An appeal for witnesses to come forward has been issued after reports were made of “several individuals fighting” on Market Street.
Greater Manchester Police (GMP) says it’s “aware” of video footage that’s been circulating on social media over the weekend that appears to show a disturbance and subsequent fight in the Market Street area of Manchester city centre last Friday, and is now directly appealing to the witnessing public to provide information.
The incident in question is believed to have occurred shortly before 9pm last Friday (21 July).
GMP are aware of video footage appearing to show several individuals fighting in the Market Street area on Friday 21 July 2023 circulating on social media.
Officers responded quickly and so far, a 16-year-old boy has been arrested.
— Manchester City Centre Police (GMP) (@GMPCityCentre) July 23, 2023
GMP says officers were called to reports of the disturbance, but when the arrived on the scene, all parties “quickly dispersed” from the area, and so far, only a 16-year-old boy has been arrested in connection to the incident.
Temporary Superintendent Muz Kernain confirmed that the force believes those involved in the fight were “known to one another” and rather not “members of the public trying to go about their daily business” – adding that enquiries remain “ongoing” to try and identify anyone who was involved in committing offences.
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Mr Kernain, who forms part of GMP’s Central Neighbourhood Policing Team, also added in his appeal for witnesses yesterday that no victims have come forward “at this time”.
Police appeal for witnesses after reports of ‘several individuals fighting’ on Market Street / Credit: GMP
“We understand seeing footage of this nature may be worrying to those who live, work, or visit this busy area of Manchester,” Mr Kernain admitted in a statement, “but I want to provide reassurance to the public that officers did provide a swift response to the reports.
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“The City Centre policing team continually patrol the main shopping high street, providing a visible presence to deter crime and act swiftly to incidents that arise, and additionally, officers from our Transport Unit frequently run operations alongside partner agencies across the transport network, including at tram stops in the centre.
“When situations such as the one captured in this footage arise, we ask that members of the public don’t intervene or put themselves at risk, but instead call 999 so that we can dispatch officers to the area immediately.”
The City Council has spent all day trying to get an update from GMP about this incident without success. GMP are now telling us this happened on Friday evening. They first told us there was no record of this incident We will be talking to –@AndyBurnhamGM about this situation. https://t.co/SFlZ4A0cyg
Appealing to the public for witnesses, victims, information, and any potential footage, Mr Kernain continued: “We would like to hear from anyone who believes themselves to be a victim or witness during this incident to come forward to us, [and] we’re also keen to speak to anyone with additional mobile phone footage.
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“We appreciate any piece of information, no matter how big or small you believe this to be, that might help us act against those involved.”
He concluded that Manchester city centre “overwhelmingly” remains a safe place for everyone, adding that incidents “of this nature” are not a “common occurrence”.
Trafford’s £75m surf park and leisure resort project is finally moving again
Danny Jones
The exciting £75 million development over in Trafford Park that will see a brand-new luxury leisure centre, surf and spa resort arrive in Manchester is finally moving again after two years of delays.
Originally slated to arrive in 2023, planning permission for Modern Surf Manchester was granted back in September 2021 but due to problems with funding, the hugely ambitious project has been held up ever since, with the opening date pushed back to sometime in 2025.
However, according to an update on the Trafford City Council website, the wheels are turning once again with developers Tartan Leisure — who are already part way through building a similar attraction in Edinburgh — now appointed to deliver the product to the masses.
Modern Surf is part of a larger 20-year project to upgrade the TraffordCity complex, with around £2.6bn set aside for the huge investment and undertaking, with this set to be the first inland surfing destination in the North of England — and we’ve already had a spellbinding glimpse of what it’s going to look like.
Using technology from Wavegarden to create an artificial lagoon and giant surf park, the TraffordCity attraction will produce 1000 waves every hour at varying intensities and will be able to house up to 90 people at any one time, delivering a kind of surfing few will ever have experienced before.
