Dear readers — thanks to everyone for your kind comments and response to our Sunday read, in which Ophira went in search of 40 Heywood Street, the house her grandmother grew up in, in a community where Mancunian Jews and Muslims have lived alongside each other for decades. “What an impact this article has,” Souxie wrote. “I can't stress enough how important it is that we get this in (virtual) print, to prove that proper actual journalism still exists.”
On Bluesky, the piece was described as a "marvellous, luminous piece of writing", with readers saying that "some of the most thoughtful social commentary is coming via The Mill". Dan Hayes, the editor of our sister paper in Sheffield, said "if you read one thing today, please make it this". You can read it below.
Ophira Gottlieb
Today’s briefing continues our reporting on the synagogue attack. As the investigation into what happened continues at pace, the police have been granted a warrant to keep four people in custody for questioning until Thursday. That's below.
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From today’s sponsor: Great Northern Contemporary Craft Fair returns to Victoria Baths next week (16th to 19th October), bringing together 200 of the most talented makers from across the country. Now in its 18th year, GNCCF continues to champion exceptional makers, who have been expertly selected for their skill and passion. Expect beautifully designed and created jewellery, ceramics, glassware, sculptures, textiles, silversmithing, printmaking and furniture – all hosted together in an iconic venue. For more details on the event, see the link below.
Big Story: The counter-terror investigation into the Heaton Park synagogue attack
Top line: Over the weekend, there was a lot of development in the ongoing counter-terror investigation into last week’s attack on Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation, as well as new information on the attacker, Jihad Al-Shamie. Here’s the latest.
In custody: There are currently four individuals in custody in relation to the attack. Two men, aged 30 and 32, and a 61-year-old woman who were all arrested in Prestwich. Plus a 46-year-old woman arrested in Farnworth.
- All have been arrested on suspicion of the commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism. None have been charged.
- Two others, an 18-year-old woman and a 43-year-old man, arrested with the 46-year-old woman in Farnworth on Thursday, were released with no further action.
On Saturday, counter terror officers were granted warrants to retain the four suspects for questioning for a further five days (until Thursday). Elsewhere, counter terror police have said that “significant resources have been mobilised to establish a full picture of what has happened.”
Meanwhile, two men — a member of the Community Security Trust and a security guard — remain in hospital with serious injuries from the attack. One of the men with stab wounds and the other with injuries sustained after being hit by a car. A third man, Yoni Finlay, was accidentally shot through the door of the synagogue by police trying to stop the attacker. He too is recovering in hospital.
- This news comes after an autopsy of Adrian Daulby, one of the two men killed in the attack, found he had been accidentally shot by police.
The attacker: More information has come to light about Jihad Al-Shamie, the 35-year-old who carried out the attack before he was shot dead by police. Al-Shamie dropped out of a media studies degree at Liverpool John Moores University after one year, may have been married to two women and, according to a former partner, was a father of three.
The Guardian reported that Al-Shamie was on bail for an alleged rape when he carried out the attack, and the MEN have spoken to an 18-year-old with whom he had a four-month relationship.
- Police were in the process of investigating Al-Shamie’s alleged rape, thought to have occurred earlier this year.
- The former partner, who has left the country and spoke anonymously, said Al-Shamie would impose extreme views on others and stalked her during their relationship.
Bottom line: The funeral for Melvin Cravitz, a 66-year-old worshipper killed during Thursday’s attack, was held over the weekend. The service was led by Rabbi Daniel Walker, who helped prevent Al-Shamie from entering the synagogue. The funeral for Adrian Daulby, the 53-year-old tragically killed by a firearms officer as he barricaded the synagogue door, is taking place today.
Mini Briefing
🗣️ In a video posted on LinkedIn, Gary Neville said much of the growing division in the UK right now is the fault of “angry, middle-aged white men”, and that he recently took a Union Jack flag down from one of his building sites because it was “being used in a negative fashion.” In the video, posted the day after the attack on Heaton Park synagogue, the former footballer turned property developer said “the messaging is getting dangerous,” and “all these idiots that are out there spreading hate speech in any form and abuse in any form, we must stop promoting them.”
