A model maker whoruns a curiosities shop in Chorlton with his partner is about to see his work go on tour with Grayson Perry’s Art Club.
Stewart Hucheon first came to Manchester fifteen years ago to work on tv show Bob the Builder, staying there for years, on and off, until the show was eventually digitised.
A children’s animator by trade, he assisted as a prop maker for years: creating all the little details that bring the show to life to build out the world of Bob’s many adventures.
But now, he channels his model-making passion into creating incredible displays for his and his partner David Dodson’s shop window at The Curious Fox, something which has led the business to gain notoriety amongst South Manchester locals.
The outside of Chorlton gift and homeware shop The Curious Fox. / Image: The Manc Group
Artist Stewart Hutcheon with his Mad Hatter model pictured inside The Curious Fox. / Image: The Manc Group
Inside the shop, you’ll find a host of wonderful products – including a secret Christmas room filled with matryoshka nesting doll baubles, mini Beefeaters, sparkling dragonflies and many other delights.
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Elsewhere in the gift and homeware store, the walls are lined with Alice In Wonderland-inspired artwork, a stag’s head, giant clocks, with hot air balloons hanging from the ceiling and a section of beautiful pop-up 3D cards, Lowry and Klimt mugs, and much more.
Over the years at The Curious Fox, Stewart has created a number of different themed window displays – all more magical than the last according to his neighbours.
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Many of these appear around Christmas time, and are unveiled with a shabang as local Chorltonites gather together with glasses of champagne infront of the store for the big reveal.
Inside The Curious Fox, home to innumerable products that range from the weird to the wonderful. / Image: The Manc Group
One of the amazing pop-up 3D Christmas cards on sale inside The Curious Fox. / Image: The Manc Group
In previous years he’s created a Snow Queen window depicting the iconic character in a frozen white forest, a Nutcracker theme with lots of ballerinas and the ballet’s little-known Mother Ginger character, who appeared on stilts, with a dress opening like curtains and children running out of it.
He told The Manc: “There’s a character inThe Nutcracker, not very well known but it’s in the show, and she’s called Mother Ginger, and, she’s usually, it’s not like a pantomime thing, with an enormous skirt, and she’s like on stilts.
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“Then this dress opens like curtains and all these children run out of the dress, so I tried to do that with a big figure and her dress was like a theatre and I had Harlequin and Columbine spinning in her dress and all the other things. That was my favourite window I’ve ever done.”
Inside The Curious Fox. / Image: The Manc Group
Stewart’s Manchester and Salford backstreet ladies, who will be going on tour with Grayson Perry’s Art Club in December. / Image: Supplied
This year, the plan was to create a huge Manchester or Salford-themed window full of 1960s women who Stewart describes, in his amusing way, as being “all a bit miserable looking”.
He told The Manc: “They were to be part of a big window, which I am still doing, and I thought well I’m going to use them and I’m going to put them in and we’ll have a Mother’s Day window, so we just had all the women in the window.
“Oh and people just went nuts for it, and somebody said: ‘Oh you should put that in Grayson Perry’s art club’, which I hadn’t thought about at all because I didn’t know it was coming back on, and I thought well I haven’t got nothing to lose, I haven’t especially made them for this so there’s no stress involed, it’s done, if they pick it they pick it
Stewart’s Manchester and Salford backstreet ladies, who will be going on tour with Grayson Perry’s Art Club in December. / Image: Supplied
Stewart’s Manchester and Salford backstreet ladies, who will be going on tour with Grayson Perry’s Art Club in December. / Image: Supplied
He continued: “I think they get about 30,000 entries Grayson Perry’s art club. Anyway I put it in, and they were on the phone straight away.
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“Well, the closing date was like a Wednesday at five o’clock and on that Wednesday at quarter past five they were on the phone, so as soon as the closing thing had finished they were straight on the phone.”
The pieces, which will go on a tour of the UK starting on 1 December, were even given a special mention by Grayson Perry himself on his TV show with the host saying that they were one of his absolute favourite submissions.
Stewart told The Manc: “They were all very positive and wanting to know more.
“Well, they didn’t tell you if it was going to be on, unless you’ve been like done the video call with Grayson Perry then they don’t tell you that you’re going to be on, so we were watching it and the programme was nearly finished.
“There was minutes left and we thought ‘well we’re not on, nevermind,’ and then he said ‘Every week I pick my top three’, and there was me, I was one of his top three and he loved it yeah.
He continued: “They were going to be this year’s Christmas window, cause that’s what I was making. The whole idea this year’s Christmas window was going to be a whole Manchester street, in the winter, sort of 1960s, corner shop that you could see all the products in the corner shop.