Better still, once completed, Modern Surf Manchester will create over 140 new full-time jobs during peak times and –
The wider regeneration of Trafford Park also includes a whopping £250m set aside for the highly-anticipated, Therme Manchester, which was first announced back in 2020 and will be a similarly unprecedented addition to the region and the North as a whole.
The water park, spa and wellness resort situated just next to the Trafford Centre will span nearly 30 acres alone and the latest images depicting how it’s going to look are pretty incredible:
The sheer scale and scope of Modern Surf Manchester and the surrounding investments in Trafford can’t be overstated, not only generating new business and tourism for Greater Manchester but even adding fitness and mental health benefits to locals.
Speaking to TraffordCity, Manc professional surfing coach Alan Bisseker, who has worked with Olympic and professional organisations including GB Surfing, said that “there are few sports that give you as many health and fitness benefits as surfing”, insisting that this “combined with the significant positive impact on mental health and wellness is undeniable and well-documented.”
Andy Hadden, Founder of the newly appointed Tartan Leisure team who are soon set to finish their Lost Shore Surf Resort in Scotland, added: “There has been an enormous rise in popularity for surfing over recent years with proven benefits to our overall health and wellness… the response and appetite that we have seen from the public has been phenomenal. [Modern Surf] will be a very exciting addition to an already incredible combined retail and experienced-based leisure destination for all to enjoy.”
Trafford is already a hub of culture, leisure and sport in the UK and when this thing arrives that’s only going to become more apparent — sod the New Year, roll on 2025 and surf park city!
Featured Images — Trafford City Council (planning portal)/Modern Surf Park Manchester
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Sir David Jason set for TV return in Only Fools and Horses documentary Christmas special
Danny Jones
In a surprise bit of festive news, the only and only Sir David Jason is returning for an Only Fools and Horses Christmas special this December. Lovely jubbly!
The best-loved and most-watched British comedy of all time will be back on our screens in documentary form this festive season, with Del Boy himself David Jason revisiting the iconic comedy character after 20 years he last played him on screen.
While the legendary sitcom was broadcast on BBC back in the day, the highly-anticipated Only Fools doc will be airing on Channel 5 right before Christmas as a special one-off programme.
Looking back on the show’s incredible run on UK screens over seven series and the several ‘Christmas Cracker’ specials, specifically, the latest Only Fools and Horses documentary will see Jason and a number of other guests appearing to chat about the legendary show.
The release date of the Only Fools special Christmas documentary is yet to be announced.
While it’s still unclear how many of the original cast will be appearing, Jason’s on-screen wife Tessa Peake-Jones (Raquel) is confirmed to be appearing along with other special guests including newscaster Krishnan Guru-Murthy and Bendiorm‘s Sherrie Hewson.
Sadly, a full theatrical reunion just isn’t on the cards following the deaths of Roger Lloyd Pack (Trigger), Kenneth MacDonald (Mike the Landlord) and Buster Merryfield (Uncle Albert) in the 30 years since the show ended its run.
Only Fools writer John Sullivan also sadly passed away aged 64 in 2011 and fellow co-star Nicholas Lyndhurst, a.k.a. Rodney Trotter, told Metro: “We can’t. John is no longer with us. John was the driving force of the show and we have also lost quite a few cast members now.
“I don’t think I could do it without them and I certainly couldn’t do it without John. At the risk of depressing everyone, I think the last two times I’ve seen David has been at funerals.”
Simply entitled, ‘The Story Of Only Fools And Horses At Christmas’, the 90-minute special is yet to have its broadcast date fully confirmed but you best keep your eyes peeled on the TV guide — we’ll let you know as soon we do.
Jason, 81, has only just recovered from hip surgery earlier this year, so it’ll be nice to see his familiar grin back on our screens.
Right, we’re off to binge a whole series on UK Gold.
Emily Sergeant -
24th July 2023 
