A boy from Manchester has been reunited with his three lost teddies after they went missing while on a family holiday.
Little Oliver Simpson, from Heywood in Rochdale, had just arrived at the hotel for a holiday in Costa de Almeria with his parents, Jill and Stewart, when the family realised that a bag with the six-year-old’s much-loved teddies inside was missing, and so they contacted Jet2’s Customer Services team to see if they could find out more.
After Jet2 heard that the family had lost one of their bags, the team said they “immediately launched a search” to find the missing teddies.
Customers Helpers at Almeria Airport worked together with the holiday resort’s Customer Helpers to track down the bears, and luckily, they were found safe and sound on the coach the family had hopped on from the airport to their hotel.
With the teddies safely found, the team then got to work to make sure Oliver was reunited with his three fuzzy friends.
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Jet2 helps reunite little Manchester boy with the teddies he lost while on holiday / Credit: Jet2
Keen to make the reunion one Oliver would remember forever, staff took the bears on an adventure at the airport and pictured them having a drink in a cafe, helping to check in customers’ luggage, and directing holidaymakers to their transfer coaches, all before meeting back up with the youngster.
Resort Customer Helper, Justina Tarvydaite, also stepped in and wrote a letter to Oliver from his teddies, telling the little Manc all about the adventures they had been on at the airport, and when he was finally reunited with his bears on his flight back to the UK, he was, as you can imagine, “over the moon”.
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Oliver’s mum, Jill, said the airline “literally went above and beyond” to find and reunite Oliver with his teddies.
Praising the “caring staff”, she went on to explain: “Not only did they locate his belongings, but they also showed Oliver the adventures his teddies went on whilst we were on holiday, which was magical and so thoughtful.
“He was over the moon, and I even shed some tears.”
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Oliver Simpson had been on holiday with his family in Costa de Almeria in Spain / Credit: Jet2
Claire Hernandez, who is a Destination Manager at Jet2holidays, said it was “all hands-on deck” when they heard Oliver had been separated from his teddies and how upset he was by it, adding: “I am immensely proud of how the team worked together to ensure Oliver and his family left feeling elated at the return of the teddies.
“Their reaction was priceless.
“It’s very important to all of us that each and every one of our customers feels like a VIP, and the team work extremely hard to ensure our customers have a memorable holiday.
“It never ceases to amaze me just how far they will go to make our customers happy.”
Featured Image – Jet2
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Sportsbet.io Tour Championship 2026: Manchester welcomes some of snooker’s best
Danny Jones
This Monday marks the start of the World Snooker Tour’s 2026 Sportsbet.io Tour Championship, which is back in Manchester once again– and there are some big names on show.
Returning to our city for a third consecutive time, this year’s Tour Championships began at 1pm, with the likes of world number one Judd Trump playing some of the opening frames against Northern Ireland’s Mark Allen, along with Barry Hawkins taking on 2026 World Open winner, Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.
These are just the first two opening fixtures in what is set to be an eventful week-long tournament that will span a total of 19 matches, concluding in the final on Sunday, 5 April.
Hosted once again over at Manchester Central, this elite field of in-form players is basically only missing Ronnie O’Sullivan, who the aforementioned Thai tour start beat in last week’s final.
Only the top 12 players from this season’s highly competitive rankings earned a place in the draw, so all pretty much all the greats and the next generation are shooting for the title.
Defending champions John Higgins – a four-time world champion – will be breaking off against Mark Williams on Tuesday, 31 March.
Meanwhile, other names on the schedule of play include World Champion Zhao Xintong, Mark Selby (who Higgins beat in Manchester last year), Shaun Murphy, Neil Robertson and Mark Allen.
Put simply, this isn’t just another big sporting event landing in our city centre, but a showcase of some of the very best talent in the discipline.
With tickets starting from just £25, these games are also some of the most affordable premium sports you can enjoy in central Manchester.
Better still, it’s also worth noting that the official Fanzone over in the foyer of the venue is open to all, even without a ticket.
There’s completely free coaching for players of all ages, interactive games, and even the chance to try a proper full-sized professional table – a perfect day out for the Easter school holidays.
The event itself is being aired on Channel 5, but if you’re interested in going along to see the action up close and personal, you can grab your seats right HERE.
Featured Images — Press shot (supplied via Manchester Central)/The Manc Group
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The Oldham Man and The Sea: the documentary about the Latics owner’s record-breaking Atlantic voyage
Danny Jones
It doesn’t matter if you’re not an Athletic fan or native to the borough; we think everyone should go along to watch the much-anticipated documentary about football club owner Frank Rothwell and his record-breaking journey across the Atlantic Ocean: The Oldham Man And The Sea.
One of the simplest and most satisfying names for a film we’ve heard in a long time.
For anyone who doesn’t know about the Oldham Athletic FC chairman turned OBE’s incredible story, Frank Rothwell has set multiple records with his impressive sea-faring feats in recent times.
This new doc, which just premiered at this year’s Manchester Film Festival, charts his latest trip across one of the biggest bodies of water on the planet in March 2024.
As you can see from the recent trailer, it’s almost as arduous a tale as the original Hemingway story.
This movie – produced by Journeyman Pictures and Chief Productions – made its full debut at the Odeon in Great Northern Warehouse for MFF 2026, and is set to have a number of other screenings in and around Greater Manchester in the coming weeks and months.
One of those is happening rather soon, in fact, over at Saddleworth’s Millgate Arts Centre on Saturday, 28 March, which is ideal for those local to the region; grab your tickets now.
ln fact, there’s also one happening even closer to his hometown the following month, with Oldham’s very own Queen Elizabeth Hall also hosting a special screening of Rothwell’s incredible achievement.
You can reserve your seats for that one right HERE.
Having not only become the eldest (70) Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge finisher back in 2021, but now holding the Guinness World Record for the oldest person to ever complete the crossing while rowing solo at 73 years old, he’s become nothing short of a local hero – and that’s just his stewardship of the Latics…
The film does, obviously, touch on his time at the helm of the League Two side, who finally returned to the EFL last June, but the heart and soul of this inspiring watch is the sail itself.
More importantly, it also documents not just the gruelling nature of the 64-day, seven-hour and 53-minute trek, but also how Frank has now helped raise more than £1.4 million on behalf of Alzheimer’s Research UK.
What an absolute icon.
Hopefully, this should be just about all the reason you need to watch The Oldham Man And The Sea the very next opportunity you get to do so – and, of course, all proceeds from ticket sales will also be going to charity, because just the kind of bloke he is.
And here’s hoping we get a streaming version sometime soon.
Emily Sergeant -
5th September 2023 
