Rochdale secures £8.3m Heritage funding for town hall revamp that will ‘give it back to the people’
The council has already been granted planning permission for the major restoration project, which is expected to cost around £14m in total - with the hopes that it is to reopen to the public one again in 2023.
Rochdale Borough Council has secured £8.3 million from the National Lottery’s Heritage Fund towards an upcoming town hall revamp.
Rochdale Town Hall is classed as one of the most historically significant buildings in the country, with features which have been described by Historic England as being rivalled in importance only by those contained within the Palace of Westminster.
The council has already been granted planning permission for the major restoration project – which is expected to cost around £14m in total – with the hopes that it is to reopen to the public one again in 2023.
This new funding boost – which made possible thank to National Lottery players – will support “ambitious plans” led by the council and Rochdale Development Agency (RDA) to restore the building’s many historic features.
The council intends to fund the remaining cost of the project.
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The leader of Rochdale Borough Council has said that the restoration of the town hall will “give this wonderful building back to the people”.
We've been awarded £8.3m from @HeritageFundUK to redevelop your grade I listed town hall. We'll be restoring historic features, creating brand new spaces for community use, improving access & creating 100s of training & volunteering opportunities @InvestRochdale@JEMsocpic.twitter.com/9tT5GP8Zgz
As part of the revamp, precious parts of the building’s 149-year-old structure are set to be restored, which include the magna-carta mural and ornate ceiling panels in the Great Hall, as well as the building’s historic rooms, including the Mayor’s Parlour.
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The project will also bring neglected parts of the building into public use for the first time in many years, with a new ‘Bright Hall’ being created in the old library. This brand new facility – with capacity for 150 people – will complement the great hall by offering a smaller area which can be used as a community, educational or commercial space.
Ground floor areas previously used as meeting rooms will be turned into a brand new exhibition area, with interpretation set to tell the story of Rochdale, its people and its history.
Access will also be dramatically improved, with new lifts and terracing making it much easier for people to get in and around the building.
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A brand new Heritage Conservation ‘Skills Studio’ will be created in the basement to enable ongoing restoration works to take place once the project is complete and training opportunities in highly-specialised areas such as stained glass and antique furniture restoration will also be created in collaboration with local training providers.
Rochdale Borough Council
The redevelopment will also create a number of additional benefits through jobs, training and volunteering opportunities, which will be delivered as part of the project.
Allen Brett – Leader of Rochdale Borough Council – said: “Quite simply, the town hall is part of Rochdale’s DNA. It has played a major role in our past, detailing through its intricate features both our radical political traditions and our role in the global cotton industry which have shaped the borough we see today.
“This project means it will now also play as big a part in our future.
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“By creating brand new spaces for community use and making it easier for more people to move around the town hall, to understand it and to enjoy it, this project will give this wonderful building back to the people of Rochdale, to whom it always has and always will belong.
“I’m really grateful to the National Lottery for their support and to the team here who have worked so hard over a number of years to make this happen.”
You can find more information via the Invest in Rochdale website here.
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Tommy Fury vs Darren Till press conference descends into foul-mouthed chaos
Danny Jones
The first press conference ahead of Tommy Fury vs Darren Till was held on Tuesday evening and it didn’t take long for the whole thing to descend into absolute bedlam.
Having only been confirmed on Sunday, Fury vs Till will be a homecoming bout for the Wythenshawe-born fighter who is set to headline the first-ever boxing match at Manchester’s Co-op Live arena.
With the date set for 18 January, the pre-fight build-up and media frenzy are growing fast and things have already come to ahead in just the first meeting between the two fighters in London this week.
Clearly sharing plenty of bad blood already, while Tommy and Till were engaging in the usual fighting talk, the family patriarch, John Fury, decided to interject and it was at this point that things boiled over.
‼️ Tommy Fury vs Darren Till press conference descends into chaos as Till tells John Fury: "Shut up, you haven't been seen since Oleksandr Usyk battered Tyson."
