A dream come true or a recipe for disaster? Manchester reacts to the return of the Christmas Markets

direct to your inboxA family is trying to track down the person behind a kindhearted random act of kindness.An envelope with a £5 note inside had been left in the car park of Asda in Chadderton on Christmas Eve.Inside the envelope, which had a Christmas tree drawn on it, the card read: "To whoever has found this, I hope you have a lovely Christmas, treat yourself."Keep smiling, there is light at the end of the tunnel!Get the latest updates from across Greater Manchester direct to your inbox with

straight to your inbox every day for freePaul Scholes says Manchester United's position in the table shows they have the ability to be title challengers this season.Their recent form has prompted plenty of talk about whether United can launch a challenge that was unexpected at the start of the season. Some of United's players have been bullish about their chances and Scholes can see why.

direct to your inboxLike this entire year, Christmas Day in 2020 is anything but normal.It's a restricted, and for some quite sad time.But Greater Mancunians did have something to smile about today...

straight to your inbox every day for freeThere's no rest for Manchester United, who were last to play on Wednesday night and are first to kick off on Boxing Day. That gives Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's squad little time to prepare for a tough test at Leicester tomorrow, let alone fit in a proper Christmas Day with the family.

Ariana Grande has brought some Christmas cheer to hundreds of young hospital patients in Manchester.The pop star has surprised hundreds of children at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital and Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI) with an Amazon voucher each worth £100.Speaking to the Manchester Evening News, the father of one of the patents said his daughter was “absolutely delighted” with the kind gesture, describing the ‘7 Rings’ singer as “a wonderful human being”.“She said, ‘look dad, I’ve got a

direct to your inboxIt's been another busy couple of weeks in the region's courts in the lead up to Christmas.People have been locked up for all manner of  criminal offences  with M.E.N. reporters there to cover the most serious.There was the vicious knifeman who has left three people permanently disfigured and traumatised.Then there was the troubled baker told investors she had 'turned her life around'.

direct to your inboxA man in a Manchester United mask stands alone with his holdall bag in an empty, closed check-in hall. His story is anything but festive.He tells me he he left home following a row with his girlfriend and decided to jet off on a flight abroad on a whim.But now that he is in Manchester Airport with no ticket, he just wants to get back home to east Manchester.Last year I visited the airport on December 24 to capture the heartwarming moment couples reunited for the festive

Ariana Grande is proving the people of Manchester are very much in her heart this holiday season.

straight to your inbox every day for freeNemanja Matic holds the key to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer being able to field a midfield trio of Paul Pogba, Bruno Fernandes and Donny van de Beek at Manchester United.That's the view of former Premier League striker Darren Bent, who believes the Serbian is the 'disciplined' figure in the side who will allow those three stars to strut their stuff further up the pitch.Pogba, Fernandes and Van de Beek all started for United in their Carabao Cup quarter-final tie

Ariana Grande had an early Christmas present for young people in Manchester spending the festive season in hospital. It’s been reported that Ariana has gifted every child being treated at Manchester’s Royal Infirmary and the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital with a £100 voucher that they can use on Amazon.

direct to your inboxAriana Grande has brought some Christmas cheer to young patients in Manchester.The popstar has donated a £100 Amazon voucher to every child at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital and Manchester Royal Infirmary (MRI). One dad told the Manchester Evening News his daughter was 'absolutely delighted' with the kind gift, describing the singer as 'a wonderful human'.

straight to your inbox every day for freeOle Gunnar Solskjaer was looking to 'change the dynamics of the game' when he introduced Luke Shaw during Manchester United's victory over Everton in the Carabao Cup.United booked their place in the last four of the competition on Wednesday night thanks to late strikes from Edinson Cavani and Anthony Martial.Both of the goals came after left-back Shaw replaced Alex Telles in the 85th minute of the match in a substitution which raised eyebrows as United

direct to your inboxTwo men from Greater Manchester who won £20,000 on the hit BBC show Race Across the World have donated their prize money to charity.Emon Choudhury, 36, from Stockport, beat four other teams to win the race alongside his nephew Jamiul Choudhury, 25, from Oldham.The pair beat the odds to complete an epic 54-day journey from Mexico City to the south of Argentina for the second series of the BBC2 show.On their travels, the men were visibly moved by the number of homeless children

direct to your inboxDreaming of a white Christmas?Sadly, forecasters have predicted there will be no snow on Christmas Day this year.But the Met Office has said Greater Manchester is likely to see widespread frosty conditions that will bring a 'seasonal feel' to festivities on the day.Temperatures across most of the country will stay in mid-single figures on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but no snow is expected to settle, Met Office forecasters have predicted.They said that despite a wet

straight to your inboxManchester City have given a Christmas present to every primary school kid in East Manchester and every child in in care across the whole city.Staff, players and coaches have paid for, wrapped and delivered more than 5,500 gifts.And with the coronavirus pandemic meaning the traditional Christmas visits to hospitals are off the cards, stars including Phil Foden and Kevin De Bruyne have been video calling patients on children's wards at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital,

After her fiancé Bradley Dack branded her The Grinch, Olivia Attwood decided to give the footballer a festive surprise by giving their flat a Christmas makeover. With the help of Lasting Memories Weddings & Events, Olivia transformed their Manchester flat into Santa’s Grotto complete with two giant Christmas trees, festive garlands and stunning decorations.

Ramones festive track ‘Merry Christmas (I Don’t Want To Fight Tonight)’.The song, which originally featured on the New York band’s 1989 album ‘Brain Drain, has been reworked into a more downbeat version by the Manchester trio.

straight to your inbox every day for freeOle Gunnar Solskjaer believes the potential return of fans to Old Trafford could have an instant impact on Manchester United's home form.United have won just one of their six home games in the Premier League this season, whereas their form on the road has been scintillating so far.

Blossoms have unveiled a new, animated short film, Christmas Eve (Soul Purpose).