The Manchester Carols is an inspired collaboration between composer Sasha Johnson Manning and Poet Laureate Carol Ann Duffy. A collection of 12 carols, linked with a gentle, entertaining narration, which reshape and modernise the Christmas story. Its creators wanted to write something that is relevant to and reflects modern society, and which acknowledges the fact that even though someone might not subscribe to the religion behind the Nativity story, they can still appreciate it as an inspiring, magical tale. The carols are for everyone, believers or not.
Duffy uses the Christmas story as a metaphor for human experience, giving us up-close and personal insights into the central characters of the nativity – Mary, Joseph, a newborn baby, and a ‘golden youth’ (aka the Angel Gabriel).
As Duffy herself says: 'I think the story is wonderful. There’s a lot we can take from it on a human level even if we don’t take the divine element.' There are hints, too, of the darker, grittier side of the Nativity story – refugees, poverty, giving birth on the road; and, looking further forward, there are hints of Jesus’ fate on the cross. These carols were written in Manchester in 2007 and first performed by children from several Manchester schools at The Royal Northern College of Music (and again in 2008). All of us who worked on them – librettist, composer, artist, conductor, teachers, musicians and singers – live and work in that great city. And so these are, and will forever be, The Manchester Carols".
International Shipping Suspended
With regret we have decided to suspend all international shipping options indefinitely, due to a significant increase in failed deliveries related to customs procedures and lost parcels. We are here to provide a reliable and prompt service to our customers and unfortunately the international solutions available to us are not up to our standards. We will review this decision in the future.
Item prices quoted on our website do not include delivery. All delivery charges are calculated by order value.
Deliveries to the United Kingdom
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All deliveries within the UK are sent by Royal Mail First Class Post or 24-Hour Parcelforce dependent on weight. Please see our notes on Delivery Times below for more information.
Deliveries to Europe (SUSPENDED)
Your delivery charge will be calculated at the checkout. All deliveries to the EU will be sent via a tracked service where available.
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Deliveries to International (SUSPENDED)
Your delivery charge will be calculated at the checkout. All international deliveries will be sent via a tracked service where available.
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Delivery Times
We aim to dispatch every order within 24 hours excluding weekends.
However, we have learned from experience not to make promises regarding delivery. We aim simply to provide you with a reliable service at a reasonable cost. To keep our prices competitive we do not keep huge stocks of any particular item. No matter how good our stock control, there will occasionally be times when a particular item is not immediately available.
Sometimes this will be due to overwhelming demand, and sometimes it will be due to circumstances beyond our control, such as the item having gone to reprint or out of print. You should be aware that your payment is taken automatically online at the time you place your order. In the circumstances outlined above, we will do our best to contact you and inform you of any anticipated delays. You may cancel your order at any time if you are not happy to wait.
Although we make every effort to ship your order according to these guidelines, we will not be held responsible for any loss or damage caused by delayed delivery.
Stock information:
Regularly updated stock information is now available to view online at ScoreStore. This information can, on occasion, be incorrect due to delays of up to 12 hours in updating. Our system will also allow you to order more items than we have in stock at any one time. If you require urgent delivery of a large order, please contact us to confirm current stock levels. Our Freephone number is 0800 072 0354 and we are in the office 9-5, Monday to Friday.
If you wish to cancel your order prior to dispatch, please email us at sales@scorestore.co.uk. We will terminate the transaction and refund any payments already made relating to your order. Once an order has been dispatched, we will accept returns where they meet the following conditions:
In the event that your item is faulty you may return it to us within thirty days and we will refund the cost of the item and reimburse the cost of returning the item to us.
If our error has led to an item has been mistakenly supplied to you and it is unopened and in as-new condition, you may return it to us within thirty days and we will refund the cost of the item and reimburse the cost of returning the item to us.
If you have decided that you do not wish to keep an item that has been correctly supplied, you may return it to us unopened in as-new condition within thirty days. In this case we will refund the cost of the item and you will be responsible for the cost of returning the item to us. You may not return items that we have ordered specially for you unless they are faulty or supplied in error.
If you wish to return an item to us, please email sales@scorestore.co.uk for instructions. We will not accept unsolicited returns arriving at our warehouse.