🟦 The Conservative Party Conference is currently being held at The Midland Hotel, and reports say the vibe is pretty low. The party’s leader Kemi Badenoch is facing an uncertain future — with the Times saying she is on borrowed time — but the Guardian reports that, “some members are not so worried about regicide so much as a more prosaic threat: sheer apathy.” One big name in the Tory world texted the Mill that he was: “coming up to Manchester for the death throes”. The conference used to be high-drama spanning a week of fringe events and speeches. This year, the conference hall is half empty and, somehow, the bar is even emptier.
🏉 LS Lowry’s Going to The Match — not the one that sold for £8m in 2022, but another one of the same name — is going to be auctioned at Christie’s this month. The £8m painting, completed in 1953, depicts fans going to watch Bolton Wanderers. This painting was completed in 1928, and instead shows Rugby League fans on their way to watch either Salford Football Club (now Salford Red Devils) or Swinton Lions.
Open newsroom
🍻 Ok all, a fun one this week. Over the next few months The Mill is going to be compiling the ultimate Manchester pub rankings. By Christmas we’ll have our top 50 — which will be the conclusive, official guide to pubs in Manchester. It will be as close to objective truth as these matters can be. So, let’s hear it: what pubs do you think have to make the list? These could be well-known and universally loved city centre classics, or they could be strange little hovels well off the beaten track that just mean something to you. Just give us a steer and we’ll be there, clipboards in hand. Email jack@millmediaco.uk.
This week’s weather
Tuesday ☁️Cloudy & mild with light rain during the evening. Max 17°c
Wednesday ⛅ Dry with sunny spells but feeling fresher. Max 15°c.
Thursday ☁️ Mostly cloudy with sporadic spots of rain. Max 16°c.
Friday ⛅ Dry & mild with occasional bright spells. Max 17°c.
Weekend ⛅ Calm & dry with sunny spells once early mist clears each morning. Remaining milder than average with temperatures up to 17°c.
Home of the week
This effortless charmer up in the Northern Quarter boasts its own Victorian-style towel radiator. If that doesn’t convince you to turn over £350,000 then you’re frankly being tight.
What we’re reading
I was at both Manchester terror attacks — this time I got things right — The Sunday Times
As Tom Ludley’s fire engine headed to a fire in a commercial building in Cheetham Hill on Thursday last week, it stumbled by chance on the atrocity unfolding at the Heaton Park Synagogue in Crumpsall. Ludley had a split second decision to make: continue to the original call-out or stop and assist with the scene playing out in front of him. His choice to stop, he tells The Sunday Times, gave him the chance to put right something that had haunted him for the previous eight years: since he had been working on the night of the Manchester Arena bombing.
Grief, fear and spectacle: On the ground after the Yom Kippur killings — The New Statesman
“Descending a gentle hill, I first saw the fleet of vans and camera crews that are contrary to all the principles of suburbia. The street behind the police cordon was a scene of frozen chaos.” Ethan Croft reports from last Thursday’s attack for the New Statesman, from the immediate chaos of the scene of the attack to the “much broader rhetorical battle lines” that were hastily being drawn in the aftermath.
What our writers recommend this week
🎭 First up, a rec from a Mill reader: Shakespeare’s Henry V at the Grosvenor East Theatre. “I've seen it maybe half a dozen times but never with such vigour, dynamism, and such an overt display of talent as here,” writes our anonymous friend. There you go, effusive praise if ever it existed. Here’s the details for those who are interested.
🍽️ Jack Dulhanty had dinner last night at Stretford Canteen, in Stretford Mall. It’s a perfect little French bistro, with two courses on a Sunday for £20 and three for £25. The steak au poivre is a highlight, especially paired with the spring greens and crispy potatoes. There’s a great wine list too. Book here.
👩🌾 A universal Mill office recommendation: the evening gardening club at Altogether Otherwise, on Hanover Street. Ideal if you live in the city centre, anyone can go along to potter around the community garden, meet new people and chat. Info here.
If you’d like to sponsor editions of The Mill and reach over 60,000 readers, you can get in touch at grace@millmediaco.uk or visit our advertising page below
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