Dysfunction returns to Manchester Airport
Plus, the return of Northern Soul
Dear readers — it’s finally beginning to feel like summer in Manchester. Temperatures are sitting comfortably in the mid 20s (and our weatherman says there’s more to come), the beer gardens are filling up, and everyone’s complaining about delays at the airport.
Today’s big story looks at the power outage that struck Manchester Airport on Sunday, plus there’s a report from Manchester’s “alt Met-Gala”, and a to-do list choc-full of ways to spend time in the sun.
Beady eyed Millers will have noticed our absence from their inboxes over the weekend. We sent out our obituary of Sir Howard Bernstein yesterday afternoon — you can read the full piece here.
The opportunist: How Sir Howard Bernstein bent Manchester to his will
Living on the edge of a splendid world
From today’s sponsor: Wild, a brilliant new exhibition at Manchester Museum exploring how people are creating and repairing connections with nature, is now open. Millers have been sending in photos of their favourite wild spaces, including this one from David, who has lived in Edgeley for 50 years. “Two of the three properties I have owned have been on the perimeter of Alexandra Park,” he writes. “In a matter of seconds, I, my children and now grandchild have been able to immerse ourselves into an altogether more splendid world. The three reservoirs were originally part of Sykes's Bleach works (the Sykes family and railways were fundamental to Edgeley's growth), but have been skilfully integrated into the park to the extent that many assume they were an original feature.”
To take part, email us a photo and description of your favourite wild space. Our favourite ones will be published in future newsletters, and you will get a free curator’s tour of the exhibition. Read more about Wild and plan your visit.
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☀️ This week’s weather
Having given us only disappointing news for the last few weeks, our local weatherman Martin Miles is calling it: “Summer is here,” he exclaims. It won’t be sunny all week, but there will be plenty of warmer weather to enjoy, especially earlier on.
Tuesday ⛅️ Warm with sunny spells and light winds. Hazy. 26°C.
Wednesday 🌤️ Warm with sunshine and light winds. Slight chance of showers later in the afternoon. 26°C.
Thursday 🌦️ Cooler with bright spells and showers. Breezy. 22°C.
Friday 🌦️ Fresh with showery rain during the morning ahead of a drier and brighter afternoon. Breezy. 19°C.
Weekend ⛅️ Lots of dry and bright weather with seasonal temperatures in the high teens as high pressure ridges back in.
The big story: Manchester Airport takes another reputational blow
Top line: Manchester Airport reclaimed the crown of everyone’s least favourite over the weekend after a power cut at 4am on Sunday morning shut down its two busiest terminals, cancelling dozens of flights. Stranded passengers scrambled for Ubers to nearby airports so they could still get away, and those whose flights did take off went only with carry-on bags, because their hold luggage couldn’t be processed. Suitcases were left piled up at check-in gates.
Cable, unable: A power cable fault caused the outage after a surge of electricity shot across the network. The airport's systems were running as normal again by the afternoon. “My sincere, personal apologies to every single passenger who has been impacted by what has gone on at Manchester Airport today,” said the airport’s managing director Chris Woodroffe.
66 outbound flights (or 25% of all departures) and 18 inbound flights (18% of arrivals) were cancelled by the power cut. Flights from Terminal 3 were largely unaffected.
Inbound flights had to be diverted to other airports, with some landing in Birmingham and Heathrow.
Comms failure: Passengers were advised not to come to the airport and instead keep in touch with their airlines. But those that were already there at the time of the power cut reported a lack of communication and organisation. “Stood outside Manchester Airport in a queue that isn't moving, flight leaves in 2hrs, I can't see us making it through,” one passenger tweeted in despair at around 5am Friday. “Where do we stand, what do we do?!”
A familiar feeling: It isn’t the first time Manchester Airport has been in the news for, well, not being a great airport. In April 2022, its then-managing director Karen Smart stood down after huge security queues and pandemic-fuelled staff shortages led to weeks of dysfunction, with Andy Burnham at one point offering to draft in police and fire and rescue staff to help.
Reputational damage: The problem is that, over time, these things can become a pattern in passengers’ minds. To quote the above passenger (whose flight was eventually cancelled): “Manchester Airport really is shite.”
Getting flighty: The travel expert Simon Calder says this could lead to UK travellers flying from elsewhere. He told BBC 5 Live:
"If people are chatting in the pub and say 'well I used Liverpool John Lennon Airport and it was fine, nice and uncrowded, seems to work OK', then you might get a cohort of people actually moving away from Manchester Airport to another airport."
Bottom line: The root cause of the power cable fault is now under investigation, and extra staff have been deployed to help with the backlog caused by the outage. As of Monday morning, passengers who had flights disrupted on Sunday face further delays as grounded flights are rearranged.