As you can see, amidst the various insults being thrown around regarding intelligence, boxing ability, Tommy’s older brother Tyson being “battered by [Oleksandr] Usyk”, ‘Big John’ then launches a bottle of water across the table at Till, sparking a hot-tempered on-stage skirmish.
The lengthy exchange features as many expletives as you could imagine, with 31-year-old Darren Till also threatening that he will “bladder” both Tommy and his more established heavyweight sibling Tyson, labelling the entire Fury family “shithouses” as they walk out of the London press conference.
A mixed martial artist by trade who has competed at both welterweight and middleweight in the UFC, Till assured that even if the boxing match isn’t going his way on the night, he will kick [him] square in [the] face”, adding that he’s a “proper fighter” and that Tommy, on the other hand, has no power.
YouTube turned musician and occasional boxer, KSI – the founder of the Misfits promotion who is putting on the event and who Fury beat back in October last year – can also be heard whooping from centre stage and shouting, “Get your tickets!”
Even after the mini-brawl is separated, the foul-mouthed back and forth continues for some time. You can see another angle here:
Press conference aftermath 🤯@darrentill2 was going IN on the Fury’s 😳
This isn’t the first time things have boiled over at a Fury press conference; in fact, it’s not even the first time John Fury, 59, has found himself in the very eye of the storm.
Meanwhile, the youngest Fury son is preparing first his first fight in over a year, having nearly joined this year’s I’m a Celeb lineup instead.
Tickets for the now highly-anticipated boxing match at Co-op Live, just the second combat sports event to have been held at the arena, are on sale now – you can grab yours HERE. It’s going to be a feisty one.
Festive Grinch-themed cafes to pop up inside Greater Manchester Primark stores
Emily Sergeant
Festive Grinch-themed cafes are popping up inside two of Primark’s biggest Greater Manchester stores in the run-up to Christmas.
As the temperatures turn colder by the day, the nights draw in, and the most wonderful time of the year nears closer and closer, it won’t be long before it’s time to snuggle up in our comfies and pop on the first Christmas film of the year – and for some of us, there’s a good chance that first film of choice will be The Grinch.
Whether you prefer the 2000 fantasy comedy starring Jim Carey, or the 2018 animated reboot with Benedict Cumberbatch, it’s undoubtedly a real family favourite.
To celebrate everyone’s favourite grumpy green grouch, Primark has teamed up with Dr. Seuss once again on a Grinch-tastic collaboration.
Festive Grinch-themed cafes have popped up inside Greater Manchester Primark stores / Credit: Supplied
Shoppers can now head to their nearest Primark store to find the largest-ever Grinch collection, with something for the whole family, as well as great gifting options said to be “ideal for getting into the anti-Christmas spirit”.
There’s Grinch pyjamas and slippers for both adults and kids, a Grinch ‘Onesie’ that’s sure to make people green with envy, Grinch drinks cups and mugs, a selection of loungewear and Christmas jumpers for festive dressing, and so much more, as well as whole host of Grinch-inspired outfits and toys for your four-legged friends too.
As part of Primark’s aim to offer affordable choices for everyone, prices for the Grinch collection start at just £1 for accessories, and go up to £24 for adult clothing.
If the return of the Grinch collection wasn’t exciting enough as it is, the all-new Grinch cafes – which are popping up in Primark on Market Street in Manchester city centre, as well as Primark in Trafford Palazzo – are bound to be hit with fans of the furry character.
There’s everything from green waffles and themed milkshakes, to festive toasties, hot drinks, and more on the menu.
With Greater Manchester Grinch cafes set to be open until the end of December, Sarah Jackson – who is the Director of Licensing at Primark, said: “We’re so excited to roll out our amazing cafe experience across a number of our UK locations, bringing a sprinkle of mischief to our customers this festive season.
“Whether you’re stopping in for a sweet treat or stocking up on pyjamas and gifts for the whole family, we have everything you need to make it a truly unforgettable Grinch-mas.”
Emily Sergeant -
20th October 2020 
