The lad hosting a ‘bartenders Christmas’ for hospitality staff with nowhere to go
For the past few years, Dominic Gold has put on free food and booze at Christmas for bartenders who can't get home - earning himself the nickname of the Northern Quarter’s part time Santa
A lad in Manchester is hosting a ‘bartenders Christmas’ this year so that fellow hospitality workers with nowhere to go don’t have to be alone on Christmas Day.
Dominic Gold, who has worked in bars in the UK and across Europe since he was 18, has been throwing an annual ‘bartenders Christmas’ with free food and booze in Manchester for a couple of years now.
With over ten years of experience working in hospitality over Christmas, he knows better than most that, whilst for many the festive period is a joyful one, many hospitality staff actually dread it.
Dominic plates up some late-night leftover burgers after the Christmas Day meal / Image: Dominic Gold
For those who have family far away, it’s often difficult to travel back with their limited amount of time off, especially considering the minimal public transport services that run over the Christmas bank holiday period.
So, rather than spend the day alone, for the past few years he’s been getting in the kitchen and cooking up a feast for other lonely bartenders to bring some cheer to what might otherwise become a sad day – earning himself the nickname of the Northern Quarter’s part time Santa.
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“We work hard and endless hours for the two months approaching Christmas then a lot of us only get one day off which makes it hard to travel back to family,” he told The Manc.
“I personally don’t often see family for the day and decided at first to see which friends would want to gather for the day to try and bring some fun and happiness to an otherwise saddening day.”
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The first year, he tells us, there were about fifteen people all in all. He paid for all the food, did all the cooking, and asked everyone to bring their own drink – a tradition that continued for the first two years.
“Originally, the day was about me giving back to the community that supports me […] the best thing about it was a lot of the bartenders wanted to help and joined me in the kitchen in the days approaching,” he added.
Last year, of course, things were a little different due to Covid – but now, with the bars back open again and no sign of any forced closures on the horizon, rotas are well and truly in place and so another bartender’s Christmas is on the horizon for 2021.
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“This year I wanted to go bigger and better, so I opened it up to donations from brands to equally support the industry that fuels them,” he tells us
Part-time Santa Dominic (right) and Lochlan (left), a volunteer and the general manager of Tariff and Dale / Image: Dominic Gold
“Currently, we have had a fair amount of donations, from whiskey, alcohol-free drinks, craft beer, and even a donation from the Northern Quarter butchers.
“But we still could do with more and more, if there is ever a point that there’s too much, it will be raffled off and the money donated to a charity which supports the industry in terms of supporting the on the ground staff.”
This year, the Christmas Day frivolities start at 1pm at Black Dog Ballroom in the Northern Quarter, which has been donated to use on Christmas Day for free – and any bar staff finding themselves alone in Manchester are very welcome.
Kitchens, meanwhile, are being supplied by Danny Smith of Lazy Tony’s Lasagneria and Chloe Pu of Salt and Pepper, so there’s sure to be quite a spread laid on.
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Image: Dominic Gold
As for practical donations, all sorts of contributions are very welcome: from small presents so that people have something to open on the day, to produce to cook and serve, drink for drinking, table settings, crackers – “literally anything to make the day bigger and brighter,” says Dom.
Dom tells us that numbers for this year are “growing and growing” so there “will eventually be a cap”, however, he says thanks to the generosity of Black Dog he has a lot of room this year and really wants to fill it.
“Everyone may not believe in Christmas or think of it fondly from past experience. But I am determined as a person and as a ten-year bartender to change the minds of at least a few and hopefully many.”
If anyone wants to come along they can contact Dom at [email protected] or simply bring items down to Black Dog Ballroom in the Northern Quarter and tell whoever receives it “it’s for the Christmas do.”
Feature image – Dominic Gold
News
Trams are officially coming to Stockport as part of £2.5bn investment package
Emily Sergeant
It’s official… Stockport is finally getting trams.
It’s been a long time coming, so long, in fact, that rumours first began swirling all the way back in July 2022 when then Prime Minister Boris Johnson hinted at in PMQs, all before Mayor Andy Burnham insisted in October 2023 that he had ‘big ambitions’ to deliver the project once and for all, but now it’s finally been confirmed.
Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) has today revealed that Stockport will be connected to the Metrolink tram network thanks to a £2.5 billion funding boost from the Government.
At this moment in time, Stockport is one of only a few boroughs in the region that’s not currently connected up to the expansive Metrolink network, but all of that is set to change very soon, as Greater Manchester is beginning the construction of the town’s very-first tram line.
