12 reasons to smile this weekend in Liverpool

The weekend’s here again, and that means the chance to kick back, tick off another week of lockdown#2 and smile… 

Liverpool City Centre is sparkling for Christmas

Yay, it’s Chrissssstmasssss – as Noddy Holder would say (or scream!). You know the festive season has finally started when the lights are switched on and the city is looking brill and bright. Liverpool ONE switched on its famous tree and fab festive reindeer on Thursday, Albert Dock is always looking pretty with its illuminated tree-lined roads and the rest of the city is set to sparkle with more lights than ever. We’ve got the Church Street tree to look forward to by November 26, and there’s lots already twinkling away throughout the city centre – with more to come. Santa’s on his way folks and we’ve never been ready to welcome him more! 

AwayBaked at Homebaked is relaunching

Liverpool’s most famous ‘pie shop’ in the shadows of the LFC stadium is relaunching its delivery service so you can get the best frozen pies delivered to your door, ready to throw into the oven and enjoy. Will you kick off with a Shankly Pie, or score a feast with one of its famous sausage rolls, or how about a scouse pie? It’s a result either way. It’ll have a limited stock of its perfect pies on offer from 3pm on Sunday, with deliveries for the Anfield Community Bakery’s AwayBaked service from Tuesday to Friday, between 9.30am to 2.30pm.

homebaked-bakery.myshopify.com

Check out Liverpool’s latest street art

New #LFC artwork on Bold Street ? pic.twitter.com/YW8sH0ShMo

— The Guide Liverpool (@TheGuideLpool) November 12, 2020

The city’s becoming an outdoor art gallery with loads of fabulous new street art adorning its walls and buildings, so why not ‘pay a visit’ on one of your walks? You can see the colourful Liver Bird painted on the side of The Wedding House on Great George Place by local artist John Culshaw – the Grade II listed building, which dates back to 1860 is impressive in itself, but now it can add the fab artwork to its beautiful brickwork; or how about paying homage to the Reds with the new mural off Bold Street? It’s another tribute to the club’s Premier League success, showing Virgil van Dijk with his arm around Sadio Mane as they celebrate one of the goals that catapulted LFC to the title.

Diwali has started and Milapfest are celebrating

Milap – the UK’s leading Indian Arts and Culture company – is celebrating Diwali with a week-long programme of music and dance that can be enjoyed from the comfort of your own home.

The Indian Festival of Lights symbolises the spiritual victory of light over darkness, and the packed digital programme of music and dance to mark it can be watched between 10am and 9pm until November 15.

On Saturday, Milap and Digital Diwali present artists including Debapriya Adhikary and Samanwaya Sarkar with Indranil Mallick, and Rajarshi Sengupta, Kousic Banerjee and Chandrima Das, and more, with music for the mind and soul. It will also show the traditional Fire Burning Ceremony.

And, on Sunday, guests include Flute Jayanth in concert with L. Ramakrishnan and Sai Giridhar.

Go to the website here for the final, full programme.

Enjoy beautiful Croxteth Park 

Covid may have stopped events and closed the Hall but the 500-acre country park is still well worth a visit with amazing woodland, pastures, ponds and streams to explore on a network of paths and trails, and provide the best scenery while you grab a bit of much-needed fresh air. You can also stock up the food cupboard with the most amazing local produce from the farm shop – and while you’re there it’s a good excuse to have a drink or a bite to eat at the café. There is also a new COVID test centre open at Croxteth Hall, so you can kill two birds!

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Or visit the surroundings of our stunning Speke Hall

THE doors of its great Tudor mansion may be closed for now but Speke Hall is still ready to offer a warm welcome, with plenty to keep families entertained from now and throughout the festive season. Woodland walks, the interactive Childe of Hale Trail and the chance to seek out Peter Rabbit and his pals, are just some of the activities you can enjoy at the popular National Trust venue. The play area is back open too – and there’s a cuppa, scrummy hot chocolate or the perfect scone to be had in the café.

More info here.

TV is boss 

Just when we might have been in danger of finishing Netflix (because we’re sure it’s going to happen one day) along comes a load of new telly to keep us all going.

Strictly and Bake Off are already into their stride, in fact it’s nearly time for the Bake Off finals (got to be Hermine, no?), but the big one for millions of fans – I’m A Celeb – is starting this weekend. Ant and Dec are back, in North Wales instead of the Aussie jungle, but there’ll still be all the usual trials and kangaroo bits to eat so it’s good to know not everything’s changed in 2020! And if bushtucker isn’t your thing, then The Crown returns too on November 15 with Charles and Di in this one, and tonight there’s Pudsey’s annual fundraising fest on BBC1 which is guaranteed to have celebs making a fool of themselves in a good cause.

The new John Lewis ad will warm your heart

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Juv2c0xgGno

Time to put any cynicism to one side and just embrace the whole sentimental feelgood-ness that is the John Lewis Christmas ad. Yes, they’re selling us stuff, but there’s a genuine message for 2020 behind this one, celebrating all the kindness that’s been shown to others during the pandemic. There’s a specially-written song too, A Little Love, by last year’s Brits Rising Star award winner Celeste which is absolutely gorgeous.

You can pimp up your hot drinks this weekend

Picture from Richie Hartless on Twitter

If you’re getting out for a walk over the weekend, might as well give yourself a bit of a treat at the end of it. Look out for the Pimp My Drink van where you can get fancy coffees, hot chocs and more on Saturday at The Point between 5.30pm and 6.30pm and on Sunday at Court Hey Park from 10am-3.30pm.

Get Christmassy by ordering the new Yorkshire Pudding Christmas Wrap from Dark Kitchen presents

Is it ever really too early to have a Christmas dinner? Or at least a mini version, all wrapped up in a Yorkshire pud? We’d say not, and The Dark Kitchen obviously agrees because they’ve created an amazing Yorkshire Pudding Christmas Wrap. It’s basically a big gorgeous pud filled with all your favourite bits of Christmas dinner so expect roasties, carrots, sprouts, pigs, stuffing and turkey obviously. It’s available to order for collection and delivery now so let the countdown to Christmas eating begin!

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Enjoy live music with The Cavern’s Live Stream

Even though the doors to the world’s most famous club are currently closed to the public, that doesn’t mean you can’t still hear live music from there. The Cavern Live! Is bringing 10 hours a day of live music, streamed 7 days a week, straight from Mathew Street. From 12pm-10pm every day, there’ll be a great line-up of some of the Cavern’s resident solo artists. Tune in via the Cavern’s website:

Visit the Cavern website here and follow on Facebook

Strange Drinks have got your bevvies sorted – direct to your door!

You’ve got the top telly, and the heating’s on – now all you need to see you nicely through lockdown is drinks delivered straight to you so all you’ve got to do is pick what you fancy and stand up off the sofa to collect them. Strange Drinks has done all the legwork for you, getting together a fantastic choice of beers from around the world, ciders, spirits and wines. Just click and you can get them delivered locally on Wednesdays and Fridays, ready for the weekend.

Order here.