Travel & Tourism

Two Greater Manchester towns have been named in The Sunday Times’ best places to live

Greater Manchester is great, pass it on.

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia - 28th March 2025

Esteemed UK newspaper The Sunday Times’ has published its list of the ‘Best places to live in the UK 2025’, and it features two Greater Manchester boroughs.

Us Mancs didn’t need anymore clarification to know that where we live is incredible but we’ll always take it, especially when the compliment is coming from none other than The Sunday Times.

The publication revealed its annual guide of ‘Best places to live 2025’ which featured more than 70 different locations throughout the nation.

Although we may have been pipped to the top spot, Greater Manchester is featured not once, but twice, which is pretty impressive.

Claiming the victory this year is the market town with a name as pretty as its surroundings, Saffron Walden, which is only 15 miles from Cambridge.

The locations were ranked through a number of key categories including transport, house prices, broadband, schools and a new addition, mobile signal.

All the contributors to the full list acknowledge the obvious missing puzzle piece, food, and we know if this was factored in a few more Greater Manchester locations may have nabbed the ‘Best places to live’ honour.

The first Greater Manchester based entry is The Heatons, a hotspot nestled between the city centre and the city of Stockport, which is actually four neighbourhoods – Heaton Chapel, Mersey, Moor and Norris.

These areas are home to living history in the form of the iconic century old Savoy Cinema and lots of open green spaces.

Food may have been missed off The Sunday Times’ list but it certainly didn’t go a miss on ours.

Mossley has been named on The Sunday Times Best Places to Live list. Credit: Instagram, @ariadneexplores
Mossley has been named on The Sunday Times Best Places to Live list. Credit: Instagram, @ariadneexplores
The Heatons also made the list. Credit: Instagram, @fourtheheatons
The Heatons also made the list. Credit: Instagram, @fourtheheatons

Keep yourself fuelled with some good grub through our own, A Manc’s Guide to: The Heatons.

The second spot which managed to grab the title of ‘Best places to live 2025’ is Mossley, a town packed to the brim with cosy cottages, blissful walks and a close-knit friendly community.

It’s not too far from Dovestone Reservoir and the Peak District National Park – when you’ve got all this greenery on your doorstep you’re bound to be in a good mood.

As well as catching the attention of The Sunday Times, just 15 minutes down the road, Lily’s Vegetarian in Ashton-under-Lyne has been named one of the best local restaurants by the Good Food Guide, clearly Tameside is doing something right.

Our friends over in Leeds at The Hoot have lots to cheer about as Ilkley, Hebden Bridge, Easingwold and Ripon all got a mention.

You can find out the full rundown on all the spots up and down the country that have been selected as part of ‘The Sunday Times’ Best places to live for 2025′ HERE.

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Image: Instagram, @eddie3hundred

Travel & Tourism

Fontaines D.C. at Wythenshawe Park – tickets, times, supports, setlist and everything you need to know

Danny Jones Danny Jones Fontaines D.C. at Wythenshawe Park gig guide tickets times setlist

Besides Oasis’ glorious Heaton Park homecoming, the two biggest headline gigs in Greater Manchester are happening this weekend, with Fontaines D.C. kicking off Live From Wythenshawe Park 2025 this Friday, 15 August.

The Irish giants are bringing their now global, groundbreaking and critically acclaimed musical exports to Manchester for the second time in less than a year, only this will be their biggest gig in this city to date.

Fontaines last visited Manchester back in November as one of the biggest rock, indie and alternative bands to play Aviva Studios, home of Factory International; it’s fair to say it was a stormer.

And now scenes like THIS are set to be scaled up to a field full of Mancs and tourists alike, so it’s best to know what you’re in for…

Fontaines D.C. at Wythenshawe Park – all the important info

Fontaines Wythenshawe Park tickets: are there any left?

For starters, if you’re wondering whether there are tickets left for Fontaines at Wythenshawe Park, we’re afraid to inform you that general admission unfortunately sold out in a flash.

There are still VIP options available via Ticketmaster if you fancy treating yourself, but they will set you back a pretty penny.

Of course, you can always keep your eyes out via trusted resale sites like Twickets and TicketSwap, but as always, proceed with caution – let’s help the kick touts out of the music industry.

Who is supporting Fontaines in Manchester?

We’ll confess, one of the things we’re most excited about ahead of the Dublin County icons returning to 0161 is the lineup of supports booked for Fontaines D.C. at Wythenshawe Park.

There are no warm-ups; we would and have already happily paid full whack to see some of these supports headline both here in Manchester and around the North.

Not only will fans be getting to see fellow Irish post-punk band The Murder Capital kick off the live music proceedings, but Leeds’ very own Mercury Prize-winning English Teacher will be following them up, before Gaelic rap trio, Kneecap from Northern Ireland, really ramp up the energy.

There’s even going to be DJ sets from So Young record label and magazine, as well as none other than The Stone Roses’ Gary ‘Mani’ Mounfield.

Kneecap announce UK tour with multiple northern tour dates

Stage times for Fontaines at Wythenshawe Park?

Fortunately, the DC boys have also made things nice and simple when it comes to stage times, too, with a full running order for each artist’s set already published.

