The 2025 is set to be another historic year for the Manchester Marathon as not only is it tipped for a record turnout for the annual event but there is also set to be a new finish line.
Moving the goalposts, as it were, for the first time in over a decade, the Manchester Marathon finish line is relocating to an even more central location right in the heart of the city and now we know what the home straight is going to be more, we can already picture all the amazing photo finishes.
The process of adjusting the overall route and, crucially, moving the finish line is one that’s taken a couple of years but after much deliberation, the organisers have now nailed down the climax of next year’s event.
Set to be sponsored by adidas once again, the 2025 Manchester Marathon will conclude at none other than the beautiful University of Manchester.
Yes, swapping the final bit of Talbot Road as you come around Trafford Bar tram stop and see the chequered flag near Old Trafford Cricket Ground for the long stretch of Oxford Road that runs in front of the uni, the Manchester Marathon now has a more picturesque finish line than ever.
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Official routes change or are at least adjusted every year or so, but those closing moments of glory, emotion and, of course, exhaustion, have been outside the home of Lancashire Cricket Club for as long as most of us can remember.
Nevertheless, with the course now covering more of Greater Manchester than ever, it felt like as good a time as any to spread across more of the city centre wherever possible.
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With that in mind, as confirmed on Wednesday, 16 October, next year’s Manchester Marathon will not finish outside the University of Manchester, under the shadow of the Manchester Museum, the iconic Hogwarts-like Whitworth Building and right near the Old Quadrangle.
As if the next map-end wasn’t exciting enough, with the massive Manc date also taking place at the same time as the 2025 London Marathon, the upcoming event will be the single largest day of marathon running in UK history.
With more than 36,000 expected to run it next year, the increased capacity for the adidas Manchester Marathon will further boost the economic impact of the event, which already contributes over £29 million annually to the local economy.
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Andrew Smith, CEO of the Manchester Marathon said: “We’ve been planning this one for a long time, so it’s a great pleasure to confirm the addition of a truly elite-level finish to our event. We’ve listened to the feedback from our participants and local community, as they are at the heart of everything we do.
“This switch combines what already makes the adidas Manchester Marathon special, with the same epic start under Trafford Arch but with significant improvements to the post-finish experience for our heroes and their supporters.
“Taking place at the same time as London, we know the eyes of the world will be on us, so cannot wait to further showcase everything Greater Manchester and the iconic city centre has to offer. Best of luck to everyone starting out on their marathon journey and see you in April!”
Fancy taking part this time? The first two allocations have already been and gone but you can still register your interest HERE.
Featured Images — University of Manchester/Supplied
Sport
Manchester City reveal trailer for upcoming Together: 4-In-A-Row documentary
Danny Jones
Man City have revealed the first trailer for their new Together: 4-In-A-Row documentary, charting the course of their record-breaking four consecutive Premier League titles.
The follow-up to the Together: Treble Winners series, City‘s highly-anticipated documentary dropped earlier this year following their historic 2023/23 season, the movie will follow the same concept and relive the Manchester club’s latest unprecedented feat from 20/21 onwards.
While the previous TV outing was picked up by Netflix, the latest instalment is set to arrive at the end of this month exclusively on CITY+.
You can see the trailer for Together: 4-In-A-Row down below:
The new Man City documentary will feature exclusive interviews with manager extraordinaire, Pep Guardiola, Ballon d’Or winner and Champions League-winning goalscorer Rodri, club captain Kyle Walker and many more.
There will also be footage including soon-to-depart Director of Football, Txiki Begiristain, as well as the City Football Group’s Chief Executive Officer, Ferran Soriano.
Swapping the series format for a feature-length film this time, this is arguably CITY+‘s biggest release to date, with the content subscription service typically offering full match replays, youth academy coverage, as well as smaller documentaries and podcasts.
The streaming service (accessible via the website, Man City app and smart TVs) was only started back in 2024 but now four years later, rather fittingly, it’s set to document the most important years in the club’s history.
