Just a few miles over the Cambridgeshire border near Oundle, marks a site of major importance in Tudor history. Fotheringhay Castle is the remains of a large, medieval motte-and-bailey castle.
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Although nowadays, there is very little left to see except a large mound of grass-covered earthworks – but it still remains a significant historic landmark. The castle, located north of Oundle, was likely founded around 1100 by Simon de Senlis, the Earl of Northampton.
The mound was once the site of a remarkable castle with an illustrious history. It overlooks a crossing point on the River Nene and it also acted as a royal palace and a prison from the 13th century.
Following its founding, the castle was under royal control, hosting a number of notable historic figures including King Henry III, Edward II, Richard III, and it was a favoured residence of several Dukes of York.
The castle was particularly famed as the birthplace of Richard III in 1452. Likely the most notorious Royal to spend time at the impressive castle was Mary Queen of Scots. She was the great-granddaughter of King Henry VII and first cousin once removed to Queen Elizabeth I.
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She inherited the throne at just six days old when her father died. She briefly became queen consort in France before returning to Scotland. Mary had once claimed Queen Elizabeth’s throne as her own and was considered the legitimate sovereign of England by many English Catholics.
Seeing her as a threat, Queen Elizabeth I had her confined in various castles and manor houses across England. Following nearly 18 years in captivity, Mary was found guilty of plotting to assassinate Elizabeth.
On the evening of February 7, 1587, Mary was told she was to be executed the next morning. She spent the last hours of her life in prayer, distributing her belongings to her household and writing her will and a letter to the King of France.
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She was beheaded on a scaffold in the Great Hall, which was draped in black cloth. It is believed that Mary was not beheaded with a single strike as the first blow missed her neck.
Her request to be buried in France was refused by Queen Elizabeth I and her body was eventually taken to Peterborough Cathedral in July 1587 for burial. However, it was later reinterred in Westminster Abbey.
During the latter part of the Elizabethan period, the castle fell into disrepair despite its importance. The castle was later dismantled and only the grass-covered earthworks and some masonry remains.
A former barrister who plotted a revenge attack with a gangster pal; a ‘highly organised’ burglary gang; and a ‘predatory’ sex offender are among the criminals locked up this week in Greater Manchester.
Samreen Akhtar told her criminal mate – and client – Tabish Ali ‘we get him, we kick the f*** out of him and we send him back with broken legs to whoever sent him’ after he was shot amid a ‘turf war’ between rival gangs.
Also locked up this week were two arsonists who targeted a business causing £300,000 worth of damage and two brothers who attacked a man after he claimed one of them had been ‘hitting his dog’.
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Prison terms are handed out to the worst offenders. Each week Manchester Evening News court reporters are on hand to cover the most serious cases.
These are the criminals locked up in Greater Manchester this week…
David Owen, Wayne Jones, Lucas Staines, Rohan Brown and Liam Dodds
A ‘highly organised’ burglary gang brought terror to Greater Manchester in a £500,000 crime spree over 16 months, with children forced to hide as masked thugs broke into homes.
The gang were behind a ‘persistent burglary network’ which saw family gold and jewellery stolen from homes, as well as designer handbags and other valuable goods.
Masked burglars smashed down doors and windows to access homes, with most of the break-ins taking place in daylight when the gang believed they would be empty.
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But GMP said that in one burglary, a child hid inside a wardrobe while crooks searched a bedroom. In another break-in, another child also ran to a bathroom to hide as they tried to get inside.
David Owen, 24, of no fixed address, was sentenced to five years and four months for nine counts of burglary. Lucas Staines, 20, of HMP Forest Bank, was jailed for the same period for 15 counts of burglary.
Liam Dodds, 34, from Salford, got six years, four months in relation to eight counts of burglary. Wayne Jones, 23, of Dunedin Drive, Salford, was jailed for eight years for five counts of burglary.
Rohan Brown, 22, of Riverside Way, Salford, got five years, four months for seven burglaries.
A barrister plotted a revenge attack with a gangster friend after he was shot by a would-be assassin amid a violent turf war fought between rival drugs gangs.
Samreen Akhtar, 38, was a qualified barrister specialising in criminal law. On September 14 2021, client and family friend Tabish Ali was shot in a violent incident in Blacker Road, Huddersfield. A court heard he was blasted as a bitter war between opposing gangs was fought.
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The day after Ali was shot, Akhtar suggested in a recorded phone call they ‘locate and cause serious harm’ to the gunman.
