There are whispers of more illegal raves taking place in Manchester this weekend. But anyone who truly knows what happened at the last set of quarantine parties would never, ever attend. Not in a thousand lifetimes.
The mass gathering in Carrington on Saturday didn’t just make national headlines for being an unruly affair; it permanently changed lives in the worst possible way.
Those affected by the violent events that transpired in Trafford have now spoken out – and one thing has become abundantly clear.
This was not a fun-loving rave. It was a battlefield.
Thousands of youngsters secretly descended on the local industrial estate on 13 June for a “quarantine rave”, complete with booze and tunes. But it didn’t take long for the night to turn sour.
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Within seconds of the first police car arriving, a shower of bottles and nitrous oxide canisters came raining down on the vehicle – shattering the windshield.
Along the periphery, fences were torn up as people crawled through barbed wire and nettle bushes to reach the main site.
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Mounds of litter and drug paraphernalia piled up across the dirt.
Distraught onlookers desperately tried to point emergency services in the direction of injured attendees.
Brave police officers shielded ambulance crews from the chaos as they scrambled through the pitch-black woodland to find victims who’d been viciously attacked and left to bleed in a field, before escorting them out through a hazardous maze.
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All this, whilst a deadly disease – that’s already killed thousands in Britain – hung heavy in the air.
One of the people stabbed that night was given life-saving first aid by the Tactical Aid Unit and North-West Ambulance Service.
He is just 18 years old.
At around 11pm, his mother decided to leave him a message to ask what time he’d be home and if he had a key, when a police car pulled up and an officer revealed her son was in surgery.
“That was the first we’d heard he’d gone to this illegal rave,” the mother said.
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“The police took us to hospital and we waited there while they saved his life. Thankfully, he has been moved from ICU and is now on the major trauma ward, so he’s making small steps in the right direction.”
The man’s parents can’t see him due to COVID, but the hospital is sending daily updates and have been “brilliant”, according to the mother.
“My son made absolutely the wrong decision to go out to the rave,” she said.
“I understand that young people want to go out, they’ve had 12 weeks of lockdown; even though they shouldn’t be going out because of COVID.
“But by choosing to go to a venue like that; there is no security there, no CCTV, no access for police or paramedics. Potentially he could have bled to death in a field because as hard as the police and paramedics tried, they couldn’t get to him.
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“I urge any parent who hears the slightest rumour that there’s another rave going on to tell the police. The police haven’t got the numbers to shut these raves down because there’s so many kids there. But if they know beforehand, hopefully no other family will have to go through what we’ve been through.
“And also a message to younger people: You think you’re invincible but you’re not.
“Before you leave the house and you’re intending to go to one of these things, just look at your mum in her face and know how much she loves you. Know that something potentially awful could happen to you that will destroy her and the family.
“So, please just don’t go to these things.”
The first responders on the scene that evening, PC Andy Hunt and PC Will Horrocks, were taken aback by the hostility that greeted the emergency services that evening.
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“There were hundreds and hundreds of people all walking up to go to where the scene of the rave was,” explained PC Hunt.
“Initially people were engaging with us, but started to become more and more hostile as we walked into the site.
“We realised there were a couple of thousand people there and we soon came across the first victim of a stabbing who we had to remove from the area and give first aid.
“It caused a lot of distress to people walking by… but it didn’t seem to deter anyone. They still went in.”
He continued: “Following that, there were reports of the young man who’d been stabbed. We had to escort medical crews in as we were concerned for their safety. It was slightly chaotic trying to find out where he was.
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“People were in tears trying to point us in the direction of where he was. And extracting him from the area was incredibly difficult due to the gates everywhere because it’s an old industrial area.
“We gave him first aid in the back of the van and whisked him off to hospital quick.
“Just stay away from these things. They have catastrophic consequences.”
As the police moved closer to the nucleus of the “rave”, they quickly learnt they were alarmingly outnumbered.
Upon approach, officers were pelted with objects from the crowd and had to manage what they could from the sidelines.
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PC Horrocks described that as police blocked entrances, revellers began ripping holes in the fences and clambering through dangerous terrain to join the main crowd.
“This is probably due to the drugs and alcohol they’d consumed and they weren’t thinking straight,” he explained.
“Considering it was an illegal rave, it was a lot more anti-police than what you’d expect.
“Bottles were launched at the first police car that arrived causing the windscreen to be smashed.
“Then we got reports of casualties coming in – but describing where the injured people were was a challenge in itself.
