News

Avanti West Coast told to release train tickets earlier or face ‘formal measures’

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR) says the rail operator is still "falling short" of what is expected.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 25th January 2023

Avanti West Coast has been ordered to release train tickets for its services further in advance, or face “formal measures” otherwise.

After customers have been claiming that the rail firm’s decision to only release tickets just a few days ahead of travel dates mean they are often being denied cheaper rates, Avanti West Coast has been told by rail regulator the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) to submit an improved recovery plan for producing timetables and releasing tickets by 2 February, or face “formal measures” if it fails to.

Since taking over from Virgin Trains back in December 2019, Avanti now runs the West Coast Mainline between London Euston and Glasgow Central, and also serves the Midlands, North West of England, and North Wales.

The rail firm is responsible for operating the route from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston.

Most rail operators have a 12-week booking window for tickets, but so far this month, passengers looking to book tickets for weekend travel on Avanti West Coast Services have only been able to buy them just a few days in advance, while weekday tickets have also been released far later than what should be expected.

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Avanti West Coast told to release train tickets earlier or face ‘formal measures’ / Credit: TPE

Avanti has blamed the delay in tickets becoming available on it having to produce bespoke timetables in partnership with Network Rail during engineering work that are currently going on, and says tickets can only be put on sale once timetables are confirmed.

But the ORR says the rail operator is still “falling short”, and that passengers are “rightly frustrated” at the deteriorating services.

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“By 2 February, we expect Avanti to identify what has gone wrong and set out how it intends to get back to releasing timetables in normal industry timescales so that passengers can plan and book journeys with greater confidence,” said Stephanie Tobyn, Strategy, Policy, and Reform Director of the ORR.

“Failure to produce an acceptable plan or to deliver improvements may lead to more formal measures.”

The ORR says the rail operator is still “falling short” of what is expected / Credit: Avanti West Coast

Addressing the order to improve services, a spokesperson for Avanti West Coast said: “Unfortunately, some tickets for Saturdays and Sundays have only been available at short notice due to having to write unprecedented numbers of bespoke timetables to accommodate industrial action and engineering work which has stretched industry train planning resources.

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“We know this causes huge uncertainty and inconvenience for passengers, and we’re sorry for that.

“Weekend tickets are now on sale up to mid-February, and by mid-March we’ll be selling weekend tickets six weeks out.”

Featured Image – Avanti West Coast

News

This Manchester restaurant is serving a Sunday roast with bottomless drinks

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant

When it comes to Sunday roasts, by and large they’re pretty damn hard to beat. A catch-all plate loaded with your favourite meat and vegetables, drenched in gravy and topped with a fluffy Yorkshire pudding, what’s not to love?

Hands down this would be our death row meal every time. There’s simply no competition. So when we heard that a restaurant in Manchester has just launched a Sunday roast with bottomless drinks we felt the news was way too good not to share. After all, hot foodies don’t gatekeep.

Let’s be honest, we all love a good drink with our roast anyway – and now The Oast House has gone and made it that much more affordable.

Starting from 12pm on a Sunday, you can get 90 minutes of unlimited prosecco, a range of different spritzes and pints of lager here with your roast dinner for an extra £15.

Image: The Oast House
Image: The Oast House

The roast itself is priced at two courses for £18.50 or three for £22.50, with main choices including gorgeously pink-looking roast beef and lamb, plus chicken, crispy pork belly and a chestnut, mushroom and red lentil roast.

All come served with mustard glazed carrots, red cabbage, Tenderstem broccoli, roast potatoes, a Yorkshire pudding and gravy – plus the option to add on crispy onion-topped Shorrocks Lancashire cauliflower cheese for an extra £2.50.

Read more: All the February Manchester restaurant deals, discounts and offers you need in 2023

Elsewhere on the menu, you’ll find the likes of scotch eggs with picalilli, pea hummus, wings and calamari to whet your appetite as starters.

In the pudding section, meanwhile, there is a host of tempting options: ranging from a rose and hibiscus poached peach and pistachio cheesecake, to cookie dough loaded with Oreos and vanilla icecream.

Image: The Oast House
Image: The Oast House

Further pudding choices include a mouthwatering lemon tart served with raspberry sorbet and crushed honeycomb, a vegan-friendly dark chocolate and peanut butter pot with Biscoff crumb and caramelised banana, and everyone’s favourite: a sticky toffee pudding with rich toffee sauce and icecream on the side.

Bottomless drinks options will set you back £15 per person and can be enjoyed by the whole table up to a maximum of six, with spritz choices spanning Aperol, raspberry, blood orange or elderflower.

Read more: Manchester’s Animaid cafe claps back after local councillor brands it ‘disgusting’

However, if you’re not feeling that there’s also a Bloody Mary menu promising the ‘perfect pick me up’ for hungover heads with three different styles to choose from.

If you fancy getting stuck into a big roast and making a boozy one of it, then we think this will be right up your street.

Read more: The new bars and restaurants opening in Manchester this month | February 2023

To find out more, view the fulll menu and book, head over to The Oast House’s website here.

Feature image – The Oast House

News

Beyonce announces Renaissance world tour – but fans fume as she shuns Manchester

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson

Beyonce has finally announced details of her Renaissance world tour, a week after her phones-free return to the stage in Dubai.

The Crazy in Love singer announced live shows across UK, Europe and North America in 2023 this afternoon.

The Renaissance tour will be her first since 2016, when she visited Emirates Old Trafford in Manchester.

But this time, Beyonce will be giving our fair city a miss – and fans are not happy.

The 41-year-old megastar is instead going to performing three nights in London at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, plus shows in Cardiff, Edinburgh, and Sunderland.

Beyonce has announced new tour dates for 2023. Credit: Instagram, @beyonce

She announced the tour to her 293 million Instagram followers, racking up almost three million likes in less than an hour.

While everyone is busy celebrating Beyonce’s return to the world of touring, us Mancs are a bit cross that she’s skipping our home town and its amazing live music venues.

On Twitter, hundreds of people are voicing their disappointment, and the memes are coming thick and fast.

One comment said: “Beyoncé is coming to every city in the world except Manchester.”

Another person wrote: “Sunderland?! Sunderland?! WHERE IS MANCHESTER? Beyoncé, did we hurt you somehow?”

Someone else said: “Beyonce not adding a tour date to Manchester ? WHAT!!!!!! Surely she has to announce more???”

Read more

Beyonce’s 2023 Renaissance tour dates in Europe

MAY

5 – Stockholm, Sweden, Friends Arena
14 – Brussels, Belgium, Baudoin Stadium
17 – Cardiff, UK, Principality Stadium
20 – Edinburgh, UK, Murrayfield
23 – Sunderland, UK, Stadium Of Light
26 – Paris, France, Stade De France
29 – London, UK, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
30 – London, UK, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

JUNE

2 – London, UK, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
6 – Lyon, France, Groupama Stadium
8 – Barcelona, Spain, Olympic Stadium
11 – Marseille, France, Orange Vélodrome
15 – Cologne, Germany, De Rheinenergiestadion
17 – Amsterdam, Netherlands, JC Arena
18 – Amsterdam, Netherlands, JC Arena
21 – Hamburg, Germany, De Volksparkstadion
24 – Frankfurt, Germany, De Deutsche Bank Park
27 – Warsaw, Poland, PGE Nardowy

Featured image: Instagram, Beyonce

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