Manchester Crown Court heard Akhtar suggested Ali that once the man’s location was known: “We get him, we kick the f*** out of him and we send him back with broken legs to whoever sent him.”
Akhtar, of Sufton Street, Birkby, was jailed for three years and three months.
A man left a pensioner with fatal injuries after smashing into her in his wife’s car. Sheila Rowan, 70, was knocked down by Sohail Aurangzeb in his partner’s Nissan Juke, which he took without her permission on the afternoon of August 10 last year.
Aurangzeb, 42, had no driving licence and wasn’t insured. He said he got lost and drove onto a rural, cobbled road in Ashton-under-Lyne. He claimed he drove into a ditch, which caused the car to swerve and hit Mrs Rowan.
Manchester Crown Court heard Aurangzeb drove away and didn’t report the incident. Mrs Rowan was found by passers-by who called 999. She died in hospital later that day.
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Aurangzeb was jailed for seven years and four months. He earlier pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicle taking, with court documents stating Ms Rowan’s death was ’caused by accident’.
A thug who ‘abused and terrorised’ four women has been jailed for life.
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Jacob Berry left his victims with ‘lasting emotional and psychological trauma’.
Berry, 34, was found guilty of seven counts of rape; four counts of engaging in controlling or coercive behaviour; and one count of assault by penetration following a trial, Greater Manchester Police said.
A ‘predatory’ sex offender has been jailed again after he was found to have been posing as a teenage boy during sick chats with young girls.
James Davidson, 60, from Stockport, was first sent to prison in 2020, being sentenced to two years behind bars for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child, attempting to meet a girl under 16 following sexual grooming, and attempting to cause a child under 16 to watch a sexual act.
As part of his sentence he was made subject to a sexual harm prevention order (SHPO), which restricted his online activity and was monitored by Greater Manchester Police’s Sex Offender Management Unit.
In March 2025, officers from the unit raided his home after a tip-off he was breaching the order. After interrogating a number of devices, they found he had been communicating with multiple girls while using aliases and pretending to be a 17 year-old boy.
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Davidson admitted sexual communication with a child and 25 breaches of his SHPO and was sentenced to two years and seven months.
Jody Lynam targeted an innocent family’s home by setting it alight.
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Stuart and Claire Marsden had enjoyed a night out together before returning home and going to bed just before 1am. But they were woken up shortly after by a ‘loud crash’. Mr Marsden went to investigate and found a large fire in their rented end-of-terrace home in Bury.
He and his wife were able to escape the blaze, but their house was severely damaged and nine months on, remains uninhabitable. Their children had been staying elsewhere for the night.
Police recovered footage which showed Jody Lynam and a second, unknown offender approaching the house, at about 1.40am on January 18 this year. The unknown man smashed a window before Lynam poured petrol inside. An ‘explosion’ was caused and the pair fled.
Lynam was caught after DNA from a balaclava which he discarded nearby was traced to him. Minshull Street Crown Court was told that drug addict Lynam and his co-offender had been acting on orders from a drug dealer, who pressured them into targeting a rival dealer to ‘send a message’ and intimidate.
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Lynam, of Hardfield Street, Heywood, pleaded guilty to arson being reckless as to whether life was endangered. He was jailed for six years and nine months.
Two brothers brutally attacked a man in broad daylight after he claimed one of them had been ‘hitting his dog’.
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Reece Taylor threw his victim to the floor before punching and kicking him outside a block of flats in Ashton-under-Lyne. Minshull Street Crown Court heard the ‘unprovoked’ attack came after the man had asked Taylor to stop ‘hitting his dog’.
Taylor denied he had hit his dog and was not convicted of an animal cruelty offence. He then proceeded to attack the man, before his brother Paul Taylor became involved after mistakenly believing his sibling had blood on his face, after the victim had sprayed Reece Taylor with red dye.
The pair have now both been handed extended sentences for public protection.
Arsonists were caught on CCTV breaking into a business and starting a fire while one of them was still inside. Portuguese nationals Diogo Cabral, 21, and Emanuel Feliciano Simoes, 36, organised the attack on Snapchat, carried out with an unknown third man.
“Let’s do this mission today,” one message discovered by detectives read. Manchester Crown Court heard they were seen pulling up in a car outside Shzsr Enterprises Ltd, on Broughton Street, Cheetham Hill at around midnight on March 1, 2023.
