A stroll through Manchester

Becky

Webmistress
Joined
Mar 25, 2003
Messages
7,424
Reaction score
1,511
As promised, I decided to take a leaf out of @floppybootstomp's book and share some photos with you of our home town :)

This is St John's Gardens - there used to be a church here before it was turned into a park, and not many people know that there are around 22,000 bodies buried underneath the area:
20160823_161513.jpg


This is a part of Spinningfields, which is the new business area of Manchester. I used to work in the building on the right, top floor:
20160823_161905.jpg


The John Rylands Library which is on Deansgate (one of the main streets through the city centre) - feels a bit like Hogwarts inside. You can see other buildings in Spinningfields behind it:
20160823_162351.jpg


This photo was taken in St Anne's Square - this is the Royal Exchange Theatre, and the building was previously used to exchange commodities:
20160823_164009.jpg


The theatre inside is round and surrounded by raised seating. The cheap seats are right at the front on a low bench, which makes for great viewing! Panorama photo:
20160823_164209.jpg


The trading boards from the last day of trading:
20160823_164230.jpg


This is Shambles Square on the left. The black and white building on the left is Tudor, and the one in the middle is an extension that was added in the 1700s. Both were taken apart, relocated and put back together again in the 1990s:
20160823_165209.jpg


This is the Metrolink which runs throughout Greater Manchester. It's expensive and prone to problems! You can see the Printworks on the left which houses a number of dodgy bars and the Odeon (including a proper IMAX):
20160823_165348.jpg


This is Exchange Square, which until recently was called The Triangle, because it's triangular. The Corn Exchange now houses a good selection of restaurants and bars. The weird looking building with the antenna on the right was previously called The Urbis, and is now a football museum:
20160823_165725.jpg


This postbox was very close to where the IRA bomb went off in 1996, and survived the blast:
20160823_165834.jpg


Here's what it looked like back then:
manchesterira2.jpg

The re-built M&S (you can just about see the post box on the far-right):
20160823_170729.jpg


Town Hall, in Albert's Square. The floor inside is a mosaic of bees and cotton flowers (if you didn't know, bees are the symbol of Manchester due to the industrial past, and Manchester made its money from cotton):
20160823_171252.jpg


The town hall is linked to the next-door building by overhead tunnels:
20160823_171548.jpg


Next door to the town hall buildings is the Central Library, taken from St Peter's Square (this photo was taken using panorama mode, because there was building work going on behind me and I couldn't fit it all in):
20160823_172043.jpg


Here's a non-distorted photo I also took:
20160823_172107.jpg


More to follow...
 

Becky

Webmistress
Joined
Mar 25, 2003
Messages
7,424
Reaction score
1,511
The Beetham Tower, which is a Hilton hotel up to the middle bit, then apartments from the middle to the top. There is a good bar on the middle floor called Cloud 23, and it has great views:
20160823_173142.jpg


View of the Beetham Tower from Castlefield. Castlefield was an industrial area, and it's where the Bridgewater Canal terminates. It is now a lovely area right in the city centre, away from the hustle and bustle:
20160823_173935.jpg


Merchant's Warehouse, Castlefield:
20160823_174139.jpg


This bridge leads to Lock 92 on the canal, and there is a great bar and restaurant next to it. Behind the trees on the left is a place called Barca which is a bar originally owned by Mick Hucknall. It has been through a number of changes over the years, and has never been as popular as the other places in Castlefield:
20160823_174330.jpg


Another photo of Castlefield showing the railway bridge and tram bridge:
20160823_174554.jpg


Went for a drink in Barca to see if it had improved. Can't fault the view! We used to live in one of the apartments in this photo:
20160823_175029.jpg


Castlefield had a Roman Fort here originally, which is how the area got its name:
20160823_182807.jpg


Museum of Science and Industry (MoSI) is always worth a trip - and best of all it's free!
20160823_183108.jpg


20160823_183209.jpg


Behind MoSI are the old Granada Studios - here's a peek of the original Coronation St set. Apparently when they originally cobbled the road they laid the cobbles the wrong way and it had to be re-done, and I assume that's why these cobbles are also the wrong way:
20160823_183246.jpg


All that walking is thirsty work! I had a 'birthday cake shake' at a place called Home Sweet Home - it's cake blended into the milkshake, with a full slice of cake on top. And yes, those are party rings too :D
20160824_122313.jpg


Should have checked the small print! :lol:
20160824_124651.jpg


Hope you enjoyed seeing a few snaps! :cheers:
 

V_R

¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Moderator
Joined
Jan 31, 2005
Messages
13,572
Reaction score
1,888
Very cool! :thumb:

The John Rylands Library

Just checking this out on GMaps, it looks kinda odd surrounded by all the new modern buildings.

