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Council confirms two mini Manchester Christmas Markets will go ahead from this week

The socially-distanced event is hoping to provide a "flavour of Manchester’s famous Christmas Markets".

The Manc The Manc - 7th December 2020

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 

___

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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Everything you need to know about St. Patrick’s Day at Mulligans, Manchester’s biggest Irish party

Danny Jones Danny Jones Mulligans St. Patrick's Day Manchester 2025

With Manchester’s deep-rooted connections to Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day in the city centre is one of the biggest parties of the year, so it only makes sense that thousands spend it at the ultimate Irish bar: Mulligans.

And no, we’re not exaggerating; hordes of punters pass through this pub over the full Paddy’s Day weekend, which this year lands on a Monday, but you’ll still see countless people filing in and out of the place from Friday onwards.

Considered by many as Deansgate’s crowning glory, this legendary venue is a pure gold-grade bar serving the best Guinness outside of Ireland. It’s a reputation we don’t need to bang on about too much, they built it up themselves over so many years that you’ll all have heard it by now.

While Manchester has some of the best Irish pubs around beyond those you’ll find in the Emerald Isle (yes, we firmly believe that), you won’t find anywhere in town putting on quite as big a St. Patrick’s Day celebration as Mulligans. Here’s what they’ve got on offer:

Paddy’s Day at Mulligans of Deansgate

Well, the obvious place to start is with what’s behind the bar, i.e. lots of whiskeys, lager, spirits and, of course, they’ve got the best Guinness in Manchester – scratch that, the ‘best outside of Ireland.’

Mulligans averages 13,000 pints of ‘The Black Stuff’ every week and they’re expecting to pour well over 4,000 pints of the stuff from their total 24 taps on Paddy’s Day alone, each as perfect as the last.

Here’s how and why:

Opening times and entry fee

So, what time is the party getting underway? The answer is obviously all weekend as many people may not have booked Monday, 17 March off itself but, for those who have, they’ll be opening from 11am.

However, we hope we don’t need to tell you that there’ll be queuing from the crack of dawn, so the earlier you get there the better. It’ll cost you £20 to get in, by the way, so have your card/cash ready.

For context, we got there 10:30 a couple of years back and still weren’t guaranteed to get in, we just waited patiently and prayed to St. Patrick himself.

As for what time they’ll be closing on Monday, Mulligans is staying open until 1:30am as more than 1,200 guests are expected to visit the pub throughout the course of the day.

Entertainment

One thing that Mulligans is famous besides the obvious rivers of black gold and good craic is virtually non-stop live music throughout the week and Paddy’s Day is no different.

Instead, they try and cram as much of it into 24 hours as possible.

Now featuring two floors for the first time on Ireland’s national holiday, there is set to be an incredible lineup of eight different live bands performing throughout the day, playing everything from classic Irish reels and covers to get you up and dancing, as well as plenty Manc anthems to play to the home crowd.

Speaking of that second storey…

@the.manc The only thing that could improve @Mulligans of Deansgate in Manchester, is more Mulligans, and now we have it as it’s doubled in size 😍 plus they’re giving away free pints this weekend to the first 250 people. 🕺 #manchester #mulligans #irishbar #guinness #manchesterbar #mcr ♬ original sound – The Manc

More room than ever

2025 also marks the first St. Patrick’s Day at Mulligans to make us of the recently renovated first floor, which has seen the pub more than double in size, and the capacity along with it.

The expanded space, complete with timber-beamed vaulted ceilings, a mezzanine-level performance area and two brand-new bars, sets the stage for an unforgettable day and night of high-energy live indie bands, while Irish folk tunes will fill the downstairs.

Between the beloved exposed brick walls, cosy snugs, Guinness memorabilia galore as well as room to dance a proper auld jig upstairs and down, it won’t just be Mulligans at its very best but akin to being in the heart of Dublin itself for the big day.

