Mancs have been baffled this morning by the sight of a gigantic mobile phone running around town.
Someone dressed as a phone was clocked moving at pace through Manchester city centre.
The long-legged device travelled from St Peter’s Square down to Piccadilly Gardens before disappearing into the Northern Quarter.
One eye witness said: “I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I thought they might be filming a new series of Trigger Happy TV but with an even bigger phone.”
Another person said: “It was quite unnerving because I’m used to seeing my phones normal-sized.”
When The Manc caught up with the giant phone and asked what they were dressed up for, they refused to answer and just said we’d have to ‘call back at 3pm’.
They also mumbled something about an exciting opportunity before they vanished.
We caught something about Mobile Phones Direct too, which is a brand owned by AO that sells ‘as-new’ mobile phones for a fraction of the price.
AO is the first online retailer to stock these ‘as-new’ phones, with handsets including iPhones from the official Apple factory with 12-month warranties.
Manchester has a bit of a habit for producing giant versions of everyday objects – who could forget the huge pigeon casually strolling past normal-sized ones a few years back.
And now we’re all sitting waiting for the giant phone to reappear at 3pm today to see what all the fuss is about.
You might want to keep an eye on The Manc’s Instagram and TikTok pages…
Update – 10 August
The mystery of the giant phone was solved on Wednesday afternoon, when it turned out the giant phone was giving away a free, brand-new, iPhone 14 Pro.
The big device went live on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram and began to run all over Manchester city centre again, prize in hand.
The first person to track him down – and he was fast – sing a ring tone, and shout Mobile Phones Direct, was declared the winner.
And Jake Whitehead was the lucky soul who scooped himself a brand new phone after sprinting all the way from the Northern Quarter to catch The Manc on Cooper Street.
Perfect timing, too – Jake had smashed his own phone the day before…
Hit theatre production set at a house party to visit Manchester on UK tour
Daisy Jackson
Alright then, 24 hour party people, we’ve found a theatre production you might like the sound of – it’s called The House Party, and it’s set in (you guessed it) a house party.
This smash hit production by pioneering theatre company Headlong is set to land at HOME in March as part of the arts venue’s 2025 theatre season.
It tells the tale of a wild 18th birthday party, where Christine is trying to pick up the pieces of her best friend, a newly-dumped Julie (who happens to be the birthday girl).
Themes of class, power and privilege are all explored with a raw intensity as the cast on stage plough through shots and dive head-first into a night that will change everything they know.
The House Party, which has received glowing reviews from previous showings, is filled with ‘privilege, desire and destruction’.
When it stops off in Manchester, its cast will include Bridgerton’s Sesley Hope as Christine, Synnøve Karlsen (Miss Austen, Last Night in Soho) as Julie, and Tom Lewis (Gentleman Jack, Patience) as Jon.
The ensemble of Frantic Assembly performers includes Ines Aresti, Oliver Baines, Cal Connor, Micah Corbin-Powell, Rachael Leonce, Jaheem Pinder and Jamie Randall.
The House Party is written by Laura Lomas and is a reimagining of August Strindberg’s Miss Julie for today’s generation.
It’s directed by Headlong’s artistic director Holly Race Roughan, who directed the Royal Shakespeare Company’s world premiere of David Edgar’s major new political play The New Real.
The House Party. Credit: Ikin YumThe production will be at HOME. Credit: Supplied
Movement direction will come from Frantic Assembly’s Scott Graham.
Prior to the UK tour of The House Party, Headlong celebrated its 50 year anniversary, including the hit production of A Raisin in the Sun which played nationwide.
The House Party will be at HOME in Manchester between 25 and 29 March, 2025 – you can get your tickets HERE.
Greater Manchester’s annual Repair Week is back to make you fall back in love with your stuff
Daisy Jackson
If you’re not a handy person, when something breaks, the temptation is often to abandon or bin it straight away.
But that’s just not how we’re gonna do it here in Greater Manchester any more, with the return of the annual Repair Week to help you learn valuable repair skills and save money at the same time.
Whether it’s tinkering with your bicycle, fixing up your small tech items, or having your furniture re-varnished and upcycled, there are so many places and people who are on a mission to help you fall back in love with your belongings.
There are even workshops to help you put flat-pack furniture together.
Taking place between 3 and 9 March, Repair Week will be the chance to learn skills, fix your stuff, gain repair confidence and find local fixers.
Events throughout the week (and beyond) will be hosted by community groups, businesses and plenty more.
You can sharpen knives, fix zips, and un-wobble chairs with a little hand from local repair heroes.
JillyGDesign Jewellery in Heaton Moor will fix up your sentimental and special jewellery items, while Rag Revival will help you turn unusable textiles into new creations with basic sewing skills.
There are repair cafes popping up all over Greater Manchester where you can take your belongings.
Greater Manchester’s annual Repair Week is back to make you fall back in love with your stuff. Credit: Supplied
Repair Week will highlight schemes like the Manchester Library of Things, where you can borrow the tools and equipment you need for those repair jobs at home.
During the week you’ll also be able to take a behind-the-scenes tour of the incredible Renew Hub, the UK’s biggest reuse hub, where donated items are brought back to life.
Similarly, you’ll be able to get inside the textile recycling centre run by homelessness charity Emmaus Bolton, where you can choose your own fabric from the scrap store and turn it into a very handy draught excluder to keep costs down and your heat in.
Recycle for Greater Manchester’s Repair Week will take place between 3 and 9 March, with workshops, events and resources to help you revive your belongings.
Daisy Jackson -
9th August 2023 
