BBC Manctopia stars launch public consultation on £50m plans to transform town in Bolton

direct to your inboxPopular radio host Chelsea Norris has decided to quit her BBC Radio Manchester breakfast show following her maternity leave.Chelsea, who welcomed baby boy Barney last May with her husband, Ben Postma-Tonge, told stand-in host Becky Want that returning wouldn't be 'right' for her family.The mother-of-two, who also has a five-year-old daughter Minnie, appeared on the show to announce her departure.The doting mum says the past 12 months had led her to reevaluate.Asked if she was

direct to your inboxToday marks the second anniversary of the launch of the M.E.N. on Sunday. Here M.E.N editor-in-chief Darren Thwaites looks back on how a newspaper that started out against all the odds - and then faced the unprecedented impact of Covid-19 - has gone from strength to strength.It took the Manchester Evening 150 years to launch a Sunday edition.

Lyndon Higginson, who is also behind Southside, The Bay Horse Tavern and Junkyard Golf.

direct to your inbox Andy Burnham has hired external consultants to review Greater Manchester Police’s response to last year’s damning inspection report.

For all the latest news from in and around Bolton, sign up for the free MyBolton newsletterCouncil tax in Bolton is set to rise by 3.8 percent at the same time that £35m will be cut from local budgets.Bolton council’s cabinet has sent forward a budget which will see an increase in bills for households as well as a further £15 across the board levy to fund police and crime fighting in Greater Manchester.The full council is set to vote next week on the proposals, which were created by the town’s

direct to your inboxA new initiative aimed at transforming black-owned business in Greater Manchester is set to be launched next month.The programme, ran by the Black United Representation Network (BURN), will be providing black-owned businesses in the region with their own board of advisors.With a limited number of spaces available only 10 businesses will be able to take part in the scheme.Those looking to apply for the programme must fit the criteria of being a black-owned business, have at

Gallery: EastEnders spoilers for next week in 17 pictures as Chelsea forces Denise into shock decision and a proposal takes place (Manchester Evening News)Meanwhile, comedian Rufus Hound, 41, was at the centre of a storm when tweets in which he made tasteless comments about the Manchester Arena terror attack in 2017 were unearthed. He has since left the show after testing positive for Covid-19.

Radcliffe has been approved by the government.The proposal for the new facility - submitted by Star Academies and backed by Bury council - is one of four new free schools to have been given the green light across Greater Manchester.A further ten of the region's schools are set be rebuilt as part of a £1 billion scheme to boost education.The town has been without a high school since Radcliffe Riverside shut in 2014, meaning hundreds of youngsters have been forced to attend schools in other areas

direct to your inboxSchool staff in Rochdale have been warned about attempting to jump the queue for Covid vaccinations ahead of more vulnerable people in priority groups. A leaked email from the town hall to all headteachers in the borough said some staff had been using an 'inappropriately-shared' booking link intended only for NHS workers, Manchester Mill reports.

straight to your inbox every day for freeThe worst captain in modern Manchester United history still left a void - not one, but two. Antonio Valencia had all the leadership of the captain of the Titanic but his decade with United was enriched by superb seasons at right-back and on the right wing.Valencia was signed to offset Cristiano Ronaldo's world record £80million sale to Real Madrid in 2009 and the Ecuadorian's shift-run-cross strategy was reminiscent of Andrei Kanchelskis.

direct to your inboxPublic consultation on proposed new 'Martyn's Law' counter-terrorism legislation to protect the public will start in February, it's been confirmed. The development, which follows months of delay, has been welcomed by Figen Murray, the campaigning mother of Manchester Arena bombing victim Martyn Hett.

Miguel is set to be a mentor and judge on the new BBC Three streetwear show The Drop.The eight-part competition series, which is set to be filmed in Manchester, will see “10 of Britain’s most promising up-and-coming creatives – who all believe they are sitting on the next streetwear brand that is ready to make the leap from the bedroom to the global market – go head to head to win the chance to have their first line stocked in a major UK retailer”.Miguel will serve as one of The Drop‘s two

straight to your inbox every day for freeAnthony Martial needed treatment less than two minutes into Manchester United's defeat to Sheffield United and the only substitute ordered to warm-up was Daniel James.Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was patently resistant to using Edinson Cavani, 34 next month, so early in a game he had been rested for and the reluctance continued long into the second-half.Cavani was United's matchwinner at Southampton in November following his introduction at the interval but he

direct to your inboxTributes have been paid to long-serving former Manchester coroner Leonard Gorodkin following his death aged 87.The father-of-three served as the city's coroner from 1974 to 2006. The youngest of four siblings, he was raised in Miles Platting where his family owned a luggage and jewellery shop on Oldham Road, and later Prestwich.