Greater Manchester Police officers investigating a rape and three stabbings at a Trafford rave have released update tonight (July 15).
The incidents happened on Saturday evening after three illegal raves broke out across Greater Manchester. One in Trafford, one in Droylsden and one in Oldham. Over 7,000 people attended the raves in total – with reports of parents even dropping their kids off.
However, things quickly got out of hand, and shortly after 2.50am officers were called after reports that a woman had been raped by a man at Broad Oak Woods in Carrington, by a man who she is believed to have met earlier that night.
According to Greater Manchester Police, the man is thought to be aged between 20 and 25 and is described as a white man with a Salford accent, standing at 5ft 7/8ins tall with a medium build.
— Greater Manchester Police (@gmpolice) June 15, 2020
He was believed to be “wearing what appeared to be a grey tracksuit and has dark blonde hair; short at the sides and with a longer fringe to one side,” it states on the official GMP website.
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The statement continues: “No arrests have been made and specialist officers are supporting her at this time.
“Earlier that evening, an 18-year-old man was seriously assaulted and responding officers administered life-saving first aid at the scene before paramedics arrived.
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“The man remains in hospital in a serious but stable condition.”
There were also two other reported attacks that night in which two other men – aged 25 and 26 – were also injured but have since been discharged from hospital.
GMP’s statement continues: “An 18-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of section 18 assault and is in custody to be questioned by detectives.
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“Police are also aware and are investigating a video on social media purporting to show three men and a woman wielding large bladed weapons close to the area where the rave is said to have taken place.
“Anyone who may have witnessed any of incidents, or have information in relation to them, is asked to contact the police or Crimestoppers to aid detectives’ enquiries.”
It is being stressed by police that no retrospective action will be taken on anybody who attended the raves and calls in with information – they simply want to focus all of their attention on the attacks that took place.
If you are one of the morons who attended one of the illegal raves in Partington and Daisy Nook last night, you are a disgrace. You’ve now put yourselves, your friends, your families and loved ones at risk. I’ve seen some of the footage. You aren’t clubbers. Just selfish idiots.
Detective Inspector Julian Scarsbrook, of GMP’s Trafford division, said: “This is an urgent appeal for information relating to the horrific rape of a woman and three vicious assaults – one of which almost cost a young man his life.
“While I – like the majority of the public – was shocked and dismayed at the scenes in Carrington on Saturday night, my interest is entirely focussed on investigating the serious crimes that took place that evening.
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“I understand some people may be reluctant to contact police because they were present at the rave on Saturday and don’t want to land themselves in trouble, but I must stress that the severity of these crimes outweigh any self-interests people may possess.
“No one should feel deterred from providing the police or Crimestoppers with any information that they believe could have the slightest bit of relevance into finding those responsible for these assaults.
“If you saw anyone in possession of a potential weapon or noticed certain hostilities between groups that night, it is vitally important that you get in touch and provide us with as much information as possible.
“Information will be treated with the strictest confidence and I urge any witnesses or those with details that could aid our enquiries to do the right thing and contact us directly, or anonymously through Crimestoppers.”
Anyone with any information should call police on 0161 856 7573 quoting Operation Norfolk. Details can also be passed anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Video footage can be uploaded via the following link: [email protected]
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Yorkshire Tea is Manchester’s ‘favourite’ brand of teabags, according to new data
Danny Jones
The Great British debate of which teabag is best is one that will rage on for millennia, that’s just the way it is, but according to new data, it sounds like we might at least have an answer to which brand makes for Manchester’s favourite brew.
It won’t be a surprise to many of you and we can certainly confirm it on our end but the one and only Yorkshire Tea looks to have taken the cuppa crown when it comes not only to Manchester’s preferred teabag but seemingly the best-loved in Britain as a whole.
This is according to numbers pulled by local firm, TonerGiant. The Atherton-based ink and toner suppliers decided a poll around the office wasn’t enough and instead chose to turn their knowledge of the market and consumer trends into a bit of online research.
At the end of the day, tea has got to be the most important of all office supplies, surely?
According to the stats, Yorkshire Tea is Manchester’s favourite brand of tea bags. (Credit: Yorkshire Tea)
Using data from trusted online source Statista, which nailed down the top 25 teabag brands in the UK, each make was then ranked in relation to its average monthly searches via Google Keyword Planner to reveal that Yorkshire Tea was clearly the top dog.
With roughly 390 searches per month in Manchester alone, compared to PG Tips as the next best (260), it seems us Mancs have to concede at least one thing to our fellow Northern county: Yorkshire makes a bloody good brew.
The Roses rivalry raged for centuries but if there’s one thing that brings us together, it’s a good cuppa.
