The UK’s best cocktail bars have been revealed, and two of them are right here in Manchester.
We already knew that we had some great cocktail bars, but now it’s been made official – with two Manchester watering holes appearing on this year’s Top 50 Cocktail Bars list.
Hidden vegan cocktail bar Speak In Code and Schofield’s Bar, which took over historic Manchester boozer The Old Grapes last year, both made it into the top 20 – coming in at numbers 10 and 16 respectively.
Manchester Gin’s Three Little Words also got a special mention, taking home the 2022 Bar Team of the Year award
Image: Speak In Code
It’s a coup for both operators as well as Manchester’s drinks scene as a whole, which didn’t make the list at all last year (a bit of an oversight if you ask us).
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In total, ten of the Top 50 Cocktail Bars this year are found in the north of England.
Over in Leeds, four bars made the list with Jake’s Bar & Still Room, Roland’s, Below Stairs and Hedonist all getting a well-dseerved mention.
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Further afield, Liverpool’s Present Company, Sheffield’s Public and Newcastle’s Mother Mercy are also featured, with four more – Bramble Bar & Lounge, Panda and Sons, The Absent Ear and Hay Palu – getting a shout out up in Scotland.
Image: Schofield’s Bar
Acknowledging the growing number of northern bars featured in this year’s list, Top 50 Cocktail Bars publisher Christopher Lowe said: “London has always been seen as a global leader for cocktails but as you’ll see from the 2022 list, other major cities across the UK are now catching up.
“Our newly launched website will help cocktail connoisseurs discover the best of the UK bar scene with many of these very much still under the radar.”
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Image: Schofield’s Bar
Further proving the move away from a London-centric focus on the cocktail scene, taking the. number one spot this year is Cardiff’s Lab 22.
Tucked away above a well-known bakery, the experimental Lab 22 has jumped up 32 places in two years with its daring drinks menu from award-winning head bartender Max Hayward.
That said, London still dominates half of the list. Number two in this year’s Top 50 is Swift Soho, a much-loved regular on the list and in third place isThe Connaught Bar, also voted as the 2021 ‘best bar in the world’ in The World’s 50 Best Bars.
Image: Speak In Code
East London bar Tayēr + Elementary meanwhile is this year’s highest new entry, coming in at number 4.
This year’s winners were announced during the list reveal at One Night Records, in London, hosted by Aidy Smith.
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The Top 50 Cocktail Bars 2022 list is as follows:
Lab 22, Cardiff
Swift Soho, London
The Connaught Bar, London
Tayēr + Elementary, London
Satan’s Whiskers, London
Bramble Bar & Lounge, Edinburgh
Three Sheets, London
Oriole, London
Panda and Sons, Edinburgh
Speak in Code, Manchester
Yellow Triangle, Red Square, Blue Circle, London
Disrepute, London
Nightjar, London
Homeboy Bar, London
American Bar, London
SCHOFIELD’S BAR, Manchester
Opium Cocktails & Dim Sum Parlour, London
Coupette, London
Artesian, London
Scarfes Bar, London
Trailer Happiness, London
Lucky Liquor co., Edinburgh
Happiness Forgets, London
Jake’s Bar & Still Room, Leeds
Little Mercies, London
The Absent Ear, Glasgow
The Milk Thistle, Bristol
Berry & Rye, Liverpool
Laki Kane, London
Filthy XIII, Bristol
Lyaness, London
Roland’s Leeds, Leeds
Gungho!, Brighton
Hacha, London
The Hideout, Bath
Pennyroyal, Cardiff
Couch, Birmingham
Bar Termini, London
Below Stairs, Leeds
Hay Palu, Edinburgh
Public, Sheffield
Hedonist, Leeds
Present Company, Liverpool
The Pineapple Club, Birmingham
Publiq., London
Ojo Rojo, Bournemouth
L’ Atelier du Vin, Brighton
Callooh Callay, London
Mother Mercy, Newcastle upon Tyne
The Cocktail Trading Co, London
Feature image – Schofield’s Bar
News
Full list of road closures set to be in place for Manchester Day 2024
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Day is back for 2024 this weekend, and the full list of road closures set to be in place has been confirmed.
Now that schools are officially out across Greater Manchester, and the summer holidays are well and truly here, the hugely-popular Manchester Day is making a return once again this Saturday 27 July, and as always, it’s set to be “the day summer officially starts” in the city centre – with a massive celebration of “all things Mancunian” on the cards.