They prised open the shutters with crowbars before two of them ran back to the car and grabbing bottles of accelerant. One of the three remained inside the building after a door was smashed and a fire started.
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There was a ‘spontaneous explosion of light and flames’, prosecutor Henry Blackshaw said. The third man, who was behind the shutters, was seen on CCTV fleeing like a ‘scalded cat’, appearing to be on fire.
After the flames died down, he joined the other two in the car before it sped off. Firefigthers raced to the scene and the blaze was extinguished. Around £300,000 of damage was caused at the bedding supply business.
Cabral, of no fixed address, was jailed for five years and four months. Simoes, of Smedley Lane, Cheetham Hill, was jailed for three years.
A Salford drug dealer hid a gun behind the fridge at his mum’s house. Cameron Caswell, 23, was arrested after police made the discovery following a raid at the Salford property in 2024.
Manchester Crown Court heard cops executed a warrant on Aspinall Crescent in Little Hulton, on December 14. A black bag was found behind a fridge freezer in the pantry. Inside was a gun and ammunition.
Experts determined the weapon was a Turkish-manufactured Zoraki 917. Caswell was jailed at Manchester Crown Court on Friday (September 11).
Daragh Burke, 37, is taking on the world’s biggest half marathon in place of PC Matthew Blades, determined to make sure the number his friend was due to wear still crosses the finish line.
PC Blades and his colleague, PC Tom Clough, died when a VW travelling the wrong way along the A66 at South Bank hit their marked police car head-on on Saturday, August 22.
For Daragh, who says “we couldn’t have been closer”, taking Matthew’s place is a fitting tribute to a friendship that stretched from primary school to adulthood.
The pair went through primary school, secondary school, college and university together, remaining inseparable into adulthood.
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PC Matthew Blades, Daragh Burke and Conan. (Image: DARAGH BURKE)
Matthew asked Daragh to be his best man and Daragh later became godfather to Matthew’s children.
The business owner said: “We couldn’t have been closer.
“Since the incident I just feel like I’m waiting for him to get in touch as he was always at the other end of the phone.
“That’s one of the hardest parts for me.”
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PC Blades was due to complete the Great North Run for Parkinson’s UK tomorrow (September 13).
“I didn’t want to see his number go to waste.
“Me doing it will get that number over the line and hopefully raise a bit more money.”
Unlike many runners who spend months training for the 13.1-mile challenge, Daragh has had only weeks to prepare.
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He said: “I haven’t done much running over the past few years but I’ve given it my all in the weeks I’ve had.
“Matthew would be laughing his head off at me doing this as I’ve only had two weeks training but he would be immensely proud as I know Parkinson’s UK is something he felt so strongly about helping.”
The challenge carries added emotion after Daragh joined Matthew’s family, friends and colleagues at his funeral this week.
He said: “I was in the police for a period of time so I know what the job entails, but for all those police officers to come out and show their support was unbelievable.”
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Daragh remembered the final weeks he spent with Matthew.
Daragh’s son Conan was christened just over a month before Matthew died.
Matthew became Conan’s godfather and wrote him a card saying: “Dream big, always believe in yourself.”
Daragh said: “That sums him up, that was just who he was.”
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On Sunday, thousands of runners will race from Newcastle to South Shields.
Hundreds of people packed St Joseph’s Church in Hartlepool to pay their respects to the 37-year-old father of two who died on duty. Standard bearers from every force across the country lined the route as PC Blades’ hearse made the journey to the church.
His coffin was draped in the Union Jack flag. The hearse carried a floral tribute at its front: “Dad”.
Sir Jeremy was promoted to assistant director-general in May 2025, as part of a broader leadership shake-up. He joined the WHO as chief scientist in 2023, after almost a decade at the Wellcome Trust.
Along with Dr Tedros, the director-general, and other senior figures, Sir Jeremy was closely involved in implementing a painful down-sizing of the WHO following the US departure.
Historically, the US had been the agency’s top donor, and the funding cuts have hit the agency hard.
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It has committed to slashing nearly a quarter of its global workforce and shrinking its headquarters in Geneva. Under a new organisational structure, 10 divisions were merged into four.
Sir Jeremy was responsible for one of these: Health Promotion, Disease Prevention and Control.
Speaking in March, he said: “2025 was a very difficult year. When you imagine any organisation – public or private – reducing its workforce by 30 per cent, it is extremely painful. Many institutions usually do this gradually: 10 per cent one year, another 10 per cent the next. Doing it all in a single year was awful, and the organisation lost many good people. Human resources did their best.
