The Manchester decorator turned biscuit maker whose fans include The Hairy Bikers
Mark Bedford counts Si King of The Hairy Bikers, Masterchef finalist Simon Wood and Great British Bake-Off champion Giuseppe Dell’Anno amongst his fans
Nosing around the stalls at Manchester Food and Drink Festival’s artisan market a few weeks back, we met Mark Bedford – a painter and decorator turned baker with a lifelong passion for Italian biscuits.
Not just a dab hand with a paintbrush, after touring Italy’s railways as a child with his train driver dad and family Mark fell in love with the country’s sweet and boozy, sometimes soft, sometimes crunchy treats.
Whilst his parents enjoyed an espresso at different stops along their route, he himself found comfort in sampling different biscuits from each region. So, he told us, began a decades-long obsession.
He later went on to train in art and sculpture in London, and in the years since he’s kept busy recreating those nostalgic childhood morsels: baking up limoncello, amaretto, orange and cherry-infused almond biscuits into the shapes of flowers, stars and homely-looking little dumplings.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
To the great pleasure of those around him, they’ve been readily available at home and often given out as presents to family and friends for years. That is until his wife suggested that he take things one step further and start selling his treats to the public.
ADVERTISEMENT
One market event later, with his insightful wife smiling at his side, he soon realised that he had a hit on his hands. To his surprise, they sold out in under two hours – so Mark went home and spent the rest of the night baking more for the following day.
He named his company Prendi Il Biscotto, which translates, rather amusingly, to “take the biscuit”. An appropriately tongue-in-cheek idiom, considering he hasn’t a hint of Italian heritage in him – as far as he knows, anyway.
ADVERTISEMENT
Ossa dei Morti’, ‘Bones of the Dead’. / Image: Supplied
Cherry cannoli finished with dark chocolate drops. / Image: Supplied
He’s gone on to appear at a number of markets and food festivals, including Bolton’s behemoth event – widely considered the biggest and best in the North West. It was there he met one-half of The Hairy Biker’s, Si King, who he now counts as a fan after he found him polishing off a box of biscuits by the stage.
Needless to say, he was quick to send him home with his own box, which lead Si to post a glowing review online encouraging his followers to try them for themselves.
Alongside Si of The Hairy Biker’s fame, Mark also counts Masterchef winner and fellow Oldham lad Simon Wood and Great British Bake-Off champion Giuseppe Dell’Anno as fans of his biscuits.
As well as baking at home for markets and home delivery, he also stocks a number of venues in and around Greater Manchester including the newly-opened Prestwich Italian Nonna’s, and at other sites in Marsden, Slaithwaite and Royton.
He’s also in talks with a Manchester city centre venue about supplying his biscuits in town soon, too.
All his biscuits are made using authentic ingredients where possible, such as Amalfi limoncello imported from Rome, and are developed from recipes collected from different regions of Italy.
Inspired not just to create an authentic taste but also the entire experience he had when first sampling the biscuits, the business really is a labour of love – and it looks like he’s going places.
Police arrest another man in connection with Manchester synagogue terror attack last year
Emily Sergeant
Another man has been arrested this week in connection with the attack on a synagogue in Manchester last year.
In case you need a reminder, the shocking knife and car attack took place on 2 October 2025 on Yom Kippur – the holiest day in the Jewish calendar – at the Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue, and during the incident, two men sadly lost their lives during the attack – Adrian Daulby, 53, who was shot dead by Greater Manchester Police (GMP) while trying to stop the attacker from entering the synagogue, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, a worshipper who also helped stop the attacker.
The attacker was named as 35-year-old Jihad al Shamie – a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent who lived in Prestwich – who at the time was on bail for an alleged rape, before being shot dead by police.
Yesterday evening (Tuesday 26 May 2026), officers from Counter Terrorism Policing North West, alongside GMP, executed a warrant at an address on St James’ Road in Higher Broughton.
