Comedian Joe Lycett has been at the centre of a media storm over the past couple of days after he followed through on his promise to shred £10,000 if David Beckham didn’t pull out of Qatar 2022.
Well, sort of.
The Birmingham-born comic launched his ten thousand pound threat earlier this month under the banner of the ‘Benders Like Beckham‘ campaign, which aimed of raising awareness surrounding Qatar‘s suppression of LGBTQIA+ rights and holding official advocates accountable.
While many watching the clip below understandably believed the Brummy had lived up to his promise and went on to chastise the 34-year-old, it turns out the entire stunt was faked.
Lycett was met with a raft of criticism from figures across the media and the general public, especially during a cost of living crisis. TV presenter Jeremy Vine labelled the comic-turned-regular campaigner “reckless” and thousands begged him to donate the money to relevant charities instead.
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However, even before the stunt was found to have been staged, many recognised the campaign correctly called into question people’s priorities — i.e. being more outraged by the apparent shredding of someone’s personal money than the abuse of migrant workers and suppression of personal freedoms.
With that in mind, those that dished out some rather personal abuse in his direction will probably be deleting a tweet or two since he confirmed that “the money that went into the shredder was real, but the money that came out was fake”.
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I mean, it’s not like this is his first prank, folks.
Lycett insisted that he “would never be so irresponsible” and revealed instead that the money “had already been donated to LGBTQ+ charities”. Top bloke.
The former University of Manchester student went on to describe his intentions as “an empty threat designed to get people talking” (which it did) and, much like Beckham‘s deal with the Gulf state, “total bull***”. Well played, sir.
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The England, Manchester United and Real Madrid legend is one of many famous footballing figures who signed on to promote the competition despite backlash from within sport and the public in general.
The UNICEF ambassador caught significant flak for appearing in an advert for Qatar’s tourism board before the beginning of the tournament. Fellow United legend Eric Cantona described his decision to back Qatar 2022, like that of many other former pros, as “a big mistake“.
Among the many controversies surrounding this year’s World Cup hosts, including the abuse of migrant workers – many of whom died building the stadiums – the fact that the beautiful game is being hosted in a country where homosexuality and transgenderism are illegal is nothing short of despicable.
We can only applaud Joe Lycett for once again drawing attention to it; we only wish Becks and others saw sense. Shortly before England’s opener against Iran, it was confirmed that several nations would not be wearing the One Love armband over fears of instant bookings and further punishment. A real shame.
Louder for those at the back: football is a game for EVERYONE.
Full list of road closures set to be in place for Manchester Day 2024
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Day is back for 2024 this weekend, and the full list of road closures set to be in place has been confirmed.
Now that schools are officially out across Greater Manchester, and the summer holidays are well and truly here, the hugely-popular Manchester Day is making a return once again this Saturday 27 July, and as always, it’s set to be “the day summer officially starts” in the city centre – with a massive celebration of “all things Mancunian” on the cards.
The theme of this year’s annual event is ‘Let The Games Begin’, and it’s inspired by the international summer of sport, just 2024 Olympics kicks off over in Paris.
The day will be packed full of free events and activities to get involved with.
Some city centre roads will be closed on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 July for Manchester Day.
These will include:
🛣️Deansgate 🛣️St Ann Street 🛣️St Mary’s Gate 🛣️Market Street 🛣️King Street
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) July 21, 2024
But of course, in order for the all the fun to go ahead as safely as possible, and as tends to be the case for events like these, Manchester City Council says it will need to make some temporary road closures to facilitate it.
The full list of road closures has now been confirmed by the Council, and there’s some major city centre thoroughfares set to be out of action.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Manchester Day is back for 2024 to celebrate the international summer of sport / Credit: Manchester City Council
Manchester Day 2024 – Road Closures
Saturday 27 July
From 6am to 11:59pm, Manchester City Council has confirmed that the following roads will be closed:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street) – access will be maintained to Marks and Spencer’s car park and Number One Deansgate.
St Ann Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street (Cross Street to Deansgate) – no access for deliveries.
All accessible bays, bus lanes, and taxi ranks within the closed areas will also be suspended during from 6pm on Friday 26 July to 11:59pm on Saturday 27 July.
The parking suspensions set to be in place are:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street)
St Ann Street – including the bays outside St Ann’s Church (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Southgate (St Mary’s Street to King Street West)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Victoria Street (Cathedral Approach to Deansgate)
Todd Street (Corporation Street to Station Approach)
King Street (Spring Gardens to Southgate)
South King Street (Ridgefield to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street West (Deansgate to St Mary’s Parsonage)
St James’s Square (John Dalton Street to South King Street)
Cross Street (King Street to Corporation Street)
Museum Street (Peter Street to Windmill Street)
Marsden Street (Cheapside to Brown Street)
Manchester Day 2024: Let The Games Begin! will take over the city centre on Saturday 27 July from 12pm-6pm.
Check out everything you need to know ahead of the event here.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete
Emily Sergeant
Work currently underway on the Rochdale via Oldham line is expected to take several weeks to complete.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has confirmed that land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has now “slowed”, and this means that detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works have been able to get underway.
In order for trams to run again on the crucial line from the city centre to the two major Greater Manchester towns, TfGM says that a small section of track has to be moved back – also known as ‘slewed’ – into its original position.
The overhead line poles also need to be repaired too, the transport operator revealed.
Rochdale line update
Land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has slowed, enabling detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works to get underway.
To get trams running again, a small section of track has to be moved back into its original position… pic.twitter.com/byERjitdi1
Unfortunately though, due to the “complex” nature of these works, and despite the fact that TfGM says it’s actively looking to “accelerate” the repairs, the project is expected to take up to five weeks to complete in full.
On top of this, the detailed ground investigations will also establish whether any further work to strengthen foundations beneath the track will be needed at a later date.
TfGM has apologised for the inconvenience caused to passengers.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete / Credit: TfGM
Speaking on the scale of works currently underway, and how long he expects them to continue for, Pete Sommers, who is TfGM’s Network Director for Metrolink, said: “I’m sorry for the impact this is having, and will continue to have, on people’s journeys.
“We are working to get trams running through the area again, but this remains a complex and challenging issue and it could still be a few weeks before this happens.
“We will of course keep passengers updated, and I’d encourage people to check our social media channels and website for the latest information and advice.”