“I participated in the architectural overhaul and organisational redesign of WHO,” he added in an interview with the Swiss daily, Le Temps. “It is far from perfect, but the reform we have undertaken is as strategic as possible to ensure the organisation is better adapted to the health challenges of the next 20 years.”
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While Sir Jeremy’s position at the WHO was a senior posting, working at the WHO, like other parts of the UN, can be frustrating, owing to its structure and governance.
The WHO is beholden to member states and is subject to enormous pressure at international level, which determines its funding stability, influences outbreak investigations, and tests its ability to act on issues that require consensus, such as the pandemic treaty.
But it is also riven by internal politics, and at the moment several senior officials, including several regional directors, have stepped back from their roles to campaign for Mr Ghebreyesus’s job as head of the organisation. His second and final term as director-general will end on August 15 next year.
Tina McDermont, from Washington, had hoped for a four-day break in Spain on August 30 with her husband, but tragedy struck on August 19 when her teenage son Billy lost his life in an accident
A grieving mother was denied a Ryanair refund for her Newcastle to Alicante flight after her 18-year-old son died in a tragic accident – because he passed away “too early”.
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Tina McDermont, from Washington, had been looking forward to a four-day Spanish getaway on August 30 with her husband. However, on August 19, her teenage son Billy tragically lost his life in an accident.
Understandably devastated, Tina cancelled their holiday and contacted Ryanair customer support to inform them and request a refund. She had hoped to use the £350 owed for both tickets towards Billy’s funeral expenses.
Under Ryanair’s terms and conditions, passengers may claim travel credit if someone on the booking or an immediate family member (partner/parent/child only) dies within 10 days before the scheduled flight.
Tina was left “disgusted” when she discovered she wouldn’t receive any money back – purely because Billy had died 24 hours outside the policy’s timeframe.
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She explained: “Billy’s death was a massive shock. He’d just turned 18. I could never have travelled and gone abroad. I just wanted to be at home with my family around me. I’m arranging my son’s funeral. There’s no way I could go. I thought when I got in touch with Ryanair there wouldn’t be an issue”.
Tina revealed Ryanair requested a copy of Billy’s death certificate, but she found the entire process increasingly distressing during an already heartbreaking period. “I thought we’d get that money back and put it towards Billy’s funeral and then I hit these barriers because of this 10-day policy that I hadn’t been aware of.”
She also revealed the struggle she faced trying to complete the claim form on Ryanair’s website.
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“It was raw emotion all the time. It wouldn’t let me complete the form,” she said. “I looked at the terms and conditions and thought ‘That doesn’t really make sense.’”.
“I opened a chat on the app and they told me to ‘no show’ so I could get a letter off them and you can go to your travel insurance and claim off them. I thought ‘That’s passing the buck’.”
Tina claims she was subsequently informed she was ineligible for a refund as Billy’s passing had fallen outside the airline’s 10-day bereavement window.
“If he’d died a day later, I would’ve got my money back. It’s disgusting and petty.
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“It was like a slap in the face. It should be done by a case by case basis. It’s a blanket policy, but it isn’t human. I felt very insulted. He wasn’t meant to die. It was a tragic accident, so surely there should be special circumstances. I was devastated. Everybody I’ve dealt with has been compassionate except for them. They’re greedy.”
For Tina, though, this goes far beyond the financial loss of a cancelled holiday. “It’s not about the money. It’s the principle. £350 for a huge company like Ryanair is chicken feed. It’s made the grieving process worse. I’m a mother who’s grieving. It felt very personal and I know the terms and conditions are not.”
Describing the ordeal as “deflating”, Tina is now urging the budget airline to rethink its approach to bereavement cases and introduce more compassionate provisions for extraordinary situations.
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“Ryanair needs to change their policies. There needs to be a special circumstances clause for close relatives like children. Have a bit of heart and compassion.”
She added: “I’ll never fly with them again.”
The airline, however, has refused to budge on its stance, insisting Tina did not qualify for travel credit under its current rules. A spokesperson said: “Ryanair’s bereavement policy allows passengers to apply for travel credit where the death of an immediate family member occurs within 10 days of their scheduled flight departure.
“As this bereavement occurred outside of that period, this passenger was not entitled to travel credit. This passenger was provided with the documentation required to submit a claim through their travel insurance provider.”
