Road closures will be in place as Manchester city centre prepares for its spectacular New Year’s Eve fireworks display.
Once the hustle and bustle of Christmas dies down, Boxing Day has been and gone, and we enter the time where nobody knows what day it is, everybody then begins waiting for New Year’s Eve to arrive, and for 2026 to bring new beginnings and a fresh start.
2023 was the first year since the COVID-19 pandemic where Manchester city centre hosted one of its famous fireworks displays that ‘say goodbye to the old and welcome in the new’, and it proved to be a huge success with both residents and visitors alike – so it only made sense that it would return again for 2024 and 2025.
Families from all across Greater Manchester are invited down to the ‘fun-filled event’ in St Peter’s Square this Wednesday 31 December from 10pm onwards.
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And, for the first time ever this year, Mancs are being given the pick of two different events to enjoy with their families and friends as the city counts down to the new year – with events being held on Albert Square too, as well as St Peter’s Square.
You can find out more about all the events happening this New Year’s Eve in Manchester here.
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Road closures have been announced for Manchester’s New Year’s Eve fireworks display 2025 / Credit: Manchester City Council
The Council says that, in order to ensure ‘a safe and celebratory event for all’ to see in 2026, security staff will be keeping a close eye on revellers to minimise any disruption and allow everyone to see in the new year together.
To best accommodate the event and everyone attending, the following road closures and parking suspensions have been confirmed:
Road closures
From 1pm on 31 December 2025 to 2am on 1 January 2026
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Library Walk (St Peter’s Square to Mount Street)
From 7:30pm on 31 December 2025 to 2am on 1 January 2026
Peter Street westbound (Mount Street to Lower Mosley Street)
Peter Street eastbound (Deansgate to Lower Mosley Street)
Oxford Street (Peter Street to Portland Street)
George Street (Oxford Street to Dickinson Street)
St James Street (Oxford Street to Dickinson Street)
Bale Street (Lower Mosley Street to Hall Street)
Hall Street (Bale Street to Oxford Street)
From 9pm on 31 December 2025 to 2am on 1 January 2026
Lower Mosley Street (Windmill Street to St Peter’s Square)
Princess Street (Cooper Street to George Street)
Back George Street (Princess Street to Dickinson Street)
Parking suspensions
From 9am on 27 December 2025 to 9am on 2 January 2026
Mount Street (Four accessible bays closest to Central Library loading bay)
From 4pm on 30 December 2025 to 6am on 2 January 2026
Peter Street (Lower Mosley Street to Mount Street)
Oxford Street (Lower Mosley Street to Portland Street)
Lower Mosley Street (Windmill Street to St Peter’s Square)
Princess Street (Cooper Street to George Street)
George Street (Oxford Street to Princess Street) for accessible parking
Back George Street (Princess Street to Dickenson Street)
Museum Street (Windmill Street to Peter Street)
Mount Street (Windmill Street to Albert Square
Dickenson Street (Portland Street to Back George Street) for accessible parking
Bootle Street (Mount Street to Southmill Street)
Central Street (Mount Street to Southmill Street)
Portaloo toilet facilities, including accessible toilets will be available on site and the Lloyd Street public toilets will remain open to serve both Squares until 1 am.
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Hot drinks and food will be available on site, but alcohol is not permitted.
There will be no tram services through St Peter’s Square from 9pm on 31 December until the end of the fireworks display.
Full details of Metrolink service and accessible shuttle buses can be found here.
Featured Image – Chris Curry (via Unsplash)
News
Appeal launched to find the owner of live chickens found at Creamfields festival
Daisy Jackson
The hunt is on to find the owner of a pair of chickens who were discovered at Creamfields festival.
The two birds were spotted on the grounds of the huge electronic music festival by bewildered festival-goers.
The cockerel and hen were trapped in a hedge, after it appears they wandered onto the festival campsite before the security barriers were installed.
The birds then found themselves trapped inside as around 70,000 music fans poured into Cheshire for a line-up that included Calvin Harris, Swedish House Mafia, Disclosure, and Tiësto.
The chickens have been safely rescued from the Creamfields festival site and are recovering at a wildlife centre, and now the RSPCA is on a mission to find their owner.
Festival-goers first called the RSPCA on Saturday 29 August to alert them to the cockerel and hen trapped inside the festival, one of whom assisted in the rescue mission.
RSPCA Inspector Leanne Cooper: “I was surprised that they were inside the festival site and I needed to get through the road blocks and security before reaching them on foot through muddy fields. I met the caller who helped me as they were just running up and down the hedge line where there was a wire fence blocking access.
Where the chickens were discovered at CreamfieldsThe RSPCA wants to track their owners down
“We managed to guide them out and I caught both of them with my rescue net which was a bit of a sight for the festival campers.
“I don’t think they were abandoned and they’re more likely to be stray because it’s farmland all around the festival site. They don’t have any health issues, apart from being quite underweight.
“With the fences going up a week before the festival starts they’d probably been unable to get out for some time and had been left foraging in the hedge. Someone mentioned that a third bird was also trapped, although we couldn’t find any others.
“I am really grateful to the festival-goer who found them and alerted us to their plight.”
Manchester Airport issues update for anyone flying today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has issued an update for anyone catching a flight today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday.
In case you hadn’t heard, hundreds of flights at several major UK airports – including Manchester Airport – were disrupted by a technical fault at air traffic control provider National Air Traffic Services (NATS) yesterday (8 September 2026), with the incident grounding planes and resulting in numerous cancellations.
According to Flightradar24, more than 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide, and many passengers were told to expect disruption for the rest of the day.
One of the worst-affected airlines was said to be Ryanair, with around 65,000 passengers affected by the cancellations and delays.
Manchester Airport issued its first statement addressing the matter at 3:15pm yesterday, stating: “We are aware of an issue affecting NATS’ air traffic control service at UK airports, which may result in delays to some departing flights from Manchester Airport today.
“Passengers due to travel are advised to check the latest status of their flight with their airline. We will continue to monitor the situation and share further updates as more information becomes available.”
Now, although the issue has been resolved, Manchester Airport has issued further statements informing anyone travelling today what they can expect.
The airport started off by saying that it is ‘operating as normal’ today, but that passengers are advised to ‘check with their airline for the latest information’.
Emily Sergeant -
29th December 2025 
