A fundraiser to fly home the body of a podcaster from Manchester who tragically died while on holiday has been launched by her family.
Eden Young – who worked as the Managing Editor of intersectional feminist arts and culture publication, Polyester, and made a name for herself as the co-host of the popular The Polyester Podcast – sadly lost her life in a tragic accident while on holiday in Madrid with her best friend last Thursday (8 June).
She was preparing to do some press work out in the Spanish capital at a festival that she’d revisited for several years with her closest friends.
But a few days before the festival took place, the 29-year-old from Manchester accidentally fell to her death from the accommodation she was staying at, her family has confirmed.
Her family said in a tribute that the news of Eden’s passing had “saddened us more than words can comprehend”.
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Tributes to Eden – who has been described a much-loved figure in the city’s hospitality and cultural arts scene – have also been pouring in online from those who knew and loved her, including from the founder and Editor in Chief of Polyester, Ione Gamble, who called her the “absolute biggest legend”.
Describing her as “funny, smart, and gorgeous”, as well as “the most loyal person I know”, Ione said Eden “loved being an absolute legend in every way” and admitted that “everyone who listens to the podcast knows this”.
“Having [Eden] on the team was the greatest privilege in the world,” Ione concluded.
Eden’s best friend, Gina – who she was on holiday with at the time of her death – also shared an emotional tribute on Instagram, explaining that she “cannot even put into words the depths of pain I am feeling over what has happened”, and that “it still doesn’t feel real.”
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“Dealing with your loss is finding a new way to break my heart minute by minute,” Gina added.
Manchester podcaster Eden Young tragically died while on holiday in Madrid / Credit: Eden Young (via Instagram)
Given the nature of Eden’s death, the costs to fly her body home from Madrid have unfortunately been left to her family – which is why they have decided to set up a GoFundMe page, and have called on the kindness of the Greater Manchester community and wider general public to donate and help them raise the money needed to fund this.
Eden’s brother, Cameron Young, explained on the GoFundMe page that the family simply want to give Eden “the send-off we know she would want and more than deserves”.
“Any donations large or small are much appreciated during this devastating time,” he added.
More than £26,000 has been raised to “help bring Eden home”, at the time of writing, with donations and heartfelt messages continuing to flood in every hour.
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Cameron also explained that the Jack The Lad charity is supporting the family with arrangements to bring Eden’s body home, and that while the majority of the funds raised from the GoFundMe will go towards this, as well as towards funeral costs, he added that “any extra money will be donated to this amazing charity”.
A teen who deliberately drove into a female police officer at a retail park Stockport earlier this year has been sentenced.
Harvey Bell was at a retail park on Wilmslow Road in Cheadle back on 25 January 2025 when he seriously injured a Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer during a shocking incident – which left the officer requiring hospital treatment.
At the time, the 19-year-old from Knutsford was present while police were investigating reports of class C drug use in a car park.
Police parked in front of an Audi and the officer signalled for Bell to remain stationary and turn the engine off, but instead he reversed, and as the officer approached the front windscreen, Bell drove at the officer, knocking her to the ground.
He then proceeded to drive over her legs with both sets of wheels, before heading out of the car park at speed.
#JAILED | A man who deliberately drove into a police officer in Stockport has been jailed.
Harvey Bell (12/08/2005) has been sentenced to 31 months in a Young Offenders Institute and was disqualified from driving for two years.
— Stockport Police (GMP) (@GMPStockport) June 4, 2025
Bell was subsequently arrested the following day and made no comment in his police interview, but then went on to plead guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving, as well as possession of cannabis on 27 March 2025.
The teen appeared at Manchester Crown Court this week where he was sentenced to 31 months in a Young Offenders Institute, and was also disqualified from driving for two years – which will take effect when he is released.
“What [Bell] did to me is permanently in the back of my mind, every call I go to, I feel the apprehension, the fear that any incident, no matter how innocuous it appears, can end with being assaulted or hurt,” the officer explained in a powerful victim impact statement read in court.
“This is an unseen result of Bell’s assault on me.”
She continued: “I know that Bell’s abhorrent behaviour is an exception, and the majority of the public we serve do not wish us harm, but assaults on police need to stop. An attack on a police officer is an attack on us all.
“Bell is a danger to society and had total disregard for my life.”
Featured Image – GMP
News
IKEA announces decision to close popular Greater Manchester site
It’s the end of the road for one of IKEA’s popular Greater Manchester sites.
The Swedish furniture giant has announced its decision to close its ‘Plan and Order Point’ over in Stockport in a couple of weeks time.
The store – which is located in Stockport town centre’s Merseyway Shopping Centre – launched to huge success back in March 2023, and at the time, was the second of this ‘test and trial’ format to open in the UK, becoming a smaller space dedicated to kitchen and home planning, as well as ordering items.
IKEA says the closure comes as a result of ‘valuable learnings’ which plan to take this conceptual format in a direction to ‘better suit the needs of UK customers’.
IKEA is closing its close popular Stockport site this month / Credit: Jon Super (via IKEA)
Since the opening of the Stockport Plan and Order Point, IKEA claims it has seen an increased demand for Click and Collect services, a desire by customers to shop a smaller selection of home furnishing accessories, as well as the ability to return goods to physical IKEA units, and this is all something which the current location is unable to offer.
Learning from this change in consumer habits, the company says its future Plan and Order Point openings – including in those in other northern cities like Hull and York – will offer these services.
IKEA says it also remains ‘committed’ to trialling new formats, such as its upcoming small stores, one of which will open in nearby Chester later this year.
Luckily for IKEA fans, the retailer has confirmed that its major Greater Manchester store in Ashton-under-Lyne, as well as the neighbouring store in Warrington, will remain open as normal, offering all the services available at Stockport and more.
The Swedish furniture says the closure comes as a result of ‘valuable learnings’ about customer needs / Credit: Jon Super (via IKEA)
In addition to the upcoming opening of a smaller store in Chester, IKEA has revealed that the North West continues to be an area of interest for future expansion.
“After careful evaluation, we’ve made the difficult decision to close the IKEA Plan and Order Point at Merseyway Shopping Centre,” explained Salma Azad, who is one of IKEA’s Area Managers.
“In the two years since opening, we’ve taken valuable learnings, including how our customers prefer to meet IKEA, and we’ll take these insights into future openings, to serve shoppers in a more impactful way.”
Thanks to last year’s Click and Collect expansion, Stockport residents can now pick up purchases from Tesco Extra Stockport and Tesco Extra Stretford, as well as the Manchester store and the upcoming small store in Chester.
Stockport Plan and Order Point’s final day of trading will be on 16 June.
Emily Sergeant -
14th June 2023 
