Passengers are being urged to ‘plan ahead’ as Manchester Piccadilly prepares to close for nine full days from next weekend.
In case you hadn’t heard, it was announced last November that Manchester Piccadilly train was going to have to shut in February 2026 for what is described as being a ‘once-in-a-generation upgrade’… and now, we are less than two weeks away before that officially becomes a reality and very few train services run in or out of the station.
Network Rail is investing £7.9m into the major upgrade at Manchester Piccadilly station – with the main points of action being to improve tracks, points, and signalling systems on the southern approach to Manchester Piccadilly station.
Teams are due to replace 11 sets of points, renew timber sleepers with modern, concrete equivalents, and alsobring lineside equipment ‘bang up to date’ across six lines to improve future journeys for passengers and freight.
Investment in this apparent ‘critical stretch’ of track has been long awaited, as any issues with the ageing infrastructure can disrupt all trains running in and out of Manchester.
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Passengers are being urged to ‘plan ahead’ as Manchester Piccadilly prepares to close for nine days next week / Credit: Network Rail
The nine-day closure, although expected to cause commuting chaos, is tipped to ultimately deliver ‘better and more reliable journeys’ for passengers in the long run.
The main work takes place over nine days during February half term, from Saturday 14 through to Sunday 22 February 2026.
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And what does this mean for anyone travelling exactly? Well, the scale of the work spanning all main lines means no trains from the south and east of the city will run into Manchester Piccadilly for the full nine days, while trains from the north will also be heavily impacted, as will direct connections to Manchester Airport station.
There will be a limited service westbound from Platforms 13 and 14.
⚠️ Major changes to services this February half term ⚠️
🛠️ We're upgrading the Piccadilly corridor.
📆 From 14-22 February there will be no trains from platforms 1-12. A limited service will terminate at platforms 13&14.
The train shed (Platforms 1-12) will also close for the full nine days, but Manchester Piccadilly station’s concourse will remain open to the public.
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“During this time, we are advising passengers to travel light, allow extra time for their journey, and be prepared to queue, as stations and rail replacement services are expected to be very busy,” National Rail said in its statement issued ahead of the closure next week.
“We have worked with train operators, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and Manchester City Council to develop an alternative travel plan during the closure, to keep passengers moving smoothly to their destination.”
You can plan your journey on the Northern Rail website here.
Featured Image – Network Rail
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Six teenage boys arrested following stabbing of 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre
Emily Sergeant
Six teenage boys have been arrested following the stabbing of a 13-year-old in Rochdale town centre over the weekend.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) explained that officers were called out to reports of a ‘serious assault’ near the Riverside Shopping Centre in central Rochdale on Saturday (29 August), and when they arrived on the scene, they found that a 13-year-old boy had been stabbed.
The young boy currently remains in hospital receiving treatment, while a police investigation into the incident is open and ongoing.
Two teenage boys were first arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article on the same day the incident occurred (29 August), but have since been released on bail.
Officers then made four further arrests yesterday (31 August), again all teenage boys who were arrested on suspicion of assault and possession of a bladed article, with enquires ongoing.
A Section 60 and 60AA ‘stop and search’ authority was introduced in Rochdale town centre following the recent incidents in area and following reports of youths carrying weapons in the locality, and this has now been extended to 3pm today (Tuesday 1 September).
“This was a serious and sustained attack that could have had far more tragic consequences,” explained Detective Superintendent, Richard Hunt .”Our team of experienced detectives is working around the clock to understand exactly what happened, identify all those involved, and secure the strongest possible evidence.
“We will relentlessly pursue every lead available to us and will leave no stone unturned in bringing all those responsible before the courts.
“Community safety remains our absolute priority, and we are committed to ensuring those who seek to bring violence onto our streets are held fully accountable for their actions.”
Can you help? Anyone who witnessed the incident, was in the town centre at the time, or has any mobile phone, CCTV, or dashcam footage, is urged to come forward and speak to police on 101, quoting log 2750 of 29/08/2026, or using the LiveChat function on the GMP website.
Alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.
Featured Image – GMP
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High School Musical at Lowry, Salford – a night spent reliving our childhood | Review
Amy Williams
What a night spent reliving our childhood.
Now, I don’t want to exaggerate or seem biased, considering this is one of my favourite film trilogies of all time, but this could be the best stage show I’ve seen in a long while.
We all know how High School Musical goes, right? Set at East High, we follow Troy and Gabriella (the star basketball player, and the geeky new girl) who meet over New Year, and then become ‘star-crossed lovers’ when back at school as they’re part of two different ‘cliques’.
The duo mess with the ‘Status Quo’ when they audition for the school musical. But will they stick to what they know? Or become stars of the stage? I’m sure you know the ending.
High School Musical is currently on stage at Lowry, Salford / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
From the costumes and the characters, to the memorable songs (there’s actually 52 songs in this production, including a mega mix at the end), they’ve kept right to the script of the films – and that’s exactly what we wanted to see.
Of course, the biggest throwback of them all is Kaycee Stroh – who originally featured as Martha Cox in the film trilogy – taking the role as Ms Darbus, and she was just as incredible as we expected her to be. And to see her do the iconic dance in the finale was unbelievable, 13-year-old Amy was screaming.
Also featuring Jason Donovan as Coach Bolton, Tobias Turley as Troy, Leonor Correia as Gabriella, Caitlin Tipping Sharpay, and Luke Bayer as Ryan, it was a proper impressive cast all round.
It’s a night to properly relive your mid-00s childhood / Credit: Matt Crockett (Supplied)
There was crowd interaction right from the off, as they taught the crowd a cheerleading routine to be included later in the show, plus for the finale, they had the lyrics on the big screen too so everyone could sing-along.
If we could go and see this show every single night, we would – it is absolutely brilliant.
Emily Sergeant -
3rd February 2026 
