It has been confirmed today that one of Manchester’s oldest and most iconic pubs has been saved from permanent closure.
The Lower Turks Head & Scuttlers Wine Bar at Shudehill has been sold to Cheetham Hill-based brewery chain, Jospeh Holt – an independent family business which operates 127 pubs throughout Greater Manchester and the North West – for an undisclosed sum, and forms part of the brewery’s “ongoing commitment to rejuvenating Manchester city centre” as we begin to emerge from lockdown.
The brewery has plans to drop the name ‘Scuttlers Wine Bar’, and so the pub will become known purely as Lower Turks Head.
Dating back to 1745, The Lower Turks Head was once an old stagecoach stop and enjoyed a proud heritage through successive centuries, before closing its doors last August.
If you’ve ever stepped foot inside the deceptively-deep and roomy venue, you’ll know that the pub is crammed with distinctive fixtures and fittings, including a long wooden bar, checkerboard floors, wooden staircases, cut tables and cubby hole seating.
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Its ornately tiled façade makes it a distinctive landmark in the centre of Manchester too.
The Lower Turks Head
Lower Turks Head is set to reopen to the public by first offering the full range of award-winning Joseph Holt cask ales and lagers, followed by plans to introduce a unique food offering later in the year, and on top of that, as one of central Manchester’s few small pub hotels, it’s also known as a place to enjoy bed and breakfast accommodation, which the brewery has confirmed it will keep operating and let out as the city centre starts to recover.
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Lower Turks Head joins Joseph Holt’s already established collection of city centre pubs, which includes the Ape and Apple, the Crown and Anchor, the Old Monkey, the Eagle Inn and The Shamrock, the latter of which is set to reopen following a full re-development in 2022.
Meet the newest Joseph Holt pub – The Lower Turk's Head, Manchester!
“Joseph Holt is deeply entrenched in the history of Manchester and sees the Lower Turks Head as part of that heritage too,” Marketing Manager, Paul Longmire, said.
“Our brewery has a keen sense of nostalgia but as much as we treasure the past, Joseph Holt regards it as a way of guaranteeing the future of the city too [so] we’re sure the Lower Turks Head, along with our other central Manchester pubs, will lead the way in bringing drinkers back into the city”.
However, following a consortium bid led by a former player, it now looks as though the local community will be starting a new sporting era in 2026. You can read the RFL’s statement in full down below.
As you can see, the English governing body has agreed to grant the new Salford-based rugby league team Championship status in time for the start of next season.
The Red Devils were officially relegated back in October, following months of uncertainty surrounding their unpaid debts and having to rely on loan players to field squads.
It’s unclear whether the new Salford side will carry on under the well-established brand and logo, or whether they fresh start will include a new Greater Manchester moniker.
There is, of course, an obvious choice as retired winger Mason Caton-Brown has been confirmed as one of at least three key investors following his ‘Phoenix Bid’ to resurrect the club earlier this month.
Following the official announcement on Monday (22 Dec), fan group The 1873 have now expressed their gratitude and support regarding the new investment, adding: “The strength of this club has always been its people and that must remain true in this new chapter.”
We would like to congratulate The Phoenix Bid on being awarded RFL membership and becoming custodians of Salford Rugby League 👏
Fans must fully back the new board as we move into 2026. We have a responsibility to ensure that this is as successful as it can be. pic.twitter.com/BZEwzS0zC6
Caton-Brown had already insisted that the new leadership group had reached multiple pre-contract agreements with players and a new head coach.
While it’s obviously a big result to be gearing up just a few weeks after seemingly folding as a competitive side, the owners are now racing to get a full squad ready to face Oldham in their season opener on 16 January.
Meanwhile, ex-Salford Red Devils stars Paul Rowley and Adam Sidlow have now joined the coaching staff at St Helens.
Featured Images — Anthony Parkes (via Geograph)/Publicity picture (supplied)
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The UK’s top 10 biggest Christmas ‘icks’ have been revealed
Emily Sergeant
The UK’s top 10 biggest Christmas ‘icks’ have been revealed, according to the results from a hilarious new survey.
Christmas may be the most wonderful time of the year, but it can also have its fair share of icks.
From tinsel on the tree, to cheesy Christmas jumpers, and everything in between, there are plenty of Christmas traditions that we simply love, and some we love to hate – and now, new research conducted by online retailer Haypp ahead of the festive season has revealed exactly what it is that Brits find the ickiest.
The research reveals that the number one ick is a controversial one – putting ketchup on a Christmas dinner, as nearly a third of respondents (32%) claim it makes them feel grim and that they’d judge someone for it.
Wearing Christmas jumpers is one of the UK’s biggest Christmas ‘icks’ Credit: Julia Larson (via Pexels)
It may cause controversy in a few households nationwide, the second biggest ‘ick’ is adults in matching festive pyjamas, with just under a third of Brits cringing, while some of the other similar traditions to this on the list being family photo Christmas cards, and wearing Christmas jumpers in public.
Elsewhere on the list, it was revealed that 27% of Brits find it unbearable to talk about politics over dinner, and lots of us don’t like it when others watch us open presents.
Around 18% also can’t stand it when people argue over festive games.
The UK’s top 10 Christmas ‘icks’
Having tomato ketchup on your Christmas dinner – 32%
Adults in matching pyjamas – 29.2%
Talking politics during dinner – 27.9%
Undoing your trousers at the dinner table – 24.4%
Leaving the dinner table to smoke – 23.2%
Everyone watching you open your presents – 20.4%
Being hungover on Christmas Day – 19.5%
Arguing over a game – 18.1%
Family photo Christmas cards – 15.2%
Wearing Christmas jumpers – 13.2%
Bad habits at the dinner table also feature heavily on the list, as a quarter of Brits hate it when people undo their trousers after the Christmas meal, and just over a fifth find it rude when someone leaves the table to go and smoke.
Emily Sergeant -
30th March 2021 
