Manchester dirty burger bar Almost Famous announced earlier this week that it will be closing its original Northern Quarter site for good at the end of the week.
Not one to do things by halves, the team has revealed that as part of its last service it will say goodbye to the place where it all began with a bang – giving away black cards, free food and some ‘legit Banky art’ as part of a final hurrah.
This Saturday from midday, the first two people through the door will win a blackcard giving them unlimited free burgers for a year from any Almost Famous site.
And that’s not all. The first twenty people to visit them in the Northern Quarter this Saturday will also get their meals for free, with the team throwing things back to its original 2012 no-bookings policy for the first two hours of service.
Image: Almost Famous
What’s more, Almost Famous will also be giving diners the chance to win a legit piece of Banksy art as part of a treasure hunt.
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A piece of Almost Famous NQ history, they’ll be giving away an original Banksy print as part of a treasure hunt, with the first clue revealed to diners with their bill.
The person to master the puzzle will then be rewarded with an original Banky piece “worth a bare stack of cash” as well as two blackcards.
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The site will close following a final service on Saturday 23 July, before moving to a new as yet to be disclosed location.
When it first opened in the Northern Quarter 2012, the then ‘secret’ burger bar offered something distinctly different to diners – an intentional lack of signage, no reservations, and ‘off menu’-only vegetarian items leading only the most committed of burger enthusiasts to venture up those dark stairwells in search of the best buns in town.
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Mac and cheese balls, Molotov cocktails, ‘bacon bacon’ and ‘winning’ fries, not to mention those famous loaded burgers drenched in a variety of house-made sauces, all set the tone for a dirty food obsession that would prevail for years to come.
Whilst trends have moved on, Almost Famous is still a stalwart on the Manchester burger scene.
In the past ten years, it has survived a fire at its original site, opened a second venue at the Great Northern Warehouse and expanded its meaty, cheesy goodness into other cities like Leeds and Liverpool.
Information on where the site will be moving to is yet to be confirmed, but there has been some speculation that it may cross over to Edge Street into the former Home Sweet Home unit, which is also owned by Beautiful Drinks and has just announced plans to close there.
Feature image – Google maps
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Eight arrested and £20k cash seized during early-morning police drug raids in Rochdale
Emily Sergeant
Police have seized £20,000 cash and a large quantity of drugs during early-morning drug raids in Rochdale this week.
The significant seizes and arrests come after detectives from GMP’s Serious Organised Crime Group executed 11 warrants at addresses across Rochdale and Lancashire yesterday morning (17 April), that were believed to be connected to a large-scale drugs conspiracy.
As well as raiding a number of residential properties, several warrants were also executed at premises that police believed to be ‘stash houses’.
A search of all premises raided lead to several mobile phones, quantities of cocaine, and cannabis plants all being seized, as well as an estimated £20,000 in cash.
Eight people have been arrested and £20k cash has been seized during early-morning police raids in Rochdale / Credit: GMP
Following the raids, a total of eight people, who are between the ages of 27 and 56, have all been arrested on conspiracy to supply drugs, it has been confirmed, and they currently remain in police custody for questioning.
These are the latest arrests in what is part of GMP’s ongoing investigations into the criminal use of encrypted mobile phones.
Back in 2020, as a result of the NCA take down of Encrochat – which is the encrypted messaging platform once used by criminals across the globe – GMP was handed hundreds and thousands of messages from the once-secure platform, and it gave detectives “insight into the criminal underworld which had never been seen before”.
👮9 arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to supply drugs. 💰£20k cash seized. 🚓cocaine and cannabis seized.
Over the last few years, GMP says it has been “systematically” working its way through these messages to attribute them to criminals across Greater Manchester and the North West.
“We have seen great huge successes to date,” GMP has admitted.
Speaking following the early-morning raids in Rochdale and Lancashire yesterday, Detective Sergeant Rich McCorry, from GMP’s Serious Organised Crime Group, said in a statement: “The ability for criminals to benefit from the proceeds of drugs is a key driver for organised crime, and we have specialist detectives working tirelessly to eliminate the key players from criminal networks across the region.
“[Yesterday’s] action is a result of months of hard work by detectives, whose proactive investigations into the drugs trade in Manchester has led them through these doors today.
“We will continue to employ every possible tactic to target and disrupt organised crime groups, and ensure they are brought to justice.”
Featured Image – GMP
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Mother of Manchester Arena attack victim to walk to Downing Street to demand new security law
Emily Sergeant
The mother of a Manchester Arena attack victim is to walk from Manchester to Downing Street to demand a new security law.
Figen Murray OBE, whose son, Martyn Hett, was one of the 22 victims that sadly lost their life during the Manchester Arena attack in 2017, has been tirelessly campaigning for the introduction of new legislation that tightens security protocols at public venues across the UK for several years now – but this will be her biggest challenge yet.
On 7 May, she plans to set off from the place where Martyn died in Manchester city centre, and walk all the way to Downing Street.
Her expected arrival in London on 22 May will be both the seventh anniversary of the horrific attack, and of her son’s death.
The legislation Ms Murray is campaigning for the introduction of is known as ‘Martyn’s Law’, and it will require premises to fulfil what the Government has called “necessary but proportionate” steps, according to their capacity, to help keep the general public safe.
Today, we announced how #MartynsLaw will help protect public spaces from terror attacks.
Named in of honour of Martyn Hett, who lost his life in the Manchester Arena attack, this is what the law will do ⤵️
The law was approved in September 2022, but is still yet to be formally introduced.
A consultation was launched back in February to help work out the best way to introduce the law nationwide, and the public was invited to have their say on the proposals which sought to “scale-up preparedness for terrorist attacks” and make sure the public is protected – but this consultation closed on 18 March, and the results are said to be being considered by the Government, according to BBC reports.
Ms Murray is expected to be joined by Brendan Cox – the widower of MP Jo Cox, who was murdered in 2016 – and Nick Aldworth, who is a former national counter-terrorism coordinator, on her march to Downing Street.
Figen Murray’s son, Martyn Hett, who lost his life during the Manchester Arena attack in 2017 / Credit: gov.uk
She will also pay her respects at the sites of a number of terror attacks along the way on her 200-mile journey.
Reflecting on it being almost five years on from the Government’s original commitment to ‘Martyn’s Law’ ahead of her walk to London, Ms Murray says she believes the fact that the draft legislation still hasn’t been tabled is “putting our country at risk”.
“No parent should have to experience the pain and loss I’ve felt,” Ms Murray told the BBC.
'I don't want other people to be like me with their child's ashes on a bookshelf at home'
Figen Murray's son Martyn Hett was killed in the Manchester Arena attack and she told #BBCBreakfast why she is walking 200 miles to Downing Street to demand tighter security at public… pic.twitter.com/t5CO0aIhuS
“I truly believe we have an opportunity to make public spaces safer and more secure by introducing Martyn’s Law.”
Following the closing of the public consultation on ‘Martyn’s Law’ last month, a Home Office spokesperson thanked Ms Murray for her “tireless support in the development of this vital reform”.
The spokesperson’s statement continues: “We are reviewing the findings [of the public consultation] to ensure all feedback is fully considered, and working to finalise the legislation with a view to introducing it as soon as parliamentary time allows.”
Georgina Pellant -
21st July 2022 
