A father who was left paralysed following the Manchester Arena attack has taken his first steps since the incident.
Bolton-born football agent Martin Hibbert – who was the closest casualty to the bomb blast to survive – suffered 22 shrapnel wounds and was left paralysed from the waist down when he and his teenage daughter were among the hundreds injured in the terror attack following an Ariana Grande concert at Manchester Arena on 22nd May 2017.
But with the power of technology, he has been able to walk for the first time.
Martin has been able to take his first steps since the attack thanks to the help of an exoskeleton – a wearable machine that helps people with spinal cord injuries to move.
He shared touching footage of the remarkable moment with his followers Twitter, with the inspiring caption: “Whenever you find yourself doubting how far you can go, just remember how far you have come.
“Remember everything you have faced, all the battles you have won and all the fears you have overcome.
“Dream. Believe. Achieve.”
Whenever you find yourself doubting how far you can go, just remember how far you have come. Remember everything you have faced, all the battles you have won and all the fears you have overcome…
He also spoke to ITV Granada Reports about the impact and significance of the moment, and his decision to share to footage with the public, admitting that: “To be stood up straight was mentally amazing [and] I wanted that video to inspire people.
“Technology is changing on a daily basis, and there are hopefully big changes coming in research for spinal cord injuries.”
Although taking his first steps since the attack is undeniably one of the most important achievements Martin has made, this isn’t the end of his journey, as next June, he is preparing to scale Mount Kilimanjaro to raise money for a very worthy cause.
He is aiming to take a Paralympic torch to the top of Africa’s highest mountain in an epic 10-day expedition, and in doing so, he hopes to raise £1 million for the Spinal Injuries Association (SIA).
Now a wheelchair user, Martin will ride a custom-built handbike for the challenge – which he said he was inspired to do after learning that only one in three people with spinal cord injuries receive treatment at specialist centres.
“I want to turn an appalling act of terror into a force for greater good.” Martin said.
Martin is preparing to scale Mount Kilimanjaro to raise £1 million for Spinal Injuries Association / Credit: SIA / Cloud Force Marketing / Sam Manton
Martin had originally planned to take on the challenge this past September, but it was sadly postponed due to the pandemic, and so he is instead scheduled to set off for Tanzania on 2 June 2022.
He will scale the mission alongside a trustee from SIA, two nurses who helped him recover from his injuries, and his two best mates.
Since his recovery, Martin has worked with the SIA as a trustee to offer “hope, confidence and practical skills” to other people paralysed by spinal cord injury, and now wants to “give something back” to the charity after they’ve helped him “live a fulfilled life” over the last four years.
“The money raised is my way not just to thank SIA for everything it has done for me but to make sure it can reach the thousands who remain in urgent need,” Martin said.
“Without them, I wouldn’t be here today.”
Martin will ride a custom-built handbike for the challenge / Credit: SIA / Cloud Force Marketing / Sam Manton
Keen to show your support? All donations towards Martin’s target of raising £1 million for the Spinal Injuries Association (SIA) can be made via his official GoFundMe page here.
Heaton Park’s ‘Gallagher Hill’ where people have been watching Oasis for free is no more
Thomas Melia
The Heaton Park viewpoint coined ‘Gallagher Hill’ which fans flocked to to watch Oasis for free has been closed off ahead of the remaining gig dates.
The particular high area of Heaton Park has gone viral online after Oasis fans have been using it to watch the Live ’25 shows for free, with a distant view of the huge screens.
But as thousands of ticket-holders flock back to the remaining Manchester gigs of Oasis Live ’25, fans who couldn’t manage to get any tickets will be disappointed to learn that the viral viewing point Gallagher Hill has been shut down.
Usually, this hill section of the Manchester green space isn’t filled with Gallagher supporters – it’s normally home to a herd of cows who use this land to graze and walk about on throughout the day.
Huge fences have now been erected around the area to prevent any further groups from gathering, with Oasis still set to perform on Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday.
Manchester City Council has said that there are also around 300 young trees that have been planted in this part of Heaton Park to develop a new woodland area.
