Cast your minds back to April of this year when the country was full of healthy ambition to fill the endless lockdown days with productivity, the 5K Challenge – which challenged people to run five kilometres, donate £5 to charity after doing so, and then nominate five friends to do the same – took over the nation.
No really, it did.
Everyone from sports stars and well-known celebrities, to your best mates and the acquaintance you hadn’t spoken to since secondary school seemed to be lacing up their running shoes and giving it a shot, and now that we’re firmly in our second national lockdown here in England, one local tech company is bringing the 5K Challenge back again.
And are doing so for an extremely worthy cause.
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Naimuri – based right here in Manchester city centre – is an innovative company with a vision to revolutionise national security, intelligence, and law enforcement through the use of technology. It specialises in combining experience gained from working in large systems integrators and applying it with the speed, innovation and mindset of a small, efficient organisation.
Put simply, Naimuri is “working to make the UK a safer and better place”.
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The 5K Challenge is just one of the ways to put the company’s ethos to good action for an organisation that truly needs it most ahead of the festive season.
All of the proceeds from the #Naimuri5KChallenge will be directly donated to Derian House Children’s Hospice.
Derian House provides respite and end-of-life care to more than 400 children and young people right across the North West to enable every person to make the very most of the time they have and create happy memories in an environment full of fun, respect and above all, high-quality care.
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It's time to untangle those fairy lights and 'Deck the Halls' for Derian House! ✨
— Derian House Children's Hospice (@DerianHouse) November 5, 2020
The Naimuri team – many of whom have already completed or begun limbering up to undertake the 5K – have set the target of raising a total of £500 through the challenge to donate to Derian House ready for the festive season approaching.
At the time of writing, the JustGiving fundraiser – set up by Naimuri’s Recruitment Manger Craig Watson – has clocked in at 24% of the way there, but there’s still plenty of time to smash that target before the end of December.
So, whether you fancy running 5K or not, if you have a couple of pounds to spare, you can make a donation to the Naimuri team and Derian House here.
For more information about Naimuri, you can visit the website here.
You can also keep up to date with the #Naimuri5KChallenge through Twitter and LinkedIn.
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Iconic Manc movie 24 Hour Party People is set to return to cinemas for its anniversary
Emily Sergeant
One of Manchester’s most iconic movies is set to return to the big screen next month.
Remastered in 4K and returning to UK cinemas to mark 24 years since its original release, Michael Winterbottom’s 2002 biographical comedy drama film, 24 Hour Party People, tells the story of Manchester‘s popular music community from 1976 to 1992 – specifically about Factory Records‘ founder Tony Wilson.
The film begins with the punk rock era of the late 1970s, before moving through the 1980s into the rave and DJ culture, and of course, the ‘Madchester‘ scene of the late 1980s and early 1990s.
The narrative largely follows the career of Tony Wilson, played by Middleton-born actor Steve Coogan, while also covering the careers of the major Factory Records artists – especially Joy Division and New Order, as well as A Certain Ratio, The Durutti Column, and Happy Mondays.
If you haven’t seen 24 Hour Party People before, it’s a dramatisation based on a combination of real events, rumours, and urban legends, as the film is sure to make clear.
Coogan is joined by a cast by a mixture of big names and, at the time, rising stars like Paddy Considine, Shirley Henderson, Lennie James, John Simm, Ralf Little, Andy Serkis, Sean Harris, John Thomson, and even Peter Kay, alongside cameos from other figures connected to the Manchester music scene.
Before it returns to cinemas, the film will first open music and media festival/conference, Beyond The Music, at MediaCity in Salford on 6 October.
The screening at the festival will also be followed by a Q&A with Coogan, Winterbottom, and producer Andrew Eaton.
24 Hour Party People will then be re-released in UK cinemas from 9 October, and you can check your local cinema for screening times and book tickets online now.
Featured Image – Altitude
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Bury actress Kate O’Flynn wins big at 2026 Emmys with record-breaking comedy show
Emily Sergeant
Did you know that one of the big winners at the 2026 Emmy Awards last night was actually an actress from Bury?
In case it wasn’t on your radar, American television‘s biggest night, the Emmys, took place yesterday evening over in Los Angeles, and several records were broken in the process – including Apple TV’s comedy horror Widow’s Bay taking home the most Emmys ever for a single series of a comedy show, with 14 of them.
Widow’s Bay tells the story of mayor Tom Loftis, played by Welsh actor Matthew Rhys, who is trying to boost tourism on his rugged New England island, but must navigate several strange events that suggest it might be cursed.
Created by Katie Dippold, and executive produced and directed by Hiro Murai, Widow’s Bay was released in late April to widespread critical acclaim.
At the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards last night, the show scooped a record 14 awards, including for Outstanding Comedy Series, several acting wins, and wins for directing and writing too.
One of those acting wins was Kate O’Flynn for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series – an actress who hails from the Greater Manchester town of Bury.
Kate stars as Patricia Moyer, mayor Tom’s eccentric assistant in the show.
She grew up in Holcombe Brook near Ramsbottom, and was educated at Bury Grammar School, before she went on to train at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) in London, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Acting in 2006.
Taking to the stage to accept her award last night, Kate said in her speech: “I want to thank our mayor [Matthew Rhys] and all the residents of Widow’s Bay, in front and behind the camera – you’re amazing. This is the role of a lifetime, thank you Katie and Hiro for trusting a Lancashire lass to play a sassy broad like Patricia. And thank you Apple [TV] for saying yes.
“Thank you Nicky and Tony for looking after me, my family back home, my mum and dad, and the loves of my life, my husband and our darling daughter – another sassy broad in the making.
Emily Sergeant -
13th November 2020 
