Manchester City Council has today announced that two mini socially-distanced Christmas Markets will go ahead in the city centre from this week.
The event – which will invite independent local traders in Manchester and across the region who would have been part of the city’s usual Christmas markets – is hoping to provide a “flavour of Manchester’s famous Christmas Markets”, all while supporting businesses during the festive period.
The markets will be located in Piccadilly Gardens and St Ann’s Square, and will offer visitors a seasonal alternative to the high street.
The Piccadilly Gardens markets will include the usual street food traders, along with a range of craft and gift stalls, and is open now until Wednesday 23rd December from 10.30am – 7pm, while the markets in St Ann’s Square will welcome some of the usual Christmas Market favourites for two long weekends.
These will take place between Wednesday 9th December – Sunday 13th December & Wednesday 16th December – Sunday 20th December from 10.30am – 7pm.
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Cllr Pat Karney – Christmas Spokesperson at Manchester City Council – said: “We know people were so disappointed to hear this year’s Christmas Markets could not go ahead [but] public safety must be at the heart of everything we do, and we could not put on our usual world-class event while keeping people safe.
“Since then, we have been looking at ways of supporting the Christmas traders at an important time of year for their businesses, while also attracting people to the city centre in a safe and manageable way.
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“Our Winter Markets have attracted some of the city’s – and region’s – top makers and traders, who provide a real alternative to the high street.”
Geograph / David Dixon
St Ann’s Square
Porky Pig – Yorkshire Pudding Wraps
Eat Greek – Traditional Gyros and Halloumi Fries
Elsie May – Cookie Dough
Mango Rays – Burritos and Vegan Chill con Carne
There will also be the fan-favourite traditional Christmas market pancakes, and gourmet English sausage and German bratwurst too.
Piccadilly Gardens
Week One
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The Crusty Pie Company
Popsters
The Great British Cheese Company
Johnsons Toffees
The Closet Boutique
Zen Experimental
Mandalay Accessories
The Cocktail Co
Amazonas Gifts
Cheshire Cheese Company
Personalised Gifts
Paul Collins
Trolle Trading Limited
Snugglebottle
Priya
Sticky Chocolate
The Olive Tree
Week 2
Snugglebottle
Chi Chi’s
The Little Gift Hut
Mayflower Apiaries
Priya Trading
The Cheese Board
Sticky Chocolate
The Closet Boutique
From The Olive Tree
O’Donnell Moonshine
Malvavisco
Just The Cheese
Amazonas Jewellery
Johnsons Toffees
The Crusty Pie Company
Popsters
The Cocktail Co.
Paul Collins
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The weekend markets will be strictly managed to limit the number of people who can access the stalls at any one time, using a one-way traffic system to ensure social distancing can be always adhered to.
Outdoor markets can trade under the Tier 3 guidelines.
You can find more information about all the stalls via the Manchester City Council website here.
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One in 10 Brits are fired or disciplined after their work’s Christmas party, new survey finds
Emily Sergeant
We’re in peak office Christmas party season right about now.
With just under two weeks to go until the big day itself is here, many businesses across the UK are treating their staff to night out to celebrate both the festive season and all of the hard work they have been putting in throughout the year… and as you can expect, these are usually quite eventful gatherings, shall we say.
But now, a survey by has shed light on just how ‘eventful’ they actually are, as a new survey has revealed that, apparently, one in ten Brits face some sort of disciplinary action or dismissal due to their behaviour at Christmas parties.
The study was conducted by After Drink, and included more than 2,000 participants.
During the research, it was highlighted that 89% of employees admitted to drinking alcohol at these events, Lad Bible reports – with 65% of these confessing that they drank “excessively”.
One in 10 Brits get fired or disciplined after their work’s Christmas party / Credit: Kraken Images | Mimi Thian (via Unsplash)
There are a multitude of incidents which could lead to disciplinary action in the workplace nowadays, but according to the survey, some of the common reasons following festive celebrations with colleagues included inappropriate comments (23%) and even getting into fights (21%).
16% of these incidents were because of drug use during the event, while inappropriate interactions with colleagues accounted for 14%.
Some of the legal reasons you can be fired from your place of work after a Christmas party include gross misconduct, drunken behaviour, and fighting of any kind.
Despite all these risks, however, Christmas parties still remain as popular as always, and a whopping 79% of respondents said they are planning to attend theirs this year.
Clearly, the moral of the story here is , enjoy yourself… but just not too much.
Featured Image – The OurWhiskey Company (via Pexels)
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More than 12 million Brits think Yorkshire puddings belong with your Christmas dinner
Emily Sergeant
More than 12 million Brits would argue that your Christmas dinner needs a side of Yorkshire puddings, a shocking survey has revealed.
The survey in question carried out by retailer Next – which polled a total of 2,000 Brits about their Christmas dining and tableware habits – has uncovered that millions of people stray off the beaten track when it comes to, what we can all agree is, one of the biggest and heartiest meals of the year.
It turns out, Brits like a lot of unusual items on our Christmas dinner plate.
Some of the most obscure finds the survey is that two million people admitted to eating onion rings alongside their turkey and sprouts, and a further 5% (3.4 million) Brits like tucking into a bit of seafood on Christmas Day.
A surprising 4% (2.7 million) of people admitted that they like to add ketchup to their Christmas dinner plate – with mac and cheese, chips, and sweetcorn also making the top 10 list.
More than 12 million Brits think Yorkshire puddings belong with your Christmas dinner / Credit: Rumman Amin (via Unsplash)
If all of that wasn’t mad enough as it is, one of the most shocking stats from the survey is probably the fact that a whopping 1.4 million respondents even said that they wouldn’t consider it a Christmas dinner without the addition of baked beans.
But when it comes to Christmas dinner, there’s probably one debate that’s bigger than them all, and is still yet to be decided – do Yorkshire puddings belong on your Christmas dinner plate or not?
Well, 12.7 million Brits believe that they do, and we reckon a good chunk of that number is us northerners.
The UK’s top 10 non-traditional Christmas food items
Yorkshire Puddings (19% – 12.7 million)
Bread sauce (5% – 3.4 million)
Seafood (5% – 3.4 million)
Ketchup (4% – 2.7 million)
Mac and cheese (3% – 2 million)
Onion rings (3% – 2 million)
Chips (2% – 1.2 million)
Bread (2% – 1.2 million)
Sweetcorn (2% – 1.2 million)
Beans (2% – 1.2 million)
A new survey has revealed has uncovered that millions of people stray off the beaten track for Christmas dinner / Credit: Lisa Baker (via Unsplash)
While previous research has shown that the most common items on a British Christmas dinner are roast potatoes and gravy, these latest stats reveal there are some people out there who just like to do things a little differently.
But no matter how you like to eat it, a delicious Christmas dinner is always going to be something to celebrate, right?
The Manc -
7th December 2020 
