They might not have made the podium at this year’s World Rowing Championships but Jess Leyden believes it would be foolish to count out Britain’s women’s quad team in Rio 2016.

MM staff would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and say a big thank you to all our readers for their support throughout 2015.

As families and friends prepare to feast and be merry, one of MM’s reporters spent a night on the streets of Manchester to experience the alienation and despair that will seem unimaginable to most of us this Christmas.

MM looks back at the pick of the bunch from Oldham’s last 50 Boxing Day encounters.

While Christmas is many people’s favourite time of year, it can be particularly lonely for those with mental health problems.

There will be several excitable coaches, managers and owners of our region’s sports teams, as they anticipate unwrapping their presents on Christmas morning.

A remarkable turnaround in the last two years has seen Bolton’s Castle Hill Primary School’s Ofsted report jump to an overall good rating from requiring improvement in all areas at the last inspection.

Rory O’Keeffe, the author of a new book chronicling the conflict during and after the Libyan Civil War, has said that he believes the country could ‘never recover’.

Manchester City may be developing as a global brand, but their ‘City in the Community’ programme is ensuring the club continues to be at the heart of the local area.

Eight environmental projects in Greater Manchester, including a primary school gardening club and a project to re-invigorate Brunswick estate, have received £12,170 of FirstTranspennine Express Green Grants.

The Manchester-based CityVerve project has been announced as the winner of a government-led technology competition, and plans to use the Internet of Things to revolutionise the city.