pride
of manchester awards 2004 |
the best of manchester 2004 |
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It's been a great year for
Manchester culture. There's been some amazing albums released
by the biggest musical icons the city has ever produced,
some astounding sporting achievements from our best athletes
and some hilarious television moments captured by our
finest actors. But what have you got excited about this
year? We're inviting members of the Pride Of Manchester
mailing list to vote on their best moments of 2004...
Conditions
of voting: To vote, you must
be a member of the Pride Of Manchester mailing list
(click here to
join). To prevent vote rigging, unsubscribers
from the mailing list will also have their votes removed. |
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As
everybody has their own personal opinion on what is good
and bad, we've decided to keep this an open vote, so there's
no influencing the final result by giving you a short-list
to choose from. If you're not sure or don't want to vote
on a particular catergory, just leave your answer blank.
All we ask is that you vote for people who come from Manchester
or the surrounding region. We'll also accept votes for those
people, not strictly Mancs, but have a Manchester connection
(ie, City Life Magazine have previously awarded David Beckham
and Johnny Vegas the title of Mancunian Of The Year). To
help jog your memory, here's a few reminders of what happened
in 2004... |
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Manchester
Music: What a year! We've had the first Morrissey
album in 7 years, the debut solo album from former James
frontman Tim Booth, and highly acclaimed
albums from both Ian Brown, Badly
Drawn Boy and The Charlatans.
Salford tenor Russell Watson returned
with another chart smash and we were treated to compilation
albums from The Bee Gees, The
Verve, New Order, Chemical
Brothers, Durutti Column,
The Buzzcocks, and ex-Take That cheeky chappie,
Robbie Williams. Lisa Stansfield
and Haven failed to regain previous chart
success, whilst others missing out on commercial success
included Fingathing, Homelife,
Proud Mary, The Earlies,
Stephen Fretwell, Rebelski
and Moco. Mr Scruff and
Aim both remixed compilation CD's, whilst
Lamb had a busy year with 3 album releases.
It's also been a notable year for X-Final star Rowetta,
former Hollies frontman Graham Nash,
and the Manchester born and bred BBC Philharmonic
Orchestra who celebrated their 70th anniversary
in 2004.
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Album
releases of note: Robbie
Williams - Greatest Hits (reached UK no.1, Oct) / Morrissey
- You Are The Quarry (UK no.2 in May) / Ian Brown - Solarized
(UK no.7, Sep) / Bee Gees - Number One's (UK no.7, Nov) /
Chemical Brothers - Singles (UK no.9, Jan) / Badly Drawn Boy
- One Plus One Is One (UK no.9, July) / Russell Watson - Amore
Musica (UK no.10, Nov) / The Charlatans - Up At The Lake (UK
no.13, May) / The Verve - This Is Music (UK no.15, Nov) /
Non-charting
albums: Haven
- All For A Reason (March) / New Order - Radio One Sessions
(April) Fingathing - Fingathing & the Big Red Nebula Band
(May) / Tim Booth - Bone (June) / Lamb - Best Kept
Secrets (June) / Lamb - Back To Mine (July) / The Earlies
- These Were The Earlies (July) / Lamb - Ashes of the Wake
(Aug) / Graham Nash & David Crosby - Crosby/Nash (Aug)
/ The Buzzcocks - Complete Singles Anthology (Aug) / Homelife
- Guru Man Hubcap Lady (Aug) / Aim - Fabriclive17 (Aug) /
Lisa Stansfield - The Moment (Sep) / Mr Scruff - Keep It Solid
Steel (Sep) / Proud Mary - Love & Light (Sep) / Durutti
Column - Best Of (Oct) / Moco - Out To Go (Nov) / Stephen
Fretwell - Magpie (Nov) |
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Manchester
Sport: It was also another great year for
Manchester sport. Manchester United won the FA
Cup Final thanks to an amazing performance by
Cristiano Ronaldo, who along with United
team-mate Wayne Rooney was the best player
at Euro 2004, from which Bolton's Stelios Giannakopoulos
came home with a winners medal. It was another star from
Bolton that emerged at the Athens Olympics...17 year old
boxer Amir Khan finished with silver
but the heart of the nation. Other Mancunian medalists
included Darren Campbell (gold, 4x4 100m
relay), Ben Ainslie (gold, sailing),
Rob Hayles (silver & bronze, cycling),
Steve Cummings (silver, cycling), Jeanette
Brakewell (silver, equestrian), Stephen
Parry (bronze, 200m butterfly). Meanwhile in
rugby league, Wigan's Andy Farrell won
both the Man of Steel and Golden Boot awards as well as
an MBE after guiding the Warriors to the Challenge Cup
final. Boxer Ricky Hatton contines to
entertain by holding onto his WBU light welterweight title.
