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The Tiger rules in 2022 but why can’t we have a Year of the Octopus?

Chinatowns, I’ve done a few. From London’s Gerrard Street main drag to the more atmospheric San Francisco neighbourhood to Manchester’s own compact quarter. I’m an astrological dragon, so the Dragon Parades are for me; less so the waddling Lion Dances that come out of the woodwork during Chinese New Year. This year’s animal is the […]

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The party’s over, Big Dog. Pay attention to a nation you’ve put on the breadline

I’ve been poorly since Christmas. I wasn’t alone. Most of the immediate family succumbed to ferocious head colds. All Covid tests negative, so that was something. Debilitated, my to-do-list groaned, but the time out also made me consider my mixed feelings about ‘supporting hospitality’ when there was still a pandemic minefield to be negotiated.  My […]

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Harry Potter and the enduring magic of Macaroni cheese

Cheshire’s Arley Hall grounds have been hosting Harry Potter: A Forbidden Forest Adventure. My family went on a chilly Potter pilgrimage to the attraction; I dog-sat and kept the home fires burning. Next day I paid my personal homage to a hero of my own… with strong Arley links. OK, I didn’t follow Elizabeth Raffald’s […]

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Pure Provincetown – Dishwasher Bourdain to Partying Hairy Bears

I finally caught up with Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain. It came out in America last summer and now you can hire it here on Amazon Prime. One review of Morgan Neville’s documentary said of the revered chef/writer/traveller: “He lived his life unabashedly”. Spot on. Essentially shy and lonely, Bourdain navigated heroin addiction, dispiriting […]

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Mancs’ own L’Antica Pizzeria Da Michele – just don’t expect dough balls

“Don’t worry about me. I’m not gonna be slinging pizza for the rest of my life.” Little did Julia Roberts realise in her movie breakthrough, 1988’s Mystic Pizza, that that line might come back to haunt her. Flash forward to Manchester 2022 and you’ll find the veteran Hollywood star up in lights at the city’s […]

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