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Most people in the UK prefer cuddling their pets to their partner, study finds

Are you really surprised, though?

Georgina Pellant Georgina Pellant - 11th July 2023

A new study has found how deep our love for our pets goes, and it appears we’ve got significantly more time for our furry friends than we do for anyone else.

When it comes to having a cuddle when we get home at the end of the day, it seems that most people in the UK are ditching their other half in favour of their pets.

Whilst it’s no secret that the UK is a nation of pet lovers, it might come as a surprise to some that most of us would rather snuggle up with our pets than a significant other.

A new study conducted by OnePoll on behalf of PetSafe, however, has shown just that – revealing that a whopping 70% of pet owners would choose a cuddle with their favourite animal over their favourite human.

staffy dog
Image: The Manc Group
Image: The Manc Group

Interestingly, though, more men wanted to cuddle their pets than women – with 77% of male respondents choosing their furry friends over their partners, compared with 60% of women asked.

The study also found, perhaps unsurprisingly, that animals are much better listeners than humans (for one, they don’t talk back).

A huge 68% of respondents said they would confide in their pets at the end of a bad day, showing that people are once again more comfortable with being vulnerable with animals than humans – compared with best friends (52%), family (46%) and colleagues (33%).

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Eight in ten people also said that their pet was their ‘number one’ source of joy, and a similar number said they treated their pet ‘like royalty’ by way of thanks.

Speaking on the new research, PetSafe® brand representative Rob Steele said: “We’ve always known pets hold a special place in our hearts, but this study proves just how much we love and value them – and how much good they bring into our lives.

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“They give so much in terms of love and emotional support, that most owners treat them as part of the family. They’re always there for a cuddle or to lend a furry ear and their love is unconditional and uncompromising, and for that they deserve only the best from us.”

Featured image – The Manc Group

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Some Oasis fans are only just discovering who ‘Cast No Shadow’ is dedicated to

Danny Jones Danny Jones Noel Gallagher wrote Cast No Shadow about Oasis

Die-hard Oasis fans typically pride themselves on knowing the most intricate details about the band and its history, from where the first demos were recorded and when, to how Peggy Gallagher takes her tea, but we were surprised to learn that many don’t know who ‘Cast No Shadow’ is dedicated to.

Fans are already queuing up outside Heaton Park ahead of the Manc band’s massive homecoming, but we’d be curious to quiz how many of them know the story behind the track taken from Oasis’ seminal sophomore album, (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?

It seems that until very recently, even some of the most avid Britpop fans were unaware that the song was written with another icon of the genre and local music legend in mind: Richard Ashcroft.

While claiming it was written about him would be too reductive, and Noel Gallagher himself has openly clarified this, he has also regularly made it known that the tune and some of the lyrics, in particular, act as somewhat of an ode to the Wigan wordsmith.

The elder Gallagher brother has long maintained a deep level of admiration for Ashcroft, citing him as one of the best singer-songwriters he’s ever come across, and regularly felt like both he and The Verve were not given the recognition they deserved at the time.

As touched upon briefly in the clip above, Noel dedicated the track to his friend Richard around the time that he split from his bandmates and began writing solo material, much of which has gone on to become beloved by countless Brits, certainly here in the North and Greater Manchester.

The now 58-year-old Oasis songwriter believes the ‘Bittersweet Symphony’, ‘A Song for the Lovers’ and ‘They Don’t Own Me’ writer, just to name a very small but stellar sample size, was overlooked for far too long and, to some degree, still is massively underappreciated.

We tend to agree.

In fact, we think he put it best when he said this in a BBC Radio 1 interview back in 1997: “I don’t write songs about many people – I’ve written songs about him [Liam], I’ve written songs about me mam, I’ve written songs about my wife, I’ve written songs about Richard Ashcroft.”

“That man is a genius, and I tell you what, man, he ain’t doing it for himself: he’s doing it for me. He has got to be a better songwriter than me, and in return, I’ve got to write better songs than him. That’s what it’s about.”

‘Cast No Shadow’ also led to one of the most beautiful but subtle pieces of art you can find anywhere in Manchester – a personal favourite of ours, we’ll confess.

Noel has revealed on multiple occasions that when he first played and revealed that he’d dedicated ‘Cast No Shadow’ to Ashcroft, Richard himself was left nearly ‘in tears’.

Speaking to The Guardian back in 2010, just a year after Oasis parted ways on the painful night in Paris, Ashcroft himself confessed: “I can’t work out if he means I’m a witch, vampire or just incredibly emaciated and thin cos, you know, I haven’t really got enough body mass to cast a shadow?”

You’d have to ask the ‘Champagne Supernova’ creator himself, but he’s said that while written directly about him, it is a tribute to his “genius”, and when his friend and fellow Greater Mancunian artist finally got his number one for ‘The Drugs Don’t Work’, he said he was “the happiest man in the world.”

His love for The Verve as a whole still remains, too, insisting that just like Liam’s love for The Stone Roses’ John Squire, he believes lead guitarist Nick McCabe is still “one of the best” he’s ever seen.

The Live ’25 reunion has don’t plenty to reignite and an already firm love affair with one of the biggest bands there’s ever been, and it’s also encouraged a whole new generation and demographic of fans to dig further down into the various facets of being Oasis fans involves. Exhibit B…

Explaining the ‘Poznań’ and why Oasis fans are doing it at their Live ’25 reunion tour gigs

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Featured Images — manc_wanderer (via Instagram)/Simon Q (via Flickr)

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Nostalgic ready-to-drink Breezer makes UK return after a decade

Daisy Jackson Daisy Jackson Nostalgic ready-to-drink Breezer makes UK return after a decade

An iconic ready-to-drink favourite has launched back into the UK – oh yes, Breezer is back. 

First launched in the 1990s, Breezers – then pitched as an ‘alcopop’ – were a staple on dancefloors and at barbecues right across the UK. 

And now Bacardi has decided to bring these delicious, fruity, easy-drinking bottles back to British shores. 

There are three new flavours to try as Breezers return to your fridges – Zesty Orange, Zingy Lime, and Crisp Watermelon.

And Breezer launched back into Manchester last night with a suitably memorable party, turning a spot in the Northern Quarter into a corner shop. 

The ‘local Cornerbop’ was stacked with your usual essentials, plus shelf after shelf of these colourful glass ready-to-drink bottles. 

Nostalgic ready-to-drink Breezer makes UK return after a decade
Inside the Breezer ‘Cornerbop’ corner shop in Manchester
Nostalgic ready-to-drink Breezer makes UK return after a decade
Breezer is back, in three new flavours

The Breezer relaunch party saw Tarsza and Rennie Peters spinning nostalgic anthems with a modern twist at a pop-up party in a corner shop.

Steve Young, business unit director for Bacardi in the UK & Ireland, said: “We know there is a lot of love for Breezer in the UK, and we are confident a new generation of consumers will fall in love with the new Breezer.

“RTDs are booming, however, the Flavoured Alcoholic Beverages category could do with a bit more excitement. By bringing back Breezer we’re definitely putting the fruity taste into FAB.”

The iconic ready-to-drink classic is back – and better than ever. 

Follow @breezer on Instagram for more.

18+, please drink responsibly.

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Featured image: The Manc Group

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