I don’t know about you, but I don’t think I stopped once this summer. Festival season hit hard, there was Oasis, the sun was shining for a good chunk of time and everyone was constantly wanting to do stuff. It was fun, but oh so tiring. So when Moddershall Oaks got in touch about a little spa retreat, who was I to say no?
Currently nominated for ‘Best Spa For Wellness’ in the 2025 Good Spa Guide Awards, and previously named ‘Experience of the Year’ at the 2022 Staffordshire Tourism and Good Food Awards, this beautiful country spa has been making waves for a number of years.
Set in 72 acres of private Staffordshire countryside, this gorgeous retreat has a lot to offer – luxurious indoor and outdoor spa facilities, new woodland pods, a newly renovated restaurant and balcony bar, and an extensive menu of spa treatments to enjoy in their cosy former farmhouse.
The venue is also a stunning location to host a wedding reception, with a wedding taking place during our visit. The lake gives a beautiful backdrop for those all-important pictures.
It’s a warm welcome from the team when we arrive, with a tasty elderflower spritz to enjoy while we fill in our preferences for our spa treatments. We’re shown to our boutique bedroom suite, which is stylishly decorated and has a view of the peaceful green space outside.
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With time before dinner, we quickly change into our swim gear and jump straight into the outdoor spa pool, nestled in the central courtyard. Here you can order drinks to the poolside, so full relaxation can commence.
A spa suite at Moddershall OaksThere’s even a spin studioModdershall Oaks gymA sauna at Moddershall OaksThere are outdoor and indoor spa facilitiesThe beautiful groundsThere are outdoor and indoor spa facilitiesDinner at The Oak House restaurantThe 10m indoor pool
We dine in The Oak House restaurant, which has recently been renovated to an obviously high standard. The team are attentive without being overbearing and make fantastic suggestions for what to try. The menu hosts seasonal produce, with the peppered seabass being a standout. With it being my guest’s birthday, the restaurant team surprised him with a birthday pudding – a wonderful surprise.
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We finished our evening with cocktails on the new balcony bar, with fantastic views of the lake and local countryside – a tranquil end to our first day.
Being the keen bean that I am, I was up early to make full use of the fitness facilities. There are classes which you can book onto through the spa reception as part of your stay, but I just made use of their modern gym, which I had all to myself for my workout. A quick sauna to relax the muscles after my session was a welcome addition to the start of my day too.
Breakfast at Moddershall Oaks takes the shape of a continental buffet breakfast, perfect for those, like me, who love a cereal salad (if you know, you know). Being in Staffordshire, I had to opt for the traditional oatcakes, which were delicious. They’re kind of like a pancake, but savoury and also like a wrap? Hard to describe but well worth sampling while you’re in the area.
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We enjoyed a short session in the private heated pool, which you have to pre-book. There is even a button you can press to request drinks to be delivered to you – how much more boujee can you get?
My guest enjoyed an orange blossom oil massage, the first time they’d ever had a spa treatment in their 40 years on this earth, and they thoroughly enjoyed it. I treated myself to a triple session, with a reflexology foot massage, back, neck and shoulder massage and a facial to finish. I practically floated out of the room, I was that relaxed. I was also completely unconscious from about 8.30pm that night until my alarm went off at 7am the next morning, so something definitely worked.
Within an hour from Manchester, this lavish country spa deserves every accolade and should make its way onto your autumnal itinerary for a well deserved post-summer reset. You won’t regret it.
You can find out more about Moddershall Country Spa and book your trip here.
Manchester has been ranked one of the ‘most influential cities’ in Europe
Danny Jones
As per a development that we’d consider so obvious it’s barely worth writing about (even though we are), Manchester has been ranked one of the most influential cities in Europe.
In other news, water is still very much wet.
While there’s plenty of it here in Greater Manchester, given our standard rainy forecasts, when it comes to anything besides the weather, we deliver in spades.
Let’s be honest: we know it, you do too, and apparently so do plenty of other folks – and there’s some concrete statistics to back it up.
Case in point – First Chanel, now Vogue… (Credit: The Manc Group)
You’ll find all manner of surveys, polls and studies diving into how Manchester ranks across various categories, but knowing we boast nods such as ‘the original industrial city’, the place that helped split the atom and the place that the first modern computer was born, we know all about our global impact.
With that in mind, when we saw that Sixt had recently named us as one of the most influential cities in all of Europe, we couldn’t ignore the well-deserved pat on the back.
That’s right, although you might not associate the car rental company with this sort of stuff, as part of their new exclusive ‘Sixt Ride’ offering (think a posh taxi service), they looked into which cities have the most luxuries, tourist attractions and other cultural bonuses to their name.
Per their recent research, Manchester city centre didn’t just break into the top 100 but found itself among the 30 most influential cities in Europe.
You can see the full rankings table down below.