In terms of other tea brands that came in high on the leaderboard, Pukka Tea (170), Twinings (140)and Teapigs (90) made up the rest of the top five most-searched tea brands in Greater Manchester. It’s also interesting to see how those figures looked when extrapolated nationwide. Here’s the full ranking:
Rank
Tea
Average UK monthly searches
1
Yorkshire Tea
27,100
2
PG Tips
18,100
3
Pukka Tea
14,800
4
Twinings
12,100
5
Teapigs
8,100
6
Whittards Tea
6,600
7
Tetley
4,400
8
Clipper Tea
4,400
9
Lipton Tea
3,600
10
Barrys Tea
3,600
11
Thompsons Tea
1,300
12
Typhoo
1,300
13
Taylors Tea
1,300
14
M&S Tea
1,300
15
Tesco Tea
1,000
16
Tick Tock Tea
880
17
Sainsbury’s Tea
720
18
Lyons Tea
720
19
Asda Tea
590
20
Aldi Tea
590
21
Waitrose Tea
590
22
Lidl Tea
480
23
Morrisons Tea
320
24
Bewleys Tea
90
25
Cafedirect Tea
40
Few of these on here we’ve never heard of. Taste test, anyone?
While Yorkshire Tea was found to be Manchester’s and the nation’s favourite, Belfast was the only UK city where Yorkshire Tea didn’t take the top spot. Instead, it was Irish-owned Barry’s Tea that came out as their favourite – we definitely need to hold a ‘brew-off’ between the two. The Hoot, you up for it?
As for supermarket’s own-brand offerings, out of the eight options on the list, Marks and Spencer’s teabags were found to be the most popular, closely followed by Tesco and then Sainsbury’s.
Commenting on the findings, TonerGiant’s Stuart Deavall said: “With so many office workers opting for tea to get through the day, it’s no surprise that the UK has a day dedicated to the drink.
“In light of National Tea Day on Sunday, 21 April, our new data shows that Yorkshire Tea is the nation’s favourite, with over 27,000 Brits searching every month… We can expect many Brits to be celebrating in style this Sunday, no doubt with a mug of Yorkshire tea in hand”. Speaking of, anyone fancy a brew?…
Featured Images — Yorkshire Tea/Rumman Amin (via Unsplash)
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Manchester palaeontologist unearths bones of what may be the largest known marine reptile
Emily Sergeant
A Manchester-based palaeontologist has unearthed the bones of what may be the largest known marine reptile.
This new identification is a crucial part of a fascinating eight-year long discovery journey.
It all started when a seasoned fossil collector named Paul de la Salle found a giant jawbone on Lilstock Beach, near Bridgewater in Somerset, back in May 2016, and then father and daughter, Justin and Ruby Reynolds from Devon, found the first pieces of a second jawbone and another giant bone while searching for fossils on the beach at Blue Anchor, also in Somerset, in May 2020.
And now, a palaeontologist at the University of Manchester (UoM) Dr Dean Lomax, has identified the fossilised remains of the second gigantic jawbone that measures more than two metres long.
Experts have identified these bones as belonging to the jaws of a new species of enormous ichthyosaur – which is a type of prehistoric marine reptile – and astonishing estimations suggest the oceanic titan would have been more than 25-metres long.
Dr Lomax has been working together with Justin and Ruby Reynolds, along with Paul de la Salle and several family members, since the father-daughter duo first contacted them about their groundbreaking discovery in 2020.
A Manchester palaeontologist has unearthed bones of what may be the largest known marine reptile / Credit: UoM
“I was amazed by Justin and Ruby’s find,” Dr Lomax commented.
“In 2018, my team and Paul de la Salle studied and described Paul’s giant jawbone, and we had hoped that one day another would come to light.”
He explained that Justin and Ruby’s new specimen was “more complete and better preserved” than the first find, and that he “became very excited” at the chance to learn more following their discovery.
As mentioned, the Manchester-based research team, led by Dr Lomax, revealed that the jaw bones belong to a new species of giant ichthyosaur that would’ve been about the size of a blue whale, and they have called the new genus and species Ichthyotitan severnensis – which means ‘giant fish lizard of the Severn’.
The bones – which represent the very last of their kind – are around 202 million years old, and date back to the end of the Triassic Period in a time known as the Rhaetian.
During this time, the gigantic ichthyosaurs swam the seas while the dinosaurs walked on land.
The University of Manchester, where Dr Dean Lomax works as a palaeontologist / Credit: UoM
Ichthyotitan is not the world’s first giant ichthyosaur, but the discoveries by Paul, and Justin and Ruby, are said to be “unique among those known to science”, as they appear roughly 13 million years after their latest geologic relatives – including Shonisaurus sikanniensis from British Columbia in Canada, and Himalayasaurus tibetensis from Tibet in China.
Speaking on the confirmation of the bones’ identification this week, Dr Lomax said: “This research has been ongoing for almost eight years.
“It is quite remarkable to think that gigantic, blue whale-sized ichthyosaurs were swimming in the oceans around what was the UK during the Triassic Period.
The Manc -
15th June 2020 
