From being paid a salary to play Animal Crossing, to becoming a professional wine taster, there’s been some pretty exciting and unique job opportunities cropping up over the last few months of lockdown, but now that elements of normality have begun to resume, there’s a new career prospect that couples are going to love.
Looking to disappear off the grid for a bit? Need some R&R in the countryside? Fancy a simpler life?
If the hustle and bustle of town and city life often tends to get a bit overwhelming for you, or it has been more so than ever in recent months, then an owner of a set of luxurious cottages wants to pay couples up to £35,000 to live in the Scottish countryside.
According to a listing on jobs website Greycoat Lumley, the owner of eight cottages in a quaint village in the Scottish borders – is looking to hire a couple to help maintain the homes.
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Not only is the salary is £35,000 a year, but as part of the deal, you’ll also get to live rent-free in one of the cosy two-bedroom properties in the idyllic countryside. Oh, and your council tax and utility bills will be covered too, so you don’t even have to worry about that either.
Crabtree & CrabtreeCrabtree & Crabtree
The eight cottages are located in Dryburgh, near the town of Melrose and right by the River Tweed, and they each boast cosy interiors that still offering plenty of space, sprawling gardens and a generally picturesque setting.
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What does the role entail then? According to the job description, it includes responsibilities such as general maintenance of the properties and grounds, managing cleaners, shopping for supplies, arranging flowers, laundry and ironing, and other errands that may need doing.
According to the listing, the hired couple will be reporting directly to the cottages’ owner, and must be “pro active, hardworking and organised”.
Even better, if you have a pet, you need not worry about having to leave your furry friend behind either because you’ll be allowed to bring your animal along to live with you, as the listing states that pets are welcome “within reason”.
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Crabtree & Crabtree
You can find our more information and apply for the role via the Greycoat Lumley website here.
If you don’t fancy moving to the Scottish boarders full-time though however, but you still fancy a chance to escape for a short staycation, the good news is that each of the eight cottages are also available for holiday bookings and you can view them on the Crabtree & Crabtree website.
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John Cooper Clarke announces new UK headline tour along with new book
Danny Jones
The ‘Bard of Salford’ himself, Dr John Cooper Clarke, is back with another UK headline tour in 2026, plus a brand-new book to boot.
Now 76 and still as fiery as ever, ‘The Godfather of Punk Poetry’s career spans more than half a century, and as a Greater Manchester native and cultural icon, he’s still just as worth celebrating as ever with each passing year.
Becoming the first poet to ever headline a UK arena with his landmark Co-op Live back in March, it’s been another milestone 12 months for local legend, and he clearly has absolutely no intentions of slowing down next year either.
Revealing a raft of new tour dates on Monday, 1 December, John Cooper Clarke will be bringing his spoken word stylings and latest collection – satsifyingly titled Have It – to crowds all over the country.
Confirming a total of 20 new live shows, JCC will be kicking off his next tour in October 2026 in time for the launch of his latest title.
Following on from last year’s release, ‘WHAT‘, which became an instant Sunday Times bestseller, and his memoir (published back in 2020), this will be his fifth book to date.
2025 also saw him receive the prestigious Northern Music Award (NMAs) in recognition of his phenomenal influence in the music world and art as a whole.
As for us here at Audio North, we recently also had the incredible privilege of sitting down to chat with Cooper Clarke ourselves ahead of the announcement, so keep your eyes peeled for that one…
You can see John Cooper Clarke’s list of live shows in full down below.
JCC UK headline tour dates 2026
We’ve kindly italicised all the Northern dates for you as well.
Wed, 7 Oct – Southend Palace Theatre
Sat, 10 Oct – Poole Lighthouse
Sun, 11 Oct – Bristol Beacon
Wed, 14 Oct – Brighton Theatre Royal
Thu, 15 Oct – London Palladium
Sat, 17 Oct – Sheffield City Hall
Tue, 20 Oct – Glasgow Pavilion
Wed, 21 Oct – Carlisle Old Fire Station
Fri, 23 Oct – Stoke-On-Trent Victoria Hall
Sat, 24 Oct – Birmingham Town Hall
Wed, 28 Oct – Liverpool Philharmonic Hall
Sat, 31 Oct – Leeds City Varieties Music Hall
Wed, 4 Nov – Whitley Bay The Playhouse
Fri, 6 Nov – York Grand Opera House
Thu, 12 Nov – Dublin 3 Olympia
Sun, 15 Nov – Belfast Mandela Hall
Wed, 18 Nov – Blackpool Opera House
Sat, 21 Nov – Manchester O2 Apollo
Wed, 25 Nov – Leicester De Montfort Hall
Fri, 27 Nov – Edinburgh Queens Hall
Tickets for Dr John Cooper Clarke in October 2026 will be available from this Friday, 5 December at 10am via Gigs and Tours as well as his official website.
Featured Images — Publicity pictures (supplied)/The Manc Group
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Stockport County’s Christmas dinner in a cup returns for 2025 as part of new festive food range
Danny Jones
We can’t believe it’s rolled around again already, but with the festive period well underway and the big day just a few weeks away, Stockport County have brought back their viral ‘Xmas dinner in a cup’for 2025.
Better still, the County Courtyard has seen some new Christmas specials added to its food menu, too.
The local football club are absolutely flying in League One at the moment, having spent plenty of time at the top of the table already and still well and truly contesting those promotion/play-off spots.
If you’re a Stopfordian, that’s plenty of cause for celebration right there, but with the Christmas dinner in a cup also up for grabs once more, the holiday season literally couldn’t taste any better right now.
For those who’ve never seen it before, it’s exactly what it says on the tin – well, cup: a little Sunday dinner in a County-branded takeaway coffee cup, complete with a healthy pour of gravy and pretty much all the trimmings you could hope for.
Yes, including sprouts, because all of you who still don’t touch them need to grow up already.
Currently priced at just £4.50, not only does it contain virtually all the major food groups (barring the customary matchday pints, of course), it might just be one of the healthiest and best value-for-money bits of footy scran around – certainly in Greater Manchester, anyway.
But, as mentioned, that’s not all this year; Stockport are also serving up the new festive hot dog and even a ‘leftover Christmas curry’ in a bowl, which might even be more warming on a cold night at Edgeley Park than the Xmas dinner in a cup or clinging onto a flask of Bovril.
Anyone else craving that curry with a cheeky bit of bubble and squeak now?
It’s also worth noting that you’ll only be able to get one of those on Boxing Day, by the way, when the Hatters host Lincoln City in the league.
As for the rest of it, County fans can get their hands on this seasonal scran for the first time this year at the weekend when Dave Challinor’s side take on Barnsley at 12:30pm, and two of the three specials will then be served at home every game over the holiday period.
Speaking of random Christmas food creations, there’s another limited-time-only and potentially divisive example that we’ll also be sampling this December…