Frog & Bucket has been saved / Image: Frog & Bucket Comedy Club via Facebook
Frog & Bucket has been saved from closure after comedians and fans joined together to raise thousands of pounds for the famous Manchester club.
Despite functioning as a launchpad for the comedy careers of some of Britain’s greatest standups, the Frog & Bucket wasn’t considered ‘culturally significant’ enough to qualify for the government’s Culture Recovery pot – which had been launched to protect the country’s most important venues during the pandemic.
The decision to refuse the club funding was met with widespread outrage from the comedy circuit; being described as “total bulls***”.
But now, many of the people who first found success at Frog & Bucket have repaid the venue in its time of need.
Jack Whitehall, Adam Hills and Richard Herring – who all cut their teeth on Great Ancoats Street – donated substantial sums to the club’s GoFundMe page, with contributions also flooding in from Britain’s Got Talent winner Lost Voice Guy Lee Ridley, All Killa No Filla podcast legends (and Frog regulars) Kiri Pritchard McLean and Rachel Fairburn, and Peep Show’s Isy Suttie.
The ‘Save the Frog and Bucket’ fund has since toppled £23,000; not only ensuring the club’s survival but also enabling a brand new round of gigs for 2021.
Thanks to the fresh financial boost, Frog & Bucket is fully-equipped with the tech required to provide quality visuals and sound for streaming online shows right around the country.
The £23,000 raised will help the comedy club run a new programme of gigs / Image: Frog & Bucket Comedy Club via Facebook
The club has confirmed the reincarnation of its long-running Beat the Frog and Barrel of Laughs shows in online formats until COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.
Beat the Frog has been a Monday night fixture at the venue since 2003; with acts attempting to survive on stage for five minutes without being voted off (if three frog cards are held aloft, it’s game over).
Audience members, participating via Zoom, will have the power to ‘croak’ off the comedians – who will be performing live from their homes and the club itself.
On March 8, the Beat the Frog line-up will be entirely female to mark International Women’s Day.
Barrel of Laughs, meanwhile, will showcase the best of the country’s headline acts and will be largely filmed from the Frog’s stage.
There will also be limited number of a live audience passes – with ticket-holders able to log in and interact with the show.
The club is also planning a “plethora of solo shows” in the weeks ahead – with full details of the spring programme to follow.
Welcome back, Frog & Bucket…
More information on tickets and upcoming gigs is available on the Frog & Bucket website.
News
Manchester is working to make residents with terminal illnesses exempt from paying council tax
Emily Sergeant
Manchester is aiming to become one of the UK’s major cities to exempt its residents with terminal illnesses from paying council tax.
After Marie Curie’s recent ‘Dying in Poverty’ report found that around 42% of working age and 30% of pension-age residents in Manchester die while living in financial hardship, Manchester City Council has announced that it’ll be working together with the UK’s leading end of life charity to ensure that those with terminal illnesses become exempt from paying council tax.
The Council says addressing this ‘profoundly important issue’ is at the heart of a larger plan to support the most vulnerable residents in Manchester.
New proposals set out a plan for the Council to change its Discretionary Council Tax Policy (DCTP) to explicitly include a commitment to support people who have been diagnosed with a terminal illness.
To become exempt, clinicians will need to fill out a form to confirm that a person has a progressive disease, and consequently is expected to pass away within a 12-month period.
Manchester is working to make residents with terminal illnesses exempt from paying council tax / Credit: gov.uk
Using DCTP, the Council will then make up the difference of any shortfall in council tax, so that in any situation where a member of the household qualifies – whether an adult, child or non-dependant – the household will have nothing to pay.
The support will then apply to the household’s council tax bill until the date of the persons death.
The Council will also be working to ensure that a ‘tell us once’ protocol is in place so that, in the event of a claimant’s passing, no undue burden will fall upon their family, and steps will also be in place to retain the discount for the remainder of the financial year to provide additional support for the passed person’s family.
Once delivered, it’s estimated that this scheme could support around 175 residents in Manchester – the majority of which would be of working age.
A new policy will ensure that people living will a terminal illness will no longer have to pay Council Tax. This is part of the Council’s wider aim to prevent people slipping into poverty, and support our city’s most vulnerable residents.
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) June 25, 2025
“The moment when you or your family member gets the devastating news of terminal illness is heartbreaking,” commented Manchester City Council leader, Cllr Bev Craig, as the plans were announced this week.
“The last thing you need to worry about is money and bills, but we know for too many people it takes up too much time and stress.
“Too many people are living in poverty in our city… and that’s why we are exempting people with a terminal illness from council tax, alongside a wider package of support with the cost of living, doing everything in our power to ensure families have one less thing to worry about during such a difficult time.
“We want to thank Marie Curie for their vital work, and as a Council want to do all we can to ease the burden at the end of someone’s life.”
Featured Image – Stephen Andrews (via Unsplash)
News
Hotspur Press to be part-demolished following catastrophic fire
Daisy Jackson
Manchester’s historic Hotspur Press will be partially demolished following the fire that tore through the building earlier this week.
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service said that part of the centuries-old mill would need to be pulled down to enable safe firefighting.
The Hotspur Press building stands just off Whitworth Street West behind Oxford Road train station, and previously operated as a printing press.
It later became a home for artist studios and creative spaces until officially becoming derelict in the late 2010s.
Despite standing empty, the magnificent old mill has been an iconic and oft-photographed landmark in Manchester, and one of only a handful left in the city centre.
But that huge fire on Monday evening has gutted the Hotspur Press, and now it will be ‘partially’ demolished.
A spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said: “Firefighters continue to work hard to bring the fire at Hotspur Press to a safe conclusion. Alongside Manchester City Council, Greater Manchester Police and partners, a decision has now been made to partially demolish the Hotspur Press building over the coming days.
“This is to enable safe firefighting and excavation in areas that are currently inaccessible, mitigating any risk to life. This will also allow safe internal investigations to begin.”
Plans have been in place to turn The Hotspur Press into a student accommodation tower block, which had included a 35-storey student tower built out of the original mill facade.
The Manc has contacted property developers Manner, who own the Hotspur Press site, to see what will happen to the space following the blaze.
The Manc -
1st March 2021 
