Three Greater Manchester restaurants have made it onto a list of the top 10 Sunday roasts in the UK, and one city centre business came in first place – proving once and for all that no one does a gravy dinner quite like us.
The Bull and Bear in Manchester’s Stock Exchange Hotel was awarded the gong by reviewers Rate Good Roasts, topping the list of 10 and even beating London’s 12:51 restaurant – run by Great British Menu winner James Cochran – to the top spot.
Sharing the news to their social media pages over the weekend, the restaurant, which features a menu created by chef Tom Kerridge (the man behind the only pub in the UK with two Michelin stars), said they were feeling “pretty proud” and thanked the team behind the scenes that had helped make it happen.
Celebrity chef patron Tom Kerridge pictured inside The Bull and Bear
The dry-aged Hereford sirloin of beef roast dinner
Credit: The Bull and Bear
Tom Kerridge also took to his own personal Twitter to share his pride in Isobel, Connor and the team, adding that it was “great to see them getting recognition for all the incredible work they do.”
The restaurant’s set Sunday roast menu, priced at £39.50 for two courses or three for £46.50, currently features indulgent mains like salted aged pork belly, dry-aged Hereford sirloin of beef, and confit autumn mushroom tart.
ADVERTISEMENT
Each dish comes with its own selected sides, with additional add ons like crushed black pepper swede, buttered sprout tops, and cauliflower cheese all available for no extra cost.
Puddings, meanwhile, feature the likes of chocolate orange choux with hazelnut, Baileys ice cream and salted caramel sauce, “lemon meringue pie” with blackcurrant sorbet, and a cheese plate of truffled Baron Bigod, quince tart and truffle honey.
ADVERTISEMENT
So proud of Isobel, @connorgblack and the team at @bullandbearmcr for coming top of a new survey of the best Sunday roasts across the UK Raising hands
Two other Greater Manchester restaurants also made it into the top 10 list this year, with The Bank in Delph featured at number six and Ancoats’ Edinburgh Castle ranking just behind at number seven.
Further afield, the north west performed very well overall with further high performing local entries including The Wheatsheaf Inn in Brigsteer, Cumbria and Crosby’s Mustard and Co.
Ten different elements are considered when rating each restaurant, with that then converted into a percentage overall. As you can see, the Bull and Bear did extraordinarily well with a whopping 95% rating over all.
ADVERTISEMENT
The only thing that saw them marked down was the price of the roast, but as we know you get what you pay for. – and value is arguably subjective when it comes to eating good quality, well-sourced food.
To see the full Bull and Bear roast menu click here. When the news was shared the restaurant said they still had a few spaces left for this Sunday, but we expect you’ll want to move fast.
Body of woman found in River Mersey last year finally identified after ‘extensive’ investigation
Emily Sergeant
The body of woman who was found in the River Mersey last year has finally been identified.
Following what has been described as an ‘extensive investigation’ by Greater Manchester Police‘s (GMP) Major Incident Team to determine the identity of the body, which was sadly discovered in the river adjacent to Chorlton Water Park on 21 March 2024, the family of the victim has now been informed and supported by specialist officers.
The victim has been formally named as 38-year-old Laura Stanley, who was originally from Derbyshire but was living in Stockport.
After the body was discovered, and ‘exhaustive and determined’ investigation by GMP officers began to identify here, including detailed checks of both national and international databases.
The Major Incident Team (MIT) also closely worked in collaboration with specialist forensic service providers to create an anthropological profile, which eventually culminated in the creation of a facial reconstruction image.
Following several media appeals, a relative of Laura contacted officers and then a DNA match was confirmed through a familial link.
“Laura was a kind and gentle person with a great sense of fun and adventure,” Laura’s family said in a heartbreaking tribute to her.
“She was generous, thoughtful, caring and always keen to volunteer within the community. Laura was a proud and loving mum and she will be greatly missed by her girls and all of her friends and family who loved her dearly.”
The River Mersey, across from Chorlton Water Park, where Laura’s body was discovered / Credit: Wikimedia Commons
While Laura has now been identified, police say further investigations will take place to understand her last movements, the events that led to her death, and her discovery in the river.
Additionally, as is standard practice, GMP’s Professional Standards Directorate is also reviewing a previous missing report relating to Laura in the time before the discovery of her body, which will determine prior contact relating to Laura, and whether the appropriate measures were enacted.
#UPDATE | A woman who was discovered in the River Mersey last year has been identified following an extensive investigation by officers in GMP’s Major Incident Team.
Thank you to those of you who have shared our appeals over the last year.
Anyone who knew Laura and thinks they may be able to assist with the investigation is asked to contact police by calling 101, or by using the Live Chat Service at gmp.police.uk, quoting log number 1191 of 21 March 2024.
Alternatively, you can contact the Major Incident Team Syndicate 3 directly on 0161 856 9479, or the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
It is currently believed that Laura was last seen around January 2024.
Featured Image – GMP
News
More than 70,000 home buyers set to pay thousands after missing stamp duty relief deadline
Emily Sergeant
More than 70,000 home buyers across England are estimated to have missed the stamp duty relief deadline.
This sadly means they’ll be required to fork out thousands of pounds extra.
In case you hadn’t heard, up until yesterday (31 March 2025), anyone who was moving and had bought a home in the past was not required to pay Stamp Duty Land Tax, better-known as just stamp duty, on the portion of the property price up to £250,000.
But from today (1 April), this threshold has now fallen back to £125,000, which unfortunately means that property purchasers are facing an extra £2,500 in moving costs, on average.
While the end of the stamp duty relief will mostly affect those Greater Manchester buyers who had already previously purchased properties, first time buyers are sadly not exempt from the deadline changes too, as their current stamp duty threshold of £425,000 has now fallen back to £300,000 as of today.
Person holding the keys to a new house in their hand / Credit: Maria Ziegler (via Unsplash)
Given that the average property price for a first time buyer-type home is currently around £227,965, according to Rightmove, the new £300,000 threshold may hit those purchasing properties in more expensive areas – particularly the South East.
A third of those estimated 70,000 home buyers who have missed the deadline are thought to be first time buyers.
Leading property platform Rightmove published an analysis in February into just how much of an impact the end of the stamp duty relief would have on home buyers, all while calling on the UK Government to announce a short extension to the deadline to help people in the middle of the property purchasing process avoid potentially thousands of pounds in extra moving costs.
But despite these calls from industry leaders, there was no extension to the deadline announced in the last week’s latest Spring Statement.
“It’s extremely disappointing that the Government has not used the Spring Statement as an opportunity to extend the impending stamp duty deadline for those currently going through the home-moving process,” commented Rightmove’s property expert Colleen Babcock.
“We estimate over 70,000 people are going to miss the deadline and complete in April instead, and a third of those are first time buyers.”
Georgina Pellant -
4th January 2022 