An 88-year-old woman has been found dead at her home as police arrest a man, 36, on suspicion of murder.
Thames Valley Police rushed to a home in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, at around 2.20pm on Thursday following reports of an ‘unexplained death’.
Inside a property on Appleford Drive officers found the body of Jill Gant.
A murder investigation has been launched which led to the arrest of a 36-year-old man, from Abingdon, on suspicion of murder.
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He remains in police custody.
The force said that Ms Gant’s family have been informed and they are being supported by specially trained officers.
Ms Gant’s family have asked for privacy at this time.
Detective Chief Inspector Stuart Brangwin said the police’s thoughts ‘remain with Jill’s family’.
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Pictured: Jill Gant the 88-year-old victim who was found dead on Thursday afternoon
Pictured: Appleford Drive in Abingdon. Thames Valley found Ms Gant’s body in a property on the road
He also warned residents to expect a large police presence in the area.
The detective continued: ‘I understand that incidents like this will cause concern in the community but we are investigating the death as a priority and there is an increased police presence in the area.
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‘At this early stage we do not currently believe there is any threat to the wider public as we have made an arrest and we are not looking for anyone else, at this time.’
Anyone with information is urged to contact police by calling 101 or making an online report via the force’s website quoting reference 43260472268.
US President Donald Trump has acknowledged that ‘the UK will have something to say about it’
Kirstie McCrum Deputy Head of News, Live News Network, Press Association and irishmirror.ie
16:18, 12 Sep 2026
US President Donald Trump declared that Irish unification would be “a very cool thing” while acknowledging there was “no good answer” to such a loaded question.
Mr Trump offered these remarks while reflecting on an Irish unification query posed by the Press Association during an earlier press conference at Farmleigh House in Dublin, reports the Irish Mirror.
At the US ambassador’s residence in Ireland, Mr Trump said: “You have to understand with the press, with me, every question is a kill.”
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Discussing the Press Association’s question, the US president continued: “But they’re going for the kill at all times, and they ask me a question: ‘What do you think about unification of Northern Ireland and Ireland? I said: ‘Oh, that’s a nice question’. I gave a nice answer, I think.
“We’ll read about it tomorrow. That’s one of those questions where, no matter what you say, no matter how well you say it, there’s no good answer, right?
“There are about four or five, I could tell you some other ones, but I’m not going to get you started. But that was one of the questions. But I actually said it would be, I think, a very cool thing.
“To be honest with you, I think it would be cool. As half the room clears out, they say: ‘Let’s get the hell out of here. I don’t like this guy. I liked him a lot 10 minutes ago. I don’t like him’.”
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During an earlier meeting with Taoiseach Micheál Martin, Mr Trump said that he would “love” to see Ireland unified and that “it may as well happen now” as it is “going to happen eventually”.
Speaking while sitting alongside the Taoiseach, Mr Trump remarked: “Well, I don’t want to cause any problems, but I will tell you I’d love to see it unified. I have friends on both sides, great people. They’re Irish people. How can they be bad, right?
“I’d love to see it unified. I think it would be a great feather in everybody’s cap if that happened. It’s going to happen eventually. You know what? The way I look at it, it’s going to happen eventually. It may as well happen now.
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“We’re talking about it and you got the right man over here to get it moving. But, yeah, I think it would be a fantastic thing.
“Now the UK will have something to say about it, obviously. But I think it would be a great thing. I mean, how can it be bad?”
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EXCLUSIVE: The Electoral Commission has confirmed it will look into hospitality heaped on Nigel Farage and senior party figures in Dubai last January by mega-rich supporters
Nigel Farage faces being embroiled in another investigation after Reform was accused of failing to declare donors who paid for glitzy fundraising events in the Middle East.
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The Electoral Commission has confirmed it had received a complaint over hospitality heaped on Mr Farage and senior party figures in Dubai last January by mega-rich supporters.
Fresh scrutiny over Reform’s finances come after Scotland Yard confirmed this week that it was investigating separate allegations the party broke foreign funding laws.
The latest furore centres on whether Mr Farage should have declared lavish hospitality he received during a two-day trip in May 2025, according to an investigation by Babelfish.
One event was a reception hosted by the Binghatti family, who are among the largest property tycoons in the emirate. Hussain Binghatti Aljbori is ranked by Forbes as one of the richest men in the Middle East, with a £1.8billion fortune. The other was a lunch reportedly paid for by Indian billionaire businessman Sunny Varkey, according to Bloomberg News. There is no suggestion of wrongdoing from the Binghatti family, or Mr Varkey.
