THING OF THE WEEK
FUNDRAISERS…Contractor Seddon has pledged to raise £175,000 towards the construction of the Christie’s £26m cancer centre at Macclesfield District Hospital. A long-time supporter of the Christie, Seddon will donate £250 for every house it sells under its Seddon Homes brand from now until the end of 2022, a period during which the company anticipates selling 700 homes. Nicola Hodkinson, director at Seddon and former Christie patient, said: “You really only get a sense of the Christie when you walk through the front door. It is not a normal hospital; it doesn’t feel or smell like one. It’s unique and that uniqueness comes from its values and the Christie teams who dedicate every day to making a patient’s cancer a bit more bearable.” Nicola began her treatment at the Christie in February 2019, and over a seven-month period underwent chemotherapy and targeted therapy, followed by surgery and further radiotherapy. She was declared cancer-free in September that same year.
FIRST WEEK…Salford City Council’s new chief executive Tom Stannard has had a busy first week in post. Two (negative) Covid tests, a Q&A with city mayor Paul Dennett, and more meetings than you can shake a stick at. But he still had time to cram in a couple of runs to familiarise himself with his new surroundings, including a nifty looking route around Salford Quays (above). Welcome, Tom.
Great staff, superb volunteers, and totally painless! pic.twitter.com/Pq3G14xw4Y
— Sir Richard Leese (@SirRichardLeese) February 4, 2021
VACCINATION ANIMATION…While Tom Stannard was busy sticking swabs up his nose in Salford, across the border in Manchester, Sir Richard Leese was having needles jabbed into his arm. The leader of Manchester City Council had his first dose of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine at the Irish World Heritage Centre in Cheetham Hill and could hardly contain his enthusiasm. “Can’t believe I am so excited about having a needle stuck in my arm!” he tweeted hours before his date with the syringe.
Walmer Street prior to the damage wrought by Storm Christoph c.Google
SINKING FEELING…For some of us, Storm Christoph was something of a novelty – a reminder that being cooped up in your home actually has its advantages. However, for residents of Walmer Street in Abbey Hey, the ruthless rainfall compounded an already difficult period, opening up a sinkhole that left houses teetering perilously close to the edge. Manchester City Council is working with United Utilities to investigate the event, which now requires the demolition of four properties, a delicate process that began this week.
What is he hiding behind that beard?
PAINTING…Tatton Park has a lot to offer: majestic parkland, a decadent mansion and a farm packed with adorable animals – and that’s before we even get to the art collection. One of Tatton’s works of art, an oil painting depicting a physician, will be under the spotlight on BBC4’s Britain’s Lost Masterpieces on Monday. Via a trip to Rome, experts Bendor Grosvenor and Emma Dabiri will delve into the history of the panting in an attempt to uncover the identity of the inscrutable physician and find out who the original artist was.
PARISH COUNCIL…The Sea Shanty (essentially karaoke for sailors) craze stuck around for a while but it has finally been usurped as the most entertaining and jaw-dropping internet sensation of the moment. Introducing Handforth Parish Council, a rag-tag bunch of irrationally angry and pernickety individuals who have shot to fame after a recording of highly charged planning and environment committee caught the attention of a bored nation. If you haven’t already, you owe it to yourself to watch the video.
