Manchester’s pubs, bars and hospitality professionals will be celebrated in a huge awards ceremony later this month.
Now in its fourth year, the Manchester Bar Awards picks out the very best operators in the city – with 2022’s categories championing the city’s Best Restaurant Bar, Best Speciality Bar, Best New Bar, Best Food Offering, and Bartender of the Year.
Further categories pay homage to professionals within the industry, with awards given to the best bar backs, front of house staff and rising stars.
Run by a group of Manchester bartenders and hospitality professionals, the awards were set up by the admins of a local Facebook group in 2018 to champion local people working in the industry.
First created in 2012 to help fundraise for Movember, today the Facebook group is a decade old and one of the country’s leading hospitality-focused groups – boasting over 17,000 members.
The shortlist for the 2022 awards has just been revealed, with members of the city’s bar community now being encouraged to vote for their favourites.
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Hawksmoor, Cottonopolis, 10 Tib Lane, CBRB and newcomers Namii are all shortlisted for the Best Restaurant Bar category, whilst the Best New Bar award shortlist features Schofield’s, Junior Jackson’s, 10 Tib Lane, Ramona and Lost Cat.
Image: Lost Cat
Image: !0 Tib Lane
Image: 10 Tib Lane
In a nod to the quirkiness of the city’s bar scene, this year’s Best Speciality Bar Award names wine bars Flawd and Salut, The Briton’s Protection (for its epic whiskey collection), brewery-owned bar Northern Monk and gaming bar NQ64.
Shortlisted food offerings, meanwhile, include three businesses launched by local bartenders during lockdown – Bada Bing, Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria and Kong’s Chicken Shop – alongside Wolf At The Door and Parmogeddon.
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Elsewhere, rising stars and MVPS have their own categories, whilst an outstanding achievement award highlights those who’ve done good for the community – picking out a Manchester bartender who hosts a yearly ‘Orphans Christmas’ for staff with nowhere to go, alongside others including mental-health focused organisation So Let’s Talk.
Image: Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria
Image: Bada Bing
Image: So Let’s Talk
This year’s event ceremony will be held on 15 March at First Street dive bar Bunny Jackson’s, an industry favourite amongst many of Manchester’s bartenders, and promises to be a raucous, fun-filled affair.
Speaking on the upcoming awards, Manchester Bars admin and organiser Nate Booker said: “We’ve waited a long time for this moment, but the shortlist is finally here. This list was built by the crowd-sourced thoughts of over 100 hospitality professionals from Manchester (and a smattering of the rest of the UK)! We believe this is quite possibly the best shortlist we’ve published, representing a diverse cross-section of the industry.
“We have new faces and venues hitting the list amongst some old favourites, which show how dynamic and tenacious our industry is. Now we’ve just got to wait for the people of the group to vote on their winners!
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“With the Northern Restaurant & Bar Show in the city, every year Manchester is full to the brim with our hospitality peers from across the country. Hosting an awards ceremony on the first night seemed serendipitous, rewarding the hard work and passion so prevalent in the city (when our friends can join us!).
“The awards have become incredibly important to the community and we are proud to organise it, but ultimately it’s an event based embodiment of what Manchester does best, and that is have a whole lot of fun.
