy Williams
Who’s ready for another throwback night? Because this was absolutely a night already full of nostalgia and one to remember.
American singer-songwriter Jason Derulo hit Co-op Live last night as part of his ‘The Last Dance World Tour’, famous for hit songs like ‘Whatcha Say’, ‘Talk Dirty’, and ‘Savage Love’ – we all remember the Covid TikTok dance, don’t we? – as well as many more.
With over 250 million singles sold and tens of billions of streams, you best believe his one night in Manchester was sold out.
Running through the big hits and everything in between, he and his dancers made it a proper party atmosphere on this fine Saturday evening.
He did his throwback songs and more; from the moment he said, “We’re throwing it back to the beginning, back to 2009″, we knew his first debut single, ‘Whatcha Say’, was about to grace our ears, and that it did.
He also brought back absolute classics like ‘Ridin’ Solo’ (I definitely lost my voice during this one) In My Head and It Girl.
The Last Dance run of shows has seen him visit places like Leeds, London, Glasgow and Birmingham, finishing his UK leg right here in Manchester, before he carries on to Europe, but we’re confident our date had the best crowd so far.
And just when you think this couldn’t get any better, he brought his little boy on stage to say hi to everyone, too – shattered everyone’s hearts.
He has that many hit songs, it wasn’t possible to get through them all, so his DJ halfway through did a mash-up of songs he’s also written and featured in, including ‘I Gotta Feeling’ by Black Eyed Peas, ‘Secret Love Song’ with Little Mix and ‘Replay’ by Iyaz.
We knew his voice was amazing – but can we have a moment for this man’s dance moves, keeping everyone on their feet at Co-op Live tonight, and his dancers made everyone want to start dance lessons tonight too, an absolutely incredible performance by all.
Jason Derulo told the audience, “This is a night to remember Manchester’, and that it absolutely was.
The signs that lead to Manchester’s silliest wonder – the Levenshulme Waterfall
Daisy Jackson
Footpaths weave their way towards it, signs point at it, water cascades from it – but it’s not quite Niagara Falls… it’s the Levenshulme Waterfall.
This natural wonder in south Manchester has been described as ‘our very own slice of paradise’ and a ‘summer holiday destination’.
In fact, not too long ago, new wooden signs appeared in Highfield County Park to point people in the right direction to find the landmark.
That’s in addition to the existing Google Maps pin pointing visitors in the right direction, which has amassed more than 100 five-star reviews.
Looking at a lot of the photos of Levenshulme Waterfall without anything for scale, you might believe you’re looking up at a waterfall cascading down from towering cliffs.
But no. The Levenshulme Waterfall is about the height of your knees.
New signsThe Levenshulme Waterfall
And while she is certainly small, the love for her in Levenshulme is mighty – and absolutely everyone is in on the joke.
In fact, the not-very-impressive waterfall even has its own social media society, the Levenshulme Waterfall Society, which is ‘dedicated to preserving one of the UK’s most beautiful natural wonders’.
Some of its tongue-in-cheek posts have included fun facts such as: “Fun fact: the City of Manchester was originally founded over 60,000 years ago to provide housing to all the pilgrims visiting Levenshulme Waterfall. The more you know!”
In another post, they played a game of spot the difference between our little waterfall and the Falls of Rauros, a fictional waterfall from The Lord of the Rings.
And once, they wrote: “Fun fact: along with Angel Falls and Victoria Falls, the Levenshulme Waterfall is one of the waterfalls of all time.”
Now with the official wooden signs directing visitors to the Levenshulme Waterfall, it’s become one of our city’s top attractions… and best in-jokes.
Georgina Pellant -
27th March 2023 
