We’re fully aware that there are far more important global issues going on right now… but can we just go all ‘grammar police’ on Sainsbury’s for a second?
It’s absolutely no secret by now that the festive season is around the corner, and this means the shelves at every retail store across the UK are getting filled up thick and fast with Christmas decorations, food, cards, and so much more as the weeks go on.
But a quick run-of-the-mill trip to the supermarket in Bolton town centre the other weekend ended up turning into a need to call the grammar police.
As well as all the festive feasting treats, the supermarket’s partner homeware brand, Habitat – which often has outlets inside Sainsbury’s stores nationwide, as well as being an online retailer in its own right – has also released its extended lineup of Christmas decorations for the 2024 season, and of course, ornaments for the tree are a big part of this.
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A shocked Sainsbury’s shopper has spotted a glaring grammatical error on a Christmas decoration / Credit: Sainsbury’s & Habitat
It’s pretty common to see decorations that mark milestone occasions adorning people’s trees, for example the first Christmas you spend in a new home, as an engaged or married couple, or with a new family member.
So, of course, Habitat has jumped on this trend and decided to release a range of £1 ceramic keepsake decorations – with one for 2024 marriages, new homes, new pets, and… ‘babies’.
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While you may look at the decoration initially and not bat an eyelid, as reading the phrase ‘Babies 1st Christmas’ etched on the front does sound correct, it only takes a moment of realisation to notice that ‘babies’ is the plural form of the word, when it should be written as ‘baby’s’ with an apostrophe of possession instead.
It leaves many (me, mainly me) wondering “how did that get signed off?”.
A misspelled Habitat Christmas Decoration at Sainsbury’s in Bolton / Credit: The Manc Group
Not content with just moving on from the matter, we decided to fire a quick email over to Sainsbury’s and Habitat to see what they had to say for themselves, and to be fair, they did give us a pretty hilarious, pun-filled response to explain things, and also confirmed that the product with the incorrect spelling has now been removed from sale.
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A spokesperson for Sainsbury’s said: “We want our festive decorations to be tree-mendous, so we’re sorry for the spelling slip-up.
“Customers can still pick up a big bauble with the correct spelling.”
You can get FREE food and more at Tesco Christmas Markets across Greater Manchester
Thomas Melia
Tesco Christmas Markets are back and heading to even more Greater Manchester locations where you can try lots of festive items all for FREE.
If you missed it last year, then don’t worry, as Tesco has brought back its much-loved Christmas Markets and the stalls are visiting more locations across the UK than ever before.
We’ve got you covered with all the dates and locations these freebie-filled Christmas Markets are visiting to make sure you don’t catch a case of festive FOMO.
Tesco Christmas Markets will be filled with all your favourite brands you usually fill up your trolley with from the likes of Costa, McCain, Celebrations and more.
And of course, it wouldn’t be a Tesco-led celebration without its own Finest range making an appearance across select Greater Manchester locations.
Expect to sample Tesco Finest Scallop and King Prawn Toast, Tesco Finest Stratford Blue with Fig Conserve and sweet treat staple, Tesco Finest Brandy Butter Mince Pies.
The best-loved brands mentioned before will be offering samples like smooth and creamy cups of Chocomel, or caramel-infused Nutcracker Spectacular drinks thanks to coffee shop chain Costa too.
In terms of food, McCain are letting you crunch down on its latest crisp range Vibes, Celebrations is treating you to its chocolate collection and biscuit varities from Bahlsen.
Tesco Christmas Markets are visiting major Greater Manchester locations giving out lots of FREE food / Credit: Press Shots (via Supplied)
Feeling merry and bright? Alcoholic drink brands 1664 is bringing out its blue bottles, Three Barrels for its XO and VSOP brandies as well as the coffee-infused liquer Drambuie.
If you’re after something to warm up your winter’s day, Costa is also letting you try some of its Home-made Barista style coffees and coffee pod masterminds Tassimo are offering samples of its Cadbury, L’Or, Kenco ranges and more.
