"If you can have a pint, we're gonna have a pint... It's the Manchester way!"
The thought of an ice cold pint at the pub has been taunting Brits across the land for the past few months of lockdown.
However, the wait was finally over on Monday when pubs opened up their beer gardens to the parched public once again.
Trawling through the streets of Manchester on a sunny Thursday afternoon, people enjoyed basking in the sun with a thirst-quenching pint in hand.
JOE spoke to some customers to see how they felt about being back in the pub post-lockdown.
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One man, who was enjoying a pint in Northern Quarter with friends, said that being back in the pub after lockdown made him feel "part of the human race again."
However, one woman, who was at the pub with colleagues for the first time since restrictions eased, said it was "concerning" seeing huge amounts of people at the pubs on Monday.
She said: "I'm waiting for things to calm down again to get back out."
Her friend added that "it is probably only worrying as the government have made so many missteps along the way that you think: 'is this the right time?'"
He added that, emerging from lockdown, he was happy to leave behind "a strong sense of alcoholism and getting battered in the house."
But they joked: "But, if you can have a pint, we're gonna have a pint. It's the Manchester way!"
A group of men basking on the rooftop of the popular Northern Quarter bar Terrace told JOE that it was great to be back out together.
One said: "It's been such a long time without having a draft beer that you want to be back out with the people in the sun. It's not the same as a bottle at home."
Bursting into laughter after sharing his strangest lockdown purchase, he said: "I bet I spent about 15o quid on puzzles!
"150 quid on metal Chinese puzzles," he joked. "It was mint though, it got me through."
Passing through Stevenson Square, one man told us that he was enjoying being back out, despite being unfazed by the latest lockdown.
He said: "Lockdown was alright to be fair, just cracked on really. I had a few sneaky parties and that, not supposed to."
However he joked that his biggest Covid rule break was in fact "going to the shop more than once".
Amidst the surge of people pouring into beer gardens, a woman told JOE that she found lockdown fairly challenging.
She said: "I found it quite difficult, actually. It's hard on your mental health. So, i'm glad to be out and about and back to work."
She said that now she is back out, "I've gotta try my jeans back on, and I don't think it's going to work very well."
