Manchester’s Central Library was once considered the British Library of the North. Did a miscalculation in shelving lead to it having to chop a huge fraction of its non-fiction collection, and at speed? I spent a year obsessing about a long-lost rumour from the early 2010s tinyurl.com/ynsyvy2t

“Murder demands justice. Englishmen! Blush for your country.” 186 years ago, Samuel Holberry led the “Sheffield rising”, an armed insurrection aimed at bringing democracy to Britain. The rising failed, but his story remains relevant today. How far would you be prepared to go for a just cause?

The @manchestermill.bsky.social is such a gem of a local paper. This article on the Central Library demonstrates so well how the local can be a microcosm of wider trends. “It seems possible that what was being fought over here was not only the books, but two competing visions of this city. “

Overall a key lesson from this story is the power of new organisations to make positive change – Mill Media is to be commended for pushing the boundaries of new media and local democracy. Thanks to @djstimms.bsky.social for the chat. Read more here: futurenorth.substack.com/p/is-this-th... 6/6

Good piece by @jpspencer.bsky.social on the way the supply of local news is being changed, for the better, by the growing number of linked independent platforms in the @millmedia.bsky.social "stable". cc @sheffieldtribune.bsky.social open.substack.com/pub/futureno...

@sheffieldtribune.bsky.social first started reporting on Andrew Milne, the solicitor demanding thousands of pounds from leaseholders, back in November. A month later, we uncovered how Milne was also terrorising leaseholders in Bolton. Today, MP Phil Brickell raises the issue in Parliament.

The renaissance in local news is an exciting trend driven by online platforms. And one of the largest of these, @millmedia.bsky.social, was founded by @joshih.bsky.social in Manchester in 2020. It has now expanded to over 200,000 people subscribed across its 6 cities; over 13,000 of these pay. 1/6

The Best of 2025 at @sheffieldtribune.bsky.social. “The Tribune’s story of the year is undoubtedly Andrew Milne. When it first came to our attention I don’t think any of us knew that it would take off the way it did.” www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/the-tribunes...

Breaking news! 🚨🚨🚨🚨 The Post has hit 2,000 paying members 🎊 Thanks so much to all our subscribers - free and paid - for supporting us.

Exciting times 🫶

After their excellent piece on Penda's Fen a few weeks ago, @birminghamdispatch.bsky.social turns its attention to the Midlands' other great slice of celluloid history. Time for another showing, @talkingpicturestv.bsky.social?

Honourable mention of @manchestermill.bsky.social Regulator ‘asleep at the wheel’ over University of Greater Manchester investigation, MP says www.theguardian.com/education/20...

🚨BIG HIRING NEWS🚨 We're hiring for a marketing and events assistant! Applications close Sunday 4 January, and the successful candidate will be: - Creative, organised and highly efficient - Committed to working in a fast-paced startup - A talented social media operator More below:

I spent months secretly contacting the country's most powerful politicians to find out their favourite pubs in the capital. Then I went on a @londonermag.bsky.social pub crawl to find out who has the best taste. It really wasn't who I was expecting. www.the-londoner.co.uk/we-found-out...

Once a Liverpool institution, Sayers has been driven out of its own city centre by Greggs. What went wrong? The great Scouse pasty war 🥐 www.livpost.co.uk/the-great-sc...

Congrats to all the various @millmedia.bsky.social publications and writers who continue to show that it is still possible to do quality local journalism. Subscribe to your local version! (such as @liverpoolpost.bsky.social) www.livpost.co.uk/and-the-winn...

Less than 10 HOURS LEFT in what has become an incredibly successful @manchestermill.bsky.social membership campaign. Join up now if - for some reason - you haven’t done so yet. Award winning journalism and you choose the price. Ends at midnight. manchestermill.co.uk/less-than-10...

Our campaign ends tomorrow night! More than 1,000 new members have joined, and you can join them - and pay what you choose for your first two months. manchestermill.co.uk/lp-1/

Another belter from @manchestermill.bsky.social @joshih.bsky.social and crew. Time the Uni of Manchester was taken over by a more transparent operator ? manchestermill.co.uk/the-baroness...

Need a thoughtful gift for a family member or friend this Christmas? Why not treat them to a Post subscription using our festive offer? 🎄🎁 ⬇️ @liverpoolpost.bsky.social livpost.co.uk/give-the-gif...

Congratulations to the Local Journalism award winners @molliesimpson.bsky.social @joshih.bsky.social @manchestermill.bsky.social for an investigation into the University of Greater Manchester #BJA2025

We’re closing in! 97 more members to get. Three days to go. Amazing effort by the Millers to make this campaign such a success. manchestermill.co.uk

You can choose how much to pay for the first few months. If you value local journalism - wherever you live - sign up! @manchestermill.bsky.social and its fellow papers in Liverpool, Sheffield and London are essential for democracy.

🚨 Just five days left in our campaign! We’re 303 members away from our target 🎯 Please share the link manchestermill.co.uk or join up now for a price you choose to help us get there.

📸Photographer Martin Parr has died aged 73. While his vivid images of seasides and crumbling monuments were taken worldwide, it was in New Brighton where he first developed his fascination with the colourful and crude. Read about his legacy below 👇 www.livpost.co.uk/gritty-cheek...

