Retail worker Ryan Quick, 26, from Bolton, set up the petition on Change.org on January 6 and it has already gathered over 700 signatures.

Lying prone on a table, naked to the waist and with multiple fine pronged needles sticking from their backs, acupuncture patients hardly look a picture of serenity and calm.

Picture the scene: Two young florists destined for each other, forced apart by a merciless dentist in an American slum which is tormented by an overgrown plant.

Dame Sarah Storey’s record cycling gold this morning in Rio shows Manchester has been the bedrock for success at this summer’s Paralympic Games.

Oldham Council is appealing to residents after budget cuts mean they must find savings of more than £20m.