The purpose of the fencing is ‘dual purpose’, a council spokesperson said: “Both to protect the environment from further damage and to dissuade people from gathering there. The necessary measure means the concert will no longer be visible from this area.”
After seeing videos of fans in this particular area, one TikTok user checked it out for herself asking her followers: “Would you get on Gallagher hill now?” before panning her camera to show cows grazing on the land.
Although fans of the Manchester icons were flocking to this spot in order to join in on the Oasis fun from afar, issues have been raised via safety concerns of visitors, the cattle herd and reports of litter.
Fans are now being directed to enjoy the many, many events taking place in the city centre, including the MCR Live Hub at Piccadilly Gardens.
‘Gallagher Hill’ in Manchester today ahead of the next Oasis shows. Credit: The Manc Group
Some fans have been very understanding reasoning this fair decision admitting, “Probably because of security and threats unfortunately”, while others express their disappointment asking, “How sad do you have to be to put that up?”.
One social media user, who was planning on taking a family member to this brand new Manchester landmark commented, “They could’ve utilised Gallagher hill”.
The fan went on to pose the question of making it an official viewpoint for concerts, posing the question, “£30 entry fee, is that too steep?”.
Councillor John Hacking, Executive Member for Employment, Skills and Leisure, Manchester City Council, said: “The atmosphere across Manchester has been electric over this last week with the whole city swept up in Oasis fever and peaking over the weekend with the first two hugely successful homecoming concerts at Heaton Park.
“As you would expect given the size of the concerts and numbers of people attending, we go through a continuous process with partners of re-assessing the plans in place for the concerts to ensure both public safety and that any environmental impact on our award-winning park is minimalised.
“The steps being taken ahead of the next concert regretfully mean the distant view of the large screens behind the event stage will no longer be there. Unfortunately our hand has been forced in having to put these additional measures in place to protect the very recent extensive planting of young trees in that location as we try to establish a new woodland area in the park, and the wellbeing of our cattle herd in the field, as well as to keep people in the park safe.
“Our advice to music fans who don’t have tickets for the concerts is to head into the city centre instead. The whole city is going all out to celebrate and help everyone have a good time. We’ve got some fantastic things going on with a real party atmosphere for everyone to enjoy whether they’ve got tickets for the Oasis gigs or not.”
New app launches taking music fans on an immersive AR tour around Manchester
Emily Sergeant
The history of Manchester’s globally-renowned music scene is now being celebrated through the launch of a unique new app.
Manchester Music Mooch is an app that takes you on an immersive journey of the city’s iconic musical heritage locations, all while giving emerging artists a platform to shine.
Made possible through The National Lottery Heritage Fund, thanks to money raised by National Lottery players, and by using the power of Augmented Reality (AR), the app takes music lovers on an interactive trail across five grassroots music destinations.
The app was created by MediaCity-based Dig Media and award-winning app developers, ArcadeXR, ahead of an expected 1.3 million music tourists arriving in Manchester this summer.
It was developed in collaboration with Manchester Digital Music Archive, Salford University, Toasted Productions, and the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), as well as with support by Visit Manchester and ABID.
Some of the famous grassroots music sites featured on the toor included like Tony Wilson Place, Band on the Wall, Fat City Records, and the Roadhouse.
Influential music spots in the Oxford Road Corridor like Manchester Academy, Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), and the former BBC building, can also be explored on the tour, as well as influential clubs in the Gay Village.
Loads of well-known and upcoming musical names will be providing the narrative for the tour along the way, such as DJ Paulette, Rowetta, Luke Una, and even Middleton-born singer songwriter JP Cooper.
A new app has launched and it’s taking music fans on an immersive AR tour around Manchester / Credit: Supplied
The app’s launch comes as the city celebrates a sensational summer of live music, with a whole series of music-themed activities taking place across the city as part of Manchester City Council’s MCR Live ’25 campaign – including Wild In Art’s Music for the Senses art trail.
“Manchester’s music history is globally renowned, but the city often struggles to convey its story cohesively,” commented Simon Marsland, who is the founder of app creators, Dig Media.
“With Dig Media’s expertise in media production, archiving and technology, alongside extensive local and international music networks, we’re spearheading a resilient way of sharing Manchester’s musical legacy never done before.”