Tributes have been pouring in after it was announced yesterday that Sarah Harding had passed away at the age of 39.
The former Girls Aloud singer and actress had been battling breast cancer, having disclosed her diagnosis back in August 2020, and had revealed that the cancer had spread to other parts of her body.
Her family shared the news of her passing in a statement on social media.
On Instagram, her mother Marie wrote: “It’s with deep heartbreak that today I’m sharing the news that my beautiful daughter Sarah has sadly passed away.
“Many of you will know of Sarah’s battle with cancer and that she fought so strongly from her diagnosis until her last day. She slipped away peacefully this morning. I’d like to thank everyone for their kind support over the past year. It meant the world to Sarah and it gave her great strength and comfort to know she was loved.
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“I know she won’t want to be remembered for her fight against this terrible disease – she was a bright shining star and I hope that’s how she can be remembered instead.”
Earlier this year, Harding said doctors had told her she would not see another Christmas.
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In an extract from her memoir published in The Times, Harding wrote: “In December my doctor told me that the upcoming Christmas would probably be my last.”
She said she didn’t want an exact prognosis, just “comfort” and to be “pain-free”.
Harding also said in her autobiography, Hear Me Out, about how she initially put off getting medical advice when she first found lumps under her arm in December 2019. She eventually saw a doctor who advised her to schedule an MRI scan – but then “coronavirus hit and everything either went into slow motion or stopped altogether”, she wrote.
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“I was aware that I needed to get this health issue sorted, but with everything that was going on, it was tough.”
She added: “One day I woke up realising that I’d been in denial about the whole thing. Yes, there was a lockdown, yes, there was a pandemic, but it was almost as if I’d been using that as an excuse not to face up to the fact that something was very wrong.”
Harding said she had decided to go public about her illness to potentially help others who might be worried about seeing a doctor, explaining that: “Maybe if I spoke out, as a public figure, a celebrity, it could help get the message across how important it is to get checked out if you have concerns.”
Social media has been flooded with worthy tributes since the news of Harding’s passing was announced yesterday.
Her Girls Aloud bandmates Nicola Roberts and Nadine Coyle led the tributes on social media.
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Roberts, who shared photos of them together, posted: “I can’t accept that this day has come. My heart is aching and all day everything we went through together has raced round my mind… a part of me or us isn’t here anymore and it’s unthinkable and painful and utterly cruel.”
She added: “Electric girl, you made us. You gave it everything and still with a smile.”
Coyle also wrote on Instagram: “I am absolutely devastated. I can’t think of words that could possibly express how I feel about this girl and what she means to me.”
Geri Horner, Calum Best, Davina McCall, Martin Kemp, Fearne Cotton, Katie Price, Louis Walsh, Ian “H” Watkins, and a whole host of other North West stars have publicly expressed their condolences – including Vernon Kay, Kym Marsh, and Keith Duffy.
I’m so very sorry to hear of the passing of Sarah Harding. What a beautiful girl and person she really was. I don’t claim to have known her very well but what I did know was how fun and kind she really was. My thoughts are with her family and friends at this time. Sleep tight x
So so sad to hear about Sarah … a star from the get go , hugely fun and outgoing yet also somehow fragile , … love to her family and friends ❤️ #SarahHarding
Sarah Harding had a successful career – and she also had a special relationship with Greater Manchester.
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She may have been born in Ascot, but she was raised in Greater Manchester after her family moved to Stockport when she was 14-years-old.
Before finding fame on talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002, the former Hazel Grove High School pupil studied hair and beauty at Stockport College and she worked on the promotions team for two nightclubs in The Grand Central Leisure Park in Stockport, as well as waitressing at Pizza Hut.
She shot to fame when she won a place in Girls Aloud with bandmates Cheryl Tweedy, Kimberley Walsh, Nadine Coyle and Nicola Roberts on the ITV singing contest to create a boy band and a girl group.
The bands then competed against each other for the 2002 Christmas number one and Girls Aloud’s debut Sound Of The Underground won.
Guinness World Records listed Girls Aloud as Most Successful Reality TV Group, Most Consecutive Top Ten Entries in the UK by a female group, and they were also named the UK’s biggest selling girl group of the 21st century – with over 4.3 million singles sales and four million albums sold in the UK alone.
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The band split in 2013, following a string of hits including Love Machine, Biology, The Promise and more.
Following the band’s split, Harding ventured into acting and television, with credits including roles in the St Trinian’s films, and BBC drama Freefall opposite Dominic Cooper – but her relationship with Greater Manchester continued as she returned to her roots in 2015 by joining the iconic cobbles of Coronation Street, where she made a guest appearance in four episodes as the wife of Tracy Barlow’s ex husband Robert Preston.
Strutting onto the cobbles, her feisty character Joni Preston announced herself by slapped Tracy in the face for sleeping with her man.
Sarah Harding returned to her Northern roots in 2015 by joining the iconic cobbles of Coronation Street / Credit: ITV
In 2016, she swapped the cobbles for the ski slopes on the winter sports show The Jump, and the following year won the hearts of viewers on the popular reality competition show Celebrity Big Brother, where her highly entertaining antics saw her crowned the winner.
