Thanks as ever for your comments, always respectful please. I enjoyed riding the trains and trams around central Manchester to make this video. If you have any extra info, tips, corrections comments or observations, please comment!
@@aorlanguages if the northern city mayors agreed to work together, to connect their regions together through infrastructure initiatives and joined up thinking it might work. I think London has neglected the north since its industrial base became diminished, its high time the north started more unified in its strategies. As a fella from Durham, I’d have no objection to Manchester being the north’s epicenter and engine for growth (arguably it already is). Love your videos - keep up the good work.
From a Liverpudlian this is amazing. Manchester really developing its own unique city scape that's forward looking and vibrant. The vista at 8.51 is something we would never expect to see in the UK outside London 10-15 years ago
@@cmg1819 That’s right. I would never have imagined a small skyscraper city would appear on the former industrial waste ground south of the city centre. But Liverpool has a pretty good skyline, as you’ll see in my Liverpool videos.
I think you might be right (obviously London is London) in terms of going tall Manchester/Salford were very impressive when we visited. I do want our Cities to be unique though therefore I hope my home City of Birmingham doesn’t just build Skyscrapers to try and foolishly compete with Manchester…🙄.
I know of one or two people who don't like the comparison between Manchester and Manhattan. As someone who's lived in Manhattan, I would say Manchester has a long way to go, but there are some parallels - I made a video about this topic. ruclips.net/video/QGx16vRqcoo/видео.html Many thanks for your comment.
It has certainly changed from when i was a kid in the 90's. Wonderful to see the city thriving. Thanks for this video. Subbed so i can follow your updates on whats happening.
Manchester is looking very cool with so many new skyscrapers. I live in Birmingham and we are starting to have a skyscraper boom at the moment. Problem is none of the new skyscrapers in Birmingham have carpark spaces.
Years ago when Deansgate Square was going up I revisited Manchester for the first time in years. You can imagine my shock that the formerly Beetham-dominated skyline had totally shifted! Things are just getting more and more tall and dense! The skyline is unrecognisable! Very exciting to see.
Great videos - fantastic to see so much happening. Lots of it great, some good, some not so! One small point - it’s pronounced Simpson “Huff” Architects :-)
@@B3NCAPP3R Yes I only recently discovered the correct pronunciation, I was annoyed with myself I should have checked it, but no one corrected me as you have. In my last video I finally got it right and will do so in all future videos. Many thanks for your comment and correction!
@@AidanEyewitnessmy pleasure Aidan. Es ist wirklich toll diese Videos anzuschauen aus der Schweiz…. ich vermisse Manchester! I worked for years alongside a number of the names you mention in these videos. Great to see!
Brilliant video as always. Would love to see what's going with Trafford Waters and even Cotton and Clipper Quays. May have to have a visit up to Manchester soon !
@AidanEyewitness Thank you so much! I'm aware the original building on Clipper Quay is complete, but there seems to be a lot of work about to start over that way, especially with the next phase of Media City too.
@@LizThomas-gk9sb The disjoint between Deansgate and Mediacity needs attention. Pomona Island looks like Steptoe’s yard, and that land is in Trafford and should be a stunning residential and leisure destination . The decisions for building there are made in Stretford. This is why the GM mayor should have the final say on building projects, particularly those so close to the city centre, not a councillor who lives In Timperley. Manchester is hemmed in, in its own Centre, it is a nonsensical state of affairs. I accept that Salford is a separate city and respect that but why Trafford has the final say on places, which are part of the booming centre is ridiculous, hence this disjoint. Pomona Island should be full of beautiful treelined streets of townhouses overlooking water. It could be the jewel in the Crown. It has everything, including tram stops.
Another great video @AidenEyewitness - Well made and informative. Also, its been a while since I did, but it was good to meet you next to the runway at Manchester Airport last month. You should have a selfie with me, taken after our brief chat, before I head off to watch the aircraft and later explore a few things round and about Styal with my Mum and youngest daughter. I said that I would pop a comment on one of your videos. It just took me a bit longer to get round to it than I expected. Cheers! 🍻🍻
That's great, very nice to hear from you, many thanks for your positive comments. I've not been recognised since, but then I've not been out of the house, too busy scriptwriting and editing!
