A Manchester couple has been gifted the bench they met on at a city centre bar to keep as a memento in their new flat.
In a classic Manc love story, Christian Steels and Jade Hindley first met each other at the popular Revolución de Cuba Manchester, just off Deansgate on Peter Street, during a “fun-filled fiesta” over three years ago, and have been “soulmates” living happily together ever since.
“I took a particular shine to Jade,” Christian said.
“She was the most stunning girl I had ever seen, so I pulled her to one side on the street outside the entrance and invited her to sit with me on one of the benches.
“It was a very out-of-character move from me [but] I must have been spurred on by several Zombie cocktails and I asked for her phone number. Then later that night, I messaged her (keen, I know), and we have now been going out for over 3 years and live together.”
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With Jade’s birthday fast approaching and the pair having recently moved into a new flat together, Christian hatched a plan to celebrate his girlfriend’s birthday with a gift that would commemorate their time together and decided that the original bench from outside the bar would be the perfect memento, so he sent a heartfelt to Revolución de Cuba asking if he was able to buy it of them.
And Revs were more than happy to take him up on the offer, gifting Christian the bench for free.
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Revolución de Cuba Manchester
The owners of Revolución de Cuba’s Manchester branch then contacted the original manufacturers of the bench to organise for its proper removal and modification, so that it could be safely re-installed on the balcony of the couple’s new flat.
Once it had been moved to its new location, Christian then attached a gift tag to the bench, which read “Where It All Began” to complete the birthday surprise.
Jade was apparently “utterly flabbergasted” when the gift was unveiled.
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Speaking on the heartwarming gesture, Clinton Ghent – Operations Director for Revolución De Cuba, which is currently temporarily closed to the public amid England’s third national lockdown – said, “When Christian approached us, we fell in love with his story, and with our bars currently closed we wanted to extend the fun and fiesta we usually host in our bars to him at home.
“This felt like a great second best, and along with some of our freshly made cocktails, he can enjoy the fiesta experience until we reopen”.
Revolución de Cuba Manchester is due to reopen for indoor hospitality as part of ‘Step Three’ of the government’s roadmap to lifting lockdown on 17th May, at the earliest.
Manchester firefighter surprises partner with proposal during new recruits parade
Danny Jones
We’re a sucker for a wholesome little video as we know you are, which is exactly why we thought of you lot when we came across this video of a newly graduated Manchester firefighter surprising his partner with a heartwarming proposal.
Just the kind of heartwarming that usually sets us off after a long week at work.
The clip shared by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) on Thursday, 25 April, shows Manc fireman James popping the question to his girlfriend sat unassumingly in the audience at a recent passing out ceremony.
Pass out ceremonies are when trainees go from recruits to fully qualified firefighters after completing their intensive operational training. It’s a long-standing tradition in the emergency services where friends and family gather to celebrate their achievements – it’s almost like it’s the perfect opportunity…
Watch as a Manc firefighter turns his passing out ceremony into a surprise proposal.
As you can see, since the graduates are usually the centre of attention, James couldn’t help but size his moment and instead of walking and lining up normally like everyone else, he decided to head straight over to his wife-to-be and get down on one knee.
You already know the rest.
Welling up immediately and barely able to remove her hands from her face, Melissa nods and says yes as the crowd cheers and the pair share a smooch.
Writing on social media, the GMFRS said: “We managed to capture a VERY special moment at our new recruits pass out parade today… Congratulations to James and Melissa!”, adding, “Certainly one way to start your new career”.
If we don’t see all the groomsmen dressed as firefighters on a random viral video sometime soon we’re going to be gutted.
All the best to the happy couple and if you’ve got any more lovely clips like this to send in so we can make ourselves cry (in a good way), you know what to do.
Featured Images — Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service
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The Chestergate pub in Stockport is at it again with some of the most wonderfully Manc scenes you’ll ever see
Danny Jones
The legendary Chestergate pub in Stockport is back with another belter of a video, following on from their viral belly-flashing clip of 2022.
The Mersey Square boozer has painted yet another quintessentially Northern depiction of UK pub culture with the latest Manc scenes they’ve captured around the karaoke machine.
If you’ve never had the pleasure of stumbling into The Chestergate in Stockport town centre, the long-standing boozer currently operated by publican chain Blind Tiger Inns, you’re seriously missing out.
While it might not be the flashiest of pubs, when it comes to entertainment, it always delivers.
Whether it’s stunts like renaming themselves ‘The Southgate’ whenever the Euros or World Cup rolls around, or the locals just genuinely having a whale of a time no matter what day of the week it is, it really sums up the best of pub culture.
The Chestergate went viral for some of the most British footage ever caught on film back in 2022 and the videos saw a huge wave of love and support flooding in for the pub, as well as a healthy amount of chuckles. Safe to say we were chuffed to see them pop back up on our feed again recently.
Karaoke night at The Chestergate literally never disappoints.
Forget ‘Livin’ on a Prayer’ or ‘Champagne Supernova’ for karaoke songs – we’ll take a cacophony of inaudible throwback pop music, whilst another bloke and his hype man try and MC over a totally ill-fitting beat any day of the week.
And that’s handy because you’ll find those kinds of shenanigans happening at this place all the time.
It’s simultaneously one of the most no-nonsense and somehow a non-stop shenanigan-filled paradise. They also look after their own and consider their regulars part of the family. Case and point: they threw their very own ‘Dancing Queen’ Molly a big bash for her 86th birthday and it’s such wholesome viewing.
At this point, it’s worth flagging that we have nothing but envy for these folks and anyone who’s just out there having the time of their lives on any random weeknight.
Yes, it produced plenty of laughs for those watching online in recent times but this lot won’t mind one bit – not only is the pub seeing more and more new faces through the door but that’s the whole point of a pub, isn’t it? Going for a pint with your nearest and dearest and having a laugh.
Not only is it very Manchester but it’s Britain at its very best.
We hope to see you at The Chestergate pub in Stockport for a pint or two sometime soon and we’re making a bit of a prat of ourselves, don’t worry, we’re sure they’ll have the cameras ready for you.
Emily Sergeant -
8th March 2021 