We’ve seen multiple Man City docs in recent years – their 2018 All Or Nothing Amazon Prime Video mini-series being the first – but the launch of the Together franchise back in April has helped put City Studios, on the map.
The in-house entertainment arm, first set up in 2022, has even more ambitious plans for the coming years, with a huge deal to create multiple big-budget productions in collaboration with Sony.
Fans are getting even more behind-the-scenes content soon.
Gavin Johnson, Media Director at CFG, said of the trailer reveal: “We’re delighted to announce the release of our latest offering in the ‘Together’ collection.
“Produced once again by our award-winning in-house production and creative hub, City Studios, the documentary film offers our fans a true insight into the team and how they achieved the historic four-in-a-row success.”
Set to be released at 6pm UK time on 20 November, Together: 4-In-A-Row will only be able to watch via the CITY+ platform.
So, if you’re a Blue who wants to relive the last four years of non-stop silverware, you can enjoy a 30-day free trial, after which CITY+ is just £4.99 a month. An annual subscription can be purchased for £34.99 a year or for £30 with an Official Cityzens membership/season ticket.
Man United legend Eric Cantona stuns Manchester artists with surprise visit to GRIT Studios
Danny Jones
Artists working at a Manchester studio were left speechless by a recent surprise visit from none other than Man United legend Eric Cantona.
The former United forward’s love for the city has never waned no matter how many years have gone by and as a lover of all things art, be it music, painting, acting or what he did with a football, he never fails to engage with local culture whenever he’s here.
He may not be based here anymore but the Frenchman – who knows a thing or two about art given his past acting jobs, newfound music career and previous showcases – still pays plenty of visits to 0161, including a recent unannounced one.
Cantona was back in the city centre this week to pay GRIT Studios resident Michael Browne, the artist who he collaborated with to create his National Football Museum exhibition last year, but the one thing Browne didn’t do was let the other people working in their city centre location he was coming.
Credit: GRIT Studios Manchester (supplied)
To be fair, anyone would double-take if they saw Eric Cantona walk into a room, so this was quite a memorable occasion for the unsuspecting artists.
After working on 2023’s From Moss Side to Marseille with Browne, the 58-year-old has been reimmersing himself in the world of Manchester art and there aren’t many places that epitomise that more than GRIT, who are based in Stockport with a second studio at Great Northern Warehouse.
Landing in Manchester from Paris, Cantona arrived in the late morning and ended up staying for over an hour, taking time to meet a number of artists and tour the space with co-founder John Macaulay.
Clearly impressed with their work and genuinely enthused by the sense of community within the local grassroots art scene, it was a special visit for everyone involved.
John, a die-hard Man United fan who has seen the Red Devils play in 25 countries before going on to set up GRIT Studios and much-loved Art Battle MCR with his wife Sophie, said: “It’s full circle for me having watched Eric play all over the world, it’s true honour that he’s flown in to see our talented artists.”
Artists spent time chatting with Eric and talking through their creative processes; those present included mosaic artist, Francis Thorrington, plein air (outdoor) artist, Sketch MCR – a.k.a. Ben Rock – painters Jodie Silverman, Helen Davies and Sophie Macaulay, as well as woodworker Gus Riddell.
Also a fellow United fan, Francis said he simply “couldn’t stop smiling the whole time” after Cantona described his work as wonderful.
Eric looked at home when he picked up and started strumming Chris Pollin’s hand-made guitars, which are handcrafted from driftwood and take hundreds of hours of work.
The enigmatic sports personality turned pop philosopher and cultural figure clearly enjoyed the visit. His final message was that it was refreshing to see a place where “art was for everyone” not just the elite.
As for Browne, he is sworn to secrecy on his next project but let’s just say you can expect some big announcements in the coming weeks. As for GRIT, you can visit one of their open days this Saturday, 16 November and make sure to check out their Stockport studio if you’re in the area.
Danny Jones -
16th October 2024 
