Barack Obama praises Manchester cotton workers who refused slave-picked cotton in the American Civil War as an inspiration for today

Tens of thousands packed Manchester's Co-op Live on Thursday night to hear Barack Obama interviewed by broadcaster Afua Hirsch. He recalled how 'hungry' working-class mill hands backed Abraham Lincoln's 1862 blockade 'even though it is going to cost us'. He said such stories show people are 'deeply connected'. 'We'll get through these times too,' he told the crowd.

Obama called social media misinformation 'one of the biggest dangers that we are facing right now'.

On AI, he warned: 'We're not prepared.'

Prime Minister Andy Burnham was reportedly seen meeting him at the Stock Exchange Hotel.