Andy Burnham has slagged off Liverpool while declaring Manchester as “the capital of the coolest music on the planet”.
And can you disagree? Manchester‘s music scene is as alive and thriving as ever in 2024.
While it may seem like a slightly unnecessary hit at our North West neighbours, the bold claims about our city’s musical excellence from the Greater Manchester Mayor haven’t entirely come out of the blue, as his comments are aimed at Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram ahead of the pair going head-to-head in another charity DJ battle tonight (2 February 2024).
In case you missed it, following what was the headline-grabbing showdown between the two Northern mayors last year here in Manchester, where both ended up claiming a victory, Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram announced last month that they would be going for round two.
This time around, Rotheram has invited Burnham over to his neck of the woods, and the pair will be taking to the decks at Camp and Furnace in Liverpool city centre.
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And of course, it’s all in the name of charity too.
Andy Burnham and Steve Rotheram are going head-to-head in another charity DJ battle / Credit: Shaun Peckham
Liverpool and Greater Manchester will face off in what is being described as a “good natured music battle for a worthy cause”, with all the proceeds from the event going to local homeless charities.
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It’s not just the two mayors in action tonight either, as there’s also some local and international stars set to make an appearance too.
Rebecca Ferguson, Peter Hooton, and LFC and England footballer (and rapper) John Barnes are some of the names joining the so-called ‘home side’, while Stockport indie favourites Blossoms, former Coronation Street actress Sally Lindsay, actor and DJ Craig Charles, M-People’s Heather Small, and BBC Radio 5 Live presenter Nihal Arthanayake will be on our Andy’s team.
The two Northern mayors will face off in Liverpool at the start of next month / Credit: Supplied
Ahead of the mega showdown tonight, Burnham and Rotheram have been getting into the lighthearted pre-match spirit of firing joking insults at one another.
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Speaking to the BBC on Manchester’s chances of clinching the win ahead of the event, Mr Burnham said: “It’s going to be pretty easy for us, because obviously, Steve Rotheram has only got one band, whereas we’ve got a wealth of talent, and a wealth of musical riches to choose from.”
He then went on to claim that Liverpool is “the home of cheesy music”, in reference to its hosting of the Eurovision Song Contest last year, whereas Manchester is “the global capital of the coolest music on the planet”.
Of course, Rotheram hit back, and said the statistics were on Liverpool’s side.
The DJ battle will be streamed live online from 7pm tonight / Credit: Shaun Peckham
“Liverpool’s bands and artists have produced more number ones than Manchester’s,” he claimed. “We have had more weeks in the charts, more global fame, and we’re a Unesco World City of Music. We’ve had many decades of chart success in comparison with ‘Madchester’, we beat Manchester to hosting Eurovision, and – and this is a big ‘and’ – we produced the greatest band ever to walk the earth.”
The Manchester v Liverpool Mayors DJ Battle is happening over in Liverpool tonight from 7pm, and is also being streamed live for anyone unable to make it down.
You can tune in to watch the pair live in action on The Manc’s Facebook page here.
Featured Image – Shaun Peckham
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New survey reveals one in three shoppers admits to stealing at self-checkouts
Emily Sergeant
Almost 40% of UK shoppers have failed to scan at least one item when using self-checkouts, new research has revealed.
Self-checkouts started to become popular in the UK in the 1990s, and since then have evolved to meet consumer demands and solve the problem of queueing, especially taking on a life of their own in supermarkets from the 2010s onwards… but now, some exclusive new research for The Grocer has revealed that could be causing more hassle than they’re worth.
A national survey of more than 1,000 shoppers found that only 63% said they ‘never’ failed to scan an item when using self-checkouts, which leaves almost two in five who do so at least occasionally.
A third (32%) also admitted to having weighed loose items incorrectly, while 38% said they had put through an incorrect loose item.
Experts say these statistics show that “a new breed of shoplifter” has been created.
A new survey has revealed that one in three shoppers admits to stealing at self-checkouts / Credit: Aldi
“You’re creating opportunities for people who otherwise wouldn’t even think about shoplifting,” commented Matt Hopkins, who is an associate professor in criminology at the University of Leicester,
When it comes to the biggest culprits of failing to scan items at self-checkouts, the survey revealed that the under 35 age group, and men overall, came out as the most common, but it’s unclear whether this could be blamed on system error, missing barcodes, or rushing shoppers, instead of being intentional.
Surprisingly though, despite public perception and a recent headline-grabbing move by supermarket chain Booths to remove self-service checkouts from all but a select few of its busiest stores, this new research also shows that shoppers actually prefer to use self-checkouts (54.2%), over staffed checkouts (29.8%).
“In a short space of time, the self-checkout option has gone from zero to an accepted norm – and now to an active preference for many,” commented Lucia Juliano, the UK head of research and client success at Harris Interactive.
The speed and relative freedom provided by self-checkouts were the main advantages of using them, according to shoppers, with 56% choosing to use them because they’re faster.
52% cited the fact that self-checkouts allow them to ‘go at [their] own pace’.
Juliano did, however, comment that shoppers’ preference for self-checkouts may only be a reality “when there are no tech issues during the transaction”, which is said to be the “biggest bugbear by far” according to the survey.
“Retailers need to ensure the tech is spotless, the space is ample and staff are quick to intervene when needed,” Juliano concluded.
Featured Image – Ben Stevens / Parsons Media(via Tesco)
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Only 11% of Brits see Brexit as more of a success than a failure, new poll reveals
Emily Sergeant
It’s been just over five years since Britain officially left the European Union, but a new poll has revealed that just 11% think it was actually a success.
On what was a day many will struggle to forget, Britain officially left the EU on 31 January 2020, finally putting into action the 52% to 48% vote to ‘leave’ from the 2016 referendum, but now five years on, how do Brits actually feel that Brexit has gone? And what do they want our future relationship with Europe to look like?
This most-recent survey found that just three in 10 Brits (30%) now say that it was right for the UK to vote to leave the EU, which is the lowest proportion of people since YouGov began asking this question in the aftermath of the referendum.
55% now say it was wrong for the UK to leave the EU, and what’s more, just 11% now see Brexit as more of a success than a failure.
A new survey has revealed that only 11% of Brits now see Brexit as more of a success than a failure / Credit: Flickr
In what is potentially an even more damning statistic than that, however, is that one in six ‘Leave’ voters (18%) who responded to the survey now say that it was wrong for Britain to choose to leave the EU.
By contrast, just 7% of ‘remain’ voters now think it was right for the UK to leave, compared to 88% who stand firm in their decision.
Another interesting viewpoint from the survey is that among the young Brits who were unable to vote in the 2016 referendum, those aged 18-24 years old, three-quarters (75%) say that Britain was wrong to vote to leave the EU, compared with just one in 10 (10%) who say the UK made the right choice.
Five years on, few Britons think Brexit has been good for anything
% saying Brexit has had a positive impact on… Control the UK has over its laws: 31% UK’s ability to respond to COVID-19: 23% British politics: 12% UK’s level of international trade: 11% British businesses: 11%… pic.twitter.com/nAN81yOHHd
When it comes to the visions for the future, 55% of Brits who responded to YouGov’s survey say they would support a complete undoing of Brexit, with 39% saying they ‘strongly support’ Britain rejoining the EU, and 33% opposing rejoining to any degree.
One in five ‘leave’ voters (20%) support rejoining the EU.
Emily Sergeant -
2nd February 2024 