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“It’s a minor miracle that the casualty was in an area we could access easily rather than going through the main crowd.”
The makeshift event has also placed immense pressure on the NHS and North West Ambulance service (NWAS) – who had to send more than 20 resources to the site during the evening.
This included hazardous area response teams, emergency doctors, operational commanders, specialist paramedics, rapid response vehicles and three ambulances.
Oliver Mayor, Operation Commander of NWAS, said: “The impact it’s had on the North West Ambulance service both on the night and going forward is the very real risk of COVID-19 transmission – not just between those who attended but their friends and family also.
“The incidents have taken up valuable emergency resources and it’s a quite clear breach of the Government legislation that’s been there to try and protect us all.
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“These events are not licensed or organised, and there’s a risk of safety and security. It’s selfishly irresponsible behaviour that puts lives at risk.
“We’d like to urge people to please be responsible and continue to follow the social distancing guidelines.
“We’ve got this far – let’s not give up.”
Greater Manchester Police have now issued a statement declaring that anyone involved in hosting or attending an illegal rave will face arrest and prosecution.
Night-time economy adviser, Sacha Lord, who knows a thing or two about what’s involved in planning a true rave, has also been left aghast.
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“When I woke up to see the news last weekend, I was so saddened to see how so many people had acted so irresponsibly,” said the Parklife founder.
“Organising an event for thousands of people takes many months of working alongside emergency services and local authorities.
“I strongly urge everyone to look back at last weekend and do not ever let it happen again.
“There will be a time to party again. It won’t be too far away, but it will have your safety at the forefront.”
Mayor Andy Burnham has also vowed to “redouble” efforts to close down future gatherings in and around Manchester.
In the meantime, the message is clear: Never attend a quarantine rave. Lives are being needlessly gambled. To turn up is to throw the dice.
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Bolton has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2024
Emily Sergeant
Bolton has officially been named Greater Manchester Town of Culture for 2024.
Taking over the reins from Stockport – which held the title in 2023, and recently hosted a massive ‘Town of Culture Weekender’ festival with 50+ free events to celebrate and bring its title year to a close – it’s now the turn of the north-western Greater Manchester borough of Bolton.
Bolton has long been celebrated as hub of culture and creative activity within our region.
The area has notably produced some big-name stars in the arts, entertainment, comedy, and sporting spheres over the years, as well as having seen significant new residential and commercial developments popping up in recent times, and a blossoming food, drink, hospitality, and nightlife scene that continues to prove popular.
The Bolton Food and Drink Festival, IRONMAN, Bolton Film Festival, and Put Big Light On are all big annual events in the borough.
Bolton has been named Greater Manchester’s ‘Town of Culture’ for 2024 / Credit: Bolton Food & Drink Festival (via Facebook)
And now, the town has got itself a fancy title to prove it – and along with that, a whopping £50,000 grant to support a year-long programme of events.
In case you’re unfamiliar with what the ‘Greater Manchester Town of Culture’ title is all about, it’s an accolade that’s handed out every year to different boroughs across the region – with Bury the inaugural title-holder 2020 and holding onto it into 2021 due to the COVID pandemic, and then followed by Stalybridge in 2022, and Stockport in 2023 – and it celebrates Greater Manchester’s culture and heritage.
As well as getting a new title to shout about, it also sees the towns given a grant from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) culture fund to help develop a programme of cultural events and activities throughout the year.
Bolton’s programme will have three parts, according to Bolton Council.
The town has taken over the reins from Stockport, which held the title in 2023 / Credit: Wikimedia Commons | The Octagon Theatre
The first is a taster programme packed full of cultural activities delivered in Bolton and its various districts, and then following on from that, there’ll be a grants programme designed to help support Bolton’s smaller cultural organisations, freelancers, and artists.
The grand finale will be the Bolton Gala – which is set to take place next March, and is gearing up to be a celebratory event jointly-organised by all cultural partners, and co-designed by residents too.
Bolton Council says it will be working with cultural organisations, creative practitioners, and residents to “strengthen partnerships” that’ll deliver a collective approach to creative programming, and Councillors hope to build on assets such as the town’s legendary Octagon Theatre, the newly-refurbished Bolton Central Library and Museum, and the Bolton Albert Halls too.
GMCA has awarded the town a £50,000 grant to support a year-long programme of events throughout the year / Credit: Paul Hayes (via Bolton Food & Drink Festival on Facebook)
“It’s fantastic that Bolton has been announced as the latest Greater Manchester Town of Culture,” Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham, commented as the town took the title this week.
