g7uk » local history

Tram lines on Peter Street

GS — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 06:55:20 +0000

The water company is digging up the road at the junction of Deansgate and Peter Street. They’re replacing the old Victorian water pipes.

Manchester demolishes one of Britain’s oldest cinemas

GS — Mon, 12 May 2008 10:15:28 +0000

Cine City in Withington is the latest historic building to go in the epidemic of greedy, short-sighted and inept development that has swept Manchester over the past ten years.

Formerly The Scala, it opened in 1912 and was only the third cinema in Britain.

Meanwhile the Victorian railway arches on Store Street, near Piccadilly, are being demolished.

Manchester Then and Now: Sackville Street, St. Luke’s Church, Chorlton On Medlock

GS — Mon, 18 Feb 2008 21:14:45 +0000

In Victorian times, the southern part of Sackville Street was called Zara Street. The road used to run right into the north-eastern part of Chorlton On Medlock and, after crossing Mount Street, was called Rutland Street.

Later, Rutland Street was renamed St. Luke’s Street. Then, in the 1960′s, the Mancunian Way (motorway) was built and sliced across the area from east to west, cutting off this part of Chorlton On Medlock from the city centre to a degree.

Most Haunted: Coronation Street

GS — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 03:59:06 +0000

On YouTube I found an episode of Most Haunted from 2005 in which they visit the studios and outdoor set of Coronation Street.

The studio is built on a former graveyard they claim. This is not the 1960′s Granada block but a studio that was constructed next to Lower Byrom Street in the late 1980′s.

It’s a good story, but a quick look through some photographs on the Manchester City Council local image library suggests it isn’t true.

The site of St. John’s Church now. Photo date: November 2008