The Clap for Carers campaign is set to return once again this Thursday after the UK was plunged into the third national lockdown of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Can you remember back to Thursday 26th March 2020?
At 8pm on this very date, the UK stepped outside their front doors, stood on their balconies, and took to the streets to unite in thunderous applause as a mark of support for our health heroes, carers and key workers.
There seemed to be a sense of collective agreement that it was a genuinely moving moment that touched so many across the country and began to make us realise that we really are all in this together – and it was a great success.
So successful in fact, that it continued to take place every week, on the same day, at the same time, and began to take on a life of its own.
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During the first wave, millions of people came out of their homes to cheer, bang pots and applaud, but the campaign eventually faded after several months. That was until this week though when organiser Annemarie Plas has revealed it will return once again this Thursday, and this time, with a new twist.
It will now be now known as #ClapForHeroes in honour of everyone who has been affected by the pandemic, including NHS workers, parents, and people who have been shielding.
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Ms Plas – who was originally inspired to set up Clap For Carers by similar campaigns in her home country of the Netherlands, and in France and Spain – has asked people to express their gratitude to all carers by opening windows and clapping at the same time each week.
She said: “It will be different this time, it’s not a surprise to us what will happen, but it will still be bloody challenging. My hope is that it will have the same response, to set it up in a day is a bit of a challenge, but I will be going out with a spoon and a pan to activate people on my street.
“I was waiting to start it up for the anniversary in March, but life is full of surprises and we entered another lockdown on Monday.
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“We want to include all the heroes of the NHS who work tirelessly round the clock and all the jobs around that [and] we want to applaud all those people who are shielding. I haven’t hugged my father in a year because he is vulnerable so it will be for him and others going through the same.
“The heroes include parents with children who now have had their schools closed after one day and will now have to juggle work with childcare.”
But not everyone is pleased to see the campaign return.
Since Ms Plas’ announcement earlier on today, a debate has begun on social media and it has seen people point out a series of major problems and criticisms.
One Twitter user responded: “No. Stop with the empty gestures and fight for real change with pay and protection.”, and a second asked: “‘Heroes’ or underpaid workers who put their lives at risk and are snubbed repeatedly by government?”
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“It’s a hard pass from me, not because I don’t have the utmost respect for them, it’s a toothless gesture and vacuous,” a third agreed.
Another chipped in with: “Nobody wants this. NHS staff don’t need empty applause, they need everyone to stay at home, wear masks etc. and they need better wages. But, you go ahead and clappy clap clap if you need the attention.”
“Clapping is not about thanking: clapping should be a celebration. You don’t celebrate the sacrifice of frontline health workers. You don’t celebrate the fact we clapped the last time to thank them & worked hard to protect the NHS & now the government has made things far worse.” another concluded.
Where do you stand?
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A local Manchester run club is holding two special running routes to see the total eclipse
Danny Jones
With the highly anticipated total eclipse fast approaching, people not just here in Greater Manchester but all over the UK, Europe and the rest of the world are gearing up to try and watch it – but this native running club are doing it a bit differently.
Eclipses occur once every 12-18 months, but this is set to be the biggest since 1999.
The moon is set to cover approximately 96-98% of the sun this coming Wednesday, 12 August, 2026, and rather than try to watch it from a window at home or drive to somewhere with supposedly ‘the best view’, local sports club Manchester Road Runners are turning it into their latest one-off event.
Sharing details online, the free-to-join local organisation, which boasts thousands of members on Facebook and various other platforms, will be timing things to make sure they catch the phenomenon.
Writing in the accompanying caption, the Road Runners say: “We’ve pulled some strings and have a very special event taking place on August 12th, a solar eclipse! Come run with us under a darkened sun next Wednesday from The Wharf at 18:30, with peak moon coverage expected at around 19:10.”
Better still, they’re also teaming up with their trail running spin-off club for an even more scenic twist on the evening excursion.
“If you prefer to experience your solar phenomena under the wide open skies”, they go on to write, “our friends over at Trail Division will be holding a hike/run off road, meet at Piccadilly Station at 18:00 to get shady in the great outdoors.”
Fortunately, they have issued an important disclaimer, going on to remind runners that “while beautiful and majestic, the sun should NEVER be directly looked at in the face unprotected”, signing off by adding, “Respect the sun, respect your peepers, stay ocularly safe out there.”
If you’ve never come across MRR before, they’re probably the biggest run club in the entire Greater Manchester region and their social-first jogs, intervals, track sessions and more revolve around meeting back up with your mates for a wholesome pint and a chat.
For many, it’s the biggest and the best in the city.
As for the eclipse run, it’s set to be a very magical variation on their usual Wednesday evening meets.
Quite rightly, they also point out in the post that you can actually buy certain glasses to view eclipses on these rare occasions, with search traffic often ramping up in and around these events.
Meanwhile, the Trail Division branch is yet to confirm the route for their run/hike, but it will most likely remain in the nearby North West vicinity; keep your eyes peeled on their social media pages (linked above) for more information and other upcoming trail events.
Speaking of trail runs, there’s a pretty beautiful albeit challenging one coming up next month…
Stunning vistas, walkers welcome, and multiple distances available.🏃♂️🥾
And the best part? It's less than 90 minutes away from Manchester. 🏞️
Oasis promoters drop biggest Knebworth hint yet after securing license around key date
Danny Jones
Not that we’re the type to get carried away, but we’ll confess that our curiosity, interest and general levels of anticipation have been piqued, as Oasis’ main promoters have recently renewed the license to host events at the infamous Knebworth.
My word, is this it? Like the reunion, is it ACTUALLY going to happen?…
We’re sure the raw, uncontrollable excitement will come should it be fully confirmed, but for now, all we know is that our colleagues in music media, SJM Concerts, have renewed the land in and around Knebworth Park and House for live entertainment once again.
Moreover, the company have also done so on a rather fitting date decades on from the original and legendary outdoor gigs.
As can be found on the planning application section of the North Hertfordshire Council website – the county in which the storied Britpop gigs took place – a fresh license to hold new events.
If/when the announcement happens, the already granted permission will allow for a capacity of up to 125,000 and a curfew of 3am.
We know the original Knebworth shows were beyond iconic, but let’s say this would be nailed on to be nothing short of absolutely box office.
Besides having also helped promote Oasis’ colossal Live ’25 reunion tour last summer, it’s also worth noting that they secured said license just over a week before the 30th anniversary of the pair of nights back in 1996: 10-11 August, to be specific.
The licence is said to have come into effect this past Saturday (1 Aug) and is believed to be indefinite.
What added even more fuel to the fire of these well-established rumours over the past year was when Baroness Sharon Taylor of Stevenage told the House of Lords the band would be playing FIVE whole nights at Knebworth in the future, before later clarifying that she was speaking in “hypothetical terms.”
All that being said, it’s fair to say we’ll be keeping a very keen eye on socials over the next few days, in particular, just in case.
The Manc has reached out to SJM for an official comment (surprise, surprise), but we are yet to receive a response regarding the matter.
Your silence speaks volumes, just saying.
This coming Monday, 10 August 2026, will mark the official 30th anniversary of Oasis at Knebworth 1996, and with the likes of ‘Wonderwall’ seeing a chart resurgence as the go-to England anthem at this year’s World Cup, we’re choosing to be optimistic. What about you?
Emily Sergeant -
6th January 2021 