“Bolton already has some outstanding cultural venues and eventsm from the Octagon Theatre and the Bolton Albert Hall, to the famous Bolton Food and Drink Festival and the Bolton Film Festival, and Town of Culture will celebrate these existing venues and events, but will also shine a light on the smaller venues and events that are happening across the town.
“I look forward to visiting Bolton to join their cultural celebrations.”
Leader of Bolton Council, Cllr Nick Peel, says he’s “thrilled” about the town’s new title, and added: “Bolton certainly has a promising future, and will be a great place to live, work, study, visit and invest in the future.”
Featured Image – Bolton Food & Drink Festival (via Facebook)
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Huge beer festival responds after attendees label it ‘Manchester Wonka experience’
Daisy Jackson
A massive beer and cider festival that took place in Manchester last weekend has addressed fall-out on social media after some attendees slammed it as the ‘weirdest most dysfunctional festival ever‘.
People have said that the International Brewing and Cider Festival had a ‘strange atmosphere’ due to there being ‘no one there’, had a limited selection of drinks, and was generally ‘a bloody awful evening’.
Some people have even gone so far as to compare it to the now-infamous Wonka Experience.
But the festival has now hit back at these harsh reviews online, saying that there were more than 400 different types of beer and cider available, with around 800 attendees over the weekend.
In a statement, they apologised for a ‘less than perfect experience’.
The International Brewing and Cider Festival – a not-for-profit trade organisation – stressed that ‘early teething troubles’ were ironed out as the event progressed through its four sessions.
As well as inviting breweries from around the world to serve up beers under one roof in one of Manchester’s coolest venues, the beer festival had 19 food and drink traders, and a programme of live music and DJs.
Despite only receiving a couple of actual complaints directly, the festival has been hit with criticism on social media.
Visitors to the beer festival at Depot Mayfield had shared photos of a mostly-empty venue at points over the weekend, with many saying it was ‘freezing’ inside.
One person wrote: “I went with a mate and we left after an hour. The venue was so freezing that the beer itself was too cold to enjoy.”
Someone else said: “This was by a country mile the worst event (not just beer event) I’ve ever attended. Truly horrific.”
The International Brewing and Cider Festival, a beer festival in Mancheser, has been hit with complaints. Credit: X, @SimonR
A detailed tale of the experience on Reddit, which said the International Brewing and Cider Festival was a ‘contender for Manchester’s Wonka experience’.
They said that they were ‘greeted by an extremely rude person’ and then struggled to order a beer, with several beers on the list unavailable and ended up with ‘a plastic cup of foam’.
The person said: “It was still early at this point so I expected it to get a bit busy but it never did combined with some depressing music and freezing cold temperatures the atmosphere was strange.”
Someone else said on X: “It was a massive scam. Willy Wonka type scam. No one there. Beers not great. It absolutely was not worth £40. The keg bar was closed, the cask bar closed at 8:30, the only decent beer available was from the few independent brewers who had decided to stick around (half had left). No atmosphere as no one there. Just awful.”
Another person said: “I don’t think I’ve been to a worse organised event. The term ‘Couldn’t organise a pi55 up in a brewery’ was made for this festival.
“Mid session there were less than 100 people. The signs on the cask and keg were too small to read at any distance. People pouring on the bar had no knowledge of any of the beers & no info in the app.
“For the entry fee of £20 to drink out of plastic, beer costing ‘town prices’, & some of the brewers had packed up and left hours before the end, left me feeling like I’d been ripped off.”
A spokesperson for the International Brewing & Cider Festival said: “We are very sorry that some people had a less than perfect experience – this was our first Festival and when you start something new, there will be learnings.
“We are a not-for-profit trade organisation representing the value chain, supplying the brewing and beverage industry.
The International Brewing and Cider Festival, a beer festival in Mancheser, has been hit with complaints. Credit: X, @SimonRThe International Brewing and Cider Festival, a beer festival in Mancheser, has been hit with complaints. Credit: Reddit, u/Luc1dJay
“As the organiser of the oldest international brewing and cider awards in the world, we held the Awards in Manchester this year and wanted to bring the entries from around the world to the public in the city.
“We adapted throughout the two days, ironing out some early teething troubles to deliver a better model as the event progressed.”
But now that Indy Man Beer Con has announced it won’t be returning for 2024, there’s definitely room in Manchester for a new beer festival.
Let’s it comes back to the city again and next time, is a roaring success.