A number of prominent UK chain restaurants have already signed up to take part in the Government’s new ‘Eat Out To Help Out’ scheme beginning on August 1.
The Eat Out to Help Out scheme is part of Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak’s #PlanForJobsannounced last week.
The scheme, which will run on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays from Monday 3rd August – Monday 31st August 2020, will see restaurants and pubs in England offer a 50% discount up to a maximum of £10 per head as a way of encouraging diners to eat at their establishments.
There is no limit to the number of times that members of the public can use the offer during the period of the scheme, but customers cannot get a discount for someone who is not eating or drinking.
Alcohol and service charges will also be excluded from the offer.
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To support restaurants and the people who work in them we’re saying ‘Eat Out to Help Out’.
So for the month of August we will give you a 50% reduction, up to £10 per head, on sit-down meals and non-alcoholic drinks Monday-Wednesday. #PlanForJobspic.twitter.com/D6eznIDjqC
Plenty of popular chain restaurants, pubs and fast food establishments across the UK – many of which have branches in the Greater Manchester area – have already signed up to take part in the scheme.
Here is everything we know about the eateries currently set to take part:
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All Bar One – The owner of the restaurant and bar chain, which has locations on King Street in Manchester city centre and the Trafford Centre has confirmed the intent to take part in the scheme. It of course will not apply to alcoholic drinks, but if you’re just grabbing a bite to eat, or fancy a soft drink, you can get 50% off up to £10 a person.
Browns – The same rules as above will apply at Brown’s, which has a branch in Manchester city centre on York Street, meaning all food and soft drinks will be half price up to £10 a head, Monday – Wednesday, in August.
Burger King – Alasdair Murdoch, CEO at Burger King UK & Ireland, said that the fast food chain will be signing up to the scheme almost as soon as it was announced. Speaking on the BBC’s Coronavirus Newscast podcast, he said: “We’ll certainly be embracing it, as long as we can understand the terms and conditions and work them out.”
Frankie & Benny’s – The American-Italian restaurant chain, which has recently announced permanent closure of a number of branches nationwide but still has outlets in Greater Manchester, told media outlets it will be knocking 50% off the bill up to £10 each in August.
Find out more on the Frankie & Benny’s website here.
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Harvester – Mitchells & Butlers, the firm behind the Harvester restaurant chain – which has a number of branches throughout Greater Manchester – said it is planning on registering with the scheme for August.
Nando’s – Fans of the ever-popular chicken chain restaurant, which has plenty of outlets open across the city centre and Greater Manchester, will be able to get their peri-peri fix at half-price too in August as Nando’s has confirmed it would be registering for the scheme.
Pizza Hut – Pizza Hut has confirmed it will be getting involved, and will have more than 100 restaurants open for dine-in customers across the UK within the next week.
Prezzo – Italian chain restaurant Prezzo, which has Greater Manchester locations at MediaCityUK and in Bolton, confirmed to media outlets that it is planning to get involved in the scheme in August.
Toby Carvery – Another brand run by Mitchells & Butlers, Toby Carvery – which announced new operational plans for reopening to customers last month – will also be offering 50% off food up to £10 a head on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays in August.
Wagamama – The popular Asian cuisine chain restaurant, with a number of outlets in Greater Manchester, will be taking part in the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, and the Rishi Sunak himself was even spotted helping to serve Wagamama’s customers shortly after making the announcement.
Manc music legends James announced MASSIVE hometown show
Danny Jones
Greater Manchester music legends James have just revealed a massive hometown show here in the city centre as part of a landmark domestic arena tour.
Daisy bucket hats at the ready.
James is arguably the epitome of what it is to be the understated, underdog British band; they’ve gone about the business of making quality music somewhat quietly for several decades now, but they’ve had a fresh wave of interest over the past year or so
Having opened up for the likes of Catfish and the Bottlemen’s comeback shows, not to mention playing multiple big festival slots in recent months alone, they’ve now announced a huge run of UK arena shows – and nowhere does a James crowd quite like us Mancs.