“We want to say a massive congratulations to all the nominees, and a huge thank you to the panel, the sponsors and of course Bunny Jackson’s. “
The full shortlist for this year’s Manchester Bar Awards ceremony:
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Best Restaurant Bar sponsored by Crystal Head
Hawksmoor
Cottonopolis
10 Tib Lane
CBRB
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Namii
Outstanding Achievement Award! Sponsored by White Claw
So Let’s Talk
Dom Gold, (Orphan’s Xmas)
Kiera & Amie, Feel Good CLub
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Mike Ramsden (Too Many Owners)
Abbie Dunn, 86 People
Best New Bar Sponsored by Portobello Gin
Schofield’s
Junior Jackson’s
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10 Tib Lane
Ramona
Lost Cat
Manchester’s Best Speciality Bar Sponsored by Maison Ferrand
Briton’s Protection, Whisky
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Northern Monk, Beer
Flawd, Wine
Salut, Wine
NQ64, Gaming
Food Offering of the Year Sponsored by Ten Locks
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Kong’s
Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria
Parmogeddon
Wolf at the Door
Bada Bing
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Bartender of the Year – Sponsored by Slane
Conor Knowles, Schofield’s
Rachel Orange. Schofield’s
Connan Henry-Madden, Speak in Code
Jack Sleaford, Sandinista
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Jake Nicholl’s, Junior Jackson’s
Manchester’s Best Bar Back – Sponsored by Sairen & O’Hara’s
Calem Ocram, Smithfield Social
Sid Curry, Sherlock’s
Karis Bleakley, Washhouse
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Ethan, Behind Closed Dorrs
Tom Fastiggi, Schofield’s
Manchester’s Rising Star – Sponsored by WSET & Horse With No Name
Aidan Tibbins, Schofield’s
Dom Cleaver, 10 Tib Lane
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Reah Owen, Clubhouse
Konstantinos Koutis, Rosso
Amanda Lane, Lost Cat
Front of House Star – Sponsored by The MANC
Georgi May, Science & Industry
Leighton Russell, Seven Oaks
Lachlan Meany, Tairff & Dale
Charlotte Felton, Impossible
Meg Williams, Flawd
Feature image – Schofield’s Bar
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Three men arrested after ‘shocking’ Salford pub fight leaves victim in life-threatening condition
Emily Sergeant
Three men have been arrested as police continue to appeal following a ‘shocking’ incident in Salford over the weekend.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that, at around 2:51am yesterday (Sunday 29 March), officers were called to reports of an assault at a pub on Liverpool Road in Irlam, where it’s understood that an incident involving several males took place.
Police quickly attended the scene, and one male was rushed to hospital.
The man sustained serious injuries and was taken to hospital for treatment, where he’s said to remain in a life-threatening condition.
While officers are working ‘at speed’ on their investigation to establish the full circumstances of this incident, a scene is currently in place, and road closures are affecting the immediate area.
At this time, it has been confirmed that three men – all in their 20s – have been arrested on suspicion of Section 18 assault, and they remain in custody for further questioning while GMP renews its public appeal for information.
“This is a shocking incident and our thoughts are firmly with the victim and his family during this extremely difficult time,” commented Detective Chief Inspector Helen Bagnall, from GMP’s Salford district. “We are working at pace and remain absolutely committed to identifying everyone involved and bringing those responsible to justice.
“Three arrests have been made in connection with this incident, and we are continuing to appeal for further information.
“Officers remain committed to understand the full circumstances and are urging anyone with information to come forward to support our investigation.”
Can you help? A dedicated online Major Incident Public Portal has been set up, and information, CCTV, dashcam, doorbell, and phone images and footage can be submitted here, or you can also contact police on 101, quoting log 256 of 29/03/26.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
Featured Image – GMP
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MOBOs 2026 in Manchester – all the award winners and iconic performances
Thomas Melia
Manchester had its second major music award show visit of the year courtesy of the MOBOs, and here’s all the awards, winners and iconic performances from the night.
We knew 0161 was known for its impact on the music industry, but it’s recently become a place for music celebration on multiple occasions with the BRITs and, most recently, with the MOBOs.
As expected, this was a night full of A-listers, rising stars and incredible music makers, who all united for an award show dedicated to celebrating one aspect of the industry in particular – Music of Black Origin.
Created by Kanya King back in 1996, Manchester had the pleasure of hosting the MOBOs as the award show celebrated its 30-year anniversary right here at the 23,500 seater Co-op Live.
MOBOs 2026 – all the highlights from the night
Get ready to find out everything that happened during the MOBO Awards 2026, including the awards, winners and iconic performances.
All the awards and winners from MOBOs 2026 in Manchester
MOBO Global Songwriter Award – Pharrell Williams
MOBO Lifetime Achievement Award – Slick Rick
Album of the Year – The Art of Loving by Olivia Dean
Song of the Year – Olivia Dean, ‘Man I Need’
Best Male act – Jim Legxacy
Best Female act – Olivia Dean
Best Newcomer – DC3
Video of the Year – Raye, ‘Where Is My Husband!’