Your Mill briefing
👮 Police are appealing for information relating to the murder of Junior Ajose and Cheriff Tall in Moss Side, in June 2020. They say the suspect is from Birmingham, but are still urging those who witnessed the men’s deaths at a party in a car park to give more information. “We know that there were hundreds of people in the car park that night and I’m sure that many people must have seen something,” said GMP’s Neil Higginson. As we reported back in 2022: “the shooter is known to the community in Moss Side, their name is spoken casually”. GMP are still trying to overcome the culture of silence, saying anyone who works with them would not be “a grass”.
🖌️ Palestine Action have smashed the windows of JP Morgan’s offices in St Peters Square and covered it with red paint. In a tweet claiming responsibility, the group said: "Actionists target JP Morgan Chase’s Manchester offices, over the bank’s investments in Israel’s biggest weapons firm, Elbit Systems.” The group also targeted two Barclays offices in the city centre earlier this month.
🏛️ Sir Howard Bernstein — the former chief executive officer of Manchester City Council who is credited with rebuilding the city after the 1996 bomb and driving the regeneration that paved the way for the Manchester we see today — died on Saturday after what his family has described as a “period of illness”. He was 71 years old.
Home of the week
This charming home in Bolton has five bedrooms, original Victorian tiles and stained glass windows. Yours, for £550,000.
The best journalism you’re not getting
Last week, we published pieces on how accessible Manchester is for people with disabilities, and uncovered a business rates company targeting the city’s small businesses. If you want to read those pieces, and unlock our vast archive of long reads, interviews and features, hit the subscribe button below and become a member. You’d be joining a 3,000-strong community that wants to fund in-depth investigative reporting in Greater Manchester.
Our favourite reads
A pre-election journey across Britain’s neglected north — The Financial Times
Steve Oliver, founder of online trading platform MusicMagpie, doesn’t hold back when describing what Stockport used to look like: “A shit bowling alley, a shit cinema and a Laser Quest.” Now, Stockport is “having a moment”, says the FT’s Northern correspondent Jen Williams, describing a recent visit to “the area’s most fashionable cocktail bar”, which looks down on a strip of restaurants, art galleries and cafes. But these changes didn’t happen quickly. The town’s success story is “a snapshot of how long it takes to turn a local economy around and how that happens”.
Manchester’s most fashionable students just had an alt-Met Gala — Dazed
Manchester students have their own version of the Met Gala, with students dressing up as modern-day mythical creatures, complete with “elfin prosthetics” and “nymph-like extensions”. DJs played Detroit techno and hyperpop and the proceeds went to the Pankhurst Trust, a charity supporting victims of domestic violence. “We aim to help people find a sense of belonging in the Manchester creative scene,” said one student, “which is also about creating a safe space for the queer members of our fashion community.”
Meet the young DJs keeping Northern Soul alive — BBC News
Northern Soul, a genre that emerged from lost soul records by black American artists, had its peak in nightclubs in Wigan and Bolton in the 1970s. The genre is enjoying a renaissance, with founders of Deptford Northern Soul putting on regular nights at YES, and DJ collective Northern Grooves keeping the music alive with a residency at Night and Day. This piece meets two of the young DJs getting involved in the scene.
Our to do list
A good week for students and cheapskates, as virtually all our recommendations cost nothing…
Tuesday
🍕 Nell’s, the extremely popular American pizza restaurant, is showing all of England’s appearances in the Euros at its leafy, canalside spot on KAMPUS, so you can enjoy the sunshine without missing out on the action. More here.
📸 Last chance to see Greater Mancunians at Manchester Central Library, an exhibition that features the portrait photos of those who have shaped the city for good. It’s free.
Wednesday
👺 Aviva Studios is filled with giant, inflatable monsters this week as part of a new exhibition by the artist Bruce Asbestos, who worked closely with young people to create the artworks. It’s free to visit.
🎸 Blues artists Mat Walklate and James Lawley are performing at the city centre jazz club Matt and Phred’s from 8pm. It’s free to attend.
Thursday
🎞️ To celebrate Pride month, Café Blah in Withington is showing a screening of Pariah, an award-winning film about a young girl from Brooklyn wrestling with her sexuality. It’s free.
🎨 There’s a new exhibition at Salford Museum and Art Gallery that celebrates the life of local painter Harold Riley, who was admired for his paintings of Salford’s docks and backstreets and his portrayals of subjects like Prince Phillip and Nelson Mandela. It’s free to visit.
Disruption at airports is quite common for a variety of reasons (e.g. weather) and I've been caught up in this at various airports over the years. The common factor is that neither airports nor many airlines don't seem to have systems in place to communicate with passengers despite having P.A. systems and numerous electronic screens of various types. Even our much maligned railway system usually makes announcements about disruption and Metrolink displays info on their departure screens. It's beyond comprehension why the air industry can't do this.
Just wanted to counter balance the comment about Manchester Airport. I flew in on Saturday afternoon just hours before the power cut. It couldn't have been better. No queues at passport control, luggage already coming through. I was off the plane and out of the airport within around 20 mins. Problems happen sometimes, but don't knock the whole airport.