Sacha Lord has publicly shamed Rishi Sunak by plastering enormous digital adverts all over Manchester, right as the Conservative Party Conference takes place.
Lord has even paid to take over the largest screen in the city centre, which happens to be directly above where the Tory Conference is being held.
Roving digital advertising trucks are also circling the area as a stark reminder to the PM of his actions during his time as Chancellor in the pandemic.
Sacha Lord, Parklife and WHP boss as well as Greater Manchester’s Nighttime Economy Adviser, has said that the adverts are for ‘3.8 million lives that were ignored’ when Covid halted the events industry.
He has once again called out Sunak for providing no financial support to all the freelancers whose work vanished practically overnight.
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The adverts themselves show a grinning Sunak, his eyes edited red, with the words ‘I ignored 3.8 million self-employed because they didn’t vote Tory’.
Sacha has then released a video where he reminded people of an interview where Sunak said those who were left without financial support ‘probably were not Conservatives in the first place’.
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He again outlined the heartbreaking reality that so many people in hospitality and events faced in 2020 and 2021 when the industry collapsed.
This is for the 3.8 million lives that were ignored.
The freelancers and the self employed.
The Conference are trying every trick to have this taken down…so I’ve just deployed large digital vans as well, to keep circling the area. pic.twitter.com/saFTL5Jolr
He said in his video: “I’ve taken out the largest digital screen in the city centre, which is directly above the Tory conference, for the entire duration of the conference.
During the pandemic, we witness the complete and utter decimation of the events industry. Freelancers left with no financial support whatsoever. I witnessed families break up, marriages dissolve, houses repossessed. I also know two people who took their own lives. They simply could not live riddled with so much debt.
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“There were in total 3.8 million self-employed people who were left to fend for themselves. And at the time none of us could work out ‘why is the Chancellor doing this?’
“And we now know the reason why he left 3.8 million people out to dry. The reason being, he didn’t believe they would vote Conservative. He put politics before lives. So if you were one of those people who were excluded and had your life ruined, this is for you.
“This must never, ever happen again. It’s a disgrace, and we should never forget the injustice that these people suffered.”
Sacha Lord has plastered adverts of Rishi Sunak all over Manchester. Credit: TwitterOne of the Rishi Sunak advert trucks driving around Manchester. Credit: Sacha LordDigital trucks driving loops around the Tory Conference also show the adverts. Credit: Twitter, Sacha Lord
Sacha Lord then wrote: “This is for the 3.8 million lives that were ignored. The freelancers and the self employed.
“The Conference are trying every trick to have this taken down…so I’ve just deployed large digital vans as well, to keep circling the area.
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“Wave if you see one…”
It’s the most perfectly passive-aggressive move of all time, this.
One person replied to Sacha: “THANK YOU! This directly affected my partner and I know the stress and strain it put on him and many people in his industry. Too many people just want to ignore that this happened. The light you continue to shine on this is absolutely phenomenonal. Again, THANK YOU.”
Another said: “Excellent work yet again. Keep it up, @Sacha_Lord! While a few got very rich during that horrible year of Covid, freelancers, self-employed and hospitality were largely hung out to dry by the govt, who now absolutely must bring VAT down to 10% for hospitality, @CampaignforPubs.”
Someone else shared: “I was one of the Excluded. Too long out of employment and not long enough self-employed. I fell between the cracks of the financial support and had to fend for myself.”
Beloved plant-based independent street food business Herbivorous is set to close imminently
Danny Jones
We hate writing this, but we have news of yet another local hospitality closure as beloved Manchester-born and pioneering plant-based brand Herbivorous has confirmed they’ll soon be calling it a day.
If you can hear us sighing through the screen, apologies – we’re just getting really fed up of saying farewell to our favourites, so god knows how rubbish those involved feel.
As you can see, the team behind the multi-location vegan street food specialists began by writing: “It’s a long one so stay with me… It seems you can’t open social media at the moment without reading about another hospitality business closing down.