Best R&B/ Soul Act – Flo
Best Alternative Music Act – Nova Twins
Best Grime Act – Chip
Best Hip-Hop act – Central Cee
Best Drill Act – Twin S
Best International Act – Ayra Starr
Best African Music Act – Wizkid
Best Caribbean Music Act – Vybz Kartel
Best Jazz Act – Ezra Collective
Best Electronic/ Dance Act – Sherelle
Best Gospel Act – DC3
Best Media Personality – Niko Omilana
Best Performance in a TV Show/Film – Stephen Graham, Adolescence
Best Producer – P2J
Pharrell Williams receiving his ‘MOBO Global Songwriter Award’ and Flo accepting the ‘Best R&B/ Soul Act’ / Credit: The Manc Group
Who performed at the MOBOs 2026 in Manchester at Co-op Live?
Flo opened the show with their iconic silhouettes, just like on their Access All Areas Tour, which we had the privilege of witnessing live at Manchester Academy last Autumn.
If you’re worried you’ve lost a backstage pass to all things Flo, think again. Their latest single continues the unrestricted theme with its aptly-fitting title ‘Leak It’, and they set standards high.
A variety of grime acts dominated the stage as curated by DJ Target with Chip, D Double E, Wiley, Nolay and Scorcher with staple hits like ‘Legend’, ‘Street Fighter Riddim’ and ‘Wot U Call It?’
Slick Rick treated Co-op Live and the MOBOs audience to a medley of hits like’Children’s Story’ and ‘Landlord’ while bringing out the wonderful Estelle to sing ‘Mona Lisa’ alongside the respected rapper.
Flo opened the show with a live debut of new single ‘Leak It’ / Credit: MOBO Organisation (supplied)
Folk-pop star Miles Smith had the crowd in the palm of his hand as they all sang ‘Stargazing’ in unison, almost as though it was their own performance. This singer-songwriter returns to Manchester and Co-op Live this winter.
When Tiwa Savage walked onto the stage, this Manchester indoor venue knew they were in the presence of royalty, the Queen of Afrobeats to be exact. She performed ‘You 4 Me’ and dropped a preview of her new hit ‘Energy’.
The multi-MOBO winner Olivia Dean showed off her vocal prowess with an exclusive live performance of ‘A Couple Minutes’ accompanied by a beautiful orchestra arrangement.
Ms Dean blew our minds with her ‘Man I Need’ performance at the BRITs just last month, and she can’t keep away from Manchester, returning to Co-op Live next month for ‘The Art of Loving Tour‘.
Credit: MOBO Organisation (supplied)
Moston’s own Aitch had the crowd going crazy with his The Stone Roses-sampling track ‘1989’ and one of his biggest hits to date, and Ashanti-sampling record ‘Baby’.
Dancehall diva Shenseea closed the night with not one but four of her cathartic bangers like ‘Hit & Run’, the empowering ‘Shenyeng Anthem’, UK Top 20 single ‘Shake It To The Max (Remix)’ and newest effort ‘Talk To Me Nuh’.
Which stars attended the MOBOs red carpet in Manchester?
Manchester is the music capital of the North, so it makes a lot of sense that some of music’s biggest names decided to pop over to this city for a visit.
Alongside all the nominees and performers, there was a whole host of acts in attendance from the music, film, TV and social media industries.
Everyone from former Little Mix member turned independent artist Leigh-Anne and Bemi Orojuogun, more widely recognised by her digital moniker ‘Bus Aunty’, strutted their stuff on the MOBOs red carpet.
Audio North had the incredible opportunity of chatting with a whole host of talented artists and creatives straight from the red carpet, including shaking hands with legendary multi-hyphenate Nile Rodgers.
This was a truly beautiful night which celebrated the contributions and impact made within the music industry across the past 12 months and beyond, soundtracked by some class live performances.
Georgina Pellant -
9th March 2022 
