News

Manchester Christmas Markets 2023 dates and opening times

Festive cheer will soon be lining the city centre streets once again.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 15th September 2023

It’s that time of year again – the Manchester Christmas Markets 2023 are on the way, with dates and opening times confirmed.

It’s one of the biggest events in the city’s calendar, drawing in thousands of visitors every year eager to sip on mulled wine and scoff down bratwursts.

Things are about to get pretty festive in Manchester, as the return date for the city’s legendary Christmas Markets this year has been announced to spread some cheer right across the city centre.

Manchester City Council has confirmed the date for the annual event’s return, as well as all the locations around town.

So if you’re wondering what date the Manchester Christmas Markets will return, you’ll be pleased to know there’s not long left to wait.

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The Manchester Christmas Markets 2023 return date has officially been confirmed / Credit: Flickr

When do the Manchester Christmas Markets 2023 start?

The Manchester Christmas Markets 2023 will make their grand return on Friday 10 November.

This means that the city centre’s main hubs and streets, including Exchange Square, St Ann’s Square, King Street, and Market Street, will be lined with wooden huts right selling festive food, handmade gifts, and so much more before we know it.

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Cathedral Gardens is once again playing host to the iconic Ice Rink, with a range of food and drink stalls alongside it, and that’s already open for business. That Christmas Markets site started on Thursday 26 October.

How long are the Manchester Christmas Markets 2023 on for and what date do they close?

The Manchester Christmas Markets will be open for six weeks this year, between 10 November and 21 December.

But the Cathedral Gardens site, which is home to the ice rink, will remain open right through to Sunday 31 December.

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That’s plenty of time to get to grips with all 225 stalls across nine sites.

What are the opening and closing times for the Manchester Christmas Markets 2023?

These are the opening and closing times for each of the Manchester Christmas Markets sites:

  • Piccadilly Gardens, aka The Winter Gardens – Open daily from 10am to 9pm (street food stalls open until 6pm, craft stalls open until 8pm)
  • King Street – Open daily 10am to 9pm (Craft stall open until 8pm)
  • St Ann’s Square – Open daily 10am to 8pm
  • New Cathedral Street – Open daily 10am to 8pm
  • Exchange Square and Corn Exchange – Open daily 10am to 9pm (Craft stalls open until 8pm)
  • Market Street – Open Monday to Saturday 10am to 8pm. Open until 6pm on Sundays
  • Cathedral Gardens – Open daily 10am to 9pm (Craft stalls open until 8pm)

Confirming the Christmas Markets’ return, Councillor Pat Karney, who is Manchester City Council’s Christmas spokesperson, told the MEN: “With the last rays of summer sun now fading fast, it’s time to track down the tinsel and get ready for Manchester’s favourite time of the year.

“And with only 8 weeks to go until the opening of Manchester’s world-famous Christmas markets it will be glühwein and bratwurst time before we know it.

“Mark it on your calendars with 10 November – Christmas starts here.”

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2022 Manchester Christmas Markets Guide
Festive cheer will soon be lining the city centre streets once again / Credit: Manchester City Council

Cllr Karney had already previously confirmed that the Christmas Parade will also be back this year after it proved to be such a smash-hit success during its inaugural year in 2022. You can expect to see runaway Christmas presents, Jack Frost, Snow Queens, and of course, Santa, make their way through the city centre’s streets once again.

Dates for this free family-friendly event are yet to be confirmed, with the Council telling residents to keep their eyes peeled for more announcements in the coming weeks.

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Featured Image – Manchester City Council

News

Breakaway competition R360 issues statement after rubgy unions warn players of sanctions

Danny Jones Danny Jones R360 league respond to joint statement from rugby unions opposing breakaway competition

Prospective breakaway competition R360 have issued a response to the joint statement from multiple countries’ rugby unions, which has warned players of sanctions should they choose to join the new league.

While the vast majority seemingly remain opposed to the new concept, backing from certain key figures has resulted in the likes of the UK and Irish rugby unions, along with other key nations, sharing their unified stance against the potential rival.

Put in the simplest terms, the R360 model is rugby’s equivalent of what the proposed European ‘Super League’ was for football just a few years ago, with similar questions being raised around how it could jeopardise existing contests, player wellbeing and more.

Now, though, the new format – which has been largely backed and developed by former World Cup winner with England, Mike Tindall – delivered its own reply on Wednesday, 8 October.

Shared publicly to the press, the alternative tournament wrote: “It’s not always easy to embrace new opportunities, but as we’ve seen throughout history, it’s essential for any sport to grow. So many players love what R360 can do for them and the game, and we can’t wait to kick off next year.