#
City
Country
*Fortune 500 Companies
Fashion weeks
Film Festivals
International Airports
5-Star Hotels
High End/Luxury Shopping areas
Michelin Restaurants
1
Paris
France
10
6
77
2
122
11
134
2
London
United Kingdom
12
3
241
3
182
5
81
3
Milan
Italy
1
4
52
3
29
5
22
4
Rome
Italy
2
0
97
2
65
4
21
5
Stockholm
Sweden
0
3
14
2
12
2
13
6
Madrid
Spain
5
0
38
1
42
2
29
7
Zurich
Switzerland
6
0
10
1
12
4
18
8
Munich
Germany
5
0
10
1
16
4
17
9
Berlin
Germany
1
1
76
1
40
2
21
10
Hamburg
Germany
1
0
16
2
17
3
16
11
Amsterdam
Netherlands
4
0
24
1
29
1
30
12
Copenhagen
Denmark
1
2
12
1
12
2
20
13
Barcelona
Spain
0
0
45
1
47
1
31
14
Lisbon
Portugal
1
0
38
1
49
1
20
15
Athens
Greece
0
0
41
1
52
2
12
16
Vienna
Austria
1
0
24
1
24
3
14
17
Bucharest
Romania
0
0
22
2
12
2
0
18
Warsaw
Poland
0
0
22
2
17
1
3
19
Glasgow
United Kingdom
0
0
17
2
4
2
2
20
Lyon
France
0
0
9
2
7
0
16
21
Prague
Czechia
0
0
16
1
60
1
2
22
Brussels
Belgium
0
0
18
1
14
1
29
23
Oslo
Norway
0
1
8
1
6
1
11
24
Manchester
United Kingdom
0
0
20
1
7
3
2
25
Budapest
Hungary
0
0
16
1
24
1
7
26
Dublin
Ireland
2
0
16
1
11
0
6
27
Naples
Italy
0
0
34
1
5
0
22
28
Porto
Portugal
0
0
8
1
28
0
10
29
Turin
Italy
1
0
21
1
4
0
10
30
Sofia
Bulgaria
0
0
22
1
14
1
0
31
Helsinki
Finland
0
0
5
1
10
1
5
32
Belgrade
Serbia
0
0
32
1
9
0
1
33
Marseille
France
0
0
5
1
4
0
12
34
Birmingham
United Kingdom
0
0
12
1
4
0
6
35
Minsk
Belarus
0
0
11
1
0
0
0
Read it and weep; we Mancs landed 24th on the leaderboard, just behind Norway’s capital, Oslo, and ever so slightly ahead of Budapest in Hungary.
As you can see, to identify the ‘most influential European cities’, they broke down how the 35 most populous cities on the continent and here UK (barring Russia and Ukraine) and what noteworthy cultural touchstones they possess.
For instance, did you hear that our very own Warehouse Project recently found itself breaking into the top half of the best nightclubs on the entire planet?
Going on to analyse everything from the number of Fortune 500 companies headquartered in the city, their connections to film, fashion, fine-dining and more, they found that Paris, London and Milan were the most influential (no surprises there), but we’re glad to be keeping such good company.
After all, in the last couple of years alone, Manchester city centre has welcomed the Metiers D’art fashion show, opened one of the biggest indoor entertainment venues in all of Europe, and still takes eternal credit for giving the world Oasis and, therefore, the Live ’25 reunion. Again, you’re welcome.
What do you make of Sixt’s study, and do you agree with their findings on the whole?
It goes without saying that we’d probably put ourselves higher on the list if anything, but then again, maybe we’re getting too used to being told how brilliant it is to live in this region.
Featured Images — Anthony Parkes (via Geograph)/The Manc Group
Travel & Tourism
Macclesfield FC player Ethan McLeod tragically killed in car crash
Danny Jones
Local footballer Ethan McLeod, who played for Macclesfield FC, has sadly died following a tragic car crash on the motorway.
The Birmingham-born player and former Wolves academy talent was driving back home from Macclesfield’s away game against Bedford Town on Tuesday night when he was involved in a collision along the M1.
Just 21 years old, the talented Cheshire-based forward was a substitute in the 2-1 win over the East Midlands side in the National League North.
The accident is said to have occurred at around 10:40pm on 16 December near Northampton after his white Mercedes collided with a barrier.
You can read the official Silkmen statement in full down below:
“With the heaviest of hearts and an overwhelming sense of surrealism that Macclesfield FC can confirm the passing of 21-year-old forward Ethan McLeod.
Travelling back from Bedford Town last night, Ethan was involved in a car accident on the M1, which tragically took his life. Ethan was an incredibly talented and well-respected member of our First Team Squad, who had his whole life ahead of him.
“But more than that, Ethan’s infectious personality endeared him to everyone that he came into contact with. In giving his all in everything he did, Ethan effortlessly pushed us all to be the best we can be – both on and off the pitch.
“Ethan’s professionalism and unwavering work ethic inspired everyone, and his lust for life put smiles on all our faces – even on the darkest of days. News of Ethan’s passing has devastated our entire Club, and no words can convey the immense sense of sadness and loss that we feel now.
Rest in peace, Ethan McLeod.
The Macclesfield FC forward was involved in a car accident that took his life when travelling back from Bedford Town on Tuesday night. pic.twitter.com/A3u7JFmdlE
“The deep mental scars elicited from Ethan’s passing will undeniably never heal”, they continued, “but one thing is for sure, and that is Ethan’s vibrant legacy will never fade, no matter how much time passes in the future.
“Ethan will live in our hearts and minds forevermore, and no matter what the future holds, his unique smile that mesmerised us all will never be forgotten.
“Our deepest sympathy goes out to Ethan’s family and friends at this deeply traumatic time, together with an assurance that we will provide as much support as we can to those who need it. May you rest in peace, Ethan – you will forever be a Silkman.
His past clubs, as well as plenty of other teams, organisations and people in and around the footballing world, are paying tribute to the promising youngster.
Rest in peace.
Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Macclesfield forward Ethan McLeod who has passed away following a car accident last night.
The 21 year old spent a number of years with the academy setup at Wolves and will be missed by many. #WWFCpic.twitter.com/MSjKaISMKT
Kristen MacGregor-Houlston -
19th September 2025 