Sarah Harding’s glittering career ensures she will be remembered as “a bright shining star.”
Featured Image – ITV
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The viral factory in Oldham that sells £2 Colin the Caterpillar cakes
Thomas Melia
A factory in Oldham has gone viral online after sweet fiends discover they sell ‘Colin the Caterpillar’ cakes for less than half price.
There are some things that just go hand in hand: a brew and a biscuit, peanut butter and jelly and Brits and their crazy obsession with a character chocolate cake from M&S called Colin the Caterpillar.
Since hitting the shelves in 1990, more than 15 million Colin the Caterpillars have made their way from supermarket shop floor to our sweet-treat-awaiting plates.
Who would’ve ever guessed that the home to this cheeky chappy, who M&S have made their unofficial mascot (after Percy Pig, of course), has been crafted and created right here in Oldham?
The utterly delicious Colin the Caterpillar cake which you can get for £2 at Park Cakes.The shelves at Park Cakes are stacked with Colins and Connies.Credit: The Manc Eats
Established in 1937, The Park Cake Bakeries – or just Park Cakes, colloquially – has been serving up this critter-inspired cake for over 30 years, and savvy shoppers have flocked to their factory shop to get their hands on some very sweet savings.
There’s a whole range of cakes on offer at this Oldham dessert factory shop, including slabs, sponges, loaves and even sweet pies too.
Whether you’re a firm believer that the birthday person deserves all of Colin’s white-choc face or you precisely cut it up so everyone gets some, Park Cakes has the solution, selling bags of the character’s chocolatey face so you can have one all to yourself.
The cake isn’t the only thing that leaves a sweet taste in your mouth, as the prices will too. Colin the Caterpillar, who normally retails for just under a tenner, is sold for around £2 at this Oldham factory shop.
It’s always the ones that look unassuming, isn’t it?
Alongside producing one of the most adored cakes in the UK, they’re also responsible for lots more of your favourite supermarket sweet treats, and we’re definitely not complaining.
You can let your sweet tooth go wild in this factory shop as they sell everything from rainbow birthday cakes to sticky toffee puddings.
There’s so much on offer too, how about a giant bag packed to the brim with misshapen golden flapjacks that’ll last you over a week and cost you less than a fiver? Sounds like a plan to me.
If you haven’t had enough of your Easter chocolate fix, why not trek over to Oldham and stock up on even more chocolate and sweet treats? Trust us, there’s plenty to choose from.
Park Cakes factory shop can be found on Ashton Road in Oldham and is open from 10am-4pm, so go and grab yourself a seriously sweet deal before everyone else beats you to it.
Mini Colins, small in size but still packed with all that chocolatey goodness.Flapjacks and cookie dough bites are just some of the wonderful treats you might be able to get hold of.Credit: The Manc
Featured Images — The Manc Group/Adam Higgin (via Facebook)
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The ‘headphone dodger’ proposal that could see people who play loud music on public transport fined
Danny Jones
A group of politicians are calling for people who play music and videos out loud on public transport to be fined, and not just a small fee, either. How about a grand?…
Yes, a new idea floated by members of the Liberal Democrats would see so-called ‘headphone dodgers’ hit with a penalty of a whopping penalty of up to £1,000.
Obviously, the idea would need government backing in order to make it through as an official bill, but it seems several Labour and Conservative MPs agree, and the suggestion alone already has caused plenty of online discussion.
Should 'headphone dodgers' who play loud music and videos on public transport face a fine of £1,000?
Sparking quite the water-cooler conversation too, the proposal is something that clearly taps into a fairly common nuisance among the general public and one that has increased in the era of smartphones, tablets and so on.
While it’s definitely something people can relate to, and the highly reactionary idea of charging them such a large sum of money, many on social media have noted that while the concept is one they can get behind, the figure seems excessive to most.
The no-headphone fine would apply to those playing music and video out loud on buses, trains and trams at what would generally be considered an obnoxious volume; if given the green light, this rule would be included in the railway byelaws and the current ‘Bus Services Bill‘ amended.
It has been suggested that a potential national campaign deterring this kind of behaviour would follow, with the party arguing plainly that commuters deserve to “enjoy a moment of peace.”
A similar policy has emerged regarding drivers as well.
This push from the Lib Dems comes after they commissioned a poll which found that “more than half of Brits said they would not feel empowered to ask somebody to turn down their music” while on board public transport, with over a third confessing they’ve come across the issue before.
Lisa Smart, the party’s home affairs spokesman, said: “Far too many people dread their daily commute because of the blight of antisocial behaviour — and headphone dodgers playing loud music on buses and trains are some of the worst offenders.”
She went on to add, “It’s time to take a stand for the quiet majority who just want to get from A to B in peace.” It is believed that both politicians in power and members of the opposition have already expressed support for the idea, even if specifics like the severity of the fine are up for debate.
Emily Sergeant -
6th September 2021 
