One of Manchester’s most iconic gig venues has been shortlisted in the prestigious Music Venue Week Awards.
The Northern Quarter’s Night & Day Cafe has had a tough of time of it this last year as it battles a Noise Abatement Notice, despite having been a fixture of the city centre’s music scene for over thirty years.
But through adversity comes strength. And apparently, a bit of good luck, because the venue has just been shortlisted for a big award – and is up against big names from across the UK.
The intimate venue on Oldham Street is hoping to cinch the title of Grassroots Venue 2023, going up against the likes of Brudenell Social Club in Leeds, The Windmill in Brixton, Leadmill in Sheffield and The Globe in Newcastle.
Night & Day. Credit: Supplied
Supported by the Music Venue Trust, the awards celebrate and recognise the achievements of the entire music industry across 25 different categories.
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The awards will champion the country’s best marketing teams, retailers, promoters, record labels, venues, radio shows, ticketing companies and more.
“We are thrilled to have been shortlisted for the Music Venue Week Grassroots Venue 2023 award. It’s an absolute honour for Night & Day to be recognised amongst some of the very best grassroots venues in the UK” says Ben Smithson of Night & Day Cafe.
Smithson continued: “The award comes at a time when live music and grassroots venues continue to face challenging times.
“In addition to this, Night & Day still remarkably has a Noise Abatement Notice served upon us. We’re currently working with Manchester City Council and hope that things will get sorted very soon.”
“It’s great to be recognised and for us to be shouting about the positive things that we do and have done for the past 31 years.
“We’re up against some amazing iconic venues so we’ll need every one of your votes please!”
The winner will be announced live on stage at the Music Week Awards ceremony, London in May. Voting is now open until the end of March at the Music Week Awards website here
Feature image – Supplied
News
Police ‘delighted’ after Manchester man is jailed for running county lines drug operation
Emily Sergeant
A Manchester man has been jailed for his part in running a county lines drug operation that exploited vulnerable people.
Following an investigation by Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) County Lines Team, John Joyce, of Stuart Street in Manchester, was identified as operating a county lines drugs network that supplied Class A drugs across Greater Manchester, and was subsequently jailed for possession with intent to supply crack cocaine and heroin.
The investigation – which uncovered extensive evidence of drug supply – found that Joyce was the controller of the “CEE” line – a mobile number used to distribute crack cocaine and heroin.
Among that ‘extensive’ evidence was more than 31,000 text messages and 8,700 calls linked to drug dealing activity, and ‘flare’ messages advertising drugs for sale sent in bulk, as well as forensic analysis linking Joyce to two personal mobile numbers and vehicles used during the operation.
CCTV footage was also uncovered showing Joyce purchasing top-up vouchers for the drugs line.
#JAILED | Man sentenced to over 5 years in prison for running county lines drug operation
Our County Lines Team investigation uncovered extensive evidence of drug supply & found he was the controller of the “CEE” line, a mobile number used to distribute crack cocaine & heroin pic.twitter.com/WAdej9lLxU
And the final nail in the coffin was that a search of the 28-year-old’s Manchester apartment uncovered more than 460g of crack cocaine, heroin, drug paraphernalia, and cash.
Joyce fled the UK and headed to Dubai in an attempt to evade justice, but was arrested upon his return at Manchester Airport in October 2025.
“This case demonstrates our commitment to dismantling county lines networks that exploit vulnerable people and blight communities,” explained Detective Constable Josh Claxton, of GMP’s County Lines Team.
“Joyce’s operation was significant and his sentence reflects the harm caused by class A drug supply in Greater Manchester.
“He evaded justice for a long time, but now we are delighted to have locked him up so he can no longer cause damage to people’s lives.”
Joyce has been jailed for five years and three months after appearing at Manchester Minshull Street Crown Court this week (Tuesday 16 December).
Featured Image – GMP
News
Popular bar chain The Alchemist to rewind back to 2010 with cocktails and dishes for £6 next month
Emily Sergeant
One of the UK’s most popular bar chains is celebrating its sweet 16th birthday next month by winding back to 2010.
Money is always tight in January, right?
Once Christmas is over with, and so is the festive feasting and drinking, many like to use the first month of the new year to lay low and save some money back up – which is why The Alchemist is launching a limited-edition ‘2010 Revival Menu’, bringing back some of its most iconic early cocktails and dishes – all at their original prices from 16 years ago.
For the whole month, you can enjoy the curated throwback selection starting from £6, which i perfectly timed for a month of saving without sacrificing going out.
The Alchemist is rewinding back to 2010 with cocktails and dishes for £6 / Credit: The Manc Group
The 2010 Revival Menu includes the return of the fan-favourite White Chocolate Raspberry Martini for £6 on the cocktail menu, which was an early Alchemist staple, alongside other fan-favourites like the Colour Changing One and Virgin Pornstar, both for £6 again.
When it comes to food dishes for £6, you can tuck into a selection of different refreshing salads, while stretching your budget up to £10 will get you things like Chicken in a Basket, a Cheeseburger, and Fish and Chips.
Other iconic Alchemist cocktails returning for a fraction of the price next month include the popular Smoky Old Fashioned, and Dead Read Zombie – both for £8.
The Alchemist opened its original bar in Manchester‘s swanky Spinningfields district all the way back in 2010, and quickly became a popular and stylish destination with its high ceilings and industrial features, and has since developed into a much larger chain – with not only more Manchester destinations, but others across the UK too.
Georgina Pellant -
8th March 2023 
