Sleuth is a sideways glance at the city every week, it's the truth, but Sleuth's truth. He's several people all at once. Sometimes Sleuth even gets serious @mcrsleuth
24 HOUR PARTY PEOPLE
In a week when it was announced that the executive chef of London’s ‘hottest’ 24 hour restaurant, Dan Doherty of Duck and Waffle, is to host a one-off ‘hidden’ banquet in Old Granada Studios, Sleuth also learnt that Manchester could may soon get its very own 24 hour restaurant. Simon Prideaux, the founder of London-based late-night restaurant and bar group, VQ, is reportedly keeping a close eye on sites in Manchester as they look to expand outside of the capital. Great news, thinks Sleuth, he's long been trying to squeeze a fourth main meal, with wine of couse, into that tedious spell between first dinner and brekkie.
"Come now, we know where to find Daddy"
SLEUTH'S WORLD EXPO-SED
Sleuth was excited this week to learn that Manchester could host the World Expo – a global showcase of culture, architecture and technology - in 2025, should the government choose to put us forward as its bid city. The council states the Expo, which takes place every five years and lasts for around six months, is larger in ‘size, scale and duration' than any other sporting or cultural event in the world – including the World Cup and Olympics. Representatives from 145 countries attended the last expo in Milan, with estimates suggesting the event could attract up to 28 million visitors to the council’s preferred 110-ha site on Ashton Moss, Tameside.
Wonderful, thinks Sleuth, though he isn’t convinced by some of the figures. The council state, should Manchester win the bid, the event would cost 'in excess of £1 billion'. In excess of? According to reports, Milan’s 2015 World Expo ran up a total expenditure of €13 billion, whilst Shanghai 2010 cost a whopping £32bn. Sleuth thinks we might also do well to remember that the London 2012 Olympics, with an original budget of £2.4 billion, eventually cost almost £9 billion. And remember, the World Expo is much larger in size and scale.
Now Sleuth commends the ambition, he really does, and is well aware of the wider 'legacy benefits', such as those following the Commonwealth Games, but let’s not be shady about the damage folks, it'll only come back and bite you in the arse later down the line.
As expected, Shanghai's Expo was an understated affair
SLEUTH’S TERRACOTTA SUNSET
If you don’t watch the skies you’ll miss a great British drama, one of best lightshows on Earth. Sleuth was standing on Whitworth Street on Monday evening as a brainwave hit him so he declared to a man in a doorway and a pigeon with one leg hopping in the gutter that this thoroughfare was undoubtedly the greatest terracotta tiled street in the UK. Whitworth Street starts with the wonder that is London Road Fire Station and continues via the extravagant Technical School (now part of the Uni) and Lancaster House to the glorious Refuge Assurance, now the Palace Hotel. Thanks to Julie Platt (@BettyShem) here’s the tiled Palace Hotel on fire as the sun burns itself west at twilight.
Festival of terracotta
SLEUTH AND CORRIE SWEETS
Sleuth was on the London Road Fire Station tour on Saturday and was discombobulated by Coronation Street. On the road outside the old Fire Station the group was accosted by a Pride float which bore the actors from the famous soap. As the guide tried to maintain order many went off in that modern day quest called ‘Seeking the Selfie’. The Corrie lot responded by chucking sweets at the group. Sleuth didn’t like this benign littering so he cobbed one back. He’s pretty sure he hit that Kym Marsh right in the eye.
"What has that man got in his hand?"
SLEUTH'S BEST EVER PRIDE IMAGE
Sleuth just loves this image shot by Pride photographer Carl Sukonik of Councillor Pat Karney in the build up to the Big Weekend parade on Saturday. But Sleuth wonders, what has gobsmacked Pat? Here's some (unlikely) possibilities:
"Here's the Corrie float of 1992... and that's Fred Elliot's arse in the chaps."
"...and here you see Man Bear ring-tossing during the Manchester Gay Pub and Club Olympics of 1986."
"So... do you remember that night in Essential Pat?"
But what has gobsmacked Pat?
SLEUTH AND RELIGIOUS GINNING
Sleuth likes a drink. He sometimes likes two or three. But a good drink needs a good background, a fine pub maybe…or a lovely cathedral. So Sleuth is pleased that the Gin Society is taking over Manchester Cathedral this weekend. But just a minute, says the man on the Ancoats’ omnibus, gin in a cathedral, profane no? Not a bit of it says Sleuth, who will generally excuse anything, it’s entirely natural, look, here is a tipsy landlord carved in the Cathedral roof. Drink and religion are good.
More beer vicar?
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