It’s set to be a major moment for the Stockport monument
15:42, 06 May 2026Updated 17:20, 06 May 2026
The Royal Nawaab Stockport welcomed close to 200,000 diners in its first eight months of opening(Image: Manchester Evening News)
The Stockport Pyramid is to take centre stage in a huge new documentary series which will air on TV later this year.
Initially constructed in 1992 as part of an extravagant plan to build a series of ‘Valley of the Kings’-style pyramids across the Greater Manchester borough, the oversized blue triangular building was used as offices for Co-operative Bank staff from 1995 until 2018 after its initial grandiose intentions fell flat.
Having laid dormant for seven years, the Royal Nawaab took over the pyramid building, situated on the side of the M60, and opened an extravagant 400-cover banqueting hall inside as part of a major £15m overhaul last year. First opened in April 2025, the venue attracted over 192,000 guests in its first year including big names like Tyson Fury and Paddy McGuinness.
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Featuring hundreds of freshly-cooked dishes spanning across Indian, Pakistani and European cuisines, the restaurant has also received high praise from food critics, including Jay Rayner who applauded its ‘parade of pakoras and tikkas, birianis, masalas and the rest’. Last year, the venue also received five nominations at the This Is Manchester Awards, including for Leading Restaurant Award (Formal) and Outstanding Debut of the Year.
Led by owner and head chef Mahboob Hussain, who ran the Royal Nawaab in Levenshulme from 2002 until 2022, the venue also consists of two events suites which can be used to host weddings, celebrations and private events – with more aspects of the building still to be taken over and opened up to the public.
The restaurant opened in the Stockport pyramid last April following a major £15m overhaul(Image: Manchester Evening News)
It has now been confirmed that staff at Royal Nawaab Pyramid have been followed by camera crews for the last six months as part of an upcoming Channel 4 show from Manchester-based independent production company Salamanda Media, who have previously worked on productions including Abbey Clancy’s Celebrity Homes and Rob Brydon’s Honky Tonk Road Trip.
Named World’s Biggest Curry Restaurant, the one-off will shine a spotlight on the chefs, front-of-house team, social media staff, and managers who all come together on a daily basis to deliver a world-class experience for diners. Describing the series, Channel 4 said: “We’re a nation that loves our curry. But in Greater Manchester, there’s one venue that’s bigger and bolder than all the rest – The Royal Nawaab.
“Serving up to 10,000 diners a week, hosting as many as nine weddings and events every weekend, this is the largest Pakistani Indian restaurant on the planet and they’re rewriting the rulebook on how South Asian food is cooked, served and scaled.
Mahboob Hussain, the owner and head chef of the Royal Nawaab Pyramid, will appear in the new Channel 4 series(Image: Ryan Jenkinson | Manchester Evening News)
“Open seven days a week and powered by 150 staff, this access-led observational documentary goes behind the scenes of this high-pressure operation running at full tilt. We follow the chefs racing against the clock in the kitchens, the front of house team managing thousands of customers, the Events Manager juggling high stakes wedding expectations, and a social media team chasing the next generation of customers. At the centre is owner Mr Mahboob, whose exacting standards shape every service, every dish, every detail.
“Across packed weekends and last-minute dramas, we capture life inside the World’s Biggest Curry Restaurant where behind the spectacle is graft, loyalty, and the daily challenge of delivering perfection at scale.”
Earlier this year, Mr Mahboob spoke to the Manchester Evening News about the success of the Royal Nawaab Pyramid in its first year of operation, citing that his intentions to make the venue the ‘buffet restaurant of dreams’ have come true. He said: “There were people who criticised me and said I was being silly to turn the pyramid into a restaurant. They couldn’t see that it would be a success, but I always believed in it and I knew I would bring it back to life.”
The show is set to air on Channel 4 at 8pm on May 22.