Junkyard Golf Club in Manchester has unveiled a brand new look, giving its First Street venue an industrial-inspired makeover.
Doing away with the loud neon flecks and old vinyl that the brand has become known for, now, in its place, you’ll find a new style of interiors using stencilled paint – designed to set a more ‘grown up’ tone as Junkyard enters a new phase of its evolution.
First founded here in Manchester back in 2015, over the past seven years Junkyard Golf Club has expanded to six UK sites and is currently in the process of closing on a seventh – a second London location for the group.
It’s also tipped to be eyeing up expansion opportunities overseas this year.
Images of new-look courses show a sort of concrete urban jungle, with masses of corrugated iron and exposed industrial elements offset by sprawling foliage that drapes from the ceiling.
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Bright neon lights still litter the course, whilst the bar area is cleaner – the bleachers, it seems, are gone, replaced with the barrels and high stools favoured in other Manchester party bar venues like Crazy Pedro’s, Liars Club and Cane and Grain.
Elsewhere, the golf courses themselves have had quite the glow-up, too, with striking new set designs. In one instance – a real life-size aeroplane installation.
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Image: Junkyard Golf Club
Speaking on Junkyard Golf Club’s progression as it moves into this new phase, co-founder Mat Lake said: “The courses have matured and grown just as we have as a business.
“Visually they are a lot more impressive, more immersive, and more playable, so guests of Junkyard Golf Club are given the best possible experience.
“You can expect to see a major shift in terms of set design on each course, where we have added in some bigger scale production elements (vast real aeroplane installations) as well as upgraded lighting and general theming throughout.
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“The vibe will appear more over the top, but much more entertaining and fun-filled to improve our customer’s experience when playing crazy golf at one of our six venues.”
Image: Junkyard Golf Club Image: Junkyard Golf Club
Over the years, Manchester has watched Junkyard Golf Club grow from a low-fi, fledgling DIY pop-up determined to give crazy golf a new lease of life, to something altogether more grown-up and polished.
Emerging alongside a new leisure sector that brought us the likes of activity-led venues Flight Club, Swingers and Whistlepunks, Junkyard’s founders may have just ‘stumbled’ across the concept initially but over the years they’ve grown it into a nationally recognised brand.
Now, with a new look, a new logo and a new-look drinks menu, it appears the brand is gearing up to enter another new phase, all over again.
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On target to provide over 1.8 million games of crazy golf to the public in 2022, who knows, soon Junkyard Golf Club could become an international export.
Feature image – Junkyard Golf Club
News
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.”