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Neither the party nor Mr Farage have declared donations covering the cost of these events. The Electoral Commission has confirmed it will review the evidence after a complaint from Labour MP Phil Brickell.
UK political parties must check whether any donation worth over £500 is from a “permissible” donor – including UK voters and companies – and must declare any donations worth more than £11,180.
After Labour MP Phil Brickell wrote to the Electoral Commission calling for a probe into the trip, the commission has now confirmed that it will review the evidence.
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In his letter, the Bolton West MP said: “These reports appear to raise a straightforward question of electoral law: were goods, services or hospitality provided to Reform UK in connection with these fundraising events, and if so, were they donations which were properly recorded and reported to the Commission?”
Speaking to this newspaper, he added: “We need to understand if this is just a case of a couple of bad apples – albeit ones that haven’t fallen very far from the tree – or if there is a systemic culture of obfuscation, secrecy and, essentially, cheating, within Reform UK.”
Mr Vince said: “Nigel Farage has put democracy in Britain up for sale to the highest bidder – he clearly does not care where the money comes from – but we should. Ultimately all of this just reinforces the case for a total ban on donations to political parties in Britain”.
An Electoral Commission spokesperson said: “We can confirm we have received a letter from Phil Brickell MP regarding Reform and fundraising in Dubai. The Commission reviews all information it receives and is considering this matter under its regulatory remit.”
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Reform UK did not respond to requests for comment.
There is perhaps no batsman in Test history as accustomed as Joe Root to walking in with the scoreboard reading “not many for two” and his team in a tight spot.
That is where Root found himself once again soon after 11am on Saturday. His team were two for two, with both openers out for ducks, and the problems of the third evening bleeding into the fourth morning. A chaotic and patchwork Pakistan team suddenly believed Mohammad Abbas could inspire their defence of 130.
A familiar position for Root, sure, but not the young man at the other end, the rookie No 3 Jordan Cox. Together, they eased England out of a creeping crisis with such aplomb that the target was chased swiftly enough that the few thousand at Edgbaston were refunded 50 per cent of their ticket prices because so few overs were bowled. When Cox hit the winning run, a scrambled single into the off side, Root’s relief was palpable. His team had been tested, and he felt they would be “better for it”.
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They had won his first series since returning to the captaincy 3-0, but not without a scare at the last. The scorecard will record this as a routine England eight-wicket win and, for the most part, it was. But England were rattled by Razaullah, a 21-year-old who spent the first two Tests of this series in Mardan, in the mountains of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region near Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan. Having bowled quickly, he wreaked havoc on the third evening with his 63-ball 81, taking England from the brink of an innings victory to an awkward chase.
Razaullah’s partner with the bat was Abbas, who provided England with an almighty fright on the fourth morning. First ball, Ben Duckett was caught behind. The ball was angled in, demanding that it was played, then nipped slightly away, taking the edge. Duckett’s trudge off was glacial, with his curious Test summer over. He has scored England’s only century of the season, but failed to make fifty otherwise. In this series, he has averaged just eight.
When choosing to drive between Manchester and Sheffield, on paper, it should be a picturesque journey.
The Snake Pass offers stunning views of the Peak District National Park and a smattering of quaint village stop-offs. But the reality can be very different.
Many commuters know the route can be as treacherous as its serpentine name suggests, with steep slopes and sharp corners.
Funnily enough it was actually named after the Snake Inn, rather than its snake-like appearance. The pub was later renamed the Snake Pass Inn, after the Snake Pass.
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The road, also known as the A57, is notoriously littered with problems. It is regularly shut in winter when heavy rain or icy weather makes the route hazardous.
The common occurrence of crashes and maintenance work also means it can often be closed off. Earlier this year work at Doctor’s Gate meant the road was shut for three weeks in June.
These problems are why there are growing calls for a long-term fix for the Snake Pass. Previously, Prime Minister Andy Burnham called for the route to be considered key national infrastructure – meaning the government would take responsibility for the road.
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Currently, Derbyshire County Council is responsible for the upkeep of the route, but there is a question whether they have the financial resources to keep up with the demands of the crumbling road.
The local authority was given government cash injection of £7.6m last year to help deal with the series of active land slips at Doctor’s Gate, Alport, Gillott Hey and Wood Cottage. This government funding was a one-off though, and it costs Derbyshire County Council millions every year to maintain the long, winding road.