The theme of this year’s annual event is ‘Let The Games Begin’, and it’s inspired by the international summer of sport, just 2024 Olympics kicks off over in Paris.
The day will be packed full of free events and activities to get involved with.
Some city centre roads will be closed on Friday 26 and Saturday 27 July for Manchester Day.
These will include:
🛣️Deansgate 🛣️St Ann Street 🛣️St Mary’s Gate 🛣️Market Street 🛣️King Street
— Manchester City Council (@ManCityCouncil) July 21, 2024
But of course, in order for the all the fun to go ahead as safely as possible, and as tends to be the case for events like these, Manchester City Council says it will need to make some temporary road closures to facilitate it.
The full list of road closures has now been confirmed by the Council, and there’s some major city centre thoroughfares set to be out of action.
Here’s everything you need to know.
Manchester Day is back for 2024 to celebrate the international summer of sport / Credit: Manchester City Council
Manchester Day 2024 – Road Closures
Saturday 27 July
From 6am to 11:59pm, Manchester City Council has confirmed that the following roads will be closed:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street) – access will be maintained to Marks and Spencer’s car park and Number One Deansgate.
St Ann Street (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street (Cross Street to Deansgate) – no access for deliveries.
All accessible bays, bus lanes, and taxi ranks within the closed areas will also be suspended during from 6pm on Friday 26 July to 11:59pm on Saturday 27 July.
The parking suspensions set to be in place are:
Deansgate (Manchester Cathedral to John Dalton Street)
St Ann Street – including the bays outside St Ann’s Church (Deansgate to Cross Street)
St Mary’s Gate (Exchange Street to Deansgate)
St Mary’s Street (Southbridge Street to Deansgate)
Southgate (St Mary’s Street to King Street West)
Market Street (Exchange Street to Cross Street)
Fennel Street (Corporation Street to Cathedral Street) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cathedral Street (Fennel Street to Exchange Square) – access will be maintained for morning deliveries only.
Cateaton Street (Exchange Square to Deansgate)
Victoria Street (Cathedral Approach to Deansgate)
Todd Street (Corporation Street to Station Approach)
King Street (Spring Gardens to Southgate)
South King Street (Ridgefield to Deansgate)
Barton Square (St Ann’s Square to St Ann Street)
King Street West (Deansgate to St Mary’s Parsonage)
St James’s Square (John Dalton Street to South King Street)
Cross Street (King Street to Corporation Street)
Museum Street (Peter Street to Windmill Street)
Marsden Street (Cheapside to Brown Street)
Manchester Day 2024: Let The Games Begin! will take over the city centre on Saturday 27 July from 12pm-6pm.
Check out everything you need to know ahead of the event here.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete
Emily Sergeant
Work currently underway on the Rochdale via Oldham line is expected to take several weeks to complete.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has confirmed that land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has now “slowed”, and this means that detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works have been able to get underway.
In order for trams to run again on the crucial line from the city centre to the two major Greater Manchester towns, TfGM says that a small section of track has to be moved back – also known as ‘slewed’ – into its original position.
The overhead line poles also need to be repaired too, the transport operator revealed.
Rochdale line update
Land movement affecting the Metrolink network near Derker has slowed, enabling detailed ground investigations and temporary repair works to get underway.
To get trams running again, a small section of track has to be moved back into its original position… pic.twitter.com/byERjitdi1
Unfortunately though, due to the “complex” nature of these works, and despite the fact that TfGM says it’s actively looking to “accelerate” the repairs, the project is expected to take up to five weeks to complete in full.
On top of this, the detailed ground investigations will also establish whether any further work to strengthen foundations beneath the track will be needed at a later date.
TfGM has apologised for the inconvenience caused to passengers.
‘Complex’ Metrolink repairs to the Rochdale via Oldham line could take weeks to complete / Credit: TfGM
Speaking on the scale of works currently underway, and how long he expects them to continue for, Pete Sommers, who is TfGM’s Network Director for Metrolink, said: “I’m sorry for the impact this is having, and will continue to have, on people’s journeys.
“We are working to get trams running through the area again, but this remains a complex and challenging issue and it could still be a few weeks before this happens.
“We will of course keep passengers updated, and I’d encourage people to check our social media channels and website for the latest information and advice.”