The family of a Staffordshire teen who suffers from a rare terminal muscle wasting condition have appealed to the public to send him cards for his 16th birthday.
15-year-old Luke Hesketh lives with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD).
Despite being one of the most common types of Muscular Dystrophy – usually affecting boys in early childhood, with about 100 born with the condition each year and around 2,500 people living with it in the UK at any one time – it is one of the most severe forms, and people with the condition will sadly usually only live into their 20s or 30s.
Luke is currently in hospital at the moment, and his family have recently received the shattering news that his heart is failing and no further medication will help.
The hospital are therefore keeping him comfortable and pain free.
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But with it being Luke’s 16th birthday tomorrow, his mum, Tracey Hesketh, has appealed to members of the public to send him a birthday cards in an attempt to make his birthday as special as it can possibly be, and one the whole family will never forget.
After hearing the devastating news, friends of the Hesketh family have also since set up a GoFundMe page in Luke’s name that is dedicated to helping him make the most of the time he has left.
The funds raised will also go towards helping Luke tick off the activities on his bucket list.
The description on the fundraiser reads: “[Luke] has written a bucket list and his family really want to try and grant his wishes, [so] your help to do this would be greatly appreciated.
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“At a time when the future seems so uncertain and frightening for the family, let’s give them some moments to smile about [and] every single donation, no matter how big or small, will go towards giving Luke and his family the chance to make precious memories”.
Luke’s bucket list activities include a trip to Legoland Windsor, a stay on the London River boat, a visit to the lwgo shop in London, a holiday to Benidorm, a ride in a helicopter, and more.
If you would like to send Luke a card to make his 16th birthday a special one to remember, then you can send it the following address:
Luke Hesketh, 8 The Doves, Leek, Staffordshire, ST13 6RB.
You can also find out more about Luke’s battle with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) via the GoFundMe page set up to help the Hesketh family here.
All donations are greatly appreciated.
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Both Manchester United and Manchester City named as teams with the least amount of local fans
Emily Sergeant
Both Manchester United and Manchester City have been identified as being teams with the least amount of local fans, according to a new survey.
We all know that supporting a local team can be seen as a mark of credibility among a certain kind of football fan, while on the flip side of that, not following a local team is often associated with being a ‘glory hunter’. But which Premier League clubs have the highest – and lowest – proportion of supporters living close to home?
Well, YouGov decided to use its profiles data to analyse the fanbases of all 20 Premier League clubs for the 2026-27 season to get the answer to this once and for all.
And it’s fair to say that it’s not looking the best for the Manchester teams.
The study found that, overall, Brighton & Hove Albion is the Premier League’s most local team – with 56% of fans based in the South East.
Sunderland (50%) and Nottingham Forest (49%) supporters are the next-most likely to live in the same region as their teams, followed by Aston Villa, Brentford, Ipswich, Leeds, Fulham, Hull, and Crystal Palace fans rounding out the top 10.
At the other end of the table, Manchester United has the second-lowest proportion of local supporters, with only a quarter based in the North West (23%), with one in six (17%) actually living in London instead.
And then as for Manchester City – who are widely considered to be the most successful team of the modern era – it has ranked fourth-bottom for local fans, as a quarter of the club’s supporters are based in the North West, with a fifth based in London (19%).
But although both United and City have found themselves towards the bottom end of the ranking, they are not the worst offenders.
That title, unfortunately, does belong to another North West team though – Liverpool.
Liverpool is the club with the lowest proportion of ‘local’ supporters, as just a fifth are based in the North West (21%) with the next highest concentration of fans can being found in London.
Featured Image – Johnny Gios (via Unsplash)
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Data reveals Manchester hotel prices have ALREADY surged by 462% on rumoured Oasis tour dates
Emily Sergeant
Manchester hotel prices have apparently already surged by 462% on rumoured Oasis tour dates, some new data has revealed.
Of course, absolutely nothing is set in stone yet and we are still yet to receive any form of announcement.
But with rumours having been swirling for months now that Oasis will be touring again in 2027, and several videos shared on the band’s social media platforms this week also hinting at that, it’s been revealed that searches for ‘when are Oasis tickets going on sale?’ have soared by 5,000% in the last seven days alone.
After recent data has pointed towards soaring searches for tickets, the experts at SeatPick decided to analyse the average cost of accommodation in Manchester on the suspected concert nights in June 2027 to uncover if prices have surged along with the searches.
Data reveals that Manchester hotel prices have already surged by 462% on rumoured Oasis tour dates / Credit: The Manc Group | Simon Emmett (Press Picture)
And lo and behold, it appears that they have.
The ticketing platform has revealed that hotel prices have surged by up to 462% during Oasis’ rumoured concert nights in Manchester.
The rumoured weekend date of 19 and 20 June has experienced the most noticeable price surge – with a two-star hotel costing an average of £216 for just one overnight stay.
The data also reveals that the rumoured finale on the 27 June has just a £95 difference between two-star hotels (£200) and five-star hotels (£295).
“Our analysis uncovered an enormous markup for local accommodation on nights that Oasis is rumoured to perform in Manchester,” explained Gilad Zilberman, who is the CEO at ticket platform SeatPick.
“Being aware of these accommodation costs and additional expenses can help fans plan and avoid being caught off guard by inflated prices on concert nights.
“To find the best deals on hotels, concertgoers should scan budget chains in the city or look slightly outside of the centre in hotspots served by local bus routes or regional trains, such as Salford and Trafford.
Emily Sergeant -
16th February 2021 