“But the whole idea was like an animation set, because that’s what I know, and there’s going to be a big car and postboxes and postmen on bikes and you could see in the houses a little bit and it would be lit up at night, so you could see in the living rooms and stuff like that, and they would have, there would be layers to it, but they’ve gone now.”
As a result, this year’s Christmas window is being put on hold as Stewart doesn’t have the figures – but watch this space, because once they return we’ll be right down to follow up and let you know where you can go and see them.
In the mean time, you can visit The Curious Fox shop on Beech Road in Chorlton Tuesday to Sunday between the hours of 11am and 5pm.
Feature image – Supplied
Manchester
Popular night-time indie shopping market returns to Manchester tomorrow
Emily Sergeant
A unique indie shopping market is returning to Manchester, and you’ll be able to shop from 50 local small businesses all under one roof.
In case you hadn’t heard, the hugely-popular Night Market UK is back by popular demand, and it will be stopping off in our city centre for one night only tomorrow as part of the current leg of its tour across the country.
Returning to Manchester, but this time at a new location down at Fairfield Social Club in the Green Quarter, the unique night-time shopping experience will be showcasing more than 50 local small businesses – with everything from bespoke fashion items and beautifully-crafted homeware, to candles, artwork, silverware, and more on offer.
Brutal Fashion, Lost in Music, Urban Botany, and Dapper Alice are just a handful of the indie traders you’ll be able to shop from.
With event organisers promising there’ll be “a stall for everyone” to browse on the night, some of the other traders in attendance, include artisan producers, artists and bakers, as well as Fairfield Social Club’s resident street food purveyors Isit Kitchen, and pizza pros Killa Carbs.
DJ Clara B will also be taking over the club’s sound system too, and will be blasting tunes to set the scene all night long.
From bespoke fashion items and silverware courtesy of Brutal Fashion, to dazzling musical art prints from Lost in Music, and sculptural candles from Urban Botany to beautifully crafted homeware by Dapper Alice, there will be a stall for everyone on the night.
A popular night-time indie shopping market is returning to Manchester tomorrow / Credit: The Night Market UK | Kunal Mahesh Tewari (via The Night Market UK on Facebook)
The Night Market UK will open at Fairfield Social Club from 6pm tomorrow (Friday 26 July), and will run right through until 11pm.
Tickets are now on sale from just £4 each, and can be purchased in hourly entry timeslots – which organisers say “keeps the atmosphere just right” and ensures there’s enough space for everyone to be able to stay as little or as long as they’d like.
You can buy on the door or grab your tickets in advance here.
Featured Image – Supplied
Manchester
Beloved Manc butty shop Bada Bing set for a sensational return to the city centre
Danny Jones
Sandwich lovers rejoice because one of the finest butty shops to ever grace Manchester is returning: that’s right, Bada Bing is bada-back!
The Sopranos-inspired deli and sandwich shop that took its name from one of the central locations featured in the iconic US drama (yes, the strip club), was a huge success when it first opened in Manchester a few short years ago, so it was a huge blow when it closed in February 2022.
Starting out by serving sandwiches out of a window at The B Lounge pub on Paton Street near Piccadilly, before moving to a small kitchen on Radium Street and eventually setting up their stall inside Ancoats General Store, they would regularly have lines around the block every lunchtime.
These Italian-American sarnies were so popular you’d often struggle to get your claws on one – and believe us, they really are a two-handed task – as they’d sell out on what felt like most days. But now, whether you were a regular or someone who missed out, there is hope once again:
Announcing their sensational return to a new site over in the Northern Quarter, which will now mark the fourth premises they’ve popped up at, Bada Bing is back with a bang and, as you can, they dropped the news with one of the best reveal videos we’ve ever seen.
If you know, you know…
Set to take over 125 Oldham Street, owners Sam Gormally and Meg Lingenfelter haven’t yet graced us with an opening date but the new unit should hopefully be open sooner rather than later.
The duo, who previously worked at fellow NQ favourite Another Heart to Feed, came up with the concept during lockdown and it didn’t take long for the idea to take off, nor for them to earn their spot amongst the very best sandwich places in Manchester.
Seriously, these things were so big and unwieldy (in the best way possible) that they even used to come with eating instructions: both hands and the trademark Tony Soprano hunch recommended, though the slightly stained wife-beater, boxer shorts and open dressing gown look is optional.
From slices of provolone cheese, all the thinly sliced Italian meats you could think of and the closest thing to actual ‘gabagool‘ as you’ll find in Greater Manchester, the menu was fitting of being served up to the iconic characters that once sat outside Satriale’s and a big approving grin from the man himself.
Simply put, we cannot wait and we will certainly keep you posted when we find out exactly when Bada Bing confirms their official reopening date.