Irish centre licence suspended after elderly woman's teeth 'knocked out' in brawl

An old woman's teeth were 'knocked out' when she was punched in the face during a fight at an Irish centre following Manchester's St Patrick's Day parade.

The Irish World Heritage Centre has now had its alcohol licence suspended pending a full review which is scheduled to take place in three weeks' time. A video of the 'violent brawl' at the venue in Cheetham Hill was presented as evidence at a public hearing this week – but police have refused to release it.

The CCTV footage shows a man with blood running down his face, some people throwing chairs and an 'elderly female' being punched in the face. The woman, understood to have been an NHS volunteer who helped with the vaccination programme, had her teeth 'knocked out', a police officer said.

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PC Stuart Hammersley told the licensing panel that the 'older lady' appears to approach one of the men who was fighting before being punched in the face. The licensing panel suspended the premises licence pending a full review.

Activities at the venue will continue for the time being, but the bar will be closed with all booze now 'locked away', according to sources at the centre. However, one senior figure said the temporary booze ban will be 'catastrophic' for the venue where several functions are planned over the next three weeks.

Speaking at a Manchester council licensing hearing on Monday (March 21), trustee Martin Connolly said the centre had hosted a St Patrick's Day parade on the day of the incident – but it closed last weekend to avoid further trouble. He said: "It was a peaceful event, as it's always been for the last 25 years we've been running the parade. We've never, ever, ever