Lloyds Banking Group has announced that it will be closing dozens of high street banking branches across the UK.
As the group, which owns Lloyds, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland, accelerates its plans to cut costs and digitise banking, a total of 136 branches nationwide are set to close permanently between May of this year and March 2026 – with 61 Lloyds branches, 61 Halifax, and 14 Bank of Scotland branches affected.
Lloyds says its decision to shut the high street branches is due to customers shifting away from banking in-person, and preferring to use mobile services instead.
The announcement that 136 branches are set to close also comes weeks after Lloyds decided to allow customers of either Lloyds, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland to use the sites across any of its brands for in-person banking.
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The six Greater Manchester branches set to close before May 2026 are:
Lloyds
Farnworth, Bolton
Bury
Newton Heath
Moston
Halifax
Bolton
Walkden
The full list of Lloyds and Halifax bank branches set to close in Greater Manchester has been released / Credit: Unsplash | PickPik
Some of the other North West branches of both Lloyds and Halifax listed to be closing include a number in major Lancashire towns such as Blackpool, Southport, and St Annes, as well as some in Cheshire like Wilmslow and Northwich, and some in Merseyside and on the Wirral.
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Lloyds said that transactions across these particular branches fell by an average of 48% over the past five years, with customers using app payments more frequently.
“Over 20 million customers are using our apps for on-demand access to their money, and customers have more choice and flexibility than ever for their day-to-day banking,” a spokesperson for Lloyds Banking Group said as the closure announcement was made.
“Alongside our apps, customers can also use telephone banking, visit a community banker or use any Lloyds, Halifax, or Bank of Scotland branch.
Pat Regan at the Fairfield Social Club – a brilliantly unhinged evening of standup comedy
Clementine Hall
There’s a particular kind of chaos that only Pat Regan can deliver, and the recently re-recognised Fairfield Social Club got the full force of it last night.
Making his Manchester debut as part of the ‘A Lovely Time’ series at the equally as lovely Fairfield Social Club, the New York comic, writer, and podcast host arrived with the energy of someone who had already lived through three emotional breakdowns before breakfast and somehow still had the worst to come.
Known for his work on HBO’s Hacks and the cult-favourite podcast Seek Treatment with fellow comic Catherine Cohen, Regan’s stand-up feels less like your traditional comedy set and more like being trapped in the world’s funniest group chat.
The perfectly intimate room beneath Fairfield’s railway arches was packed with adoring fans who were immediately on side as Regan launched into stories about traumatic trips to Paris, Grindr dates, massage tables and having crushes at the gym.
The audience was in the palm of his slightly sweaty hands (don’t worry, he’ll be fine with me saying so), laughing at every awkward punchline and self-deprecating anecdote.
The material is nothing groundbreaking, but this is what makes it so deeply hilarious; never before has shopping for the perfect pair of jeans been so serious and unserious at the same time.
There was laughter rolling through the venue for virtually the entire set, and after an hour of never-ending quips and jokes, we were left wanting more.
And the best part is, it won’t be long until we get more from this place, and it’s no wonder they’re starting to get the hosting plaudits they deserve.
It’s safe to say Fairfield Social Club has become one of Manchester’s most exciting homes for alternative comedy, and this felt like exactly the sort of booking that justifies its growing reputation.
By the time Regan left the stage, the audience looked equal parts exhausted and delighted. An absolutely classy evening indeed.
Find out about what else is on at the Fairfield Social Club HERE.
First-ever JD Wetherspoon pub to open at Manchester Airport
Danny Jones
In news that we feel many Mancs and travellers all-round have been waiting on for a long time, the well-known British chain, JD Wetherspoon, will be opening its first-ever pub at Manchester Airport.
That’s right: soon that first airport pint of the holiday could actually be a relatively cheap one.
While Wetherspoons are no strangers to popping up in terminals across the UK and Ireland, they’ve never done so here in Manchester despite having three, yes THREE, in Gatwick alone.
Not for much longer, though, as soon T2 will be lending more than 3,000 square feet of its prime leisure and retail real estate to a new Greater Manchester ‘Spoons’.
Posting on social media, the airport wrote: “Wetherspoon comes to Manchester Airport this September! The pub will be located in the Terminal 2 Departures lounge and will have more than 300 seats.
“This will become the final major food and drink venue to open its doors as part of our decade-long £1.3bn transformation of Terminal 2. It will be named ‘The Belle Vue’, in a nod to Manchester’s historic showground [now a sports complex and leisure hub].
“It was a focal point for social life in the city from the Victorian period up until 2020, when the final event was held at Belle Vue stadium. The design of the pub is inspired by the history of Belle Vue and the sporting culture of the North West of England. We look forward to welcoming you all in September!”
While a lot of money has been pumped into T2’s refurb as a whole over the past few years, it remains unclear just how much this particular new addition will cost; we do know that great sums were set aside for the launch of the Great Northern Market last year.
The inaugural Manchester Airport Spoons is just the latest in a series of major renovations.
As mentioned, the company already operate several up and down the country – 10 airport pubs, to be specific – but this will be the first in the North West.
Speaking on the news, JD Wetherspoon chief executive John Hutson said in a statement: “We are looking forward to opening at Manchester Airport. We believe our new pub will prove popular with travellers of all ages and be an asset to the new terminal.”
With Manchester Airport adding a dozen new routes to its roster this summer, you can expect to see even more people flying in and out than ever – no doubt having already polished off a cut-price pint or two beforehand.
Emily Sergeant -
30th January 2025 