Two Mill investigations have been followed up by the national press this week. Thanks to @theguardian.com for crediting our reporting on both without needing to be prompted. It’s because of our paying members that we can do impactful journalism like this, which holds local authorities to account.

Our campaign ends ON SUNDAY! We’re on 664 new members, on our way to our 1000 target 🎯. Please join up now and spread the word 🙏 manchestermill.co.uk/lp-1/

“You were anxious all the time,” Pauline tells me as our chat comes to an end. “You weren’t sleeping, you weren’t eating". Meet Andrew Milne, the London lawyer terrorising homeowners in Horwich manchestermill.co.uk/meet-the-lon...

An amazing opportunity to subscribe to the Mill, a local Manchester newspaper that does the proper reporting and investigating, for basically ‘give what you can’ prices! manchestermill.co.uk/r/3359d2b6?m...

Labour suspends Colette Goulding, a councillor heavily implicated in the Big Help scandal. @abi-whist.bsky.social has been reporting on this story for two years now for @liverpoolpost.bsky.social www.livpost.co.uk/breaking-cou...

As Sacha Lord previously learned, @jackdulhanty.bsky.social doesn’t mess around.

In February 2013, a British man died while visiting a friend in the US state of Arizona. For the next 12 years he was unidentified — known only as ‘Maricopa County John Doe 2013’. This year, thanks to a team of staff and students at Sheffield Hallam University, his family finally have closure.

Over the weekend we revealed a confidential report that found how Rochdale Council CEO James Binks inappropriately touched a female colleague when he was assistant CEO at Manchester City Council. Yesterday, Binks was suspended.

Looking back at my journalism this year, I think my favourite piece was the interview with Andrea Ashworth, author of ONCE IN A HOUSE ON FIRE, which ran on @millmedia.bsky.social manchestermill.co.uk/andrea-ashwo...

🚨 Some very nice news: we’ve got a new @manchestermill.bsky.social staff writer. Lucy grew up in Manchester and is the first staffer we’ve hired who first read The Mill at *school*. She looked up to @molliesimpson.bsky.social and is now taking her spot. manchestermill.co.uk/big-news-mee...

I used to read The Mill at school. Now I’m joining the team. A short note from our new staff writer Lucy. manchestermill.co.uk/big-news-mee...

What a weekend of @millmedia.bsky.social journalism across the country. Brilliant investigations, great writing. Proud of our writers and editors, who slog so hard to produce work this good. All these cities are better for it. #localjournalism

The Mill is a must for anyone interested in what’s really going on in Manchester. Fantastic thoughtful and evidenced journalism. If they can get 1000 more members they will do even more amazing things! Join today!!

Over four gruelling days last week, medics were grilled on whether they had done enough to keep 12-year-old Mia Lucas safe. To her mother Chloe, the answer was obvious. “We reached out for help during the most vulnerable time in Mia’s life,” she said. “But she didn’t get the help she needed.”

This is what real journalism looks like. More of this, please.

After three months of work, today we publish Part 6 of our investigation into Peter Mitchell and Big Help. We reveal that in two months, £195,000 of Knowsley Foodbank's money was siphoned off into organisations connected to Mitchell. Horrific stuff. www.livpost.co.uk/exclusive-ho...

This is such a brilliant campaign by The Mill. Their six pledges will help make Manchester a better place, but they need an extra 1,000 members by 10 December to make it happen. Whether you're a Mancunian or not, you'll get tons of brilliant journalism, and you'll also be supporting a great cause.

🚨EXCLUSIVE: we reveal that Knowsley Foodbank siphoned over £195,000 into companies linked to disgraced Big Help CEO, Peter Mitchell. We can also reveal that the Serious Fraud Office is now investigating Knowsley Foodbank www.livpost.co.uk/exclusive-ho...

Exclusive: Senior council officials engaged in ‘sleazy’ behaviour towards young female staff. @jackdulhanty.bsky.social has obtained a confidential report that tells how a Manchester awards ceremony descended into sexual misconduct. manchestermill.co.uk/exclusive-se...

Pledge 5 is about training up the Mancunian journalists of the future. If we reach 1000 new members in this campaign, we’re going to launch a structured scheme to support and mentor a group of wannabe writers and reporters, who will learn from our team and our experiences.

Today's Private Eye story, picking up our Andrew Milne coverage. Read all about it in today's Tribune: www.sheffieldtribune.co.uk/new-detectiv...

Our first pledge was incredibly popular with Millers and we’re excited about doing it: going into schools to give young people the skills to fact check what they’re seeing online and do their own journalism. @joshiherrmann.bsky.social wrote about it here. manchestermill.co.uk/youll-just-s...

These are our six campaign pledges - the things we will do next year if we manage to add 1,000 new members. They were chosen by our readers because they’re things we believe will make Manchester better. Share them and join the campaign 🙏 manchestermill.co.uk

Go on TikTok and search 'Manchester'. What comes up? Fights on Market Street, a local creator who confronts police officers, creepy videos of women on nights out and a comedian pretending to be scared of Moss Side This piece is about why that's a problem manchestermill.co.uk/youll-just-s...

The MEN is now the only local newsroom in Greater Manchester that has more than a handful of staff reporters, but go back 25 years and it would have been one of a dozen. Our weekend read is the tale of what’s been lost. manchestermill.co.uk/the-clatteri...