Salford Lads’ and Girls’ Club has just celebrated its 120th birthday and to mark the momentous occasion, the legendary Manc institution has released a limited edition t-shirt to raise funds for the historic building.
Starting back in 1903, Salford Lads’ Club has remained a cultural cornerstone in the local community for well over a century, providing young people with sport, regular activities and a recreational outlet as well as serving as a storied tourist attraction for several decades.
From serving as a practice space for The Hollies back in the ’60s and featuring as the backdrop to one of the most iconic images of The Smiths, to hosting the likes of John Cooper Clarke and Kristen Stewart ahead of Manchester’s famous Chanel show in 2023, these walls have seen all kinds of history.
With that in mind, the people who help run the Ordsall gem are making such that its legacy continues for another 120 years and beyond by selling off a limited number of these special shirts to pump funds directly back into the club.
The shirt, the club and the first-ever card given to members.Salford City FC stars Ethan Ingram, Curtis Tilt and Alex Cairns show off the limited edition Lads’ Club shirt.Credit: Salford Lads’and Girls’ Club
This isn’t the first time they have teamed up with the local community for a foray into fashion, having put out a similarly sought-after collaboration kit with Salford City last year, as well an official Adidas Classics track jacket which has gone on to become a real collector’s item.
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In all of these instances, one thing has remained the same: the profits go straight back into keeping the club alive and allowing Salfordians and Greater Mancunians to use the facilities, support other local organisations and charities, as well as further raise the profile of the already iconic club.
With more than 200 members still regularly attending, not to mention countless Manc music artists and even companies like Marks and Spencer embracing the rich Northern heritage, Salford Lads’ and Girls’ Club continues to stand as one of our region’s most important landmarks.
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From its working-class roots and influence on the Manchester music scene to its significance in the city borough of Salford, specifically, it’s hard to overestimate just how important this location is to us Mancs — as tokens like this limited edition shirt and what comes with it just pays homage to.
The first ever invite/entry card given to new club members.The Daily Dispatch news report on one of the Salford Lads’ Clubs first meetings.Credit: Supplied
Available for the anniversary this year only, the shirts went on sale as of Wednesday, 31 January with each limited edition t-shirt costing just £25 from the club itself or online.
Better yet, not only does each purchase come with a commemorative card mirroring the first-ever print shown above — the first 100 coming numbered just like the originals — but all the money goes straight back into keeping the club not just running but thriving.
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Funds go not only towards helping organise activities for young people each and every week but also towards the annual trip club camping trip which has been running since 1904. Incredible stuff.
This isn’t the only way Salford Lads’ and Girls’ Club is commemorating 120 wonderful years either, as they’ve also teamed up with local brewers Seven Brothers to create a special craft lager that you can also check out down below.
The UK looks set for a ’30°C heatwave’ this summer, according to weather expert
Danny Jones
It’s been a bit of an up-and-down spring but the warm weather is finally starting to arrive here in Manchester, with temperatures reaching up to 21°C this week and the summery vibes only set to increase over the next month or so as meteorologists are predicting a 30°C heatwave soon enough.
March onwards has been a pure mix of blustery winds, grey skies and flashes of rainfall, with just a few glimpses of sun peeking through and the thermometer has still been struggling to get into double digits – until now anyway.
As we leave April behind, the forecast across the UK is looking a lot brighter and according to the likes of the Met Office, those numbers are going to keep creeping as we head deeper into the month.
In fact, some experts are predicting that Britain could be set for a heatwave with temperatures of 30°C and over in just over a month’s time. It better bloody hurry up, put it that way.
According to Jim Dale, Senior Meteorologist at British Weather Services, while much of May will be a bit of a mixed bag, “towards the latter stage and into June and July… we will see climbing temperatures well into the 30s in the prone areas.”
As reported by Birmingham Live, while Dale didn’t detail the kind of heat Manchester can expect, specifically, the indication is that the region is beginning to dry and the country as a whole is now heading “in the right direction”.
Although it likely won’t be until the very tail end of May that we start to see the summer as we know rolling in, the trends around the continent are suggesting positive signs, adding that “a lot of Europe is getting the scorching hot temperatures” of late.
The Met Office’s Tom Morgan also warned The Guardian that we get anything close to a heatwave this month, so we’ll have to be patient and wait for the turn come June time, especially up North.
Temperatures are on the rise this week, but not everywhere will see the warmth all the time 🌡️
Oban in the west of Scotland sees a steady increase towards the weekend 📈
Where as Newcastle will see its highest temperature today before dropping off later in the week 📉 pic.twitter.com/gUOXDjm8YF
While we did enjoy a heatwave in September of last year, hitting a top end of 33.5°C, the chances of the country challenging the most recent temperature record sat back in 2022 (40.3°C in July 2023) are still looking slim.
April has been described as a “month of two halves” overall and let’s just say we’re looking forward to a strong showing this May.
Where in Greater Manchester are you most looking forward to heading when summer finally arrives?
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Dunk (via Flickr)
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Co-op Live assures fans arena WILL open this week in time for Olivia Rodrigo and other gigs
Daisy Jackson
Manchester’s huge new arena the Co-op Live has assured fans that it will definitely, actually, for sure open this week.
The staggering new music venue beside the Etihad Stadium has been hit by a couple of high-profile delays in the last fortnight.
Although a test event with Rick Astley went ahead on 21 April, giving a small audience a glimpse inside the state-of-the-art arena, the brakes were slammed on soon afterwards.
Co-op Live pushed its opening date back while it ironed out some kinks, namely ‘power supply issues’, and underwent rigorous testing to ‘run all shows safely’.
That meant Peter Kay was rescheduled to 29 and 30 April… but then got postponed again, along with The Black Keys, who were meant to perform last weekend.
All the delays have left fans panicking that their shows will also be delayed, with some huge shows like Olivia Rodrigo, Take That, and Liam Gallagher lined up in the coming weeks and months.
But Co-op Live has now issued a statement reassuring gig-goers that they are full steam ahead and ready to open as planned this week.
The first act to perform here officially will now be A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie on 1 May (not quite as local a name as they were gunning for, but we move).
He’ll be followed by Olivia Rodrigo and her Guts Tour, who will perform two sold-out gigs on 3 and 4 May.
Olivia Rodrigo has announced a Manchester gig at Co-op Live. Credit: Nick WalkerKeane – Photography by ALEX LAKE insta @twoshortdays WWW.TWOSHORTDAYS.COMOlivia Rodrigo and Keane will both play Co-op Live in Manchester this week when it finally opens
Then Keane will play the Co-op Live on 5 May to mark 20 years since the release of Hopes and Fears.
Co-op Live posted: “Let’s do this! Less than 48 hours until we kick off our full opening season.
“Our scheduled shows with @aboogievsartist, @oliviarodrigo and @keaneofficial are going ahead.
“Ticket holders can expect an email with everything they need to know about this week’s events to land in your inboxes tomorrow!”
Fans have breathed a sigh of relief at the news, with one person writing: “YAY THANK GOD OMG THIS IS AMAZING WAS LITERALLY HAVJNG A MENTAL BREAKDOWN BOUT OLIVIA BEING CANCELLED.”
Another commented: “THANK GOD!!! 4th mayyyy.”
Someone else posted: “IM SO HAPPY AHHHHHH I’VE BEEN NERVOUS ALL WEEK BUT NOW I KNOW ITS GONNA BE FINE AHHH.”
Olivia Rodrigo fans are BIG believers in an all-caps comment, clearly.
Co-op Live will open in Manchester on Wednesday 1 May.
It’s going to be worth the wait, we’re pretty sure…
Danny Jones -
1st February 2024 
