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Petition launched for national day of remembrance for lives lost in COVID-19 pandemic

The petition has already amassed signatures from over 3,500 people and counting.

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 20th January 2021
Rachael Lidgett / BBC

Thousands have signed a petition calling for a national day of remembrance to be introduced to honour the lives lost during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Rachael Lidgett – from Leyland in Lancashire – started the official UK Government and Parliament petition to create a “national holiday and day of remembrance for those lost in the pandemic” after her father sadly passed away after contracting COVID-19

Christopher Cooper was described as a “popular” pillar of the community and a true family man.

But when he tested positive for coronavirus (COVID-19), the illness had such a damaging effect that he wasn’t even able to “take one final breath” before he passed away after medics removed his ventilator just two weeks after being admitted into hospital.

He was just 63-years-old and had no underlying health conditions.

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His family have been left devastated and shocked by his death – particularly as his condition deteriorated so rapidly – and they still struggle to grasp their loss some seven weeks later.

Rachael said “if something positive may come of my Dad’s death, I hope it is [this petition]”.

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https://www.facebook.com/rachaelcooper123/posts/10157522915647213

Rachael has proposed the national day of remembrance take place on 23rd March, as “this is the date a national lockdown began in the UK”.

The petition has already amassed signatures from over 3,500 people and counting.

Speaking to Lancs Live about the catalyst for launching the petition, Rachael said: “He is the closest person I have ever lost,

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“[And] with that comes to anger and a lot of sleepless nights. There was one night I just thought about how much we’re plagued by the news all the time about this, about the stats and such, when really what matters is that each death affects a huge number of people’s lives.”

https://www.facebook.com/rachaelcooper123/posts/10157541851097213

Rachael continued: “I am trying to make [the petition] go viral, because I thought that would garner more attention and maybe something could be done.

“The response has been great [so far],

“I’ve had so many people message me already – a random person sent a message to me and she thanked me for starting the petition, saying she had lost her father too [and] it made me think ‘I am not crazy, some people do want this as well.’”

You can sign Rachael’s petition on the gov.uk website here.

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Manchester Remembers Foundation announces its return for a special anniversary charity match

Danny Jones Danny Jones Manchester Remembers charity game back in 2027

The Manchester Remembers Foundation has announced the return of its charity football game in 2027, which will coincide with a special anniversary close to all Mancunians.

For those unaware, the MCR Remembers charity matches were set up in memory of the Manchester Arena victims, helping raise funds for the families of the 22 who sadly died in the attack.

While the fifth iteration of what started out as an annual vision, set for this past summer, was sadly cancelled back in May and the Foundation itself seemingly shut down, the co-founders have decided they’re not ready for it all to end just yet.

Somewhat quietly confirming the return of the fundraising footy match on social media, the next fixture will be returning next year, which marks a full decade since the tragedy.

Writing a slightly lengthier statement on Instagram, MCR Remembers creators Aaron Lee and Paul Corrigan said: “No matter how difficult things get and how little support we get from people in positions to help, we have to keep going.

“We take inspiration from the brave and courageous people who were so closely involved with the arena attack. We will continue to remember those affected and celebrate their legacy.

“We are planning a spectacular return for the 10th anniversary in 2027. Plans and talks to begin shortly
We will reassess after that event. As always, thank you to those that stuck by us. We see you, and we appreciate every single one of you. Stay tuned. Aaron / Paul.”

Lee – a local and a former police officer on 22 May 2017 – set up the organisation with his friend and fellow fundraiser (10 marathons in 10 months) with the aim of not only honouring those lost but also to help raise vital funds for their families and native bereavement charities.

They’re two incredibly inspiring individuals who have done a lot to help those in and around Greater Manchester, as well as keep that date in our heads and hearts.

Now a firefighter and having helped raise more than £200,000 for the six associated charities overall, he was presented with the Chief Fire Officer’s Commendation award in August 2024.

Although information is still scarce in these early stages, The MCR Remembers Foundation has assured that details regarding exactly when and where the game is set to take place will be shared over the coming week and months.

It goes without saying that we here at The Manc are glad to see the moving charity match being confirmed for a comeback, even if it’s only for a one-off, and can’t wait to see which ex-pros and celebrity players get involved.

Then again, who knows? A successful return could signal the start of a fully-fledged revival, and we sincerely hope it does.

Watch this space and see you next year for the anniversary edition of Manchester Remembers 2027.

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For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images — The Manc Group

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The ‘most complained-about’ show in Britain over the last five years has been revealed

Danny Jones Danny Jones Most Ofcom complaints in Britain over the last 5 years

The TV show with the most complaints in Britain over the past half-decade has seemingly been confirmed, and we can’t exactly say it’s given everyone watching a good morning…

Yes, it’s GMB.

Well, that’s according to research by Aura Print, anyway; they dug down into the official Ofcom data to try and discover which British TV programme got the most complaints – an unwanted accolade that was earned quite comfortably by Good Morning Britain.

This might not come as too much of a surprise to many of you, especially regular viewers over the last few years, with GMB often popping up in headlines alongside phrases like ‘viewers complain’ and ‘Ofcom’. Either way, here’s what the study found:

RankProgrammeServiceNumber of complaints (2021-2025)
1Good Morning BritainITV191,890
2Love IslandITV266,252
3Julia Hartley-BrewerTalkTV18,525
4Dan Wootton TonightGB News9,207
5King Charles III: The CoronationITV18,389
6This MorningITV7,387
7Celebrities: What’s Happened to Your Face?Channel 57,082
8Oprah with Meghan and HarryITV6,456
9I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here!ITV16,203
10Jeremy VineChannel 54,982
11Big BrotherITV1 / ITV24,678
12LorraineITV4,675
13Breakfast with Kay BurleySky News3,467
14EmmerdaleITV12,405
15Vanessa51,986
16Loose WomenITV1,799
17Married at First Sight UKE41,748
18Coronation StreetITV1,348
19Lee Anderson’s Real WorldGB News1,668
20Friday Night LiveChannel 41,630
21HeadlinersGB News1,498
22Ant PayneCapital FM1,430
23Naked EducationChannel 41,413
24The Brit AwardsITV11,157
25Today with Samantha WashingtonSky News1,270

As you can see, GMB has racked up nearly 92,000 complaints over the past five years, which is well over 25k more than the next most inflammatory.

The rest of the top five is also made up of other mainstream news commentary programmes (four out of five), bar the second runner-up in Love Island, with 66,252.

It’s also worth noting that ITV is the most complained-about broadcaster of any network on the list. GB News came in second with three different shows on the list: Dan Wootton Tonight, Lee Anderson’s Real World and Headliners.

Certainly not surprising whatsoever was the particular episode that received the most complaints of all those in the history of Good Morning Britain, which went out on 8 March 2021.

In case you haven’t guessed which one this is already, it was the infamous Piers Morgan episode discussing Meghan Markle’s mental health, which was reported to Ofcom a whopping 57,973 times.

This feels like a lifetime ago, but we remember it receiving most Ofcom complaints Britain had ever seen at the time.

Yes, more than half of the complaints they have ever received come after ONE viral moment.

In terms of particularly divisive presenters, second only to Piers Morgan, Julia Hartley-Brewer was the next most complained-about presenter, racking up a total of 18,500 complaints.

GB News’ Dan Wootton came in at number three with 9,207 complaints, but also worth noting that plenty of what most would consider popular mainstream entertainment IPs like I’m A Celeb and Big Brother racked up over 10k collectively during this period.

You can find the full breakdown of Ofcom data from 2021-2025 right HERE.

Read more:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured image: Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash

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