A hungry mechanic in Bolton has been praised after giving a hilarious response to an impatient customer that left him a damning review online.
After being confronted by a stroppy driver who insisted that he put down his food and fix her car immediately despite him not having stopped all day, cheeky mechanic Chris Hogan decided to take matters into his own hands.
The gearhead, who works at Eddie’s Motor Spares, was accosted by a rude customer during his 15-minute break just had he had sat down to a hot pie for his first break.
Ringley-based worker Chris had already told the customer that he would fix her issue in ten minutes’ time, once he was done with his pie and the rest of his fifteen-minute lunch break, but that wasn’t considered speedy enough.
Instead, she sped off and instead uploaded a negative review of Eddie’s Motor Spares, taking the business’s perfect 5-star score down to a 4.6.
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He told The Bolton News: “I couldn’t believe it. We had been working without a break all morning and just sat down at 1pm for a hot pie.
“I took my first bite and a customer demanded I put it down and fix her brake light ‘because it only takes five minutes’.
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“Now, if it had been a bad pie, I might have done just that, but it was so tasty and I had been looking forward to it, so I asked her to wait 10 minutes.”
Sharing a picture of himself to the social media networking site, Chris wrote: “Just adapting an eating tray so i can eat lunch and fit bulbs at the same time so the next reviewer won’t leave me a bad review for not leaving my half-eaten lunch so she can have a bulb fitted Immediately on demand.”
The negative review shared online by the customer who inspired the eating tray read: “Needed a brake light fitting. 5-minute job.
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“Unhelpful lady behind the counter said everyone was on their dinner – saw two blokes in the back.
“I get everyone needs a lunch break but for the sake of 5 mins?! Phoned back later and still no joy so went Formula One in Farnworth.
“No probs there and no charge. Guess who I’ll be using in the future?!!”
Customers at the garage have been quick to pile on and offer support to Chris after he posted the picture of himself and his pie-eating tray to the business’s Facebook page.
One person wrote: “A nice meat and potato pie on a buttered balm would settle your nerves Chris.”
Another person said: “How DARE you have your dinner! Love the tray idea, keeping entitled people happy whilst having your dinner, that’s how businesses should be run. Bravo!”
A third joked: “Honestly having lunch instead of sorting out your customers,Next thing you be doing is going on holiday.”
A fourth commented: “Got to earn your bread & butter”
Speaking to The Bolton News, Chris added: “It is a family-run business, father and son, and we’re hungry mechanics but haven’t had a customer react like that in a very long time.
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“The last person I remember doing something similar tipped a £1 coin, then came back in and asked to swap it back for a 20p.
“I couldn’t even buy a packet of crisps with that!”
Featured image – Eddie’s Motor Spares
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No trams to run on three major Greater Manchester lines this Easter bank holiday weekend
Emily Sergeant
People are being urged to ‘plan ahead’ as no trams are set to run on three major Greater Manchester Metrolink lines this weekend.
As part of a continuing £150 million investment in the Metrolink network across the region, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has announced that more than 1km of track will be replaced on the Altrincham line, and work will also take place between Trafford Bar and Deansgate-Castlefield to prepare for full track replacement later in the year.
As a result, there will be no trams on the Altrincham, Eccles, and Trafford Park lines this Easter bank holiday weekend all day from Friday 3 to Monday 6 April.
On top of these line closures, there is also set to be disruption across other parts of the network too, as on the East Didsbury and Manchester Airport lines, trams will run to Firswood only, and services on the Rochdale line will terminate at Exchange Square.
To keep people moving over the four-day weekend, replacement buses will run between all the affected stops, TfGM has confirmed.
Anyone using a replacement bus, however, will still need a valid Metrolink ticket or a one-day Bee bus ticket to travel, and customers will be able to use all existing options to buy these, as they will not be able to buy a ticket or pay for the fare on the replacement buses themselves.
No trams will be running on three major Greater Manchester lines this Easter bank holiday weekend / Credit: TfGM
Replacement buses are said to be calling at ‘all affected stops’ along the lines, so customers are being told not to worry about that.
Speaking ahead of the improvement works being carried out this weekend, Ian Davies, who is the Network Director for Metrolink at TfGM, said: “The first main upgrades of the year get under way over the Easter weekend, as our £150m programme to improve our network continues.
“We’ll be doing everything we can to minimise disruption to passengers while we carry out this essential work to ensure our tram network remains reliable, resilient and safe for years to come.”
TfGM has assured that staff will be out and on-hand across the network this weekend, but is urging anyone travelling to plan for their journeys ahead of time to make sure they go as smoothly as possible.
Looking ahead to the rest of the month, no trams will run between Piccadilly Gardens and Ashton-under-Lyne on Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 April while the track is repaired, and a further weekend closure for track repairs on the Ashton line will take place on Saturday 25 April and Sunday 26 April.
Find out more and plan ahead on the Bee Network’s dedicated webpage here.
Featured Image – Janus Boye
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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.
Georgina Pellant -
14th August 2023 
