A charity football match is set to be held to raise funds for a statue in honour of legendary Manc boxer, Len Johnson, widely considered one of the greatest fighters to never be crowned a champion.
Len Johnson is one of the most inspiring yet saddest sporting tales you’ll ever come across. Born in Clayton (the former home of Manchester United‘s precursor club Newton Heath) back in 1902, Len Johnson was a British boxer who famously won 96 fights throughout his remarkable 135-bout career.
However, it was a career that was cruelly limited and hamstrung by outdated and racist laws, as according to a piece of legislation known as ‘Rule 24’, (a.k.a ‘the colour bar’), Johnson could not compete for a title as he did not have two white parents.
Despite the painful history behind his life, the light-heavyweight is often referred to as ‘Manchester’s best ever boxer‘, perhaps even Britain’s, and now famous faces from within the sport and beyond are looking to raise money for his long overdue statue and recognition.
🆕 Len Johnson Celebrity Match
We're hosting a fundraising match to raise funds for a statue for Manchester's uncrowned Boxing Champion, Len Johnson, with celebrities including @HitmanHatton & @ant_crolla + many more
Teaming up with FC United and a team of Legends, boxing icons Ricky Hatton and Anthony Crolla, as well as a horde of celebrities from the likes of Coronation Street, Hollyoaks and more are lacing up their boots for a charity match this May.
ADVERTISEMENT
Aiming to raise enough money to pay for the statue of Johnson, Manchester’s uncrowned boxing champion, the players will be facing off in the Moston-based semi-pro team’s home ground at Broadhurst Park.
With numerous sponsors already signed up and even more famous faces set to join the charity match, both coverage of the event and knowledge of Johnson’s story has increased.
ADVERTISEMENT
With documentaries made in his honour now being selected for the Paris Film Awards and more people learning of Len’s legacy, the turnout for the game and its attached fundraiser looks like it’s going to be massive.
Johnson died in Oldham back in 1974 at the age of 71 and while we will always wonder what could have been if he was allowed to fight officially, his impact both on boxing, Manchester and sport at large will never be forgotten.
As well as helping black sailors sacked by a shipping company keep their jobs, staging several protests outside a pub in Hulme after he refused service, he also served in WWII and helped organise the 5th Pan African Congress over decolonisation, held here in Manchester. He wasn’t just a boxer, he was a hero.
As campaign lead Lamin Touray told ITV, he believes “the Len Johnson story has been kept from us purposely” and erecting a statue of him, pride of place in the city centre, will not only help people learn the tale of this remarkable man, but it’s what he and his family deserve.
A queer comedy night is coming to Manchester next month
Thomas Melia
A comedy night packed with raunch and hilarious storytelling is heading to Manchester and its fronted by one of comedy’s leading queer comedians.
Titled ‘Queer as F*ck’ (we love a good pun), this night is devoted especially to queer comedy and sees Welsh comedian Morgan Rees taking the wheel with a wonderful roster of acts set to play too.
Taking inspiration from the cult-favourite queer comedy, this leading comedian is no stranger to seeing his work in the limelight as he has written for some of the funniest flagship shows like Mock The Week and The Great American Joke-Off.
Rees also doubles as the co-writer for smash internet hit The Uncle Roger Show, starring fellow comic Nigel Ng, and will definitely be bringing some of his razor-sharp one-liners on the night.
Ben Hodge, the MC for the queer comedy night in Manchester.Morgan Rees, the comedian headlining ‘Queer as F*ck’.Jenny Hart, one of the acts lined up for the queer comedy night in Manchester.Credit: Press Images (supplied)
The event, which has the full title of ‘brew. haha: Queer as F*ck comedy night’ will be MC’d by trans-male stand-up Ben Hodge and lesbian comedian Louise Young.
The latter may be a familiar name as she is currently supporting Alan Carr and Tom Allen on their latest tour while also stopping off in Manchester for this very special occasion.
Along with Rees and co., finishing the line-up are two impressive performers ready to raise the roof at this comedy night in Manchester: gay author Martin Dixon and trans comedian Jenny Hart.
Obviously, Rees doesn’t want to give everything away, but he has revealed an insight into what guests can expect to be chuckling away at in their seats.
Morgan Rees is excited to talk about “bad one night stands, growing up queer in a Welsh working class town, coming out late, and starting my first relationship in my 30s – it’s all in there.”
Taking place at Contact Theatre, this much-loved arts space is tucked away just behind the University of Manchester and another impressive city centre venue, Manchester Academy.
And if all this comedy talk wasn’t enough to get you down there, brew will be serving up Detroit-style pizzas with a range of draft beers and ciders – what a night you’re in for.
‘brew. haha: Queer as F*ck’ is coming to the Contact in Manchester on Wednesday, 9 April and ttickets are already on sale.
Featured Images — Rachel Sherlock/Press Shots (supplied)
News
Two Greater Manchester-based Paralympians pick up MBEs following Paris 2024 heroics
Danny Jones
A pair of Paralympians born just down the road and honed two discipline-leading national performance centres here in Manchester have officially been awarded MBEs.
The Northerners doing the country proud – sounds about right.
First off, if the name Poppy Maskill doesn’t ring a bell, the promising Paralympic was Team GB’s best-performing para-athlete at Paris 2024 this past summer, contributing a total of five medals towards the nation’s joint-third-highest tally.
After her heroics at the Games, the teenager who turns 20 this weekend (Saturday, 29 March) was the recipient of an early and very prestigious birthday present, becoming one of the youngest individuals to be made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in history.
She was named on the New Year’s Honours list back in December but finally collected her latest medal in person this week following a ceremony at Windsor Castle, being honoured by King Charles III personally.
Hailing from Middlewich just less than an hour away from our city centre, Maskill might be a Cheshire girl by birth, but this young sporting gem is being polished right here at the state-of-the-art Manchester Aquatics Centre (MAC).
The youngster became the first Paralympian to pick up gold back in August after not only winning the 100m butterfly but smashing the world record in the process, too.
Competing in the S14 class – a category for athletes with intellectual impairments – she finished the heat with in just 1:03, surpassing the previous best by more than half a minute. But her impressive performance didn’t stop there.
MAC regular Maskill went on to win two more golds in the S14 100m backstroke and 4 x100m S14 freestyle relay, as well as a pair of silver medals in the 200m freestyle and 200m individual medley S14. Just incredible.
Poppy Maskill wasn’t the only Greater Manchester-based para-athlete who was recognised this month, though, as Stockport‘s very own two-time Paralympic champion Sophie Unwin was also presented with the accolade for her services to sport.
Named a member of the Order along with her co-pilot Jenny Holl, Unwin’s Paris 2024 medal haul included a double of golds in the women’s B 3000m individual pursuit and the road race tandem B, not to mention a silver in the road time trial and a bronze in the 1000m time trial at Paris 2024.
Following in the footsteps of fellow MBE and Stopfordian cycling legend, Dame Sarah Storey, who won her 19th gold medal to become Britain’s greatest Paralympian of all time – having made the most of MAC and the National Cycling Centre over in East Manchester during her career – the borough did us proud.
30-year-old Unwin has kicked on just as strong in the new year as well, notching a narrow victory to set an unofficial (unfortunately) world record of 4:36.737 in the women’s tandem at the 2025 Lloyds National Track Championships here in Manchester.
Danny Jones -
15th February 2023 
