News

Tributes pour in for Manc legend and Piccadilly Rats dancer ‘Tommy Trouble’

'A mad, funny, loving, caring, man'

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson - 8th August 2024

Piccadilly Rats legend Tommy Piggot, known by many as Tommy Trouble, has died.

Tommy is a familiar face to most Mancs thanks to his years performing with Piccadilly Rats, a well-known busking and street performance band.

He was often seen dancing in Piccadilly Gardens, wearing his signature police helmet, and once opened the Parklife festival main stage with the group.

They were even the stars of a music video for Tameside rock band CABBAGE.

The Piccadilly Rats haven’t performed for several years following the death of their frontman Ray Boddington, who passed away after being hit by a tram in 2019.

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Tommy Trouble passed away on Monday evening at the age of 82 after suffering a seizure, his family said, following several years struggling with cancer, dementia and epilepsy.

Tributes are flooding in for the much-loved Manc icon, who will be ‘sadly missed’.

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One person wrote: “So sad to hear of the passing of Tommy from The Piccadilly Rats. He was wonderful.”

Nathan Cunningham, director of the documentary The Piccadilly Rats: Live in Moderation, described Tommy Trouble as ‘a mad, funny, loving, caring man’.

He said: “RIP Tommy Trouble. A Manc folk hero and a friend who shared his life with me for 6yrs during the making of the Piccadilly Rats Film.

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“A mad, funny, loving, caring, man. He made me laugh, he made me cry. God bless his soul as he dances with Ray in the sky.”

Someone else wrote on Facebook: “Just read that Tommy Piggot(known around Piccadilly as Tommy trouble passed away on Monday. He was well known around market st as he was always dancing wearing a policeman’s helmet mainly outside Primark Manchester.

“He lately used to go on buses collecting an armful of free papers and distribute them around Piccadilly. I always stopped and had a few words with him and slip him a tenner. He will be sadly missed by all who knew him.”

In a tribute supplied to the MEN by his family, they said: “He loved just going to town and dancing and bringing that joy to other people. That’s what he loved to do.”

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Featured image: CABBAGE

News

Police appeal to find next of kin after man found outside Palace Theatre

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Police appeal to find next of kin after man found outside Palace Theatre

Police are trying to track down the family of a man who died after being found unresponsive outside the Palace Theatre in Manchester.

The man, who has now been named as Jonathan Bernard Carroll, was seen outside the city centre theatre at around 6.30am on Tuesday 12 November.

Emergency services rushed to the scene and Mr Carroll was taken to hospital.

Tragically, the 47-year-old passed away a short time later.

A large cordon was in place on Whitworth Street and Oxford Road while police and security attended the incident.

Greater Manchester Police are now appealing to find his next of kin.

It’s believed that he resided in the Salford area of Greater Manchester.

Anyone with any information should contact the Coroner’s Office on 0161 856 1376.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

News

Greater Manchester public urged to help get people ‘off the streets and on their feet’ before Christmas

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant

Locals are being urged to help get hundreds of people “off the streets and back on their feet” this festive season.

As the temperatures told colder by the day, and Christmas creeps closer and closer, Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity is bringing back ‘1000 Beds for Christmas’, and the massively-important initiative is aiming to provide 1,000 nights of accommodation to people at risk of homelessness before the big day arrives.

Forming part of the ongoing ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme, this festive fundraising mission is designed to provide food, shelter, warmth, and dedicated vital wrap-around support for those who need it most.

The charity says it wants to build on the “incredible success of 2023”, which raised more than £55,000 and provided 1,800 nights of accommodation.

Stockport-based property finance specialists, Together – which has supported the campaign for the last two years – has, once again, generously pledged to match every public donation for the first £20,000 raised.  

Unfamiliar with the ‘A Bed Every Night’ scheme? Since 2017, when rough sleeping peaked, the initiative has helped ensure a significantly-higher rate of reduction in the numbers of people facing a night on streets in Greater Manchester than seen nationally.

The landmark scheme has given people the chance to rebuild their lives, while also giving them access to key services and opportunities that allows them to stay off the streets for good.

Despite the scheme’s recent success, organisations across Greater Manchester are under “a huge amount of pressure” to meet the demand for their services this winter, and given the current economic outlook, household budgets will continue to be squeezed – leaving people on the sharp end of inequality and poverty.

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“Help us be a lifeline to organisations on the frontline,” Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity urged in it’s public appeal for donations.

You can help make sure ‘A Bed Every Night’ is a reality for all by donating here.

Featured Image – EthelRedThePetrolHead (via Flickr)

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