Spring 2024Editor's welcome

A warm welcome to Real Rochdale

Hello, and welcome to our first Real Rochdale issue of 2024.

The cover of our spring edition features Rochdale’s finest venue, the newly refurbished town hall, which reopened to the public on 3 March after being closed for extensive restoration four years ago. I’m sure you will be just as astonished as us at the remarkable difference!

Michelle Kight interviewed the latest Man of Rochdale, Wesley Dowd, who – with his little dog, Finley – has raised over £100,000 for hundreds of local children across the Rochdale borough, and also learnt more about the stellar work from the volunteers at the Rochdale Soup Kitchen over the last 10 years.

Two local businesses have marked significant milestones, as the Garden of Eden florist in Norden has been in business for a decade, and Littleborough’s The Dog Shop grooming salon has marked an amazing 30 year anniversary.

Natasha Brown has prepared a delightfully delicious recipe for Easter: hot cross buns with a chocolate chip and pumpkin spice twist!

Speaking of food, two new venues have been welcomed to the borough –Amor, a family-run Indian in Bamford, and the all-day café and bar, Pionero Lounge, in Rochdale town centre.

Spring is the perfect time to work on the garden, and Petrus’ Silvana Devine shares her best tips with us ahead of the warmer coming months.

As always, thank you to our advertisers and contributors – and we hope you enjoy this issue.