A special fundraising event to celebrate the life and legacy of Sarah Harding is being held in her hometown of Stockport next month.
The late singer – who was one fifth of one of the UK’s most successful girlbands, Girls Aloud, before she sadly lost her life to breast cancer at just 39-years-oldback in September 2021 – grew up in the Greater Manchester borough of Stockport, and attended high school and college there, as well as working several jobs, all before she auditioned for Pop Stars: The Rivals in 2002.
Greater Manchester was already a big part of Sarah’s life, but following her breast cancer diagnosis in 2020, it became even more important, as she was treated at The Christie hospital in Manchester.
Her final wish before she sadly passed was to find new ways of detecting breast cancer early when it is more treatable.
The BCAN-RAY (Breast Cancer Risk Assessment in Younger Women) study was then launched in her legacy, and is supported by Sarah’s family, friends, and Girls Aloud bandmates, as well as Dr Sacha Howell – who was Sarah’s consultant at The Christie.
A Sarah Harding commemorative plaque is being unveiled at special fundraising event in Stockport next month / Credit: The Christie (via Supplied)
But now, to go one step further in honouring Sarah’s life and music legacy, a special plaque will be unveiled on High Street, close to the Little Underbank in Stockport, next month, and the grand unveiling will be part of the new ‘Stockport Music Map Tour’, created and hosted by John Barratt, who is renowned for his work promoting Stockport’s rich musical heritage.
The tour will start at midday outside Thread Bar on Market Street, with an introduction by John, who’ll walk everyone to the site of the plaque – which will be located next to the Sarah Harding mural, created earlier this year by street artist Degsy on the side of the former Royal Oak on 11 High Street.
Then, following the plaque unveiling, John will conduct a Stockport Music Map walking tour around the sites of other commemorative plaques and significant locations that have played a pivotal role in Stockport’s vibrant music history.
Those on the tour will get to remember Sarah’s formative years in Stockport, before she went on to achieve global success with Girls Aloud.
Funds will be donated to both The Christie Charity and the Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal / Credit: The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
A Girls Aloud-themed party will then take place after the tour at Thread Bar, as well as showing screenings of the band’s performances, and 20% of the bar’s takings on the day are to be donated to both The Christie Charity and the Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal.
“Sarah was such a huge part of Stockport’s story, and her journey from here to the global stage is truly inspiring,” event organiser, John Barrett, commented.
“We’re honoured to celebrate her legacy while supporting The Christie Charity, and the Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal. This event is all about fundraising for The Christie Charity, keeping Sarah Harding’s memory alive here in Stockport, and continuing her mission to promote early detection of breast cancer in young women.”
John is hoping that the event can be made into an annual occasion, if it proves to be successful this year.
The Sarah Harding Plaque Unveiling and Walking Tour will take place in Stockport on Sunday 6 October.
Tickets for the event are £15 each, which includes a Christie wristband and pin badge, the plaque unveiling, guided music tour, and entry to Thread for the party, and you can grab yourself some here.
Any further donations to The Sarah Harding Breast Cancer Appeal can be made here.
Featured Image – The Christie (via Supplied)
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Florence + The Machine announce massive Manchester gig on new tour
Daisy Jackson
Florence + The Machine are heading back out on a huge arena tour, with a massive gig here in Manchester.
Florence Welch has announced the UK and European tour dates in support of her sixth studio album, Everybody Scream.
As well as a show at the Co-op Live in Manchester, Florence + The Machine will perform in Sheffield, London and Liverpool, along with several other UK cities.
She’ll be joined by Paris Paloma as support across all 18 dates.
Last week, Florence released the album’s title track, ahead of the album’s release on 31 October. She’s worked for two years on this new music, calling on collaborators including Mark Bowen of IDLES, Aaron Dessner and Mitski.
She has said that this new album explores womanhood, partnership, aging and dying, inspired by her recovery from lifesaving surgery on the Dance Fever Tour.
Big hits of Florence + The Machine’s discography include You’ve Got The Love, Shake It Out, and Spectrum (Say My Name), and she’s collaborated with the likes of Taylor Swift, The Rolling Stones, and Lady Gaga.
She’s famed for her high-energy, ethereal stage presence which has seen her sell out arenas for years.
Florence + The Machine will be back in Manchester in February 2026, performing at the Co-op Live on 20 February.
Tickets go on sale on Friday 5 September 2025 at 10am HERE.
There are also packages available with Seat Unique HERE.
New ‘postboxes of the future’ are being rolled out across the UK
Danny Jones
The Royal Mail is starting to roll out its line of so-called “postboxes of the future” across the UK this year, including right here in Greater Manchester.
It has been dubbed the most important and noticeable transformation to the classic British postbox in its entire 175-year history.
The national postal service teased the modern-day upgrade earlier this year, but the revolutionary new upgrade was officially announced this week, with Royal Mail ushering in a new era of digitally-driven units that should make many lives a lot easier – at least in theory.
Although they might look pretty identical to the iconic red boxes since before the turn of the 19th century have used up and down the country, there are marked differences between the new and the old ones.
Credit: Royal Mail
The biggest change made to the Royal Mail’s soon-to-be standard design is a digitally activated drop-down drawer, which will be able to fit parcels as big as a shoebox, hopefully saving us Brits on a fair few trips to the post office.
You will be able to scan a barcode via the updated Royal Mail app to activate the drawer for larger items; meanwhile, there will be a separate slot for letters and smaller packages.
Additionally, the new range of high-tech postboxes will also be solar-powered, helping the public limited company chase its ‘green’ targets.
Now owned by parent firm International Distribution Services (IDS) – who also oversee Parcelforce Worldwide – following the UK government’s approval of its historic sale to Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský at the end of 2024, the group as a whole is undergoing a significant overhaul.
Britain’s new solar postboxes were first trialled back in April in four towns located throughout the Hertfordshire region: Letchworth Garden City, Ware and Hertford. A fifth was later installed in Fowlmere, Cambridgeshire, too.
Despite being quickly considered a success on the whole, the initial design featured an entirely black top, with polls of civilians and Royal Mail themselves agreeing that keeping them red all over was more in keeping with the brand.
It’s like the old school phone box, isn’t it? We can’t picture it any other way.
📮Attention Postbox Lovers 📮
Royal Mail is upgrading postboxes to accept parcels. They'll gaining a new slot and a solar panel on top
Speaking in a statement, the Royal Mail‘s managing director of ‘out-of-home and commercial excellence’, Jack Clarkson, said: “We are all sending and returning more parcels than ever before.
“This trend will only continue as online shopping shows no signs of slowing, particularly with the boom of second-hand marketplaces. There are 115,000 postboxes in the UK located within half a mile of 98% of addresses, making them by far the most convenient network of parcel drop-off points in the UK.
“Our message is clear – if you have a Royal Mail label on your parcel, and it fits, put it in a postbox and we’ll do the rest.”
The new generation postboxes are now being made permanent in the same locations, with Edinburgh, Nottingham, Sheffield and Manchester next.
Keep your eyes peeled on the streets as they’ll soon be making a debut in your area.
Emily Sergeant -
18th September 2024 
