Chorlton Central Church has decided to take a “bolder response” after a George Floyd memorial was anonymously defaced last week.
The church in the south west Manchester suburb has revealed the repainting of its boundary wall yesterday evening with the words ‘Black Lives Matter’ and it comes following the anonymous defacing of a George Floyd memorial displayed outside the front of the building.
The poster, which depicted George Floyd’s face, was defaced with blue spray paint last Friday.
As well as the picture of George Floyd, the poster also read the words: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends”, which is a quote by Martin Luther King Jr, and underneath it said: “take a knee: and may God’s kingdom come”.
Chorlton Central Church
Saddened to see our poster supporting Black Lives Matter was defaced on Friday evening – but it won’t shut us up!
The church then initially responded to the act of defacing by placing the condemning words – “Whoever did this, it’s sad, but we’ll pray that he can let go of his hatred and pain” – over the top of the poster, but has since decided that a “bolder response” was necessary in this situation.
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This lead to the transformation of the boundary wall outside the front of the church to be painted with the words ‘Black Lives Matter’.
Sharing pictures of the boundary wall in a post to Facebook yesterday evening, Mike Walsh – Minister at Chorlton Central Church – said: “On Friday evening, a poster with an image of George Floyd outside our church was defaced with blue spray paint [and] on Saturday morning we added the caption, ‘Whoever did this, it’s sad, but we’ll pray that they can let go of their hatred & pain’.
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“After a short meeting of church members on Sunday morning, we decided a bolder response was appropriate, so repainted our boundary wall #BlackLivesMatter”
And Jesus answered, ‘I tell you, if you remain silent, the very stones will cry out’. Luke Chapter 19 verse 40.
The repainting of the boundary wall has since gone on to receive widespread support, both on the Chorlton Central Church Facebook page and in the Chorlton community Facebook group, with thousands of interactions, shares and comments by members of the local and wider Greater Manchester public condemning the act of defacing the poster and praising the church for their response to the situation.
There is no place for racism in Manchester.
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I’m A Celebrity line-up announced for brand new all-star series in South Africa
Daisy Jackson
The all-star line-up for I’m A Celebrity… South Africa has been announced, with some massive Manchester celebs taking part.
The brand new show is due to air in April and will see some of the series’ most memorable campmates heading to a new setting in South Africa.
Names involved include Bolton-born boxing legend Amir Khan, Coronation Street star Helen Flanagan, and Happy Mondays legend Shaun Ryder.
And that’s just part of the first wave of celebrity contestants – more famous faces will take part in I’m A Celebrity… South Africa, entering the camp as the series goes on.
The new series will ‘push them to their limits and test them like never before’, ITV has said, promising bigger and tougher challenges and an even harsher environment.
Also taking part from the launch episode will be Diversity star Jordan Banjo, TV presenter Carol Vorderman, Olympian Fatima Whitbread, former royal butler Paul Burrell, ex-England cricketer Phil Tufnell, and supermodel Janice Dickinson.
ITV said: “Whilst nodding back to the Australian jungle, I’m A Celebrity…South Africa is a uniquely different series so viewers can look forward to lots of unexpected twists and turns.”
The trailer also shows the celebs taking part in pre-recorded challenges, taking on everything from nasty food to terrifying heights.
I’m A Celebrity… South Africa will air on ITV1 and ITVX from April 2023.
Featured image: ITV
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Commentator Arlo White shows off what the Old Trafford gantry walk looks like
Danny Jones
Ever wondered what it’s like to be up in the gantry in a football stadium, say, Old Trafford? Well, we certainly have.
You see the odd shot of the commentators sat there on the telly from time to time but it never really gives much away either and, at some venues, it’s quite a ways up there. There’s a little bit of allure behind these mysterious parts of footy grounds that most fans will never get to see.
After hours of mindless scrolling on the social media app, we stumbled across the well-known sports commentator‘s channel where he’s been showing off what it’s like to go in the gantry and one of them is his long walk to crow’s nest up at the Theatre of Dreams.
As it turns out, Arlo’s been doing these videos for a couple of years now, revealing how the gantry looks not only at Old Trafford but other big Premier League grounds too, such as down the road at the Etihad, Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium, Tottenham Hotspurs’ sparkly new ground and many more.
Another reason we found ourselves stuck on his TikTok for so long was also because of the other behind-the-scenes details he reveals too, even shedding light on how he prepares for games: note-taking, data sheets, how keeps himself warm up there during those cold nights on comms and so on.
The Manc -
18th August 2020 
