Thousands of Manchester runners gathered together this week to raise money for Greater Manchester’s homeless community and, holding aloft a defiant protest banner, sent a message to Suella Braverman following her recent misguided and insensitive comments.
On Wednesday, 15 November, The 2023 Manchester 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness got underway, finishing up at noon this Thursday, and countless runners turned up to put in the hard yards for the beloved and important charity event.
With members of running clubs, local businesses and countless individuals who just fancied doing their bit gathering from all over the region to complete laps of the city centre circuit, waves of runners turned up not only for a jog but to help raise vital funds to combat rough sleeping.
However, they didn’t just settle for running their socks off for 24 hours, from 7pm onwards before each wave, the hordes of runners also held up a custom-made banner referencing the now former home secretary’s comments about the UK’s homeless population.
For anyone who somehow didn’t see what Braverman had to say on the ongoing homelessness crisis, the Conservative MP described rough sleeping as a “lifestyle choice”, which was naturally met with nationwide backlash and huge calls for her to be booted from the cabinet.
ADVERTISEMENT
The 42-year-old was ultimately sacked and despite digging out Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in her resignation letter, her callous words about homelessness have been seen by some as symptomatic not only of her own attitudes but how the Tories have failed in their promises regarding the community.
Speaking to The Manchester 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness co-founder Tom Lewis, he said: “After seeing former Home Secretary Suella Braverman’s comments that homelessness was a ‘lifestyle choice’, we felt the need to create the banner and show how the people of Manchester disagree with such an out of touch statement.” In fact, even some of her party colleagues were left equally stunned.
ADVERTISEMENT
He went on to tell The Manc that “the event shows how incredible Greater Manchester‘s running community is and when they come together they can achieve something truly remarkable. We believe no one should have to sleep rough on the streets of Manchester or anywhere for that matter.”
Having smashed their fifth year since the event started, not only did they make a big splash with their Suella Braverman protest banner but The Manchester 24 Hour Run Against Homelessness also marked yet another incredible edition with the largest amount raised they’ve managed yet.
Notching a total of 40 relay laps over the course of the day and more than 9,200 kilometres, there were upwards of 1,600 runs completed by participants, with dozens of them doing a frankly ridiculous number of laps throughout.
ADVERTISEMENT
All told with individual and company donations, event t-shirt sales and Gift Aid contributions, they raised a whopping £19,572 for the Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity, with the money going straight to their crucial ‘A Bed Every Night‘ scheme. You’re all absolutely amazing.
We couldn’t agree more with the message these guys sent out this year and if their incredible work has inspired you to take part, you can still donate HERE and find out all about how it works down below:
Featured Images — The Manchester 24 Hour Homeless Run/Brandon Hattiloney (via Flickr)
News
Premier League Darts is returning to Manchester’s AO Arena in 2027
Lydia Mastrolonardo
Premier League Darts is confirmed to be returning to Manchester next year.
Now’s your chance to see the youngest world champion in darts history, AKA Warrington’s very-own Luke ‘The Nuke’ Littler, show us how it’s done, as next year’s BetMGM Premier League Darts lineup has just been announced this week – with various dates confirmed across 17 different cities in the UK and Europe.
And Manchester is one of those cities, as the AO Arena has shared that they are set to host an evening next April, and we couldn’t be more excited about it.
This means that we will be lucky enough to witness the biggest names in world darts all under one roof, including headliners Gian van Veen and Luke Humphries, as well as Littler.
Manchester is the only northern city to get the pleasure of hosting the event next year, as Liverpool is also on the lineup, as is Leeds, Sheffield, and Newcastle, while elsewhere in the UK, the stars will travel to Glasgow, Birmingham, London, and several other major locations.
BetMGM Premier League Darts is to be held on Thursday 8 April at the AO Arena in Manchester, and to avoid being disappointed, fans are advised to register for presale ticket access.
Following a successful season of events in 2026, tickets are expected to be like gold-dust, so don’t say you haven’t been warned.
To access the first wave of tickets, fans must become an active PDCTV Annual Member before 23:59pm on Friday 9 October. Alternatively, general sale is on Thursday 22 October 2026, but make sure not to hang about.
Featured Image – Sandro Halank (via Wikimedia Commons)
News
Andy Burnham wants to scrap the ‘unfair’ ban on drinking alcohol in football stands
Emily Sergeant
Andy Burnham has claimed he wants to scrap the ‘unfair’ ban on fans getting to drink alcohol in football stands.
It’s a ban that’s been in place in the top five tiers of men’s football since 1985, when fears over violence and hooliganism were at their height, but now the Prime Minister has raised the question of whether drinking in football stands – or ‘drinking in sight / view of the pitch’, as it’s known formally – is actually unjust, due to the fact that same rules don’t apply to fans of other sports.
“I don’t think it’s fair for football fans to be singled out in that way,” Andy Burnham has declared this week, grabbing headlines in the process.
He continued: “I think that legislation dates to an era where football was very different, and I do believe there is a case to remove that discrimination.
“I’m not going to back away from what’s been a long-held view of mine. I don’t see how it can be fair that some supporters of one sport can be treated differently.”
The Prime Minister’s comments have been met with mixed response.
Andy Burnham wants to scrap the ‘unfair’ ban on drinking alcohol in football stands / Credit: James Kirkup | Julia Nastogadka (via Unsplash)
The Football Supporters’ Association (FSA), for example, has very much welcomed the idea, saying that it ‘totally agrees’ the legislation is ‘outdated’ and ‘deserves to be reviewed’.
Tom Greatrex, chair of the FSA, said in a statement: “The FSA has always argued that it’s unfair to criminalise football fans for having a pint while watching the match – especially since you can sit in the same seat drinking alcohol whilst watching an Oasis gig or rugby league.”
However, on the flip side, the UK Football Policing Unit said it would be ‘incredibly rash’ to change the rules without proper consultation.
“Other sports simply don’t see the violence and criminal behaviour from their supporters that football does, albeit a minority, with alcohol often playing a significant part in violent and disorderly behaviour,” it said in a statement on the matter.
The Prime Minister did state in his initial proposition though that ‘there are different ways it could be done’, hinting that it could be done ‘on a trial basis’ perhaps.
The English Football League (EFL) added that it would be ‘receptive to discussions around reviewing current legislation and permitting alcoholic drinks within view of the pitch’.
No formal details on a review have been confirmed as of yet, so fans are encouraged to stay tuned for updates in due course.
Danny Jones -
16th November 2023 
