‘There's no drag scene in Rochdale’: Meet the fascinating queens representing Greater Manchester on Drag Race UK

direct to your inboxTens of thousands of the lowest paid people in Greater Manchester have been rejected after applying for financial support to self-isolate due to Covid-19.So far 22,598 applications for support under the Test and Trace Support Payment scheme have been received by Greater Manchester’s 10 councils.In total 13,390 - or 59% - of those applications have been rejected.Reasons for refusal varied and included no loss of income for self-employed people who were already receiving

Victoria Theatre, SalfordThe beautiful terracotta facade of the Victoria Theatre is overrun with vegetation, and the Grade II-listed building has been a target for vandalism over the years.There are fears that the roof needs to be urgently repaired to prevent permanent damage to the building, which the Theatres Trust hopes could be converted into a multi-purpose space.In January 2021, Theatres Trust applied to Historic England to upgrade the listing of the Victoria from II to II* as it is the

Bolton chef decided to cook up some affordable 'school dinners' and share his recipes, following the controversy about 'woefully inadequate' food parcels in parts of Greater Manchester. Gareth Mason, who recently went viral for his 'three-tier' fish, chips and mushy peas pie, decided to visit Aldi and see how many ingredients he could buy for £20.

Wigan is now emerging as a property hotspot.

direct to your inboxThe Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital is to open emergency Covid beds for adults in a sign of the unprecedented pressure facing Greater Manchester’s hospitals.Sir Richard Leese, the region’s health chief, said the situation in the system was now ‘critical’ as NHS bosses have scrambled to discharge as many people as possible ahead of a sustained peak over the coming three weeks.Crisis meetings have been held to determine the ability to scale up beds, as Salford Royal and

direct to your inboxThe NHS has sadly confirmed the deaths of 29 more patients in hospitals in Greater Manchester who had tested positive for Covid-19.The region's hospital death toll now stands at 4,757.NHS bosses said on Friday a further 993 people who tested positive for the virus have died in hospitals across England.It brings the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England to 65,104.In the north west, a further 94 hospital deaths were reported, the NHS said on Friday.A

direct to your inboxStorm Christoph is set to continue to bring heavy rain across the region.The Met Office has issued a number of weather warnings across the UK, with an amber warning in place for rain in Greater Manchester.The warning remains in place until midday tomorrow (Thursday) and the forecast is said to likely lead to flooding.Flood warnings are in place for the River Mersey at Cheadle Wood and Ford lane, River Roch in Rochdale and at Littleborough.

direct to your inbox Police have released the image of a man they’d like to speak to in regards to a robbery that occurred outside of a venue in Manchester’s gay village last month.

direct to your inboxThe coronavirus infection rates have fallen in nine out of 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester.Bolton is the only area in the region where the transmission rate has increased.Public Health England have released the most up-to-date figures for the seven days ending January 14.Health experts say England is beginning to see the effects of national lockdown measures.Yet Prof Powis, NHS medical director, said it would be a number of weeks before current lockdown measures would begin

direct to your inboxOnly one borough in Greater Manchester has recorded a rising infection rate, the latest Government data confirms.Bolton is the only borough to see an increase in the spread of the virus in the week ending January 13.The town now has an infection rate of 381.2 per 100,000 people in its population, an increase of 9pc.The overall infection rate for Greater Manchester has fallen for the second day running to 402.0, a drop of 4pc.The spread of the virus has slowed nationally too.

direct to your inboxA flood 'alert' has been put in force in Greater Manchester today after hours of heavy rainfall overnight.The alert warns of 'possible' flooding around the area of the middle River Mersey catchment area.It includes areas near Bramhall in Stockport, Sale, Altrincham and Urmston.The Environment Agency warned: "Flooding is possible - be prepared."And Transport for Greater Manchester said: "With heavy rain in Greater Manchester this morning, expect flooding in some areas.

direct to your inboxThe latest coronavirus infection rates have been revealed, as cases continue to rise across Greater Manchester.Rates are still rising in all ten boroughs, but week-on-week percentage rises do not appear to be increasing as rapidly as they have in previous days.The average infection rate for England was the same as it was the previous week.Get the latest updates from across Greater Manchester direct to your inbox with the free MEN newsletterYou can sign up very simply by

direct to your inboxThe latest coronavirus infection rates have been revealed, as cases continue to rise across Greater Manchester.Cases are increasing in all ten boroughs, with Wigan remaining the worst hit area across our region.The statistics from Public Health England show that the average infection rate across England and in London has decreased.Get the latest updates from across Greater Manchester direct to your inbox with the free MEN newsletterYou can sign up very simply by following the

direct to your inboxThe latest coronavirus infection rates for Greater Manchester show cases are continuing to rise across all ten boroughs - but at a slower rate than they were.Statistics released by Public Health England show the post-Christmas rise in cases appears to have slowed.The average infection rate across England has dropped off slightly, while the average for Greater Manchester has flattened off.Get the latest updates from across Greater Manchester direct to your inbox with the free

direct to your inboxRochdale Infirmary patients became the first in Greater Manchester to receive the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine this week.It was given to people aged over 80 attending scheduled outpatient appointments at the hospital, after its pharmacy team took delivery of the vaccine on Monday.The vaccine was approved for use in the UK by the medical regulator at the end of December.

direct to your inboxThe latest data on the coronavirus infection rates for each local authority in England show that 98 pc of the country has seen a rise. Of the 315 local areas in England, 309 have seen an increase in Covid-19 case rates and only six (2 pc) have seen a fall.

direct to your inboxGreater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has urged the government to extend its ban on evictions during the coronavirus pandemic to avoid a further surge in homelessness.Court-ordered evictions are due to start again on January 11 after being temporarily suspended after the initial Covid-19 outbreak.Boris Johnson says the ban will be kept under review after being challenged by Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer during a debate this week.But Mr Burnham is seeking a cast-iron

direct to your inboxGreater Manchester's hospitals are at risk of 'falling over' in the next three weeks due to an 'unprecedented' surge in Covid cases, the region's health chief has warned - meaning cancer operations are very likely to be cancelled.Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester City Council, painted a bleak picture of the next few weeks in our hospital system, pointing to a 'phenomenal' increase in admissions as medics brace for the third

direct to your inboxA Greater Manchester Police officer who repeatedly sexually assaulted a young girl has been jailed.Farooq Ahmed, 37, walked into a police station with a confession note before Christmas.

direct to your inboxThe streets were empty as Greater Manchester said goodbye to 2020 and ushered in a new year - but many were determined to keep alive at least one tradition.Our video from Werneth Low shows how many parts of Greater Manchester were ablaze with colour as people set off fireworks at midnight to celebrate the arrival of 2021.Around 200 socially distanced people gathered on the popular spot to watch the moment our region said goodbye to 2020 and ushered in the New Year.Car horns