A huge Hong Kong street food festival is coming to Bury’s award-winning market this March, bringing with it over thirty different traders serving up cuisine from the region.
Taking place on Friday 17 and Saturday 18 March, foodies heading down to the infamous market can expect to find a variety of different Hong Kong favourites on offer at this free-to-attend festival.
Making use of already empty stalls at the market, the event will offer Bury natives an introduction to the region’s food – characterised by richly lacquered roasted meats, fine soups and morsels of both sweet and savoury dim sum, as well as rice dishes, bubble teas and the increasingly popular Hong Kong French toast.
With stalls spanning homegrown Cantonese cooking as well as a selection of Japanese, Korean and South Asian dishes, businesses confirmed to take part include Sale cakery A Little Sweet, Ardwick restaurant Fat Tat and Pand.ora Meal Box.
Image: Fat Tat in Ardwick
Image: Fat Tat in Ardwick
A Little Sweet owner Jeffrey Koo Ka Chun, is known for his Red Bean buns – a wonderfully light steamed sweet bread, filled with azuki bean paste – but is also something of a local celebrity after appearing on Bake Off: The Professionals in 2022.
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He has already teased out its menu for the event, revealing plans to serve up a range of Hong Kong favourites including custard-filled pineapple buns and freshly baked egg custard tarts.
Ardwick restaurant Fat Tat, meanwhile, will be providing steaming hot Hong Kong hot pots, whilst Pand.ora Meal Box is set to dish up the likes of Hainanese chicken rice, Cantonese thin pancakes, peanuts mochi, rice balls and more.
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Elsewhere, there’ll also be bubble tea from Shining Rainbow Dream Tea & Snacks, Asian teas from Bang Bang Brands, and traditional Yunnan province rice noodles courtesy of Derek Leung.
Image: A Little Sweet
Image: Pand.ora Meal Box
Image: This is So Hong Kong Market
The event is being organised by a stallholder local to the market, who hopes that it will help introduce people in Bury to more of Hong Kong’s brilliant street food. .
It is being held as part of a month-long, UK-wide programme of festivals designed to promote Hong Kong culture within sixteen different UK cities.
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Arranged in collaboration with the Hong Kong March cultural festival and Moliuliu’s Store, a Hong Kong grocery store based in the market, the event will promote and celebrate Hong Kong culture to different communities through the medium of food and craft.
Cammie Liu, owner of Moliuliu’s Store in Bury Market and one of the organisers behind the event, told Manchester’s Finest: “The main purpose of the market is to introduce Hong Kong street food to the local people, as I believe food can connect people from different cultures,”
.“It will make use of the empty stalls, attract more young people to explore the lovely Bury Market, and also allow Hong Kong people to have the chance to set up their businesses.”
Andy Burnham announces ‘fundamental’ changes to the UK’s education system
Emily Sergeant
The Prime Minister will unveil a fundamental change to the education system today with the launch of new prestigious technical educational routes.
Andy Burnham says he is ‘determined’ to put technical education on an equal footing with the traditional academic path to ensure there are no so-called ‘dead ends’ for young people coming out of the education system by providing them high-quality alternative routes that are valued and respected by students, parents, and employers alike.
The new pathways will provide 14-year-olds with ‘valuable’ early access to technical skills, work experience, and connections with local employers.
Building on successful local initiatives – such as the MBacc, launched by Andy Burnham here in Greater Manchester when he was Mayor – the new technical routes will mean young people can develop the technical knowledge and skills needed to progress in areas like engineering, healthcare, and digital technology.
It will aim to ‘skill them up’ with the specific knowledge and capabilities that local employers need.
Andy Burnham has announced ‘fundamental’ changes to the UK’s education system / Credit: MChe Lee (via Unsplash) | Wikimedia Commons
So, how will it all work then? Well, when students enter Year 10, they will have the chance to combine core academic subjects – including English, Maths, and Science – with a high-quality technical education that’s linked to the jobs available in their area.
During these courses, students will be able to spend time with employers and gain valuable real-world experience.
Regional mayors, local leaders, schools, colleges, and employers will work together to shape these new technical education pathways, rather than relying on a one-size-fits-all system.
To support this, the Government says it will prioritise funding towards high-quality technical education and practical routes into work, and will also change the way school performance is measured so that inspectors recognise the schools support young people to develop the skills, experience, and confidence employers want.
This way, no matter whether young people choose university, an apprenticeship, further education, or direct entry into a skilled profession, they will able to see a clear route from education into employment.
“For too long in this country, students have been told that you must take the academic path to do well and to be respected,” explained Prime Minister Andy Burnham.
“The whole school system has been built around it and that has let down young people seeking technical qualifications.
“I want an education system based on parity between academic and technical which gives all young people a clear path in life.
“From today, Britain will value the hard hat every bit as much as the graduation cap.”
Featured Image – MChe Lee (via Unsplash)
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When does the UK’s fourth heatwave of the year hit Greater Manchester?
Danny Jones
Brace yourselves: ANOTHER heatwave is set to hit the UK – the fourth in 2026 so far – and, understandably, Greater Manchester residents are already preparing for the latest blast of hot weather and wondering when it gets here.
Yes, in case you missed the news, more high temperatures are set to spread across Great Britain and Ireland this month and heading into August.
The increase will gradually build throughout this week, with Wednesday tipped to be the hottest day according to various meteorological sources.
Fortunately for us here in the North West, parts of the Midlands and the usual suspects down south are set to hit the highest numbers, but the thermometers are still on course to reach around the mid-20s over the coming days.
Temperatures are set to rise this week across some areas, bringing a return to hotter conditions 🥵
The heat looks to be fairly short-lived, however, with temperatures expected to fall again towards the end of the week 🌡️ pic.twitter.com/IKsunEdwhU
Estimates of 26°C have been predicted for this coming Tuesday, with the levels floating in and around 24/25 on the following Wednesday.
The heat is then due to drop off slowly, with top scores of no higher than 21°C on the cards for Thursday and Friday. Although the weekend forecast is less certain at present, one thing that has been announced is reduced rainfall.
Aside from a few more trickles today (Mon, 27 July), the showers or lack thereof cease rather soon, with some of the driest parts of the country already having various effects; for instance, parched parts of Wales have even revealed lost archaeological sites last Friday (24/7/2026).
It would be remiss if we didn’t mention the obvious moorland fires across our region, which were sadly exacerbated by hot weather earlier this month.
Following on from the hottest June on record, the Dovestone and Tinwhistle areas of Oldham and parts of Derbyshire saw hundreds of hectares turn into a deeply dangerous blaze for several days.
As per the latest statistics, it’s said that the equivalent of 1,250 football pitches were scorched following the alarming wildfire, which also raised concerns for wildlife and surrounding air quality.
Georgina Pellant -
7th March 2023 