The camera in the S7/Edge is really very good isn't it. :)

Oh and that is one hell of a milkshake! :eek:
 

Becky

Webmistress
Joined
Mar 25, 2003
Messages
7,424
Reaction score
1,511
Just checking this out on GMaps,

Yeah I know what you mean about the building looking odd! The building next to the library couldn't be more different - scoot up the road a bit and you'll see what I mean, and if you look closely you'll see a glass protrusion coming out of the ground. That's a staircase that leads down to a restaurant called Australasia which has great food and is great for people watching (ie WAGs galore) :lol:

I'm still really pleased with the camera on the S7. There were some photos that I had to edit slightly, but that was more because the sun was shining right at me and it threw the contrast and saturation off.

Oh and that is one hell of a milkshake! :eek:

The most amazing thing was that I didn't feel too sick afterwards! :dance:
 

floppybootstomp

sugar 'n spikes
Moderator
Joined
Mar 5, 2002
Messages
20,281
Reaction score
1,794
Great pix Becky, thanks for posting.

This thread is my own guided tour of Manchester :)

I only been to Manchester once, stayed just on the outskirts somewhere in digs for a couple of weeks whilst working. This would have been late seventies or early eighties.

Just outside of Manchester a large Gas Processing site had been built over several square miles. It was the last site designed to deal with Natural Gas and was completed just as the UK switched over completely to North Sea Gas, which made this site redundant on opening day.

It was a huge industrial complex, it took about twenty minutes just to drive round the border and British Gas were at a loss what to do with it which must have caused them some upset as it cost an awful lot of money. Some bright spark had the idea of using the many on site storage tanks to store other liquid and gaseous products so that's why I was called in, I had to X-Ray all these storage tanks and declare them safe and fit for use.

I remember it was rainy most of the time and the people staying in the digs with me were right miserable so and so's. However, the fellas I worked with were a great bunch of blokes and me and the foreman went out for a drink a few times.
 

Becky

Webmistress
Joined
Mar 25, 2003
Messages
7,424
Reaction score
1,511
I remember it was rainy most of the time

Sounds about right :lol:

The Hacienda went a long time ago I'm afraid - late 90s I think. It was knocked down and replaced with an apartment building - called The Hacienda.
 

Urmas

Subarctic Penguin
Joined
Mar 11, 2008
Messages
2,412
Reaction score
895
@Urmas well if you turn up in my yard I'll know the milkshake worked! :lol:

Dunno... product group "Boys" may or may not come with "Best Before" date. :p

That said... Manchester (England, England) looks like a liveable city... just like its Finnish "NAMESAKE".
 

Taffycat

Crunchy Cat
Joined
Jun 1, 2006
Messages
12,534
Reaction score
1,055
I enjoyed walking around Manchester with you @Becky! :D You have shared some great photos of the city, and that is such a good pic of you!

Pssst!... Please tell us that you had help to consume that birthday cake shake! It looks amazing! :thumb:
 

muckshifter

I'm not weird, I'm a limited edition.
Moderator
Joined
Mar 5, 2002
Messages
25,735
Reaction score
1,204
velly interesting walk-a-bout ... tho' I frown on the use of the phonographic material at the end.

:)
 

Becky

Webmistress
Joined
Mar 25, 2003
Messages
7,424
Reaction score
1,511
Thanks @Taffycat! Yep, I can confirm that @Ian selflessly volunteered his services to help me with that milkshake. I think I may have developed diabetes if he hadn't ;)
 

Quadophile

Hon. Acoustical Engineer
Moderator
Joined
Mar 16, 2002
Messages
6,641
Reaction score
566
Loved the pictures which truly tell a tale of Manchester. The milkshake looked yummy :cheers:
 
Joined
Jul 11, 2010
Messages
5,758
Reaction score
552
Well I have just come across this post, what great photos Becky. I have never been to Manchester only the industrial areas outside Manchester in the 1970's. Your photos have made me want to have a trip up there now. once again terrific photography.:thumb::thumb::thumb:
 

Abarbarian

Acruncher
Joined
Sep 30, 2005
Messages
11,002
Reaction score
1,216
Where are the pics of China Town , Coronation Street and the many bars of Canal Street ? :eek:
 

Becky

Webmistress
Joined
Mar 25, 2003
Messages
7,424
Reaction score
1,511
Where are the pics of China Town , Coronation Street and the many bars of Canal Street ? :eek:

There's a photo of the Corrie set - it's the 10th photo in the second set of photos :D

No photos of Canal St because it's a bit rough around there... Shame because it used to be a good place for a night out!
 

Ask a Question

Want to reply to this thread or ask your own question?

You'll need to choose a username for the site, which only take a couple of moments. After that, you can post your question and our members will help you out.

Ask a Question

Top