It will help deliver:
🐝 Eight rail lines and 64 stations into the capped system by 2028
🐝 A new tram line to Stockport
🐝 A new tram-train service connecting Bury, Heywood, Rochdale and Oldham
While the intention for trams to eventually travel to and from the town has been known for quite some time now, there hasn’t been much talk of timelines or when this would actually become a reality.
For now, it seems there’s still no timelines as such, but at least there’s confirmation.
The confirmation that trams will be coming to Stockport forms part of a lineup of exciting transport announcements this week, all of which Andy Burnham has called a ‘game-changing moment’ that will ‘underpin Greater Manchester’s green growth’ for years to come.
Trams are officially coming to Stockport as part of a £2.5 billion investment package / Credit: TfGM
Other announcements include the fact that Greater Manchester‘s Bee Network is to become a fully-electric, zero-emission public transport system by 2030, local rail lines will be brought into the Bee Network before the end of the decade, fully joining up bike, bus, tram, and train travel for the first time outside London, and the introduction of new electric buses, tram lines, tram stops, and transport interchanges.
North Manchester, Bury, and Oldham are the areas set to receive new Metrolink stops to support delivery of thousands of new homes, and Oldham, Rochdale, Heywood, and Bury will all be connected to each other via the Bee Network.
“Building on our strong track record, we can now move at pace to deliver the next phase of the Bee Network – creating the UK’s first fully electric, zero emission integrated public transport system by 2030,” commented Mayor Andy Burnham as the funding package was announced this week.
The Bee Network become a fully-electric, zero-emission public transport system by 2030 / Credit: TfGM
“With a pipeline of major transport projects better connecting our towns and cities, and local rail lines brought into the Bee Network, our communities will be the first outside London to be served by fully joined-up bike, bus, tram, and train travel.
“Greater Manchester has had a decade of growth faster than the UK average, and this funding can be the key to unlocking even more growth in the decade to come.
“It’s a major boost for our own plans to deliver £10bn of investment over the next 10 years, build thousands of new homes, create skilled jobs, and open up new opportunities right across our city-region.”
Featured Image – TfGM
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Police still searching for answers six months after remains of baby girl found in Little Hulton park
Emily Sergeant
Six months on after the remains of a baby girl were found in a park in Little Hulton, police are still searching for answers.
It was on 20 November 2024 that Greater Manchester Police (GMP) received a call from a member of the public reporting the discovery of what appeared to be human remains in a park in the Little Hulton area of Salford – but it was only when officers and detectives attended the scene that they determinted the remains to be that of a baby girl.
At the time, police referred to the baby simply as ‘Baby A’, but it’s now be confirmed that they chose to name her Ava.
Since that day, a dedicated team from GMP’s Major Incident Team has worked ‘tirelessly’ to uncover the truth about who Baby Ava was and what led to her being left alone.
Detectives have followed up on hundreds of public tips, conducted thousands of hours of house-to-house enquiries, reviewed extensive CCTV footage, and collaborated with police forces and agencies across the country in pursuit of identifying who baby Ava was and securing justice for her… but as of yet, there are no answers.
Police are still searching for answers six months after the remains of a baby girl found in a Little Hulton park / Credit: Google Maps
Information from the public also led police to speak with potential witnesses nationwide, and time was also spent trawling the national missing person database, focusing on cases involving females who were potentially pregnant and reported missing, yet these were unsuccessful.
To this day, police continue to work closely with a range of experts.
Currently, a botanist is helping detectives determine how long Ava may have been at the discovery site, and work is continuing with an anthropologist, archaeologist, and specialists in dental and bone analysis to establish Ava’s age and ethnicity.
As investigations continue at a rapid pace, police have reissued their appeal to the public for information.
Police have since named the baby Ava as their search for answers continues / Credit: GMP
“We will never forget Baby Ava, and despite the challenges in the investigation, we’re committed to uncovering the truth,” commented Detective Chief Inspector Charlotte Whalley, from GMP’s Major Incident Team. “We are more determined than ever to find who Ava is, who her parents are, and all of the possible scenarios and circumstances which have led Ava to being separated from them.
“I know how heartbreaking this case has been for the communities of Greater Manchester and beyond. The support and compassion we’ve received has been unwavering, and we share the sadness felt for Ava as we continue our search for answers so that we can lay her to rest.
“If you are baby Ava’s mum, please know that you are not alone. You can contact us directly or ask someone you trust to reach out on your behalf. We want to help you.”
Anyone with any information that may be of assistance is asked to contact police on 101, quoting log 1319 of 20/11/24, or by heading to the Major Incident Public Portal here.
Georgina Pellant -
10th December 2021 
