Today marks four years since 22 innocent people tragically lost their lives during the Manchester Arena attack on 22 May 2017.
It was an incident that shook our city and one that will forever remain etched in the memory of all Mancunians. But this year, as COVID restrictions remain in place, commemorations will once again be a little different to usual.
While there will be limited scope for gathering this year, the anniversary will be marked with acts of remembrance throughout the day.
During the morning (9am) and late afternoon (4.30pm), prayer services will be held at Manchester Cathedral – during which, the names of each of the victims will be read aloud – and both services will be streamed live via the Cathedral’s Facebook page here.
22 people lost their lives in the Arena attack in May 2017
Then, throughout the day, the cathedral will remain open from 9.30am to 4.30pm for private prayer and the lighting of candles. However, the leaving of floral or other tributes outside the cathedral or elsewhere in the city centre is politely discouraged.
ADVERTISEMENT
The cathedral bells will then be tolled at 10.31pm to mark the exact anniversary of the attack, as will those of St Ann’s Church in St Ann’s Square.
While the memorials will continue to remain low-key this year, the main focus point for commemorations from next year will be the new Glade of Light memorial, with work expected to be finished by December.
ADVERTISEMENT
The Glade of Light Memorial will be positioned nearby Manchester Cathedral next year / Image: Manchester City Council
Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester City Council, said: “Manchester will never forget the terrible events of 22 May 2017 nor the moving way the city came together to express solidarity with all those affected by the attack and a determination not to give in to hatred.
“This year will pay our respects once more, albeit in a necessarily low key fashion, and our thoughts remain especially with the families of those who lost loved ones in the attack”.
Joanne Roney OBE – Chief Executive of Manchester City Council – added: “Four years may have passed but we know that for many the pain of what happened on 22 May 2017 has not diminished.
ADVERTISEMENT
“We will always remember those who were killed, as well as those left with physical and mental injuries.
“Of course, anniversaries have a particular resonance but we don’t just remember them one day every year and it is heartening that good progress is being made on the city’s permanent memorial”.
22 people lost their lives in the Arena attack in May 2017 / Image: Flickr
It’s believed many people in Greater Manchester and throughout the country will also be paying their own personal tributes to the victims in a number of ways, and here at The Manc Group, we will always remember those who lost their lives and those affected by the devastating events of 22nd May 2017 – today, and everyday.
Manchester will never forget.
Featured Image – Flickr
UK News
Trains from Manchester ‘extremely limited’ amid record heatwave
Daisy Jackson
‘Extremely limited’ train services are running across the North West this week as the country melts in a record-breaking heatwave.
Northern has reached out to passengers to warn that a ‘significantly reduced’ number of trains are operating in and out of Manchester.
They’re urging people to avoid travelling at all unless your journey is ‘absolutely essential’.
And if you do have to travel, they’ve warned of ‘significantly longer waiting times, busy trains and short-notice cancellations’.
The disruption is set to continue all day today and into tomorrow, Friday 26 June, as temperatures up north are forecast to hit 34ºC and an Amber weather warning for extreme heat covers much of the country.
Northern has assured passengers that they ‘are doing everything we can to keep people moving as efficiently as possible’.
Passengers are encouraged to check their journey before setting off, carry water, and avoid peak times where possible.
If you chose not to take a planned journey, you can claim a full refund on your ticket, or travel on another day using Northern’s ticket easement.
Trains from Manchester ‘extremely limited’ amid record heatwave. Credit: Northern
You can see the full travel advice for Northern HERE.
Avanti has issued a similar message, reducing one train per hour on the London-Manchester route and offering refunds for tickets booked for Tuesday 23, Wednesday 24, Thursday 25 or Friday 26 June.
You can also use those tickets to travel flexibly any time up to and including Tuesday 30 June.
Northern said in a notice to passengers: “Due to the continued extreme heat, we have significantly reduced the number of trains running on routes in and out of Manchester, and services remain in high demand. This will now continue into Friday, 26 June.
“We strongly recommend customers consider whether their journey is necessary and if customers do choose to travel this week, they are advised to prepare for significantly longer waiting times, busy trains and short-notice cancellations.
“We would ask all customers to only travel if your journey is absolutely essential and to check your full journey before setting off.”
Here’s our petition for ‘Wonderwall’ to become England’s new football anthem
Danny Jones
All things considered, England have made a great start to the 2026 World Cup, pitching themselves as one of the great entertainers this tournament, and the scenes of the supporters and players alike serenading an entire stadium with ‘Wonderwall’ after the full-time whistle gave us chills.
So why not time for a change?
After all, that feels a lot like what this World Cup squad is about: a new manager, new teammates, not clinging to the previous ways of playing – and perhaps it’s time to put ‘Sweet Caroline’ to one side.
Now, we’re by no means saying that we’re ‘done’ with the Neil Diamond anthem that has been reborn as a Three Lions anthem, but look at how good it was watching England belting out Oasis with the fans.
“Today is gonna be the day that England beat Croatia 4-2”, as BBC’s Match of the Day cleverly quipped.
Obviously, we’re biased as Mancs, but we also think there’s something special about having that particular track feel so good to hear again.
As much as we love Oasis, for a long time, it felt like we couldn’t enjoy arguably their biggest-ever single anywhere near as much as we once did.
We assume it’s something akin to hearing ‘Mr Brightside’ non-stop for what felt like millennia, and in truth, hearing those repetitions of “ba, ba, ba… SO GOOD, SO GOOD!” over and over again at sporting fixtures beyond just national team games has taken the magic out of it at times.
Perhaps it’s just a case of saturation in certain settings and songs simply being overplayed – FIFA’s co-hosts over in the US certainly helped see to that when it came to ‘Wonderwall’ for a long time.
On the other hand, it feels like we’ve now come full circle; singing those famous lyrics at the top of our lungs in a sea of Mancs and fans travelling from all over to Heaton Park for Live ’25 last year felt better than ever, and like we’d all remembered how great a tune it’s always been. So did this…
In fact, this felt so emotional that you’ve got people who aren’t even English praising both those on the pitch and up in the stands for the moment online.
Even the admittedly rather American Man vs Food himself, Adam Richman (though he does have British ancestry), felt compelled to write a moving response on social media: “Shut up. You’re the one that’s crying. Bravo, England.”
He’s far from the only one who was left bowled over by the atmosphere – us included.
What do you think? Is it time for a new go-to tournament anthem for the Three Lions moving forward?
The Manc -
22nd May 2021 
