A man eats from a plate of leftover food while pensioners huddle inside cafés for hours to stay warm. It sounds more like a scene from Victorian times than life in the UK in 2022.
But this is the grim reality traders at Bury Market say they are seeing amid the cost of living crisis. Across Greater Manchester and the country, soaring bills have left millions of people facing difficult decisions.
Even here at 'Britain's favourite market', stallholders are worried - for themselves and their customers. "Some of the older ones are saying they are scared," said Lizelle Bramall, who runs a hair salon in the market hall.
