Life

From the jaws of the Leviathan: The art of scrimshaw

In a photo of the Oval Office, President John F. Kennedy sits behind the desk on the phone frowning. A navy man, he carried his love of all things nautical with him throughout his life. On the desk are displayed several carved sperm whale teeth, known as scrimshaw.

Feline fine? How the country’s favourite cat cafés are coping with coronavirus

Cat cafés, which act as the home to furry felines and welcome visitors to come and joyfully interact with them, have had to adapt quickly under the lockdown. Three such cafés across the country share with MM how they are enduring the most challenging hurdle businesses have had to face in recent times – and just how their residents are feeling about it all.

The real issue locked in the women’s prison system

Two Government reports – the Corston Report in 2007 and the Ministry of Justice Female Offender Strategy in 2018 – have revealed that short-term custodial sentences do not work for women. 73% of women sentenced to less than a year reoffend. Despite this the number of short sentences have risen according to the charity Women in Prison. Mancunian Matters spoke to three women on the issues surrounding female sentencing.

Covid-19 and the biggest delivery service behind the Post Office

For the first time since World War II, the Chelsea Flower Show is cancelled, it was announced last month. This year’s absence of the pageantry found in the Queen’s favourite outing, however, has since revealed itself to be trivial in light of the country’s and the world’s devastating situation. Flowers are not insignificant in the battle, though. Covid-19 has left the fate of the workforce in unprecedented territory, and one field that is facing new challenges as a result is floristry.