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Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
Entertainment
Thomas Molloy

Man v Sausage: The Manchester eating competition in which contestants tackle 24-inch hot dogs

People often line the street to queue for Barbakan's delicious sausages. A sizeable crowd gathered at the Chorlton deli this Bank Holiday Monday to watch nine men try and eat a gargantuan 24-inch hot dog in the quickest time possible.

1980s rock classics such as 'Eye of the Tiger' and 'Danger Zone' blasted from a portable speaker on the table as competitors battled it out to take home the 'Man v Sausage' crown and raise £50 for a charity of their choice. Dozens of people cheered their family and friends on, with some even waving signs of support.

Barbakan owner Frankie Dyer said that the competition has been an annual staple at the deli for the past six years. "My dad owned Barbakan for about 35 years until I bought it off him when he retired two years ago," she told the Manchester Evening News.

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"I have to give credit to him for this because it was originally his idea but I've taken it on and we do it every single August Bank Holiday Monday. We always get a really good crowd and have the sausage pan on.

Family and friends of the competitors waved signs in the crowd (Vincent Cole - Manchester Evening News)

"It's really fun, we have a bit of music as motivation. Every year people say 'I could eat two of those' and then five minutes in they're struggling."

In an unexpected twist, it was actually a late replacement who won in a record-breaking 10 minutes and 19 seconds after one of the entrants failed to show up. James Anderson had been visiting his brother - who also competed - for the bank holiday weekend and fancied his chances as he is "quite a big eater anyway".

James, who lives in the East Midlands, told the M.E.N: "My brother was taking part and has been talking about it all weekend. I joked and said 'if they need someone to stand in I'll take part'.

James Anderson the moment he won (Vincent Cole - Manchester Evening News)

"It wasn't too bad because I'm quite a big eater anyway. I like my food so it wasn't really a problem. The sausage was great as well, lots of flavour in there and very tasty so credit to the guys at Barbakan."

A number of competitors seemed to have different tactics on how to tackle the challenge. James, who looked unfazed throughout, dipped his hot dog bun into a cup of water after eating the frankfurter first.

He admitted that he had taken tips from food challenges on television shows such as Man v Food. "I've seen a few things on TV," he added. "I got the meat down me first and then dipped the bread to soften it up. I think I'm going to sleep it off in the car on the way back to Northampton."

Good heavens! (Vincent Cole)

His winnings will be donated to Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders), a charity that provides medical humanitarian assistance to victims of conflict, natural disasters, epidemics or healthcare exclusion.

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