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NASA reveals exact time you can see ‘Santa’s sleigh’ fly over Greater Manchester this Christmas

Dashing through the... sky.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 24th December 2025

There’s not long left until Santa and his reindeer crew fly over the skies of Manchester to drop off all those presents.

And it seems like Manchester must have been extra nice this year, as Santa is treating us to lots of chances to catch a glimpse of him on his mission to deliver millions of gifts in time for Christmas.

Just like every year, Santa is dusting off his sleigh and polishing his boots to prepare for his biggest night visiting lots of kids and families. The sleigh is being filled with lots of goodies and surprises as we speak… it’s almost like he can smell the milk and cookies from here.

NASA, one of the world’s leading space companies, has been working meticulously to find out Santa’s route for 2025.

The world-renowned space agency has given us an exact time to look up at the stars to spot the main man himself and catch the glimmer of lights from his sleigh.

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NASA has reveals the exact time you can see ‘Santa’s sleigh’ flying over Greater Manchester this Christmas / Credit: Tim Mossholder (via Unsplash)

As a man who has lots of experience globe trotting, it’s safe to say the big man knows how to efficiently cover as many houses as possible all in one night.

Santa’s sleigh will, coincidentally (*wink wink), be present at the same time as the International Space Station (ISS), however anyone looking to see this festive vehicle can notice the lights won’t change direction and will not flash.

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This time round, Santa is swooshing round Greater Manchester on Christmas Day a whole hour earlier than last year, meaning that nice list must be the longest it’s ever been.

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Wednesday 24 December

5:21am

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Santa’s sleigh lights will be visible for two minutes travelling South East to East, as the man of Christmas weighs up his North West delivery route.

6:54am

There’s a six minute opportunity to catch those bright lights of Santa’s sleigh in the Manchester sky as he travels from West to South East, finalising his map before the big night ahead.

Thursday 25 December

4:35am

It will be visible for less than a minute, no movement, in a static position. Santa will be doing a headcount of all the houses to make sure he’s not missed a single chimney.

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6:08am

The sleigh will be seen for four minutes, moving from South West to South East, by now Santa will have finished his Manchester delivery drop and will be heading on over the hill to our friends in Leeds.

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Featured Image – Needpix.com

News

NHS to offer thousands of people access to ‘life-extending’ cancer drug

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Tablets / medication

A ‘life-extending’ cancer drug is set to be offered to thousands more patients on the NHS across the country.

As the health service looks to widen the access to treatment nationwide, the prostate cancer drug – known as abiraterone – will be offered to thousands of men whose cancer has not spread in the coming weeks, following the clinical advice to roll it out last year.

Around 2,000 men have been diagnosed with prostate cancer in the last three months, and an additional 7,000 men are expected to be diagnosed each year – all of whom will be eligible for the drug.

The drug works to stop the cancer spreading by starving the disease of the hormones it needs to grow, such as testosterone.

Research has shown that for these earlier stage patients, the survival rate after six years is improved – with trials showing that the proportion of men alive after six years on abiraterone was 86%, compared to 77% on standard treatment (hormone therapy, with or without radiotherapy).

The NHS has worked with campaigners, including Prostate Cancer UK, to secure the rollout of this drug.

In the past five years alone, the NHS in England has also commissioned new innovative targeted prostate cancer therapies – including branded drugs like enzalutamide, darolutamide, relugolix and apalutamide.

“For thousands of men with prostate cancer, this treatment option could be life-changing by helping keep their cancer at bay for several years,” explained Professor Peter Johnson, who is the National Clinical Director for Cancer at NHS England.

“The life-extending treatment available on the NHS within weeks will mean thousands of men can kick-start their year with the news that they will have a better chance of living longer and healthier lives.

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“The NHS will continue to work hard to offer people the most effective and evidence-based treatments, with several new prostate cancer drugs rolled over the last five years.”

Featured Image – Ksenia Yakovleva (via Unsplash)

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Fundraiser set up for surviving taxi passengers involved in fatal Bolton crash last weekend

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant Bolton crash survivors, Tom and George Daniels

A fundraiser has been set up for the surviving taxi passengers involved in a devastating and fatal head-on collision in Bolton last weekend.

At around 12:45am last weekend (Sunday 11 January), Greater Manchester Police (GMP) were called out to reports of a collision on Wigan Road in Bolton, where a Seat Leon was travelling down the road and collided with a Citroen C4 Picasso – which was a taxi.

The driver of the Seat, and two passengers – who were all aged between 18 and 19 – have died following the collision.

The driver of the Citroen was also sadly pronounced dead at the scene.

The three teenagers have been named by GMP as Muhammad Danyaal Asghar Ali, Farhan Patel, and Mohammed Jibrael Mukhtar, all from Bolton, while the taxi driver was named as Masrob Ali from Blackburn.

Funerals have already taken place for each of the deceased and a number of fundrasiers have previously been set up in memory of Masrob – who was a father of four – for his grieving family, which you can donate to here.

But now, a GoFundMe page has also been launched for the four victims travelling in the taxi, which between them have sustained ‘severe and life-altering injuries’.

Two of the victims have been named as Tom and George Daniels, aged 29 and 28, while the identities of the other two have been withheld in order to protect and respect their privacy, although it has been confirmed by GMP that they are a 29-year-old female and a 30-year-old male.

According to the GoFundMe page, set up for the four victims by close friends Lucie Wilson and Jake Regan, the injuries sustained by the four passengers vary in severity from serious internal injuries, injuries to the brain, and ‘unimaginable trauma’.

Bolton crash survivors, Tom and George Daniels
Tom and George Daniels, two of the survivors of a fatal crash in Bolton last weekend / Credit: GoFundMe

“The road ahead for all of them is long, uncertain, and deeply challenging, requiring extensive medical care, time, and support,” Lucie explained on the GoFundMe page.

The funds raised will be shared between all survivors in the taxi.

The description on the GoFundMe page reads: “The money raised is intended to support immediate expenses not covered by insurance. This is to help relieve some of the additional pressure on their families, allowing them to focus entirely on healing.”

Any contribution, no matter the size, is said to go towards making a ‘meaningful difference’ as the survivors begin to navigate their lives ahead.

The families of the survivors have also kindly asked that any ‘anger or frustration felt is directed not towards blame or hate, but towards hope, healing, and recover’.

More than £26,000 has already been raised (at the time of writing), with donations rising by the minute, and if you would like to contribute, you can do so here.

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GMP’s Serious Collision Investigation Unit (SCIU) is still appealing for information and witnesses, and are urging anyone that may be able to help to come forward. This includes anyone who saw the vehicle driving before the collision, witnessed the incident itself, or has dashcam / CCTV footage.

Can you help? Anyone with any information is urged to contact the SCIU directly on 0161 856 4741, quoting log 111 of 11/01/2025.

Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

Featured Image – GoFundMe

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