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They have estimated the overall cost for all four active land slips to be around £100m, which is a cost they can’t afford.
The High Peak MP Jon Pearce has been campaigning alongside the mayors of Greater Manchester and South Yorkshire to spark long-term change for the route that bisects his constituency.
Mr Pearce said: “Snake Pass is not just an important road for the High Peak. It is a vital route connecting the core northern cities of Manchester and Sheffield, and its continued neglect has consequences for communities, businesses and the wider northern economy.
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“I have been clear that we cannot simply allow the future of this road to be managed through endless piecemeal repairs and temporary closures.
“That is why I have been working to make the case for the A57 at both a regional and national level. I helped to bring together the Peak Partnership, ensuring that local leaders and partners can work together to make the strongest possible case for investment in the area.
“I am also continuing to work with the East Midlands Mayor, alongside the Mayors of Greater Manchester and South Yorkshire, to make the case for a long-term solution for Snake Pass.
“The Prime Minister himself previously argued, in his role as Mayor of Greater Manchester, that Snake Pass should be considered key national infrastructure. As Prime Minister he is now in a position to deliver on that ambition.
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“The Labour government has already provided more than £7m of funding to Derbyshire County Council for Snake Pass. That funding should be helping to address the serious challenges facing the road and secure its future.
“However, despite receiving this money, the Reform-run county council has still not delivered the action needed. Residents understandably want to know when they will see real progress and how the funding already provided is being used.
“I will continue pushing for Snake Pass to be recognised as nationally important infrastructure. But in the meantime, Derbyshire County Council must step up, take responsibility and make effective use of the significant funding it has already received.”
The county council says they are actively working to maintain the road. This maintenance work includes wall repairs at Doctor’s Gate, inspections along the route, road patching, safety barrier upgrades, white lining improvement for visibility and removing overhanging vegetation.
Even with signposts telling drivers to take the more northerly route through Woodhead Pass, around 300,000 people use Snake Pass annually.
The responsibility for the road will carry over to the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA) when Derbyshire County Council is officially abolished in 2028. The EMCCA are expected to have bigger pockets financially, but the new combined authority will have a larger road network to cover.
Councillor Charlotte Hill, Derbyshire County Council’s cabinet member for highways, said: “We recognise the importance of the Snake Pass but it presents us with complex challenges due to its underlying geology along with the topography of the surrounding area and exposure to severe weather.
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“With a number of active landslips along the route, it’s crucial we focus on finding a long-term solution that addresses these issues safely and sustainably. The provisional estimate to investigate and repair these landslips is in excess of £100m which is beyond our means and why we continue to lobby for more funding.
“We welcome the renewed impetus in finding solutions and we are working with the East Midlands Combined County Authority on a delivery plan with the expectation that extra funding will be forthcoming.
“However, it is wrong to suggest that the county council isn’t taking action and we recently completed a feasibility study for the Doctors Gate landslip and now have agreement to repair it using some of the £7m Department for Transport Roads Scheme grant, alongside installing safety measures, and we’re finalising the designs for that work.
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“Snake Pass is an important part of our network and we are also actively working on repair options for all the other landslip sites including Woodhouses (Cowms Moor), Alport and Gillot Hey.”
The Department for Transport (DfT) has signified no intention of taking over responsibility for the upkeep of Snake Pass. DfT pointed out they have dished out £24 billion to maintain and improve motorways and local roads across the country over the next four years.
It is understood that the EMCCA is in receipt of £2bn of devolved Transport for City Regions (TCR) funding for the period 2025/26 until 2031/32.
A DfT spokesperson said: “While it is Derbyshire County Council’s responsibility to maintain this iconic road, last year we announced a £7.6m boost to make life-saving improvements on the route.
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“We are also providing the East Midlands Combined County Authority with £2 billion in Transport for City Regions until the 2030s so they can invest in their local transport network, wherever they see fit.”
Para-Northern’s Emma Flood and Lorna Hartley spent the night at Ye Olde Kings Head in Chester after years of wanting to investigate the centuries-old building.
Emma and Lorna (Image: Emma Flood)
The pair previously told The Bolton News they were hoping for a scary night – and while Emma admits much of their stay was surprisingly quiet, there were a few moments which left them searching for an explanation.
Ye Olde Kings Head, on Lower Bridge Street, has become renowned for its ghost stories and is home to My Haunted Hotel, where visitors investigate the building before spending the night there.
