Parklife Festival raises over £80,000 for Manchester’s community groups
Community groups can receive up to £5,000 from the Parklife Community Fund, created to give back to local communities and busineses on the festival's doostep
A Parklife funding campaign has generated £81,750 for community groups based around Heaton Park – a 71% increase on previous years’ efforts.
Contributions made by guestlist attendees and donations to charities via festival tickets increased hugely in 2021 – meaning there is more money than ever to give back to local communities.
Working with local councils in Manchester, Bury and Rochdale, the Parklife Community Fund works to support projects that benefit parks, open spaces, and young people – and now has opened up applications for locals to receive grants up to £5,000.
Prestwich Councillor Alan Quinn, Bury Council’s cabinet member for the environment and climate change, said: “It’s important that local people and businesses also benefit from having these events on their doorstep.”
“In 2016 I asked Parklife to set up a community fund, and this year the fund stands at £27,000 which is a great sum and gives local groups and charities the opportunity to bid this money The amount available for each project remains at £2000.
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“However, tthis year due to the fact there was an extra concert we argued for more funding, so, this year an extra £24,500 is available split between Manchester and Prestwich to bid for.”
A Parklife funding campaign has generated £81,750 for community groups based / Credit: Parklife
It is the fifth year that the Parklife Community Fund has made financial contributions to local groups.
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The total number of projects supported last year was 51, up from 20 in 2019 – showing that the reach of the fund continues to grow year on year, despite the pandemic hitting Manchester’s nightlife and festival scene hard.
Applications for 2022 are now open and groups will be notified by the end of February 2022 of the outcome.
Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar, Manchester City Council’s executive member for Neighbourhoods said: “By hosting events such as Parklife, which bring people to Heaton Park from far and wide, there must be real and tangible benefits for residents.”
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I would urge any residents or groups with a project in mind which might enhance their local area to make their application as soon as possible.”
Grants will be awarded at an event in Prestwich towards the end of February. To find out more about the fund and how to apply for a grant, visit the Parklife Community Fund website here.
Pat Regan at the Fairfield Social Club – a brilliantly unhinged evening of standup comedy
Clementine Hall
There’s a particular kind of chaos that only Pat Regan can deliver, and the recently re-recognised Fairfield Social Club got the full force of it last night.
Making his Manchester debut as part of the ‘A Lovely Time’ series at the equally as lovely Fairfield Social Club, the New York comic, writer, and podcast host arrived with the energy of someone who had already lived through three emotional breakdowns before breakfast and somehow still had the worst to come.
Known for his work on HBO’s Hacks and the cult-favourite podcast Seek Treatment with fellow comic Catherine Cohen, Regan’s stand-up feels less like your traditional comedy set and more like being trapped in the world’s funniest group chat.
The perfectly intimate room beneath Fairfield’s railway arches was packed with adoring fans who were immediately on side as Regan launched into stories about traumatic trips to Paris, Grindr dates, massage tables and having crushes at the gym.
The audience was in the palm of his slightly sweaty hands (don’t worry, he’ll be fine with me saying so), laughing at every awkward punchline and self-deprecating anecdote.
The material is nothing groundbreaking, but this is what makes it so deeply hilarious; never before has shopping for the perfect pair of jeans been so serious and unserious at the same time.
There was laughter rolling through the venue for virtually the entire set, and after an hour of never-ending quips and jokes, we were left wanting more.
And the best part is, it won’t be long until we get more from this place, and it’s no wonder they’re starting to get the hosting plaudits they deserve.
It’s safe to say Fairfield Social Club has become one of Manchester’s most exciting homes for alternative comedy, and this felt like exactly the sort of booking that justifies its growing reputation.
By the time Regan left the stage, the audience looked equal parts exhausted and delighted. An absolutely classy evening indeed.
Find out about what else is on at the Fairfield Social Club HERE.
First-ever JD Wetherspoon pub to open at Manchester Airport
Danny Jones
In news that we feel many Mancs and travellers all-round have been waiting on for a long time, the well-known British chain, JD Wetherspoon, will be opening its first-ever pub at Manchester Airport.
That’s right: soon that first airport pint of the holiday could actually be a relatively cheap one.
While Wetherspoons are no strangers to popping up in terminals across the UK and Ireland, they’ve never done so here in Manchester despite having three, yes THREE, in Gatwick alone.
Not for much longer, though, as soon T2 will be lending more than 3,000 square feet of its prime leisure and retail real estate to a new Greater Manchester ‘Spoons’.
Posting on social media, the airport wrote: “Wetherspoon comes to Manchester Airport this September! The pub will be located in the Terminal 2 Departures lounge and will have more than 300 seats.
“This will become the final major food and drink venue to open its doors as part of our decade-long £1.3bn transformation of Terminal 2. It will be named ‘The Belle Vue’, in a nod to Manchester’s historic showground [now a sports complex and leisure hub].
“It was a focal point for social life in the city from the Victorian period up until 2020, when the final event was held at Belle Vue stadium. The design of the pub is inspired by the history of Belle Vue and the sporting culture of the North West of England. We look forward to welcoming you all in September!”
While a lot of money has been pumped into T2’s refurb as a whole over the past few years, it remains unclear just how much this particular new addition will cost; we do know that great sums were set aside for the launch of the Great Northern Market last year.
The inaugural Manchester Airport Spoons is just the latest in a series of major renovations.
As mentioned, the company already operate several up and down the country – 10 airport pubs, to be specific – but this will be the first in the North West.
Speaking on the news, JD Wetherspoon chief executive John Hutson said in a statement: “We are looking forward to opening at Manchester Airport. We believe our new pub will prove popular with travellers of all ages and be an asset to the new terminal.”
With Manchester Airport adding a dozen new routes to its roster this summer, you can expect to see even more people flying in and out than ever – no doubt having already polished off a cut-price pint or two beforehand.
Dolly Busby -
12th November 2021 