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Manchester
Movies: It's also been a busy year for Manchester's
movie makers with the brilliant remake of Alfie
being filmed in the city (albeit masquerading as New York)
and Dead Man's Shoes also shot in the
region. Salford actor Albert Finney turned
in a brilliant performance in Big Fish,
bettered only by the Oscar-nominated performance of his
Salford mate, Ben Kingsley in House
of Sand and Fog. Steve Coogan starred in his
first Hollywood movie, Around The World In 80
Days, whilst Michael Winterbottom's
9 Songs, starring Kieran O'Brien,
attracted massive controversy for it's explicit sex scenes.
One of the best cinematic moments for Manchester United
fans came in The Day After Tomorrow however
the highlight of the year though, apart from Ian
Brown's cameo in Harry Potter,
must have been The Lord Of The Rings: The Return
of the King which boasted a cast full of actors
with Manchester connections including Ian McKellern
(Gandalf), Bernard Hill (Theoden),
Dominic Monaghan (Merry), and Andy
Serkis (Gollum).
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Movies
of note: Alfie
/ Dead Man's Shoes / Lord Of The Rings (Bernard Hill,
Dominic Monaghan, Andy Serkis & Ian McKellern) / The
Day After Tomorrow / House Of Sand & Fog (Ben Kingsley)
/ Big Fish (Albert Finney) / Ocean's Twelve (Albert Finney)
/ Suspect Zero (Ben Kingsley) / Thunderbirds (Ben Kingsley)
/ Around The World In 80 Days (Steve Coogan) / Coffee
& Cigarettes (Steve Coogan) / 9 Songs (Michael Winterbottom
& Kieran O'Brien) / Code 46 (Michael Winterbottom)
/ Spivs (Dominic Monaghan) / The Purifiers (Dominic Monaghan)
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Manchester
TV: Following the BBC's relocation of many
key departments to Manchester, 2005 should see an influx
of locally made programmes. Not that 2004 was short of
any... Coronation Street battled it's
way back up to the top of the ratings, and even included
an hilarious cameo from Peter Kay who
later also released Max & Paddy's Road To
Nowhere. For many, it struggled to produce as
many laughs as the brilliant second series of Early
Doors and the Mancunian-packed All Star
Comedy Show. The third series of Cutting
It was arguably the best yet whilst the second
series of BBC Three's superb Burn It
went largely unnoticed as did the Manchester cast in their
Runcorn-based Two Pints Of Lager & A Packet
Of Crisps. Christmas provided us with a Shameless
special and the brilliant Christmas Lights
drama.
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TV
shows of note: Coronation
Street / Cutting It / Burn It / Max & Paddy's Road
To Nowhere / Early Doors / Shameless Christmas Special
/ Christmas Lights / All Star Comedy Show / Two Pints
Of Lager & A Packet Of Crisps
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Manchester
Literature: Manchester authors have been
busy this year too, with International best-seller Val
McDermid releasing perhaps her greatest crime
thriller yet in The Torment of Others. Howard
Jacobson's observational comedy, The Making of
Henry won critical acclaim as did Suzannah Dunn's
modernisation of Anne Boleyn in The Queen of Subtleties.