They are as follows:

  • The Murder Capital – 16:25
  • English Teacher – 17:35
  • Kneecap – 18:50
  • Fontaines D.C. – 20:30

Doors to the massive outdoor Wythenshawe music venue will be open from 4pm, and the aforementioned DJ sets will be played in between each of the support acts, before the main event gets underway slightly earlier than most other headliners.

We simply CANNOT wait.

fontaines dc outdoor gig manchester
Credit: Audio North

Fontaines D.C. live 20525 tour setlist

As for what the lads will be playing, an added bonus of their ongoing world tour is that it’s given us plenty of time to get to grips with the current Fontaines setlist – or at least the bulk of it.

This is based on their last big standout headline show at Cardiff Castle in Wales (courtesy of Setlist.fm).

  1. Starburster / In Heaven (Lady in the Radiator Song)
  2. Here’s the Thing
  3. Jackie Down the Line
  4. Boys in the Better Land
  5. Televised Mind
  6. Roman Holiday
  7. It’s Amazing to Be Young
  8. Big Shot
  9. Death Kink
  10. A Hero’s Death
  11. Before You I Just Forget
  12. Horseness Is the Whatness
  13. Big
  14. Nabokov
  15. Desire
  16. Bug
  17. Favourite

Encore:

  • Romance
  • In the Modern World
  • I Love You
  • Starburster

However, they did throw in a few surprises down at Finsbury Park in London, so who knows? Maybe they’ll play something special.

Everyone has their own personal favourites.

Travel guide: how to get to Wythenshawe Park

Last but not least, there’s just the small matter of getting there. While we’d always recommend travelling as green as possible/using public transport where you can, there are still some car park tickets that you can buy online from the Live From Wythenshawe website.

As for those of you catching a ride, there is yellow signage to the north of the site, which will lead you to the pick-up/drop-off point on Wythenshawe Road, M23 0AB.

There are also three tram stops to choose from: Wythenshawe Park, Moor Road and Baguley. However, it’s worth noting that both Wythenshawe Park and Baguley will be closed from 9pm, so you won’t be able to get back home this way.

Big Green Coaches travelling to the gigs will also be available from various locations.

Finally, you can always catch one of the shuttle buses back into the city centre. The service will be operating in a loop from Sale and the city centre, running from 1-8pm on the way to Wythenshawe Park and then from 8pm-1:30am when heading home.

For more information, you can find all the up-to-date travel stuff HERE or check out (TfGM) Transport for Greater Manchester’s guidance and even use their interactive map.

Simplest of all, your best bet is downloading the Bee Network app, where you’ll find all the key details in one convenient place.

Read more:

We also want to remind everyone to get there with plenty of time to avoid queuing and congestion on public transport in and around Greater Manchester.

Last but not least, make sure to mind the weather, drink plenty of water, look after each other and, above all else, have an absolute belter.

See you in the pit for ‘Here’s The Thing.’

Oh, and if you’re booked in for a double bill at Wythenshawe Park this weekend, you’ll find all you need to know for Sam Fender‘s headline show on the following Saturday down below.

Sam Fender – Live From Wythenshawe Park, Manchester: tickets, times, supports and more

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group/Press Shots (supplied)

Travel & Tourism

There’s a farm in the Peak District where you can go on a Highland Cow safari and even cuddle them

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Highland Cows of the Peak Experiences

There’s a farm up in the Peak District where you can get hands-on with Highland cows, even brushing out their fluffy fringes.

Highland Cows of the Peak Experiences at Whirlow Hall Farm has loads of activities for all ages, from Highland Cow safaris to cow cuddling.

This working farm is home to a herd of fluffy cows, who graze in beautiful pastures in the hills above Sheffield.

On a visit to the farm, you can learn more about this hardy (and very cute) breed, including their hierarchies, their family bonds, and plenty more.

Visitors have the chance to get hands-on with the Highland Cows, grooming the younger cattle and feeling their magnificent horns.

The Highland Cow Safari sees visitors towed around the farm in an open-top trailer towed by a vintage tractor, observing both Peak District views and the Highland coos.

Then you can jump into the pastures with the cattle on a Meadow Moo-ch, wandering amongst the beautiful animals with their long shaggy coats and flowing fringes (dossens).

It’s over to the barn next, where you can meet, pet, and groom some of the younger highland coos during the Highland Calf Hands-On Experience.

Highland Cows of the Peak Experiences
The Highland Cow safari in the Peak District
Highland Cows of the Peak Experiences
The Highland Cow safari in the Peak District
Highland Cow meet and greet
Highland Cow meet and greet
A Meadow Moo-ch, meeting Highland Cows in the Peak District
A Meadow Moo-ch
See the farm animals up close
See the farm animals up close
See the Highland Cows in the Peak District
See the Highland Cows in the Peak District
Grooming the Highland Cows
Grooming the Highland Cows

And, cows permitting, there’s a chance to do some Highland Cow Cuddling.

Once you’ve had enough of the Highland Cows (as if that could ever happen), there’s a vineyard up here in the Peak District, and wine produced from the grapes is sold in the farm shop.

You can even get married here, in a huge barn on site.

You can find out more about the Highland Cows of the Peak Experiences HERE.

Read more

Featured image: The Manc Group

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