(Image: Emma Flood)
Cameras monitor the hotel around the clock, meaning unusual sights and sounds can be checked from a control room.
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One of the first things to catch Emma’s attention was what sounded like a man breathing in one of the rooms.
She said: “I did hear a breath in one of the rooms.
“The hotel has got 24-hour surveillance cameras filming all the time and you can ring through on the walkie-talkie to the control room.
“He checked and he could hear it.”
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There were other people nearby and Emma said she considered whether the noise could have come from one of them.
However, she said nobody appeared to be doing anything which would explain the loud breath.
Things became stranger when the group moved into an area associated with stories of the building’s past as a brothel.
A sudden bang came from the floor above.
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Emma said: “We were all in the brothel area and went, ‘What the hell was that? What’s above us?’
“They said, ‘That’s room five, where all the dolls are.’”
When the group went upstairs, one of the dolls had fallen over.
(Image: Emma Flood)
Emma and the others tried jumping around near it to see whether vibrations or movement could cause it to fall again – but it stayed put.
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She said: “There’s no way around it, it just falls.
“We stood in front of her and jumped up and down and she wouldn’t move.”
(Image: Emma Flood)
Emma and Lorna later settled down for the night in room three – and there was one feature which immediately made them uneasy.
The bedroom was filled with mirrors.
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Emma said she and Lorna avoid having mirrors in bedrooms because of a paranormal belief that they can act as “portals”, particularly while people are asleep and at their most vulnerable.
(Image: Emma Flood)
She said: “You shouldn’t have mirrors in your bedroom.
“When you’re asleep you’re at your most vulnerable, so you’ve got to be very careful.”
Nevertheless, the pair put in their earplugs and went to sleep.
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At around 4.30am, Lorna woke to discover a torch had fallen over.
Emma said: “Realistically, she may have moved it in her sleep, so we can’t say for definite.
“We’re still waiting for them to look at the footage.”
The following morning, after the other visitors had left, Emma and Lorna carried out another investigation.
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They headed into room six, where a rocking chair sits inside a pentagram on the floor.
(Image: Emma Flood)
The room is associated with stories of a woman named Heidi who is said to have fallen to her death from a window.
Emma and Lorna began asking questions and said they were met by footsteps, creaking floorboards, knocks and taps.
Emma said: “We started getting responses – footsteps, creaking, knocks and taps in the room.”
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Yet despite Ye Olde Kings Head’s reputation, Emma described the night as relatively quiet overall.
(Image: Emma Flood)
And with spooky season around the corner, the Chester hotel is far from the only building which has left the Bolton investigators with questions.
One experience which Emma recently visited was an old mill off Cherry Tree Lane in Bury, dating back to 1876.
Para-Northern was invited to investigate the building before it was sold – and Emma’s verdict on that night was simple.
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She said: “That was just insane.”
The team reported hearing what sounded like a woman’s voice, bangs around machinery which had not been touched for months and, at one point, somebody apparently whistling.
In the boardroom, the group also repeatedly heard what sounded like knocks on a table.
One person was taking part in the Estes Method, where an investigator wears headphones and listens for potential responses without being able to hear what the rest of the group is saying.
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Emma said: “He even took his headphones off and said, ‘Is someone banging on the table?’”
Things did not get any less unsettling when they ventured into the cellar.
Emma said motion sensor lights repeatedly came on and the team’s devices were activated.
She said: “I felt really uncomfortable down there.
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“Anything lurking in the cellar isn’t going to be good.”
Two men who had previously worked at the mill also joined the investigation and, according to Emma, were unable to explain some of what was happening.
Inside the Bury Mill (Image: Emma Flood)
Experiences at the mill and another investigation in Bacup have even changed the way Emma and Lorna approach supposedly haunted locations.
Instead of always referring to spirits in the past tense, they have begun to wonder whether those they are attempting to contact might perceive things very differently.
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Emma said: “Do they think we’re the ones that are dead?
“To them, could it still be real life?”
There will be plenty more opportunities to put that idea to the test as Halloween approaches.
(Image: Emma Flood)
Para-Northern, which was established in 2017, is due to investigate the Greater Manchester Museum of Transport on October 2, having previously visited the venue.
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A Masonic hall in Bolton is next on the list towards the end of October, followed by an old theatre in November.
For Emma, it is the combination of the unexplained and the history behind the buildings which keeps drawing her back.
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