Nicholas Blincoe's complex Burning Paris, Nicholas
Royle's chilling Antwerp, Cath Staincliffe's
Blue Murder, and Jane Roger's The Voyage
Home also won praise. The New York Times described David
Bowker's I Love My Smith & Wesson as "the
Sopranos meets the Jackal in a part of England Agatha
Christie knew absolutely nothing about" and Bowker
also found time to release Rawhead In Love. Livi
Michael returned with the latest instalment of
Frank, the hero hamster, whilst Sherry Ashworth
also entertained the kids with her brilliant
thriller, Dream Travellers. There's also been some great
autobiographies from the likes of Stuart Maconie,
Robbie Williams and Northwich-born Paula
Radcliffe. Other sports books of note include
David Blatt's Manchester United Ruined My Wife,
a title mimicking the book by Colin Shindler
who also released George Best and 21 Others.
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Books
of note: Paula
Radcliffe - My Story So Far / Robbie Williams - Feel /
Val McDermid - The Torment of Others / Mark Simpson -
Saint Morrissey / Stuart Maconie - Cider With Roadies
/ David Blatt - Manchester United Ruined My Life / Colin
Shindler - George Best & 21 Others / Howard Jacobson
- Making Of Henry / Suzannah Dunn - The Queen Of Subleties
/ Nicholas Royle - Antwerp / Livi Michael - Frank &
The Flames Of Truth / Nicholas Blincoe - Burning Paris
/ Jane Rogers - The Voyage Home / David Bowker - Rawhead
In Love / Cath Staincliffe - Blue Murder / David Bowker
- I Love My Smith & Wesson / Sherry Ashworth - Dream
Travellers
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Other catergories:
To help jog your memory, some votes already cast for other
awards include (in alphabetical order):
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Pub/Bar
of the year: (suggestions) Corbierres / Living
Room / Peveril Of The Peak / Rain Bar / Revolution (Deansgate
Locks) / Sugar Lounge / The Bar, Chorlton / Tiger Tiger |
Restaurant
of the year: (suggestions) East / Gaucho Grill
/ Hurricane / Little Yang Sing / Marcello's Ristorante / Pacific
/ Teppan Yaki / Yang Sing |
Hotel
of the year: (suggestions) Alias Rossetti / Arora
International / Campanile / Lowry / Manchester White House
/ Malmaison / Radisson Edwardian |
Club
of the year: (suggestions) B.E.D. / 42nd Street
/ 5th Avenue / Lucid / M-Two / Po Na Na / Sankey's Soap /
South / |
Best
show: (suggestions) Eric Bibb (Bridgewater Hall)
/ Ian Brown (Apollo) Hanky Park (Lowry) / Kes (Royal Exchange)
/ Motorhead (Apollo) / Round The Horne (Lowry) / Simon &
Garfunkel (MEN) / Snow Patrol (Apollo) |
Funniest
live comedian: (suggestions) Steve Coogan
(An Evening Of Comedy, Apollo) / Mick Ferry / Dave Gorman
(Googlewhack Adventure) / Peter Kay (An Evening Of Comedy,
Apollo) / Archie Kelly (Jumping On The Bandwagon Tour)
/ Daniel Kitson / Justin Moorhouse / Slaughterhouse Live
/ Dave Spikey / Johnny Vegas
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Best
building: (suggestions) Bridgewater Hall / G-Mex
/ Imperial War Museum / The Lowry / Manchester town hall /
Midland Hotel / Urbis |
Worst
building: (suggestions) Arndale Centre / City
Gate apartments (Castlefield) / City Gate 2 (Trinity Way)
/ Ibis Manchester (Charles Street) / No.1 Piccadilly Gardens |
Favourite
moment: (suggestions) An Evening Of Comedy at the
Apollo (Peter Kay, Steve Coogan, Justin Moorhouse etc) / City
4-1 United / Eric Sykes getting a CBE / Ian Brown asking if
there was any Scousers in the house at the Apollo / Morrissey
live in concert / Move Festival / Peter Kay in Corrie / United
4-2 City (FA Cup) / United 1-0 Arsenal (FA Cup Semi) / United
2-0 Arsenal (50 Not Out!) / United Not For Sale march / |
Mancunian
of the year: (suggestions) Tom Bloxham / Ian Brown
/ Craig Cash / Christopher Eccleston / Peter Kay / Dominic
Monaghan / Morrissey / Dave Spikey |
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But
what was your best moments of 2004? |