The food critic Jay Rayner was spotted hanging about in Manchester last week, eating his way about town as he often likes to do.
This time on his visit TheGuardianreviewer popped into Climat – a new sky-high restaurant on Blackfriars boasting panoramic views of the city.
Having landed in our midst just before Christmas, its sister restaurant‘s Michelin pedigree, top-notch wine list and regularly changing sharing plates quickly got locals excited. In fact, such has been the hype that, in less than a month, the team is already pulling in national critics.
According to Rayner’s (mostly) glowing review, it’s hard not to fall in love with the food here. Or rather, fall in ‘adult love’, which we assume refers to something much grander.
Hailing small plates like ‘hash browns topped with whorls of taramasalata” and ‘a vol-au-vent filled with lamb keema’ as the source of said love, his ebullient review praises the puff pastry on the 70’s classic and even goes so far as to advise fighting ‘over the last lamb-fat-glazed crumbs’.
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Image: Climat
Image: Climat
Working his way down to the large plates, he hails the chef’s preference for ‘grown-up touches of bitterness’ – raving about smoky aubergine that’s been ‘roasted until it has surrendered and slumped’ and a ‘purée of lime pickle, which clings to the edge of a plate of spiced gurnard’.
However, it’s not a complete rave. He does note that ‘not everything works’, commenting that a ‘risotto is so desperately sludgy, I find myself wondering whether it came from the same kitchen.’
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Still, even this critique comes with a caveat as he adds that ‘there is at least a toffeed chewiness to the roasted Jerusalem artichokes with which it is topped’ before admitting it was pushed ‘to one side.’
He’s also got a lot to say about the entrance to Climat, which is somewhat hidden at the top of a shiny Blackfriars office block.
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Opening with the brutal assertion that ‘no one will ever write romantic poetry about the entrance to Climat in Manchester’ he calls it both ‘blunt’ and ‘austere’, which seems a little harsh. Surely Jay should know by now that we Mancunians have got a lot of time for the blunt and austere. Especially when it conceals such a shining jewel.
And as for the price? He concedes that ‘the bill for all this is not small, but it feels justified’ before adding you can ‘just come and sit at the counter, have a couple of plates and a good glass of wine, admire the view and leave with a less than ravaged bank account.’
We’ll probably be sticking with the latter, for now at least, as we’re still feeling a bit skint after Christmas. If you’ve got money to burn though, Jay Rayner is right – you could do worse things than spend it here.
Feature image – Climat
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‘Disgraceful’ Manchester sex offender jailed after messaging several young girls under 16
Emily Sergeant
A sex offender from Manchester has been charged with 35 offences, including messaging several young girls while on a Sexual Harm Prevention Order.
William Howarth, from the Miles Platting area of Manchester, appeared at Manchester Crown Court this week where he was sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison – with a further six years on licence.
The 23-year-old’s sentencing follows an investigation by Greater Manchester Police’s (GMP) Sex Offender Crime Investigation Team (SOCIT) after Howarth was found to be in possession of an unregistered mobile phone in a visit from his offender manager in 2023.
Howarth was subject to routine checks due to him being an already-registered sex offender managed by GMP through a Sexual Harm Prevention Order (SHPO), and it was here where he had to register his mobile device and hand it over to his offender manager from our Sex Offender Management Unit (SOMU) during home visits.
After Howarth’s phone was seized by police, forensic analysis revealed a number of messages were sent to several young girls under the age 16.
#JAILED | On Thursday at Manchester Crown Court, William Howarth (28/7/2002), of Miles Platting, was sentenced to 15 years & 8 months with a further 6 years on licence – after previously pleading guilty to the 35 offences involving messaging young girls pic.twitter.com/HrYKCVay2l
An investigation was immediately launched, and with the help of police forces across the country, GMP managed to trace the children Howarth had been in communication with – who ‘bravely’ agreed to give their accounts.
Police say Howarth displayed ‘controlling’ behaviour over the children he had been in contact with, not allowing them to refuse his requests.
When the children attempted to make a stand and refuse to send further images to him, Howarth would threaten them by stating if they didn’t do as he asked, he would post their images online.
In a hearing at Manchester Crown Court last week (10 November 2025), Howarth pleaded guilty to the following 35 offences – including 11 counts of breaches of his Sexual Harm Prevention Order, and possession and making of indecent images of children.
Speaking following Howarth’s sentencing, Detective Constable Joshua Cresswell, from GMP’s Sex Offender Crime Investigation Team (SOCIT), commented: “I’d like to thank the brave child victims in supporting our investigating through agreeing to give us their harrowing accounts of how Howarth came in contact with them.
“Howarth is a disgraceful predator and belongs behind bars away from causing further harm to children.”
DC Cresswell then spoke directly to child victims of sexual abuse to encourage them to come forward and report it to police.
“We are here to listen to you, and we will believe you no matter the passage of time. We can work at a pace that you are comfortable with.”
Featured Image – GMP
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Rochdale man jailed for 16 years after killing another man at a New Year’s Eve party
Emily Sergeant
A man from Rochdale has been handed a lengthy jail sentence after killing another man at a New Year’s Eve house party.
Hassan Suliman, of Rothesay Terrace in Rochdale, appeared at Manchester Crown Court last week after previously being found guilty of the manslaughter.
His sentencing comes after Greater Manchester Police (GMP) responded to reports of a disturbance on Essex Street in Rochdale in the early hours of New Year’s Day (1 January 2025), and upon arrival, officers found a man with multiple stab wounds.
Despite the best efforts of all emergency service workers, the man was sadly pronounced dead at hospital soon after.
The victim was later named as 38-year-old Alberto Ursu.
GMP’s Major Incident Team launched an investigation immediately after, which subsequently revealed that Hassan Suliman had been involved in a confrontation with Mr Ursu – which both of the men were left injured during.
#JAILED | A man has been jailed following the death of a man after a New Year's party in Rochdale.
Suliman fled the scene following the confrontation, but was found by officers collapsed nearby a short while after.
Forensic analysis by officers later linked the weapons to both Suliman and Mr Ursu.
Following a six-week trial at Manchester Crown Court in September, Suliman was convicted of manslaughter, but was found not guilty of all other charges, and then last Friday (14 November), he was sentenced to 16 years – ordered to serve a minimum of 13 years in prison, with a further three years on licence.
Speaking following Suliman’s sentencing last week, Detective Sergeant Helen Hitchen, from GMP’s Major Incident Team, said: “This was meant to be a happy night celebrating the New Year, but sadly ended in the tragic loss of a life.
“This case just goes to show the devastating consequences of knife crime and its lasting impacts on lives.
“A man lost his life and will never return to his family.
“Suliman is now serving time behind bars for his actions that night, and I do hope that this sentence brings some measure of closure to Alberto’s family.”
Georgina Pellant -
23rd January 2023 
