While the turkey may be the main event on Christmas Day, nothing completes a hearty Christmas dinner quite like the bits on the side, and arguably the best of the best, when it comes to accompaniments, has to be pigs in blankets.
These little sausages wrapped in bacon may have been a staple of festive feasting for decades, but they seem to have shot up in popularity even more so than ever in recent years.
In the weeks leading up to the big day, it’s not uncommon to see pigs in blankets of all shapes and sizes adorning the shelves of every UK supermarket, as well as restaurant menus featuring them aplenty, and unconventional takes on the snack – such as pigs in blankets sushi, toasted sandwiches, and so much more – popping up in every direction.
Aldi is giving away thousands of free pigs in blankets this Christmas / Credit: Aldi UK
But, in a bid to capitalise on their popularity in a completely new way, you may remember that Aldi launched the UK’s first-ever pigs in blankets restaurant down in London last year.
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After becoming a smash-hit success, Aldi has announced that the viral restaurant will be reopening in Shoreditch again this Friday (29 November), and on top of that, the retailer has also announced that it’ll be launching a pigs in blankets delivery service for a limited time only too.
While Greater Manchester residents will sadly not be able to get the meaty treats delivered to their doorsteps, they will be able to apply to win dozens of free pigs in blankets instead.
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Aldi unveiled its full Christmas food range for 2024 a couple of months back / Credit: Aldi UK
Starting from this week (25 November), shoppers nationwide will be in with a chance of trying the supermarket’s best pigs in blankets range yet – including the ‘Specially Selected Truffle Chipolata Pigs in Blankets’, and the ‘Ultimate Footlong Vegan Pig in Blanket’ – for completely free of charge by entering the festive giveaway.
All you need to do is send an email over to [email protected] with your name, age, and address, and you could be one of the hundreds given a £5 voucher to get your hands on up to 30 pigs in blankets at your local Aldi store.
Find out more about the giveaway on the Aldi website here.
Featured Image – Aldi UK
Shopping
One of Manchester’s biggest vintage shops to close after a decade
Daisy Jackson
One of the biggest and best vintage shops in Manchester has announced its imminent closure.
Thrift Shop, which is part of the legendary Cow Vintage family, has said that the landlord of its store has ‘chosen not to renew our lease’.
The beloved vintage shop has been in its spot just off Piccadilly Gardens for a decade, with colourful rails stuffed with pre-loved denim, coats, dresses, accessories, and more.
Ahead of its closure this week, Thrift Shop has announced details of a major closing down sale, aiming to get rid of all its stock.
Initially touted as two for £10 on all thrift items, they’ve now slashed prices even further and are offering three items for £10.
That does exclude their ‘premium’ items, where you can snap up big labels like Carhartt and Levi’s.
Sharing the sad news of its closure online, Thrift Shop Manchester wrote: “We are gutted to announce the closure of beloved Manchester store.
Thrift Shop Manchester is throwing a huge closing down sale
“Last week we found out our landlord chose not to renew our lease after over ten years in this unit.
“To bid our farewell, we’re doing a MASSIVE closing down sale to get rid of all stock !!!! All Thrift items will be 2 for £10 until our last trading day on 30th May!!
“We’ve absolutely loved serving you for all these years, so long, farewell and, as always, get thrifty.”
In the comments, fellow independent retailer Thunder Egg – which just had to move out of its Oldham Street store (but is still in Afflecks) – commented: “So sorry to hear this, retail landlords in Manchester are absolutely in their sh*tbag era right now.”
Thrift Shop Manchester will close for good on Saturday 30 May.
Demolition and regeneration plans for former Manchester shopping centre to begin next month
Emily Sergeant
Plans to demolish and regenerate a former shopping centre in a Manchester suburb are set to kick off from next month.
Following planning approval at the end of 2025, major plans to transform the former Chorlton Cross Shopping Centre into a ‘thriving’ new destination to live and shop are set to commence with demolition in the next couple of weeks.
If you’re unfamiliar with the plans for the new Chorlton neighbourhood, they include 262 one, two, and three-bedroom apartments, all with access to outdoor space through balconies and gardens, 53 affordable homes – with 49 of them being available for social rent – and around 3,500 sq metres of public open space with fully walkable routes and outdoor seating areas.
A mix of flexible retail spaces, including a new ‘Makers Yard’ suitable for smaller start-up businesses will also be included, alongside new tree planting.
Phase one of the project will involve the dismantling the former shopping centre and neighbouring Graeme House buildings.
According to developers, the first step will be to close the precinct car park at the end of this month, before new hoardings are installed around the site to close the area off to pedestrians and vehicles for safety reasons.
The demolition work is expected to begin in mid-June, and be completed by August.
Where possible, materials from the existing buildings will be reused during construction of the new neighbourhood in a bid to help reduce the number of vehicles needed to remove materials from the site.
“Demolition marks another major milestone for the project, which will completely transform the former shopping centre,” commented Georgina Lynch, who is the managing director at Manchester-based developers, PJ Livesey.
“Our demolition contractor will carefully manage any issues throughout the work, and we will continue to stay in regular contact with local residents and businesses as the demolition progresses.”
Emily Sergeant -
27th November 2024 
