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A Manchester bar is undercutting the Christmas markets with half-price mulled wine

Take your Christmas markets mug into Arcane and they'll do you a mulled wine for half the price.

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 17th November 2022

Every year, the arrival of the Christmas markets brings plenty of excitement as well as the inevitable groans about the cost of its key attractions – namely sausages, beer and mulled wine.

And with life feeling more expensive right now than ever, it’s safe to say we’re all watching the pennies with caution.

In response, one Manchester bar has come up with a clever way to pull in punters – offering to undercut the Christmas market bars on price with what it’s termed a ‘mulled wine amnesty’.

This year the cheapest mulled wine option at the markets will set you back at least £7.50 (including the £3 mug deposit), meaning it’s not exactly the cheapest night out if you want to have a few.

So the owners behind Arcane cocktail bar have put their heads together and decided they will fill up punters’ cups for half the price, charging just £4.50 a go for a glass of mulled wine.

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Image: Arcane
Image: Manchester City Counil

The catch? You need to bring in a Christmas market mug to get the deal, so you’ll have to go and get one from one of the neighbouring market bars before heading in.

Read more: The best food and drink stalls at Manchester Christmas Markets 2022 

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Fortunately, the hidden gem bar is conveniently located for market-goers looking to save a pound (or few) – sitting on a back street just behind the busy King Street markets.

Writing on its social media pages, the bar said: “MULLED WINE AMNESTY!

“It’s that time of year where the mulled wine flows, but bugger me the markets are a grind.

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“Bring your mulled wine mug from any market stand and we will fill it for half price!

“That’s £4.50! And it’s better.

“Happy festivities, it’s our gift to you.

“Arcane x

“P.S. don’t forget our happy hour – 5 till 9 xox”

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Every year the Christmas market design changes, with memorable mugs from previous years featuring Father Christmas, kissing snowmen, mistletoe, interactive and wearable red nose reindeers.  

Read more: The Manchester Christmas Markets 2022 mug design has been unveiled

This year’s includes all the festive favourites, depicting Santa, Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, and a number of polar bears high-fiving each other.

Feature image – Manchester City Council

News

This Manchester suburb has just been named one of the UK’s ‘happiest’ places to live in 2024

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia Didsbury named one of the best places to live in the UK

An annual poll has named the Manchester suburb of Didsbury spot among 70 locations said to be the ‘happiest’ places to live in the UK.

Greater Manchester has got lots to say for itself, especially with its diverse and unique cultural landscapes, as well as various vibrant communities, so it comes as no surprise that one of our beautiful suburbs has been voted in a list of the UK’s happiest places to live for this year.

The survey included submissions from 5,000 people and there’s a lot of love being shown to the neighbouring areas of Yorkshire like Doncaster, Bingley, and Harrogate – the lattermost placed in second in the entire country.

But, ranking 62nd out of a possible 70 places, the distinct and vibrant area of Didsbury has been noticed by Furniturebox as one of the ‘happiest’ places to live in the UK.

Credit: The Manc Group

The results took into consideration good state schools, affordable housing, as well as accessibility to pubs, bars, restaurants, independent shops, retailers and more.

With multiple parks, walking destinations, and top-notch travel links with Bee Network trams and buses easily taking you back into the city centre and out to other boroughs, East, West and Didsbury Village all remain some of the most sought-after areas in the region.

There’s a whole host of indie retailers to enjoy, especially on the likes of the main high street and Burton Road, which effectively serves as its own cultural district, home to vintage clothing shops like Steranko, tailored styling opticians Fox Brothers and much more.

Burton Rd also boasts countless fantastic food and drink spots like The Great Kathmandu, SANTÉ, Volta and Proove Pizza, just to name a few; we’ve spent plenty of time just on this stretch of Didsbury alone.

If you’ve spent even a little time in Dids, you’ll know there’s plenty going on and it’s certainly one our happiest places in all of Greater Manchester and therefore the UK.

You can also enjoy the famous ‘Didsbury Dozen’ right on your doorstep.

Read more:

Elsewhere, and somewhat unsurprisingly, Shakespeare’s ever-romanticised hometown of Stratford-Upon-Avon once again reigned supreme at the top of this list.

That being said, it’s refreshing to see that these locations weren’t entirely related to wealth and similar factors, the survey took affordability into careful consideration.

Cheshire was destined for success with its cracking views and grand properties, as the North West county made waves for the region managing to place in fifth position, holding up against Falmouth in Cornwall which placed in sixth.

Although not nabbing that all-important top spot, Didsbury is carrying the flag for 0161 and showing what all know to be true: Northerners do it best.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images – The Manc Group

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A Greater Manchester town could be set to get a train station for the first time in 60 years

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

It’s been a whopping six decades, but the residents of one local town could soon be able to hop on a train out of there.

That’s because a planning application for a brand-new £32 million station in Golborne – which would connect the Greater Manchester town, in the Wigan borough, to the rail network for the first time in more than 60 years – has been submitted to Wigan Council, meaning connectivity is finally one step closer to becoming reality.

In case you didn’t know, Golborne currently has no direct bus, train, or tram services to Manchester, and Leigh is the biggest town in England without a rail station, while the wider area is the largest and most-populous area in Greater Manchester not connected to the rail network.

The milestone aims to boost access to jobs and opportunities for people in the town and the wider Wigan borough.

According to Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM), the Golborne station scheme forms part of a wider ambition to bring eight commuter lines into the Bee Network by 2028 – of which “significant investment” has been put into.

The application includes plans for a new accessible two-platform rail station, including step-free access throughout with a footbridge across the tracks and lifts to both platforms, a new hourly service between Wigan and Manchester Victoria, and onwards to Stalybridge, an improved town centre car park, and also new walking and cycling links to the town centre.

The submitting of the proposals comes after nearly 3,000 people had their say on the station earlier this year, with more than 90% of respondents supporting the plans.

A CGI of what the proposed new Golborne station could look like, if plans are approved / Credit: TfGM

If the plans are approved by Wigan Council, work on the site should begin in 2026, according to TfGM, with the new station scheduled to open in 2027.

Mayor Andy Burnham called the submitting of the proposals a “transformative step” for the region.

“It has taken a huge effort to get us to this point,” he explained. “But we have finally reached a major milestone on the journey to reconnect Golborne to the rail network for the first time in over 60 years.

Read more:

“The proposal is based on extremely sound evidence and huge progress has been made with a planning application being submitted and overwhelming support from local residents.”

Featured Image – TfGM

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