Details have been announced for our 2026 UK arena tour, and we’re delighted to be joined by very special guests @dovesmusicblog with tickets going on general sale this Friday at 9:30am. Access the ticket pre-sale on Wednesday via our official store: https://t.co/DwpGrAUESZ NBL x pic.twitter.com/A4CWVpCooL
Announced as part of the celebrations around their Nothing But Love ‘best of’ LP, which pulls tracks from James’ whopping 18 studio albums, the new run of UK arena shows in 2026 follows on from numerous noteworthy shows this calendar year.
In addition to the aforementioned outdoor gigs, like their stunning sold-out night at The Piece Hall in Halifax – not too far from frontman Tim Booth’s hometown in Yorkshire – the indie veterans also celebrated a huge landmark in 2025.
Surpassing the milestone of 40 years as a band, with a lineup that’s remained largely intact and only really grown in terms of live session players and touring bandmates.
The new “definitive” greatest hits record also includes two brand-new songs in ‘Wake Up Superman’ and ‘Hallelujah Anyhow’, both of which are produced by Leo Abrahams, who worked with the band on their long-awaited number one album Yummy in 2024 – a feat loooong overdue if you ask us.
As evidenced by the sheer amount of new material they continue to put out and the almost non-stop touring, they remain one of the most prolific artists in the country. FACT.
You can see the rest of James’ upcoming tour dates, including a healthy number of Northern stops in the likes of Liverpool, Leeds and more.
James UK arena tour dates 2026
Fri 2 Birmingham Utilita Arena
Sat 4 Leeds First Direct Bank Arena
Tues 7 Aberdeen P&J Live
Wed 8 Glasgow OVO Hydro
Fri 10 Newcastle Utilita Arena
Sat 11 Liverpool M&S Bank Arena
Mon 13 Cardiff Utilita Arena
Tues 14 Nottingham Motorpoint Arena
Fri 17 London The O2
Sat 18 Manchester Co-op Live
With James returning to Manchester for their Co-op Live arena debut next April, along with a sensational support slot from fellow local legends, Doves (I know, how lucky are you lot?!), you can bank on this one selling out quickly.
General admission goes on sale this Friday, 10 October at 9:30am, so you’d better be ready to grab yours in a flash.
You can find the ticket link HERE, and we’ll see you in the crowd for a good ol’ singalong.
Featured Images — Ehud Lazin/Press shots (supplied)
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Electronic icons Kraftwerk announce first Manchester gig since 2017
Danny Jones
Pioneering German band Kraftwerk have announced their first UK tour since 2017, with fans having to wait almost a decade for another Manchester gig.
Thankfully, they’ll be heading back down the Autobahn and across the channel for a return to our shores soon enough with a long-awaited list of British and Irish live dates.
Kraftwerk remains one of the most groundbreaking groups in the electronic scene to this day, having paved the way for generations of new artists to keep experimenting with the genre in the 50+ years since their formation.
Heading back to Manchester early next year, die-hards will no doubt snap these tickets faster than you can say ‘Das Model’.
For anyone unaware of these veritable legends of electronica and the world of alternative/Euro-synth pop, Kraftwerk formed all the way back in 1970 and went on to shape the modern music industry, bridging the gap between music and the digital age.
Best known for tracks like ‘Computer Love’, ‘The Robots’, ‘Pocket Calculator’ and the aforementioned on named after the national motorway network, they spearheaded futurism in the musical landscape from the outset.
It seems only fitting, therefore, that their upcoming highly anticipated return to the UK comes as part of their ‘Multimedia’ tour.
While they have played a number of live shows all over the globe this year, including an extensive run in the US, next spring will be our domestic visit from Kraftwerk in nine long years.
Credit: Press shot (supplied)
You can see the full list of UK and Ireland tour dates – including a handful of Northern gigs – down below:
Spanning a total of 15 UK dates, as you can see, there will also be tickets to see Kraftwerk nearby in the likes of Liverpool and with our mates over in Sheffield.
Kraftwerk legend Ralf Hütter famously played a set inside our city’s velodrome at the National Cycling Centre for Manchester International Festival (MIF) back in 2009, and has collaborated with the event on multiple ocassions.
In fact, that very performance was seen as a turning point for MIF, so the Manc Kraftwerk connection speaks for itself; O2 members can obviously get pre-sale, but general admission tickets go live from 9am this Friday, 10 October.
The Manc -
13th July 2020 
