A grandmother was left with a black eye after reportedly being struck by a police officer outside an Oldham supermarket last weekend.
A video surfaced online this week appearing to show an officer swinging at 50-year-old Colleen Murphy – who was attempting to intervene as her son was apprehended for being “drunk and disorderly”.
The incident, which took place outside Sainsbury’s on Union Street, was captured on camera by witnesses and then posted online.
Greater Manchester Police said it has referred the incident to its Professional Standards Department, where body camera footage will be analysed.
Ms Murphy’s daughter, Danielle Willisford, told the Manchester Evening News she had entered the store with her brother, leaving her mother and cousin to use the cash machine outside.
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According to Ms Willisford, her mother and cousin were barred from entering the supermarket.
A confrontation then occurred.
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Ms Willisford stated: “My brother goes to the security guard ‘I’m not barred, am I?’ and there were three policemen: one woman and two men.
“He stepped into Sainsbury’s and then the policeman in the yellow top said ‘you are barred, I just told you, you are barred’ and then started shouting and my brother just said ‘will you please get out of my face I’ve done nothing wrong’.
“Anyway, he grabbed him and flung him onto the floor and the full video is what happened after that.”
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During the video, a woman is seen approaching police performing an arrest before one officer seems to throw a punch in retaliation.
A police spokesperson for GMP reads: “This incident took place after police were called just after 9pm on 7 August and responded to a report of a disturbance on Union Street, Oldham. A 31-year old-male was subsequently arrested for being drunk and disorderly.
“At the time of his arrest a crowd had gathered, and footage of the incident has been uploaded onto social media.
“The footage shows an altercation with members of the public attempting to intervene, while officers placed the man under arrest. The man received a fixed penalty notice (FPN) for being drunk and disorderly. There were no injuries reported.
“The incident has been referred to our Professional Standards Department, who will review the Body Worn Video of events leading up to the arrest, along with the footage posted.”
Oldham
Manchester Remembers release unbelievable new kits featuring iconic Manc landmarks for 2024 charity match
Danny Jones
The Manchester Remembers Foundation have just released the official kit designs for this year’s upcoming charity football match and they’re utterly amazing.
The 2024 Manchester Remembers charity game is fast approaching, with this year’s edition set to take place in July and the excitement is really starting to build – especially with kits as eye-catching as these.
Roping in help from local media and production company Badger and Coombes, as well as getting Lionesses legend Sue Smith involved in the kit launch, the brand new Legends and Celebs kits have finally been revealed in extremely fine fashion.
Lovingly made once again by Oldham-based kit manufacturers, Hope and Glory, and with Salfordian fashion brand Marc Darcy Menswear serving as the main sponsor, the new shirt designs feature incredibly detailed drawings of recognisable locations around Manchester. Just look at them:
As you can see, iconic Manc landmarks like Old Trafford and the Etihad Stadium take pride of place in the semi-opaque sublimated pattern on both the white and black versions of the kit.
Other noticeable buildings include Manchester Cathedral, the Central Library, Manchester Central (formerly the GMEX) and even a nice little nod to the Metrolink and Bee Network, just to name a few.
The incredibly detailed design pays homage to the city we all know and love and is a big step up from the already very well-received kits from last year’s charity match.
Once again, all the proceeds from the shirt sales go straight back into the Manchester Remembers Foundation and its partnered charities, which raise money for the families of those sadly lost in the 2017 Manchester Arena attack.
With a whole host of exciting names taking part in the 2024 edition of the charitable community-driven event, including ex-Manchester United stars Antonia Valencia and Danny Simpson, local celebs like soap star Adam Thomas, YouTuber ‘Angry Ginge’ and many more, it’s going to be a momentous day.
This year marks just the third time the game has been held but the amazing people attached to this non-profit, not to mention the thousands that have turned up to see the wholesome fixture, have already helped raise over £117k for the associated charities. Unbelievable stuff.
Returning to Oldham Athletic‘s Boundary Park for the second year running, tickets for the game on Sunday, 28 July are already available and priced at only a fiver for under 16s and just £10 for adults, it’s one of the most uplifting and affordable afternoons of live sport you’ll find the region.
If you’ve not heard about this truly inspiring annual match until now, you can find out more HERE.
Featured Images — Manchester Remembers Foundation/Badger and Coombes
Oldham
The Bee Network officially rolls out in Oldham and Rochdale as more buses join local transport system
Danny Jones
The Bee Network just keeps getting bigger with a new fleet of eco-buses having now rolled out in Oldham and Rochdale as Greater Manchester continues to integrate its new transport network.
With many city centre buses having been franchised across the likes of Wigan and Bolton since the Bee Network officially launched back in September 2023, the new centralised public transport system is becoming a real hive of activity (pardon the pun).
Now making up approximately more than half of the region’s wider bus network, with more bright yellow buses put into service across the likes of Bury and Salford as well, the vision for the Bee Network is slowly starting to take shape.
Celebrating this latest phase in the long-term plan for a universal and centralised public transport network across all ten boroughs, Mayor Andy Burnham hopped on board one of the new vehicles to show off the improvements made to bus journeys here in Greater Manchester.
If you live in Oldham, Rochdale or parts of Bury or Salford, the #BeeNetwork has landed!@AndyBurnhamGM is here to tell you more…
The Bee Network has finally arrived in Oldham and Rochdale with more boroughs soon to follow.
As you can see, not only are the new Bee Network buses an obvious upgrade on many existing lines running in and around the city centre for the past two decades, but there are more of them on more key routes, including 50 new zero-emission vehicles and 84 new, best-in-class low emission buses too.
Reducing costs for the likes of those travelling in and out of Oldham, Rochdale, Bury and Salford is also a massive win since these routes have come under local control too, with the combined tram and bus tickets – making most journeys 20% cheaper, to be more precise.
As per the latest stats from Transport for Greater Manchester, the Bee Network is already proving to be offering more reliable service than prior to franchising, with 74.30% of buses on time between 1 January and 19 March compared to 67.62% of commercial services and 62.75% during the same period in 2023.
The number of people using Bee Network services has also increased, with the average number of weekday passengers having grown by over five per cent and hitting a high of 141,720 on 6 March across more than 17 million journeys since it began. The results are plain to see and they’re stopping there.
The goal is to have all of Greater Manchester‘s buses fold into the Bee Network by January 2025 and whilst we’re still in the early days of this centralised shift, it’s great to see such progress being made so far and how it’s already benefiting locals around the region.
This latest chapter comes just a week or so after the brand-new Stockport Interchange was officially opened to the public as well, a borough which is also hoping to see more buses and potential plans for an extension of the Metrolink tram system coming their way.