For any bloke who’s ever wondered about their fertility and considering grabbing a quick test, you can now get what’s being called a quick sperm ‘MOT’ right here in Manchester– and it’s free.
As well as the obvious importance of regular sexual health checks, many people understandably worry about their virility as they get older and there’s no harm in just giving yourself that piece of mind.
That’s why one Manchester-based sperm and egg bank is expanding its already wide range of services to offer quick and easy tests to locals.
We’re all adults here: if your car’s MOT is considered an essential check, then why not take a little look under the hood to see how your little swimmers are getting on?
Credit: Cryos International (supplied)
Cryos International, located over at Rutherford House on Manchester Science Park, is a quick and confidential clinic that specialises in sexual wellness and reproductive health.
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The industry-leading sperm and egg bank remains at the forefront when it comes to various different areas of the sector but now they’re taking one field even further by offering men aged 18-45 an unprecedented level of service.
While sperm tests and egg checks are nothing new, Cryos are the UK clinic to offer rapid detailed analysis that will see your results returned to you the same day.
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Better yet, this initiative is completely free of charge and provides a non-diagnostic assessment of key sperm quality criteria, including sperm count and how effectively the sperm moves.
It’s part of Cryos’ commitment to demystifying male reproductive health and demonstrating how lifestyle factors can impact male fertility, while at the same time breaking the stigma around sperm donation, and helping more people on their journey to parenthood.
The launch comes at a time of unprecedented demand for fertility services in the UK, with births from sperm donation tripling since the turn of the millennium.
Sadly, donor numbers here in Britain have hit an all-time low and similar struggles are being seen all over Europe even despite the growing population.
To combat this, the UK government has actually increased its standard compensation fee by £10 as of October 2024, rising to £45 a pop.
Of course, your sperm needs to be in good health before you can donate, not to the obvious benefits for couples trying to conceive and, as lab Manager Samantha Duffy-Olive explains, even “simple lifestyle changes can have a huge impact on sperm quality.”
With that in mind, Manc males are being encouraged to make the most of this free semen test and in addition to the analysis service, they will also offer helpful advice that could make a real difference to improve your reproductive health. You can book HERE.
This isn’t the first time we’ve clocked Cryos pioneering the sperm donation and sexual health space…
Featured Images — Cryos International Sperm & Egg Bank (supplied)
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Luxury Manchester gym Blok confirms permanent closure after weeks of uncertainty
Daisy Jackson
Blok Manchester has announced its permanent closure, weeks after the doors to the premium fitness facility mysteriously closed.
Around a fortnight ago, members began to arrive to their classes to find the gym on Ducie Street locked up and a forfeiture notice on the door – but at the time, Blok said that it was fighting to reopen.
Sadly, in an email sent to members today, its founder has confirmed that the studio is now permanently closed.
Blok – which has several very successful sites down in London – said that its relationship with its landlord has ‘broken down to a point where trust has been lost’.
The gym wrote that it’s been left with ‘no workable way forward’.
They said: “BLOK Manchester was a space built by our loyal and dedicated community. Whether you joined us for one class or one hundred, we are deeply grateful. You helped create something genuinely special in an incredible city.”
In the immediate future, they said they’ll be supporting the team of fantastic trainers who worked here, as well as looking after members.
Members will be contacted within a few hours with options and refunds owed.
Blok Manchester has announced its permanent closure. Credit: The Manc Group
CEO and founder Ed Stanbury said: “While this marks the end of a chapter, we don’t see it as the end of our story in Manchester. We’re already speaking with developers about potential future sites and remain committed to returning to the city when the time is right.
“Thank you for being part of our story so far. Let’s shape the future of wellness. The mission continues.”
Commenting on Blok’s Instagram post – its first in almost a fortnight – people have been sharing their sadness at the closure of its Manchester site.
One person wrote: “beautiful space, beautiful staff and beautiful community.”
Another said: “Sending love to all the instructors !! :(((( gutted”
Someone else commented: “THE BEST CLASSES. I’m gutted.”
‘The average cost of a pint’ in the UK by region, according to the latest data
Danny Jones
Does it feel like pints keep getting more and more expensive almost every week at this point? Yes. Yes, it does, and while you can’t expect a city as big as Manchester to be one of the cheapest places to get one in the UK, we do often wonder how it compares to other parts of the country.
Well, as it happens, someone has recently crunched the numbers for us across the nation, breaking down which regions pay the most and the least for their pints.
The data has been examined by business management consultancy firm, CGA Strategy, using artificial intelligence and information from the latest Retail Price Index figures to find out what the ‘average cost of a pint’ is down south, up North and everywhere in between.
While the latest statistics provided by the group aren’t granular enough to educate us on Greater Manchester’s pint game exactly, we can show you how our particular geographic region is looking on the leaderboard at the moment.
That’s right, we Mancunians and the rest of the North West are technically joint mid-table when it comes to the lowest average cost of a pint, sharing the places from 3rd to 8th – according to CGA, anyway.
Powered by consumer intelligence company, NIQ (NielsenIQ) – who also use AI and the latest technology to deliver their insights – we can accept it might seem like it’s been a while since you’ve paid that little for a pint, especially in the city centre, but these are the stats they have published.
Don’t shoot the messenger, as they say; unless, of course, they’re trying to rob you blind for a bev. Fortunately, we’ve turned bargain hunting at Manchester bars into a sport at this point.
We might not boast the lowest ‘average’ pint cost in the UK, but we still have some bloody good places to keep drinking affordable.
London tops the charts (pretends to be shocked)
While some of you may have scratched your eyes at the supposed average pint prices here in the North West, it won’t surprise any of you to see that London leads the way when it came to the most expensive pint when it came to average cost in the UK.
To be honest, £5.44 doesn’t just sound cheap but virtually unheard of these days.
CGA has it that the average cost of a beer in the British capital is actually down 15p from its price last September, but as we all know, paying upwards of £7 for a pint down that end of the country is pretty much par for the course the closer you get to London.
Yet more reason you can be glad you live around here, eh? And in case you thought you were leaving this article with very little, think again…
Danny Jones -
9th January 2025 
