Vernon Kay has been welcomed back to his hometown of Bolton as a hero after completing his incredible ultra-marathon challenge and raising over £4 millionfor Children in Need. Amazing.
Completing the fourth and final day of his endurance challenge, in which he set himself the task of running and walking over 100 miles on behalf of the BBC and Children in Need this year, Kay concluded his epic journey at Bolton Wanderers’ Toughsheet Stadium on Friday morning.
Met by a live broadcast of Zoe Ball’s Breakfast Show on BBC Radio Two and hundreds of locals greeting him with cheers and rapturous applause, the presenter didn’t just surpass his century of kilometres but went on to polish off a whopping 116 miles in total for good measure.
The 49-year-old started off his final day by leaving Old Trafford at 7am before heading through Salford, past Swinton, the likes of Linnyshaw and Little Hulton, before receiving his well-deserved grand reception in Bolton.
The moment Vernon Kay completed his amazing ultra marathon challenge.
Having traipsed all the way from Leicester, through to Derbyshire and finally ending up back in Greater Manchester, supporters from all over lined the streets across various sections of his final leg.
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Passing through the likes of Marple, Stockport and Heaton Moor on Thursday evening as he wrapped up his third day of trekking his way back home, Kay kept going day and night, through wind and rain, before making his way back to the iconic football stadium where an estimated 400 people were in attendance.
Just before his BBC colleague and friend Zoe told him just how much he’d made, he shared an emotional moment with his parents, who had given him a heartwarming pep talk over the phone earlier in the week and were right there waiting for him in the stands.
As of the moment he crossed the finish line, Vernon’s final tally sat at £4,014,362: a truly incredible amount that will make a huge difference to the 2023 Children in Need campaign.
Well in Vernon, lad, unreal effort. Now go have a sit-down, grab yourself a brew and have the kip of a lifetime — you deserve it.
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More importantly, you can still donate to this ever-crucial cause HERE to hopefully help boost that number even more.
Tributes paid to former Manchester City winger Ian Mellor, dead at 74
Danny Jones
Tributes are pouring following the death of former Manchester City star, Ian Mellor, who has sadly passed away at the age of 74.
Mellor, from Sale in Greater Manchester, played as a left winger for Man City as well as the likes of Norwich City, Brighton, Chester, Sheffield Wednesday and Bradford.
With his family and former club confirming the death on Wednesday, 1 May, social media has been awash with people paying their respects to the seasoned ex-pro who sadly died following a long battle with amyloidosis, a rare and incurable disease which affects organs such as the heart, brains and kidneys.
Replying to his son and ex-Liverpool turned Sky Sports broadcaster, Neil Mellor, the club paid their respects to the former Blue who made 50 appearances for the club.
We're saddened to learn of the passing of our former player, Ian Mellor.
Mellor began his career just down the road at Wythenshawe Amateurs before going on to represent City from 1970 to 1973.
A boyhood fan of the club, he scored 10 goals whilst wearing Sky Blue and also went on to win the Charity Shield with them back in 1972.
Eventually nicknamed ‘Spider’ for a good chunk of his career due to his long-legged stature, he remained attached to the beautiful game for years after his retirement and went on to become a committee member for the Former Players Association at City.
Joining the likes of all his former clubs, Chester City said: “Everyone at [the club] is saddened to hear of the passing of Ian Mellor. Sending all our love to you and your family, Neil Mellor.
His son Neil’s goodbye has touched many online too, calling his dad his “hero” and his “everything”.
He also went on to thank locally-based end-of-life care organisation and charity, St Ann’s Hospice, who have facilities all over Greater Manchester and who helped care for Ian in his final days.
Our thoughts are with his friends and family as well as those whose lives he touched through football during this difficult time.
Featured Images — Manchester City/Neil Mellor (via X)
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Manchester MMA star Tom Aspinall slams ‘unfair’ start times for UFC 304 at Co-op Live
Danny Jones
Local MMA star Tom Aspinall has come out to criticise the start times for UFC 304 here in Manchester, calling it ‘unfair’ for fans here in the UK.
In case you missed that rather big announcement, the UFC is returning to Manchester after nearly a decade and will be the very first sporting event held at the brand-new Co-op Live Arena, which is finally set to open this week following multiple delays (touch wood).
However, in an effort to keep broadcasters and the UFC‘s massive audience back in the US, the fight card will be starting until around 3am – and that’s at the very earliest.
Responding to the decision the Atherton-born and Salford-based fighter posted a video on his socials saying, “As a fan who wants to watch it live, I think it is absolutely terrible”.
He goes on to say that “it’s just not fair on the fans – the UK fans obviously. It’s predominantly an American audience so I understand that, they want to sell to them, but why can’t they sell to them in the afternoon which is our evening time?
While he admitted it “doesn’t make that much difference” to him as a fighter, the 31-year-old went on to ask, “Why can’t the American watch it in the afternoon and Manchester, the UK and European fans can all fly to the event and sell out this new arena?”
“I mean, it’s going to sell out regardless, mate”, Aspinall reiterated, adding that “we’re very lucky to have a pay-per-view event in Manchester” but that forcing the British audience and Mancs to watch something just down the road at a US-convenient time just doesn’t seem right.
There’s been plenty of backlash amongst MMA fans online too, with many stating that it simply goes to show that the UFC as an organisation “don’t care” about overseas supporters as much as they claim to.
As the current interim heavyweight champion, Aspinall will be right up at the top of the billing for UFC 304, which is the first time the event has been in the UK full stop since 2016.
We can only hope for similarly victorious scenes for the North West this July.
As for the shiny new venue, Co-op Live, after a fair few teething problems it looks like they are now on course to open just a week or so after the initial launch date. Not so bad.
Danny Jones -
17th November 2023 
