THING OF THE WEEK
OUT OF PUFF… The so-called Wotsit Street in Birkenhead will soon be no more after the council confirmed plans to erase the bizarre markings that gave the street its nickname. The avant garde approach to traffic calming on Grange Road West hit the headlines last year with locals decrying the scheme and comparing the markings to a well-known brand of cheese-flavoured baked corn puffs. The Wotsits could be gone before the end of the month, so if you want to catch a glimpse, get yourself down there.
Credit: via Sciontec
COLIN ALL THE HEROES… Sciontec chief executive Colin Sinclair is not a man shy of a challenge, as regular readers will know. Sinclair, formerly boss of MIDAS and Manchester’s Boardwalk nightclub many years before that, is a month away from an epic 120-mile Lake District to Liverpool run. Named the ‘Tour de Ten’ to mark Knowledge Quarter Liverpool’s first decade, the run will see funds raised for Alfie’s Squad, The Brain Charity, and Clatterbridge Cancer Charity, the three charities KQ Liverpool is partnering throughout 2026. The plan is to start in Hope Park, Keswick on Monday 7 September, and reach Hope Street three days later, a route that pays tribute to the Tour de France’s 2027 Lakes to Liverpool stage.
Credit: via OBI
RUN… Manchester consultancy OBI, which always has something new going on, is also into the running right now, recent weeks having seen the launch of OBI Run Club. As THING understands it, there’s an open invitation for friends and clients to join the fun at 7.45am every Tuesday morning for a 30-minute 5km, starting and finishing at the firm’s 80 Mosley Street base. Means you can have a guilt-free Greggs after, let’s be frank.
METRO… Hands up if you were inconvenienced by the recent Metrolink upgrades. Yep, us too. Perhaps some neat timelapse footage of the project could help to make it feel as if the misery of consecutive rail replacement bus services roaring past you without stopping was worthwhile. No? Well, here it is any way.
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REEL-WIND… After a grade two-listing scuppered plans for a Lidl, the Abbey Cinema site has been stagnant. But a school history teacher is looking to change that. Lydia Jane Alice has launched a community action campaign to craft a new plan to revitalise cinema and celebrate its past. Her campaign is still very much in the information-gathering stages, but has already netted 3,457 followers on Instagram. Give her a follow to stay up to date, her username is @savetheabbeyliverpool. No supermarkets wanted.
