No, you didn’t misread the headline and you’re not on acid: Manchester music legends Bez and Shaun Ryder are set to feature in a brand-new gangster film.
Yes, the ones from the Happy Mondays – why are you having such trouble processing this?
Seriously though, we did a little double-take ourselves when we came across this news, but the familiar Manc faces look to be among the ensemble of a brand-new gangster movie by Irish writer, actor, producer and filmmaker, Ciaron Davies.
And this is just a little leak or rumour that may have been blown out of proportion: you can take it from the horse’s mouth as Happy Mondays frontman, Ryder, recently shared the news on social media.
As you can see, the new film is called Geezers and is billed as a “British crime caper” written and directed by Davies, featuring Shaun as hard-man Robbie and Bez as ‘Monk’. If you saw Ryder shaking off that snake biting his hand like it was nothing then you already know he’s hard as nails.
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Although it’s not strictly listed as a comedy per se, ‘caper’ would suggest plenty of humour and light-heartedness, so we’re thinking more like The Gentleman, Italian Job, or maybe even Four Lions, rather than a serious crime thriller.
Now, while we’ve seen both of the Salfordians on screen before not only in the likes of music videos, interviews, panel shows and even as two of the funniest guests to ever go on Celebrity Gogglebox, this latest venture will serve as their respective acting debuts.
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According to the IMDb page, the synopsis of the film is as follows: “Crime caper about a stolen bag of money. Caught in the crossfire are ‘The Geezers’ a bunch of wannabe criminals who have bitten off more than they can chew. With 24 hours to grab the cash, London may just go up in smoke tonight.”
Shame it’s not set on the mean streets of Manchester, or better yet Salford, but you’ve still very much caught our interest.
You can see the first promotional poster for the film down below.
As for Davies, he has been involved with a number of small-budget TV film projects, as well as appearing in shorts and even video games, so it’s fair to say that getting 62-year-old Ryder and his ever-energetic hype man, 60, involved is quite the coup for his movie-making career.
Although the film has no release date just yet, we know that filming locations having included parts of Warrington and Pinewood Studios, will be produced by Loose Gripp Films and distributed by publishers High Fliers.
Given the high-octane nature of Geezers and its genre, the feature will involve lots of action, stunts, violence and even martial arts – though how much kung-fu these two will have learned for the project remains to be seen…
All we know is that the film is supposedly “coming soon” and if you don’t want to see Bez and Shaun Ryder doing their best impression of a Guy Ritchie gangster movie then you’re lying to yourself. Praying for a Rowetta cameo to put the cherry on top.
Featured Images — Shaun Ryder (via X)/Loose Gripp Films/IMDb
TV & Showbiz
Gregg Wallace apologises after Downing Streets labels ‘middle-class women’ comments ‘misogynistic’
Danny Jones
Gregg Wallace has issued an official apology as he looks to be in increasing trouble not only over recent reports of his misconduct on set but his subsequent reaction to the allegations and now viral “middle-class women” comments.
The 60-year-old MasterChef presenter and well-known foodie face stepped down from the BBC cooking show last week after a total of 13 people came forward to complain about his ‘sexual’ behaviour over the course of a 17-year period.
Despite having denied an initial accusation from a former female colleague regarding an incident back in 2018, in which insists no comments or actions of a sexual nature were made, a dozen more individuals have now submitted historical complaints to the corporation and a full investigation is underway.
However, in an Instagram story shared on Sunday, Wallace was quick to dismiss the claims made by what he called “a handful of middle-class women of a certain age” – a response which was quickly met with a severe backlash online.
Equally problematic was his suggestion that because he had worked with an estimated 2,000 people during his time on the show the words of “only 13” women were somehow less valid and/or believable.
Having also shared a video thanking all of those supporting him, as well as numerous other stories featuring personal messages from people both on and off the show defending him, he has continued to rebuke those who have put his conduct over the past two decades under a microscope.
That being said, it looks as though the now former TV personality and household name is doubling back after even Downing Street came out to condemn his comments, with a spokesperson for Prime Minister Keir Starmer labelling the response video “completely inappropriate and misogynistic.”
Having since deleted a number of his IG stories and now shared a follow-up video to his initial reply, telling his followers: “I want to apologise for any offence that I caused with my post yesterday and any upset I may have caused to a lot of people.”
He said that he was not in a “good head space” when he posted the response and has been dealing with a lot of stress since the story broke, adding, “I felt very alone.” You can see the clip down below.
As you see, the ex-green grocer and restaurant owner said he intends to step away from the story for now and let the in-house investigation move forward without interruption.
Both the BBC and production company, Banijay UK – who make MasterChef and the various spin-off series on which Gregg Wallace has served as a co-host – are currently conducting an internal review of those complaints made by former contestants and staff, including a BBC news anchor.
While none of the allegations are yet to be proved, one former male contestant reportedly told Sky News that the current allegations are just the “tip of the iceberg“, claiming he witnessed a “toxic environment” and was so “horrified” he considered quitting the show on his first day.
Featured Images — BBC/Gregg Wallace (screenshots via Instagram/YouTube)
TV & Showbiz
Bents Garden Centre – the Christmas wonderland that everyone, including Molly-Mae Hague, obsesses over
Daisy Jackson
Don’t ask us when it happens, but there’s a point in life where you favourite place on earth becomes a garden centre.
And garden centres don’t come much fancier than Bents Garden Centre, an enormous sprawl of a building filled with the obvious stuff (like, you know, garden plants) but also so much more.
The Warrington favourite is never more popular than at Christmas, when it turns into a twinkling wonderland and people from across the north west make the pilgrimage.
There are colourful decorations spilling out from every corner, from themed baubles to fairy lights to festive soft furnishings.
Bents Garden Centre does not hold back on its decorating – this year alone there are Alpine dining scenes, a life-size car with presents spilling out of the boot, and an arctic landscape with polar bears and igloos.
That’s on top of a whole display inspired by an ice cream parlour, and others that take inspiration from woodland and The Grinch.
There’s also a winter food market, where wooden lodges sell everything from Yorkshire pudding wraps to bratwurst sausages to beef brisket sandwiches.
Inside Bents Garden Centre at Christmas. Credit: The Manc Group
In the outside space there are heated dining globes, decorated with plants, blankets and bunting.
Bents garden centre is so popular, it even had a fairly famous visitor a couple of years ago, when Molly-Mae Hague and Tommy Fury popped in for a day out, documenting the whole thing to her (at the time) 1.7m YouTube subscribers.
She proudly showed off a trolley piled high with food-themed baubles, in the shape of cakes, doughnuts, gingerbread men, candy canes, and even a giant pink lollipop.
She said: “Don’t ask me why we’ve never come here before. It’s SO cosy.”
Molly-Mae added: “This garden centre, Bents, in I think Warrington, it’s unbelievable. I don’t know why we’ve never come here before.
“It’s kind of like a farm shop too, they’ve got food and food stalls. I am so excited to come back here with a baby next year, like it’s so special.
“It is quite expensive I’m not gonna lie, to get all the decorations and things, but we’ll keep them each year and reuse them.”
Danny Jones -
21st November 2024 