“Player welfare is one of the key reasons for creating our global series, which will greatly reduce player load and capture the attention of a new generation of fans globally. We want to work collaboratively as part of the global rugby calendar.

“The series is designed with bespoke schedules for men’s and women’s teams and R360 will release all players for international matches, as written into their contracts. Our philosophy is clear – if players want to play for their country, they should have that opportunity. Why would the unions stand in their way?

“We look forward to submitting to the World Rugby Council for sanctioning next summer as planned.”

At present, R360 is due to hold its inagural season this time next year, with eight new male teams and four women’s sides expected to get underway from October 2026 onwards.

In addition to more lucrative contracts like those promised in the IPL (Indian Premier League) cricket, LIV Golf and the aforementioned albeit failed Super League, R360 is also set to offer a reduced playing schedule but one that would still tempt athletes away from their current teams to new franchises.

Although they have assured player care is an utmost priority, their health and fitness is one of my concerns put forward by the total eight rubgy unions who have urged current pros to stay away from the breakaway competition.

In case you haven’t seen the statement release by England, Ireland and Scotland, as well as France, Italy, New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, it begins by “urging extreme caution for players and support staff considering joining the proposed R360 competition.”

Assuring that they welcome “investment and innovation in rugby”, they feel this particular idea won’t improve the sport but could instead “fragment or weaken it.”

Having assessed the proposals supposed value/addition to the “rugby’s global ecosystem”, it seems the fear is that the outcome will be a “net negative to the game”, with little to no detail as to how it can run alongside existing fixtures, assure proper management of player welfare and more.

As for Wales, despite opting not to put their name to the open letter itself, they have stated publicly: “The Welsh Rugby Union supports this statement, and we’re considering changes we may need to make to qualification rules in Wales as part of ongoing analysis following our recent consultation process.”

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The statement continues: “The R360 model, as outlined publicly, rather appears designed to generate profits and return them to a very small elite, potentially hollowing out the investment that national unions and existing leagues make in community rugby, player development, and participation pathways.”

It seems there is deep concern for how it could affect grassroots and the international rugby too, not just league and union, and have failed to full explain or help key organisations “better understand their business and operating model.”

Most notably, they sign off by adding: “Each of the national unions will therefore be advising men’s and women’s players that participation in R360 would make them ineligible for international selection.”

What do you make of the whole debate – do you like the current schedule/format as it is, or do you think there’s room for a new chapter in the rugby world?

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — Rawpixel.com/Public domain

News

Passengers warned of ‘disruption’ ahead of more Bee Network bus strikes this weekend

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Bus services across Greater Manchester will be disrupted later this weekend as drivers from two companies stage strike action.

In what is the latest chapter in a long-running dispute, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) says it has had confirmation that staff from two operators, Stagecoach and Metroline, will go ahead with further planned strikes this weekend.

If this is the first you’re hearing of the upcoming industrial action, 2,000 workers who were employed by Stagecoach, Metroline Manchester, and First Bus Rochdale – each of which are firms among those that make up the bus part of the Bee Network – walked out in a number of co-ordinated strikes earlier this month amid an ongoing pay dispute.

Unite the Union said each of the firms are ‘highly profitable’ and it’s therefore ‘disappointing’ that workers are being denied a fair wage.

In this case, Unite has confirmed that drivers at First have called off further action after voting to accept a revised pay offer. 

Passengers are being warned of ‘disruption’ ahead of more Bee Network bus strikes this weekend / Credit: TfGM

However, both Stagecoach and Metroline staff have opted to proceed with strike action on Friday 10 October, Saturday 11 October, and Monday 13 October.

This means that around 190 services, including some dedicated school buses, will not run on strike days, and TfGM is therefore advising everyone to ‘check before they travel’ and allow extra time to make their journey.

Bus services in Tameside, Trafford, and Stockport are not expected to run, and some services in South Manchester, parts of the city centre, and Rochdale will also be impacted.

Many bus services will continue to run ‘as usual’, however, and this includes services such as the Free Bus in Manchester city centre, as well as the majority of buses in Bolton, Bury, Salford, and Wigan.

The strikes are the latest in an ongoing dispute over pay / Credit: TfGM

“While we are pleased that planned industrial action by First staff has been called off, we encourage Stagecoach, Metroline, and Unite to continue discussions to avert further strike action,” commented Danny Vaughan, who is the Chief Network Officer at TfGM.

“We’ll continue to keep passengers informed and support them to make journeys wherever possible. We encourage everyone to check the latest status of their service before they travel, leave plenty of time for their journey and to get in touch if they have any questions.”

Unite has indicated that further industrial action will also happen on Saturday 18, Thursday 23 and Friday 24 October.

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This action could still take place, if pay negotiations are not concluded.

Featured Image – TfGM

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