Oldham Council has announced the news that a handful of its hardest-working salt spreaders are retiring this year.
After gritting more than a million miles between them over several years of “super service”, it’s now the end of the icy road for six of Oldham‘s famously-named gritting fleet, and a new wintery journey is gearing up to begin for the town’s replacements machines.
But, you know that that means – the the popular ‘name a gritter’ competition is back once again.
With the nights drawing in, and the weather getting colder and colder by the day, it won’t be long before local residents will be able to see the big yellow machines traveling around the borough spreading grit and salt.
Fan-favourites Winston Chur-chill and Nicole Saltslinger will be making welcome returns this year, but they’ll also be joined by six newbies, and it’s our job to name them equally-iconic names.
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Our famous name the gritter competition is back! 👷
It’s open to 4-11 year olds and like we have had in previous years we are hoping for an avalanche of entries.
Oldham Council‘s ‘name a gritter’ competition is now open, and it’s hoped that primary and junior-age children in the town will, once again, come through with “an avalanche of entries” like they have done in the past.
Brad Grit, Gritiana Grande, Snowbee One Kenobi, Nick Gritshaw, Leonardo de-ice-io, and Basil Salty are just some of the names of the gritters who’ve spread Oldham’s salt in previous years, so they should be able to serve as inspiration for what the Council’s looking for.
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The winning names from this year’s competition will be added to the front of the six new cabs.
“Oldham Council was one of the first local authorities in the country to name its gritting fleet, and since then many others have followed our lead,” Councillor Chris Goodwin, who is Oldham Council’s Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, said as the competition opens.
“In the past, we’ve always run the competition as a bit of fun and it’s really captured the imagination of our young people, so please urge your children to get their thinking caps on and send in some names.”
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/ Credit: Wikimedia Commons
Unfortunately, Cllr Goodwin did stress that this year’s competition is only open to all children aged four to 11 who live in Oldham or attend one of the boroughs primary or junior schools, and that any “40-odd-year-old ‘comic’s who are thinking of sending in unfunny names” should thinking again, because they’ve “heard it all before”.
As social media suggestions “will not be accepted”, parents, guardians, and carers will need to help their little Oldhamers get their entries in on the Oldham Council website here, and you’ll need to make sure the child’s details are included, plus how the Council can contact you.
The closing date for entries is 11:59pm on Friday 3 November.
All naming suggestions will then be put to a panel of councillors and council officers to have the final say, and the lucky winners will be invited down to the town’s Moorhey Street depot to have their photo taken with the gritter they’ve named.
Featured Image – Oldham Council
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Major pop star crowns humble rice and three cafe as ‘Jewel of Manchester’ ahead of sold-out gig
Thomas Melia
A beloved city centre takeaway has been given the title of ‘Jewel of Manchester’ by chart-topping UK singer Sam Smith.
Known for hits like ‘Stay With Me’, ‘I’m Not The Only One’ and more recently ‘Unholy’, UK pop-ballad act Sam Smith also likes to drop a food review every once in a while.
Currently on the road with a run of shows in Manchester and London for their ‘To Be Free’ live shows, Sam Smith is stopping off at some of our city’s much-loved spots.
On their food-reviewing account titled ‘Sam Served’, where they adopt the aptly-fitting nickname ‘Ham Smith’, Sam has visited restaurants across the globe – and most recently turned their attention to Manchester’s own This & That.
Smith decided to pop in and grab a cheeky rice and three from long-standing backstreet food business This & That, and it certainly went down a treat.
After sampling their amazing selection of meat, vegetable and vegan curries, the musician crowned this family-run Indian takeaway a ‘Jewel of Manchester’.
The hitmaker described this Northern Quarter Indian eatery as ‘Everything food should be’ and definitely enjoyed all the curries on offer ‘leaving belly and heart full’.
This & That prides itself on affordable and comforting food with its ‘Rice and Three Curries’ starting from just £6 – not bad for a city centre foodie spot.
Sam has racked up an impressive 490k followers via their ‘Sam Served’ profile, with famous faces like Lily Allen, Denise Welch and CMAT all wanting to know the superstar’s foodie thoughts.
After enjoying a curry or three, Sam Smith also made sure to feed their soul to by venturing down to Afflecks and getting lost in the music at Mars Tapes.
Recognised as one of the UK’s only cassette and tape shops, Mars Tapes lets you flick through their crates of physical media and even preview tracks before you buy with its dedicated listening areas.
It’s safe to say that Smith has ‘Latched’ onto Manchester’s independent business scene and we’re here for it.
The London-born artist has just released their latest album Hazel Eyes and is currently amid a UK residency tour with two dates in Manchester’s Albert Hall and eight shows set for London Coliseum.
You can now have a private sleepover amongst all the history inside Manchester Museum
Emily Sergeant
Manchester Museum is now offering one lucky family the chance to have a sleepover with Stan the Tyrannosaurus rex.
For the first time in Manchester Museum’s history, one lucky family will be given the chance to experience an incredible night at the museum.
This unique opportunity is being offered as part of a prize draw, allowing visitors to find out what happens once the sun goes down inside the Fossils and Dinosaurs gallery – in the company of Stan, the famous Tyrannosaurus rex, of course.
The Fossils and Dinosaurs gallery is one of the most iconic spaces within Manchester Museum.
Having opened to the public all the way back in 1888, it’s part of the museum’s original building designed by celebrated Alfred Waterhouse, who also designed Manchester Town Hall and London’s Natural History Museum.
Not only will the lucky winning family enjoy an overnight stay in the gallery, but they’ll also be treated to a guided torchlight tour of the galleries after the Museum has closed, as well as other fun activities and a film screening too before bed.
You can now have a private sleepover inside Manchester Museum / Credit: The Manc Group
“We can’t be completely sure what happens when the sun goes down in our Fossils and Dinosaurs gallery, because nobody has ever spent the night in there before, but we can only imagine the kind of fun that can be had with Stan the T. rex and his friends,” said Dean Whiteside, Head of Commercial and Operations at Manchester Museum.
“This is a chance to be a part of museum history and enjoy the kind of once-in-a-lifetime experience you can’t usually buy.
“At the same time, Manchester Museum is a charity so, by getting behind this initiative, you’ll be helping to support vital work that impacts the lives of people across Greater Manchester and beyond.”
Fancy it then? You can enter the prize draw by buying a ticket for £5 from the Manchester Museum Shop, with each ticket counting as one entry and the winner set to be chosen at random from all valid entries.
The prize draw is now open and closes on Monday 28 September 2026.
Emily Sergeant -
4th October 2023 