Plus, since it’s a bunch bigger now, you stand an extra chance of getting in – or at least less time spent in the queue with all the other die-hards.

Why is it THE place to be?

We often get people asking why all the faff surrounding Mulligans and all we can say is if you haven’t been before, you’ll only really know once you’ve been.

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Pádraig Brady, owner of Mulligans, said: “St. Patrick’s Day is always special at Mulligans, but this year will be extra special with the new space upstairs.

“We have gone above and beyond to provide an extensive live music schedule that will guarantee an unbeatable atmosphere all weekend. And – as always – we’ll have measures in place to make sure every single pint of Guinness served is nothing short of exceptional.”

It’s promises like this and the pedigree that they’ve garnered through hard work and consistency that saw them win the Pub of the Year at this year’s Manchester Food and Drink Festival.

There’s no booking and no advance ticket purchase available either; everyone lines up the same and is guaranteed the same unbelievable night. Trust us, it’s worth the wait. But don’t worry if you’d rather skip the queueing and try somewhere else, there’s still plenty of good Guinness to be found in the city centre.

Have a great St. Patrick’s Day, Manchester!

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Where to find a great pint of Guinness in Manchester city centre
Oh don’t worry, they’ll all do you just fine.

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Featured Images — The Manc Group

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Paul Merson slams ‘pathetic’ plans for Manchester United’s new stadium

Danny Jones Danny Jones Paul Merson calls Manchester United's new stadium pathetic

Ex-footballer and pundit Paul Merson has branded the recently revealed plans for Manchester United’s new stadium as “pathetic” in a recent interview.

The former Arsenal and Aston Villa turned manager, commentator and TV personality spoke to Sky Sports this week after the CGIs for what some supporters are already dubbing ‘New Trafford’ were shown to the world on Tuesday.

Now, while it’s fair to say the designs have been pretty divisive, for Merson it’s still a headscratcher as to why United supporters want to leave such a historic ground and one that is still the second-largest football stadium in the country for something new and so different.

The 56-year-old didn’t hold back when giving his opinion on the matter, insisting, “If I was a Man United fan I’d be fuming.”

As you can see, ‘Merse’ begins by saying he has “no interest at all”, adding that he thinks “It’s pathetic […] they’ve got one of the biggest stadiums in the Premier League” and therefore aren’t necessarily crying out for more seats, nor an entirely new sporting arena.

It’s worth noting that Old Trafford’s capacity hasn’t necessarily been the issue or priority in recent years: dated facilities, lack of technology such as screens for VAR and the infamous leaking roof, which has been taken into account by architects Foster + Partners.

“Why would you need a new stadium?”, he asks, before going on to suggest that they “need new players” instead and should be more worried about the team and finishing in the top six, “let alone Champions League.”

It’s no secret that the Red Devils’ steady slump out of the premier European competition has cost them significantly in recent years, with co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe delivering some alarming revelations about the state of the club’s finances in an interview with Gary Neville prior to the stadium reveal.

Merson summarises his opinion by saying, “I can’t believe what I’ve been seeing over the last couple of days – I’m flabbergasted.” Meanwhile, many people are chiefly concerned with how the stadium is going to be paid for, despite Mayor Andy Burnham’s reassurance that “no public money” will be used.

‘New Trafford’ is set to cost £2 billion and could be completed within five years.

Merson might have very strong opinions on Man United building a new stadium, to begin with, but what we’ve really enjoyed is seeing people’s reactions to the admittedly striking design.

The 100,000-seater venue will be the biggest in the UK, with its main features including a giant tent-like eco-friendly weather-shielding roof as well as three tall spires to mirror both the trident on the club’s badge and carry over the historic ‘Trinity’ theme.

However, not everyone can agree on whether it’s a masterpiece or an eye-sore…

We went out On The Street in Manchester to see what people made of it:

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

Featured Images — Sky Sports/Foster + Partners

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