Really? What map are you looking at?
You certainly have to traverse Greater Manchester, and the city itself isn't really a million miles of a detour.
Not a million miles, but the wrong side of the M6, therefore not between Aberdeen and Chester, unless opting to take the long way down the east coast past Newcastle, in which case you'd be passing but since GEA was mentioned, the OP was clearly planning to pass Glasgow and therefore down the M6.
Unless of course there is another Chester other than the one with the zoo, south of Liverpool.
And still 6 days too late to be helpful.