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The Jungle Book is coming to Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre in Chester

Emily Sergeant Emily Sergeant - 22nd April 2021

A family-friendly production of The Jungle Book is coming to an open air theatre at a popular park in Chester next month.

With the summer season setting in and an “irreversible” roadmap for lifting England’s current national lockdown now in place, Chester’s much-loved Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre is springing back into action with a “vivid new version” of The Jungle Book, based on Rudyard Kipling’s 1894 classic of the same name.

The production kicks off on Saturday 29th May, and will run every weekend until the end of August 2021.

While there may be a few new surprises, the production will still feature all your favourite Jungle Book characters including Baloo, Bagheera and Shere Khan as they guide man-cub Mowgli through the laws of the jungle.

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Established in 2010, Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre is one of the UK’s best-loved open-air theatres and regularly plays to sold-out audiences across the summer.

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The theatre is produced by Chester’s award-winning cultural centre, Storyhouse.

If The Jungle Book isn’t quite your thing, this well-loved classic will also play alongside other immersive productions of The Merry Wives of Windsor and Pride and Prejudice too in the stunning surroundings of Chester’s open air theatre.

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Walt Disney Productions

The Jungle Book at Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre will be running from Saturday 29th May – Monday 29th August 2021, with multiple productions each weekend and ticket prices starting from just £28.

Some dates are sadly already sold out, and others are selling fast, but there’s still time to grab your tickets here.

You can also find more information via the Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre website.

Featured Image – Grosvenor Park Open Air Theatre / Mark McNulty

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A rare ‘Strawberry Moon’ will appear in the sky for the final time tonight – here’s when to catch it

Danny Jones Danny Jones When best to see the 2025 strawberry moon in Manchester, UK

In the latest astronomical phenomenon to hit Britain and beyond in recent times, a rare ‘Strawberry Moon’ is set to appear once again in UK skies tonight, and you don’t want to miss it.

Put it this way: if you didn’t catch it last night, you won’t get another chance for nearly two decades.

The event only happens approximately every 18.6 years and will be the lowest it’s appeared above our part of the world that its been since 2006.

But for those who’ve never even heard of this, you might be wondering what exactly a Strawberry Moon is. We’re no experts, but this should just about fill you in.

Strawberry Moon 2025 – explained

What is it?

Put in simplest terms, a Strawberry Moon occurs when the Moon reaches the extremes of its northernmost and southernmost rising and setting points on the horizon, creating a striking standstill impression to the human eye.

According to expert Matt Woods from the Perth Observatory, “These standstills happen because the Moon’s orbit is tilted at a 5-degree inclination relative to the Earth’s equator and slowly shifts over time.”

The name itself derives from native American culture and, in the case of June’s full Moon, it is dubbed as such not only because of its reddish hue but because it aligns with the start of summer and the beginning of strawberry harvest season.

Colliding with the summer solstice – with said standstill sometimes referred to as a ‘lunicstice’ – the moon will give more of an orange glow rather than pink or red like actual strawberries, but it’s nevertheless a stunning sight. It was already clocked across various parts of the globe since Monday:

Why so low, moon-face?

As for why it’s going to loom so low over our skies this evening, UK archaeologist and historian Jennifer Wexler explained to BBC’s Sky At Night Magazine: “Over several years, the limits of moonrise and moonset themselves gradually change, until they reach the point where the northernmost and southernmost moonrise and moonset positions are at their maximum distance apart on the horizon…

“Once a major standstill is reached, the distance between northernmost and southernmost moonrise and moonset can be exceptionally far apart, and it stays that way for around two years.”

With all that in mind, this particular full Moon (10-11 June, 2025) will be the lowest full Moon in the sky for nearly two whole decades and won’t occur again until 2043, hence why so many have taken an interest in trying to catch it.

Speaking of…

When and where is best to see the Strawberry Moon in the UK?

Now, we won’t lie to you, Greater Manchester isn’t necessarily the best-placed area to see the upcoming Strawberry Moon in its full glory this Wednesday; the weather forecast has it that the skies are clearest right up at the top of England, as well as south-west Scotland.

However, provided there isn’t too much cloud coverage, it should still be visible across most regions, including the North West.

The moon is expected to rise around 9:30pm tonight, with the best window to see it appearing within the next hour or so following this period. It may not be as bright and bold as it appeared in some parts of the country on Tuesday, but it’ll still be something to behold.

In terms of what else meteorologists have said about the rest of this week, the weather is looking a bit all over the place, we’re afraid.

Thunderstorms and ‘intense downpours’ forecast to hit the UK from this evening

Read more:

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Featured Images — Thangaraj Kumaravel/Alan Levine (via Flickr)/Mark Tegethoff (via Unsplash)

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Popeyes is giving away 10,000 FREE hash browns in Manchester

Thomas Melia Thomas Melia

Louisiana fried chicken chain Popeyes is set to giveaway 10,000 free hash browns across its Manchester locations.

Manchester may be known for rain, but this time, it’s not those little murky raindrops that will be falling into our hands, instead it’s the holy grail of the carb world – hash browns.

Once the madness of Parklife this weekend has been and gone, I don’t think anyone could’ve come up with a better solution for a two-day, dance-ridden, drink-fuelled weekender, than a lorry load of free Popeyes cajun hash browns.

Popeyes is known for serving up lots of tasty treats, including a range of signature sauces like ‘Bold BBQ’, ‘Garlic Parm’, and ‘Buffalo’.

Popeyes menu is packed with lots of famed chicken varieties.
This Louisiana food chain is set to giveaway 10,000 free hash browns.
Popeyes is giving away 10,000 FREE hash browns in Manchester / Credit: The Manc Group

Alongside putting Louisiana on the map thanks to its delicious chicken varieties, Popeyes is also known for its spice-infused sides, which are famously covered in cajun seasoning, and the hash brown is one of the best of them.

Popeyes’ cajun hash browns are taking centre stage across Parklife weekend, as from Saturday 14 June through to Monday 16 June, 10,000 of these glorious golden treats will be given away for free as Manchester celebrates its biggest festival.

“We know Parklife is one of the biggest weekends in the Manchester calendar,” commented Dave Hoskins, who is the Head of Food at Popeyes UK, “and being just down the road from the action, we wanted to help festivalgoers start their day right”. 

Whether their cajun hash browns are your go-to breakfast feast, or you’re after your first taste of the Popeyes menu, then make to visit any of the two Manchester Popeyes sites, download thee app, and get there before 10am.

Anyone after sampling these breakfast breadwinners can do so by downloading Popeyes official app and registering for an account by 11:59pm on Friday 13 June 2025 HERE.

Read more:

For all the latest news, events and goings on in Greater Manchester, subscribe to The Manc newsletter HERE.

Featured Images – Publicity Picture (via Laurence Howe)

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