Comedian and performer Jason Manford has criticised theatre-goers for leaving the floor of one of Manchester’s most beloved venues covered in litter and in a “shocking” state following one of his recent performances.
Currently part of the ongoing Jack and the Beanstalk pantomime run, Manford shared a social media post revealing the amount of rubbish left on the floor of the Manchester Opera House following the cast’s show to the general public.
Opening the video by stating, “Look at the bloody tip people leave”, the Salford-born stand-up, singer, actor and presenter asked, “Why do people do this?”
Posting the short clip on Instagram along with the caption, “What’s your take on litter inside a theatre? Is it [the] audience or staff’s responsibility? What d’ya reckon?”, the video itself has comments turned off but has already sparked plenty of discussion online.
The 42-year-old went on to urge people attending the show, or any theatre production for that matter to clean up after themselves, noting that there was rubbish of some form on “every single row”.
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Manford, who is starring as Jack, labelled the behaviour unbelievable and argued, “You wouldn’t treat you’re own home like that, would you?”
Citing that his days working front-of-house in cinemas might have coloured his opinion on the matter, he said it takes very little effort to simply pick up your refuse and find the nearest bin on the way out and the majority of people reacting online are in overwhelming agreement.
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One commenter underneath his post on X said, “People’s responsibility. Why can’t people just do the right thing and take their litter home with them ?? Or use a bin nearby??”, while most agreed at the very least that aside from accidental spillages, it’s just “common courtesy”.
Agree it’s insane. People never used to eat during performances, why now?! Maybe it’s because it’s so expensive now they feel entitled to do it 🤷🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️🤷🏻♀️
Another person went so far as to say: “People are disgusting. Personally, I’d ban food and drink in theatres and cinemas.
“It totally ruins the experience for me, listening to people chomping and slurping their way through the performance.”
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Jason’s turn in Jack and The Beanstalk began on Thursday and is set to run until the end of the year — here’s hoping this public callout will mean the theatre staff have less mess to clean up going forward.
It isn’t Manford’s only big stage production here in Manchester city centre either, as the local legend is also hosting The Big Night of Musicals in 2024.
The BBC is looking for people to apply for the next series of The Traitors
Clementine Hall
The BBC is currently casting for the next series of The Traitors, and is looking for some deceptive Mancunians to take part.
It’s safe to say that The Traitors is pretty much a cultural phenomenon at this point.
Pretty much everyone and their dog is tuning in to watch The Celebrity Traitors on Thursday and Friday evenings, but this time it’s not about the celebs.
Producers describe The Traitors as a ‘game of trust and treachery’, and there’s always plenty of twists, turns, shocks, and surprises along the way – but do you reckon you’ve got what it takes to play?
If so, the BBC is currently casting for the next series of the popular show, and is calling on people in Greater Manchester and across the UK to apply.
Applications are currently open to players who are over 18 years of age and have the right to legally reside in the UK.
The first series of the smash-hit BBC reality competition show proved pretty popular when it premiered back in 2022, but the second series took things to a whole new level, and truly seemed to capture the attentions of the nation like no other – with millions of viewers tuning in to watch the three episodes each week.
But in case you haven’t seen it, The Traitors is, put simply, a competition series that’s built on strategy, suspicion, and deception, where a team of players are tasked with competing in a series of missions – with the more missions they complete successfully, the bigger the prize pot gets.
However, hidden among the players are the ‘Traitors’, who meet in secret and decide who to eliminate from their fellow players known as the ‘Faithfuls’.
The aim for the ‘Traitors’ is to stay undetected until the end, while the aim for the ‘Faithfuls’ is to banish all of the Traitors before the game ends.
Up for it? You have until 31 May 2027 to apply for the next series of The Traitors here.
Traitors star and comedian Joe Lycett is putting cash behind the bar at two Manchester pubs
Daisy Jackson
Comedian Joe Lycett is putting money behind the bar at two Manchester pubs this week, as he continues to encourage people to get out and support their local boozers.
The TV favourite – who is also currently one of the stars on The Traitors – announced the news as he bid farewell to his fictional TV pub The Lycett Arms.
On the show, he said: “There are 45,000 pubs in the UK – go and give them some love.”
Joe Lycett then proceeded to list 30 brilliant pubs up and down the country, including two in Manchester, and announced that the drinks are on him this week.
He told audiences: “[This] Friday I’ll be putting a little bit of money behind the bar in all the pubs you’ve just seen. I hope you can have a drink on me.”
The pubs he picked out in Manchester are the iconic old boozer The Peveril of the Peak, and the excellent pub and comedy venue The Old Monkey.
The Peveril of the Peak on Great Bridgewater Street is a real icon in the city centre, with its green tiled exterior and its cosy interiors.
Until recently, it was run by legendary local landlady Nancy Swanick, who died in July at the age of 96.
The Peveril of the Peak pub in ManchesterInside The Pev
Commenting on Joe Lycett’s post about his pub offer, they wrote: “You are all more than welcome at The Pev. Give me a shout and I will sort you out with a pie, Joe.”
The Old Monkey, meanwhile, is famed for its comedy nights run by Trapdoor Comedy Club, and for its open mic sessions, as well as award-winning beers.
The Portland Street pub has also very kindly agreed to match Joe Lycett’s donation, which means double the budget for pints for Mancs.
Danny Jones -
4th December 2023 
