News

The reason behind the ‘mini Manc tornado’ that blew through Ancoats this month

Pretty wild.

Danny Jones Danny Jones - 13th May 2025

If you saw footage of a ‘mini tornado’ ripping through Manchester online this past weekend, no, your eyes weren’t deceiving you: it did happen and, turns out, it’s a pretty strange and rare phenomenon – at least in this part of the world.

They say 0161 has everything but a beach, and now we seemingly have little twisters of our own, they might just have a point.

In all seriousness, footage went viral on social media, being met with equal surprise and alarm as most were understandably confused at how this could even happen in the UK, given our climate isn’t typically used to these kinds of weather events.

For those of you who haven’t seen it already, here’s what it looked like…

We’ll admit that when first heard a so-called tornado had been spotted in Manchester, we pictured a little spiral of leaves and crisps packets in a supermarket car park, but as you can see, it really was much more significant than that.

Reported as having towered as high as 30 metres along Great Ancoats Street, various people saw the startling city centre sight and quickly began querying what the hell they were seeing online.

Despite many dubbing it a tornado, we can confirm it was something slightly different.

What caused the ‘Manchester tornado’?

What you’re looking at is what is colloquially known as a ‘dust devil’; put simply, these are small, rotating columns of air that pick up dust and debris from the ground and obviously resemble a tornado at times, especially when they manage to become as wide and tall as this one did.

As explained by the Met Office, “A dust devil forms due to irregularities caused by temperature contrasts on different surfaces, which then causes rotation of the air and, when there’s dust and debris, you can get these columns of air.”

Here’s another angle:

We don’t need to tell you that it’s been pretty warm of late (bloody gorgeous, in fact) and, as a result, the chances of creating a proper dust devil are much greater than usual.

The Met Office went on to add: “Unlike tornadoes, dust devils grow upwards from the ground, rather than down from clouds. In the stronger dust devils, a cumulus cloud can be seen at the top of the rising column of warm air.

“They only last a few minutes because cool air is sucked into the base of the rising vortex, cooling the ground and cutting off its heat supply.”

It’s not the only strange meteorological event seen around Greater Manchester recently, either. From the likes of ‘supercell thunderstorm’ and the eerily silent ‘heat lightning’ in late 2023, to the UFO-like swirl seen across various parts of the globe earlier this year.

Met Office explain ‘likely’ reason for ‘strange spiral’ seen in the sky over Greater Manchester
This was pretty mad in the moment.

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Featured Images — Supplied

News

Florence + The Machine announce massive Manchester gig on new tour

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Florence and the Machine have announced a UK tour with a Manchester date. Credit: Autumn De Wilde

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.

EVERYBODY SCREAM UK + EU TOUR 2026

  • 6 February – Belfast – SSE Arena
  • 8 February – Birmingham – bp pulse Live
  • 9 February – Glasgow – OVO Hydro
  • 11 February – Newcastle – Utilita Arena
  • 13 February – Liverpool – M&S Bank Arena
  • 14 February – Sheffield – Utilita Arena
  • 16 February – London – The O2
  • 17 February – London – The O2
  • 20 February – Manchester – Co-op Live
  • 22 February – Paris – Accor Arena
  • 23 February – Antwerp – Sportpaleis
  • 25 February – Amsterdam – Ziggo Dome
  • 26 February – Cologne – Lanxess Arena
  • 2 March – Vienna – Stadthalle
  • 4 March – Munich – Olympiahalle
  • 5 March – Prague – 02 Arena
  • 7 March – Krakow – Tauron Arena
  • 9 March – Berlin – Uber Arena

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Featured image: Autumn De Wilde

News

New ‘postboxes of the future’ are being rolled out across the UK

Danny Jones Danny Jones Royal Mail installing new futuristic postboxes

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.

new solar post boxes great britain
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.

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.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images – Royal Mail (publicity pictures)

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