With Halloween finally over and done with, it’s time to start thinking about Christmas. Whilst many might already be debating whether it’s too early to put up their tree, there’s one thing we can all agree that it’s never too soon to start thinking about: food.
The festive shopping season has finally arrived in full, and with it there are some spectacular Christmas treats out now on the shelves.
None is more spectacular this year, though, than Selfridge’s giant 8kg beast of a panettone – created exclusively for the department store by the Perbellini family in Verona, who have been baking incredible Italian recipes for 130 years.
Image: The Manc Eats
Image: The Manc Eats
The huge Italian Christmas cake, an Italian type of sweet bread originally hailing from Milan, is the biggest you can buy on the market this year.
It serves a whopping 100 people and has been designed to celebrate the return of big Christmas parties, after two years of relative isolation.
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Priced at £300, every penny goes to support the young people’s homeless charity Centrepoint to fund housing and support for those who find themselves with nowhere else to go here in the UK.
Handmade by the Perbellini family in Verona, the panettone has been made using a recipe that is exclusive to Selfridges.
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Pierluigi Perbellini, head pastry chef, said: “Since the 1700s, panettones have been a traditional staple on every Italian table at Christmas.
“Our panettone is made extra-special by the ingredients we use, from our 55-year-old mother dough to the bourbon vanilla beans all the way from Madagascar. It really stands out from the crowd, and will be the centre of any feast.”
Image: Supplied
Image: Supplied
Last year sales of panettone were up 41% on 2020, as the sweet Italian bread soared in popularity, overtaking both Christmas cake and Christmas pudding.
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In 2021, Selfridges sold 75% more panettone than Christmas puddings, and 200% more than Christmas cake, so it seemed like a no-brainer to create this beast of a fruit cake for parties in 2022.
Read more:Manchester to ‘remember the fallen’ with ceremony and parade this Remembrance Sunday
Andrew Bird, Head of Food at Selfridges, said: “Our 8kg panettone is the ultimate centrepiece for a festive party or get together.
“Inspired by our Christmas theme, Season’s Feastings, and the power of food in bringing people together, especially at Christmas, we wanted to create something to be shared and enjoyed by many, with the added benefit “
The giant panettone, alongside Selfridges’ other varieties, is available to view and purchase at the Manchester Exchange Square store from now until Christmas. It can also be ordered online here.
Feature image – Supplied
News
Appeal launched to find the owner of live chickens found at Creamfields festival
Daisy Jackson
The hunt is on to find the owner of a pair of chickens who were discovered at Creamfields festival.
The two birds were spotted on the grounds of the huge electronic music festival by bewildered festival-goers.
The cockerel and hen were trapped in a hedge, after it appears they wandered onto the festival campsite before the security barriers were installed.
The birds then found themselves trapped inside as around 70,000 music fans poured into Cheshire for a line-up that included Calvin Harris, Swedish House Mafia, Disclosure, and Tiësto.
The chickens have been safely rescued from the Creamfields festival site and are recovering at a wildlife centre, and now the RSPCA is on a mission to find their owner.
Festival-goers first called the RSPCA on Saturday 29 August to alert them to the cockerel and hen trapped inside the festival, one of whom assisted in the rescue mission.
RSPCA Inspector Leanne Cooper: “I was surprised that they were inside the festival site and I needed to get through the road blocks and security before reaching them on foot through muddy fields. I met the caller who helped me as they were just running up and down the hedge line where there was a wire fence blocking access.
Where the chickens were discovered at CreamfieldsThe RSPCA wants to track their owners down
“We managed to guide them out and I caught both of them with my rescue net which was a bit of a sight for the festival campers.
“I don’t think they were abandoned and they’re more likely to be stray because it’s farmland all around the festival site. They don’t have any health issues, apart from being quite underweight.
“With the fences going up a week before the festival starts they’d probably been unable to get out for some time and had been left foraging in the hedge. Someone mentioned that a third bird was also trapped, although we couldn’t find any others.
“I am really grateful to the festival-goer who found them and alerted us to their plight.”
Manchester Airport issues update for anyone flying today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Airport has issued an update for anyone catching a flight today after hundreds of cancellations yesterday.
In case you hadn’t heard, hundreds of flights at several major UK airports – including Manchester Airport – were disrupted by a technical fault at air traffic control provider National Air Traffic Services (NATS) yesterday (8 September 2026), with the incident grounding planes and resulting in numerous cancellations.
According to Flightradar24, more than 1,000 flights were cancelled nationwide, and many passengers were told to expect disruption for the rest of the day.
One of the worst-affected airlines was said to be Ryanair, with around 65,000 passengers affected by the cancellations and delays.
Manchester Airport issued its first statement addressing the matter at 3:15pm yesterday, stating: “We are aware of an issue affecting NATS’ air traffic control service at UK airports, which may result in delays to some departing flights from Manchester Airport today.
“Passengers due to travel are advised to check the latest status of their flight with their airline. We will continue to monitor the situation and share further updates as more information becomes available.”
Now, although the issue has been resolved, Manchester Airport has issued further statements informing anyone travelling today what they can expect.
The airport started off by saying that it is ‘operating as normal’ today, but that passengers are advised to ‘check with their airline for the latest information’.
Georgina Pellant -
8th November 2022 