“Throughout 8 years of Herbivorous years we’ve come up against many challenges from Covid 5 years ago to watching all the big vegan brands from London and beyond come to Manchester and largely disappear again to the closure of Hatch our busiest site, but with continually increasing costs its becoming really difficult to maintain a thriving business.”
Herbivorous started out life back in 2016 as a cult hit at the old outdoor food, drink and entertainment hub centring around a ‘container village’, the first of its kind in the city and soon to reopen under new owners and a new name.
Since then, co-founders Robyn and Damian have gone on to expand not just to one permanent site over in Withington but with outposts in Sheffield and York, having gained a strong reputation with stalls and pop-ups all over.
Their hospitality story might not have the ending we personally would hope for, but it’s been a brilliant one for so many foodie fans – us lot included.
Nevertheless, they go on to add in the emotional statement that external pressures such as a recent bereavement and their own ever-growing family have also contributed to the decision which, despite being an understandably hard one, “feel like the right time.”
“We are so incredibly proud of how far we’ve come from spending long days slinging duck wraps from our green vintage horse box at festivals to three Herbi locations across the North of England”, they continue, “and with that we’ve also met so many fantastic people!”
“Whether you worked for us at a few festivals over [the] summer or for years at our restaurant, we just wanted to say and massive thank you! The memories will stay with us forever and, of course, how can we not mention our fabulous customers!
“Thank you all so much for choosing Herbivorous over the years. Those of you who had our food at Festivals and then found us at one of our permanent locations, those of you who came back week after week to Hatch, Spark, Withington and beyond.”
They signed off by detailing their final business days, with their Sheffield Kommune spot having already shut for refurbishment; meanwhile, their spot in SPARK York will be wrapping up on Saturday, 19 April.
As for their flagship brick-and-mortar venue here in Greater Manchester, Herbivorous Withington will be shutting on Friday, 25 April.
Once again, there’s nothing we can say other than thank you for years of delicious food, that we’re guttted to see you go, and that everyone at The Manc Group wishes you the best whatever comes next.
AJ Tracey is playing a VERY intimate gig in Manchester next month
Thomas Melia
London rapper and respected grime artist AJ Tracey is ‘live and direct’ once again, announcing a whole host of UK dates, one of which is a rather intimate gig right here in Manchester.
It’s official: one of UK rap’s leading gents is getting back on the road and he’s showing a ‘Little More Love’ to lots of cities, including Manchester.
In a post on the UK star’s socials, AJ Tracey trades his music persona for that of a sports pundit as he announces the dates for his upcoming tour while impersonating an F1 commentator.
Anyone looking to attend Tracey’s ‘Not Even A Tour’ can catch the star up and down the country on his over 20-date tour with a stop in Manchester as soon as this month.
The rapper has reached phenomenal heights since dropping the unforgettable ‘Ladbroke Grove’ in 2019 and is heading out across the nation to make sure everyone knows about it.
Get ready to spit bars left and right as this rapper’s discography is stacked with serious tunes like ‘Dinner Guest’, ‘West Ten’, ‘Thiago Silva’ and more.
More recently, he collaborated with Walsall’s finest Jorja Smith for a flirty garage beat also known as ‘Crush’ with the video being the two artists talking it out in a good old fashioned caff.
The latest collaboration with Smith marks the start of a new era for Mr. Live and direct as it fell in line with the announcement of his third studio album.
Titled Don’t Die Before You’re Dead, we’re sure he’ll be “building a vibe” wherever he goes and probably previewing a few exclusive tracks from his upcoming project too.
This gig may come as quite a surprise for any hardcore fans of the ‘Ladbroke Grove’ star as the venue in which he’s performing is definitely intimate only, holding just over 250 guests.
This rap giant is bringing his unbelievable beats to none other than the legendary small-cap city centre live music venue, The Deaf Institute, at the end of this month.
It’s safe to say you won’t get many more chances, if any, to see him in such a tight-knit space again.
AJ Tracey is bringing ‘Not Even A Tour’ to Deaf Institute in Manchester on 30 April, with tickets on sale Friday 4 April from 12 noon.
Daisy Jackson -
1st October 2023 