A 49-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of failing to disclose information regarding terrorist activity, contrary to S38B of the Terrorism Act 2000, and he has been taken into custody for questioning.
Another man has been arrested in connection to the Manchester synagogue terror attack / Credit: Google Maps | GMP
This brings the total number of people arrested in connection with the incident to eight.
That number includes a 30-year-old man arrested on suspicion of failing to disclose information regarding terrorist activity, contrary to S38B of the Terrorism Act 2000, who still remains under investigation, and a man who has since been charged with terrorism offences that are not directly linked to the attack.
“We remain unwavering in our commitment to establishing the full picture behind the attack and getting answers for those affected, including the local community,” commented Assistant Chief Constable Rob Potts, who holds operational responsibility for Counter Terrorism Policing North West.
“We are prepared to take swift, firm action where we suspect criminal offences may have occurred.
“Our investigation is continuing, and I would once again urge anybody who may have information that could assist us to please contact police.”
Featured Image – GMP
Manchester
Musical comedian Morgan Jay is coming to Manchester on his biggest ever UK tour
Danny Jones
Viral music-driven comedian Morgan Jay is returning to Manchester and the UK for his biggest ever transatlantic tour.
The crowd work specialist and social media star is coming back to our fair city once again early next year, having not long ago performed for a maiden Manc crowd.
That’s right: the bloke best known for performing silly improv songs on a ukulele for the majority of the set, not to mention being a little bit cheeky with his audience throughout, is coming to the AO Arena.
Entitled La Dolce Vita, this new tour – set to be the follow-up to his ongoing ‘Goofy Guy’ show – will be just his second performance here in 0161.
Have already got his current tour underway across North America, with more gigs coming up across Asia and Oceania later this year.
As for his next European leg, it kicks off early next year, and do you want to guess where he’s coming first? Yep, straight to us.
We’re almost certain he’ll be bringing that tiny little guitar and a healthy dose of autotune along with him, but you never quite know what you’re going to get…
Can you believe he grabbed her neck like that in public? not going to lie I kind of liked it. The Nashville show went crazy people were horny and having a good time. Tour dates below. 6/5 – Atlanta, GA 6/6 – Hollywood, FL 6/12 – Milwaukee, WI 6/14 – Prior Lake, MN 6/19 – Cherokee, NC 6/20 – Charleston, SC 7/2 – Ledyard, CT 9/12 – Los Angeles 9/17 – Los Angeles 9/25 – Maui 9/26 – Oahu October 3 – Tokyo October 5 – Taipei October 8 – Hong Kong October 11 – Abu Dhabi October 14 – Manila, PH October 17 – Sydney October 21- Auckland, NZ October 25 – Melbourne, AU October 29 – Brisbane, AU November 1- Adelaide, AU November 6 – Perth, AU November 11 – Jakarta, ID November 13 – Singapore, SG November 18 – Kuala Lumpur, MY November 21- Bangkok, TH November 27 – Mumbai, IN November 29 – Bengaluru, IN
You can see his full list of upcoming dates over here down below.
Morgan Jay UK tour dates – 2027
Thu 25 Feb – Manchester, AO Arena Sat 27 Feb – London, OVO Arena Wembley Sat 27 Mar – Glasgow, SEC Armadillo Thu 1 Apr – Birmingham, Utilita Arena Birmingham Sat 3 Apr – Cardiff, Utilita Arena Cardiff
As you can see, there’s only a handful of dates across Great Britain and Ireland, so we’ll consider it an honour not only to be on the schedule but to be first on the call sheet.
Tickets will be available for pre-sale starting on Wednesday, 27 May at 10am; meanwhile, general admission goes live this coming Friday, 29 May, also at 10am BST. You can get ready to grab yours HERE.
If you’ve not come across him before and you’re wondering whether his stuff is your cup of tea, you can watch his special shot in LA, among others, for free on YouTube.
Georgina Pellant -
24th October 2022 