Finally, if that wasn’t enough for you, why not clear your palette with a Christmas creation courtesy of teapigs and its caffeine-free peppermint leaves, yum.
Here’s all the important dates and locations for Tesco Christmas Markets 2025 schedule for Greater Manchester and wider regions:
Fri 14 November – Glossop Superstore, SK13 8HB
Sat 15 November – Hattersley Extra in Hyde, SK14 3AU
Sun 16 November – Failsworth Extra in Manchester, M35 0EJ
Mon 17 November – Manchester Gorton Extra, M18 8LD
Tue 18 November – Stockport Extra, SK1 2BT
Wed 19 November – Burnage Superstore in Manchester, M19 1TF
Thu 20 November – Prestwich Superstore in Manchester, M25 3TG
Fri 21 November – Bolton Horwich Extra, BL6 6JS
Sun 23 November – Chorley Extra, PR7 1NW
Mon 24 November – Leyland Extra, PR25 2FN
Sun 30 November – Prescot Extra, L34 5NQ
Mon 1 December – St Helens Extra, WA9 3AL
Tue 2 December – Widnes Extra, WA8 7YT
Wed 3 December – Warrington Extra, WA2 7NE
Mon 8 December – Accrington Extra, BB5 1LN
Fri 12 December – Macclesfield Hibel Road Superstore, SK10 2AB
To view a full list of all the Tesco Christmas Markets locations across the UK and browse all the brands that are taking part you can find everything HERE.
UK’s best and worst parcel delivery companies named following new research
Emily Sergeant
Some eye-opening new research has revealed the best and worst parcel delivery companies in the UK ahead of Christmas.
With the festive season fast approaching and many already in the process of Christmas shopping, Citizens Advice has released its annual parcel league tables, ranking the UK’s five major delivery companies in order from best to worst based on their overall performance.
From chasing missing parcels, and battling arduous complaints systems, to even having accessibility requests ignored, Citizens Advice found through its latest research that more than a third (37%) faced issues with their most recent delivery – which works out to roughly around 15 million people, a new record.
The research – which was carried out in a ‘snapshot’ one-month period – reveals that the rate of parcel problems remains at the highest levels seen in half a decade.
Now in its fifth year, the charity’s league table looks at the top five delivery companies by parcel volume and measures their performance against criteria to determine who is the best.
The criteria each company is measured against includes customer service, delivery problems, and how well they meet accessibility needs, such as people needing louder knocking or longer to answer the door.
This year’s parcel league table shows Royal Mail scored the highest with 3.25 out of five stars overall, while Yodel slips to the bottom with just two out of five stars.
UK’s top 5 parcel delivery companies
Royal Mail – 3.25 out of 5 stars
Amazon Logistics – 3 out of 5 stars
DPD – 2.5 out of 5 stars
Evri – 2.5 out of 5 stars
Yodel – 2 out of 5 stars
Citizens Advice found through its new research that accessibility was the worst performing area overall, and this is despite Ofcom’s new condition requiring firms to give disabled consumers the opportunity to report their accessibility needs.
There was also customer service failures, with almost half (47%) of the people who had a problem with their initial delivery going on to have further issues trying to resolve the problem.
Research found that the most common problems customers faced with their last delivery include the driver leaving before they had time to get to the door (29%), their parcel being left in an insecure location (24%), and parcels arriving late (24%).
The UK’s best and worst parcel delivery companies have been named / Credit: Evri (Press Picture)
“Ofcom has passed the parcel of responsibility for long enough,” commented Dame Clare Moriarty, who is the Chief Executive of Citizens Advice.
“We’ve been doing the work of the regulator for five years now by holding parcel companies to account and speaking up for consumers who are bearing the brunt of persistently poor service.
“Our league table has tracked parcel problems from warehouse to doorstep. We continue to see millions of people chasing lost parcels, having their accessibility needs ignored and hitting a brick wall when they try to complain.
Emily Sergeant -
9th October 2024 