I remember moving into the first modern purpose built apartment block in Manchester - urban splash's Timber Wharf. The Manchester skyline was so different back then. It is amazing to see the changes.
Who may be able to afford to live there in a studio / flat ... great video though - very very interesting - and you put so much love and detail into it ... xx :-)
There are lots of high earners active in Manchester, working in tech, finance. I saw quite a few expensive cars. Many thanks for noticing the time and effort. It takes many hours to put together a video like this. Many thanks for your positive feedback!
Great video. It seems that North Manchester is finally due to have its day. I hope they really start to creep up Bury New road out from One Victoria that you showed in this video and make the whole Strangeways area into something nice
@@domtaylor2271 The Victoria North project will transform the area along the Irk into Collyhurst. I’m sure that will lead to new development across the nortg of Manchester. Many thanks.
@@AidanEyewitness Yes, that's a very positive change, agreed. It has felt inevitable to me ever since Ancoats and NQ got fancier that Collyhurst could expect some kind of 'adjacency bonus'. Clearly Victoria North has the potential to turbocharge all of that. My main personal interest is a little more "anticlockwise" from the city centre - Strangeways into Broughton, Cheetwood, Cheetham Hill etc - but I'm hopeful these areas will eventually also feel the benefits of adjacent regeneration. I find Bury New Road itself hugely depressing and it feels like such a waste!
@@AidanEyewitness Ah yes. I'll watch with interest. I'd like to see more amenities in general as the focus in Manchester often seems disproportionately residential, without really doing anything to enhance the 'host' area - just give more people access to the existing area. With Strangeways, I guess the city centre is still on the doorstep but to be truly successful they need to do something more than plonking down flats or else that's all it'll ever be: convenient for getting somewhere else rather than interesting in its own right. It seems Waterhouse Gardens has a commercial element but I'm unclear how strong that is likely to be. Hopefully stronger than I expect
@@domtaylor2271 The Victoria North project is very exciting. St Catherine’s Woods being turned into a mega park is going to be a complete game changer for Central Manchester, and there will be thousands of extra people living in and around that area,which according to reports will be around the population of Lancaster. Those statistics are mind blowing.
They will be able to afford them if they choose a well-paid career, working in Manchester - tech, finance for example - or make sure they get money from their parents!
One tower to watch out for by the railway line, next to the Maldron Hotel, is the Jadebricks Tower on Charles Street. I heard it passed it's planning but I could be wrong.
While the rapid expansion of Manchester is absolutely astonishing, I do have some concern for the 'Castlefield Corridor' (the section between Manchester Piccadilly and Deansgate) becoming more and more constricted. It is already at capacity and all these new developments either side of the railway line will make it extremely difficult to improve it. Nonetheless, more arches please!
I don't think it's saturated. You can see from the drone shots that Manchester has a huge number of empty spaces that could be built on. Many thanks for your comment.
I must say, student accommodation is very different from what i endured 30 years ago. And better. Not sure i would want to live *that* close to a railway line, however.
Ah yes, the old student accommodation living in 'digs' with a grumpy landlord or landlady, peeling wallpaper, condensation, no 'guests of the opposite... ' allowed. Today's students don't know how lucky they are! If the windows are soundproofed, I think it should be okay.
The most recent information about the 'Cheesegrater' was the article in Place North West. The council approved it, the residents association objected to it, lost and had to pay, I think for legal costs. But the article mentions restrictions have been placed on the proposal, which can mean it just loses momentum and will never be built. It's often impossible to find out what is happening with these things. Thanks for flagging it up anyway. Here's the article www.placenorthwest.co.uk/manchester-survives-legal-challenge-over-55-storey-tombstone/
@@Matthew4TheWin That area is a disgrace. It lets that side of the city centre down. Bulldoze it or restore it. It isn’t Durham Cathedral, so I am not sure why people are obsessed with preserving it, it isn’t even a decent looking mill,and in its current state it looks an eyesore. Pull it down and move on. Do not leave it like that for another decade.
That's certainly true of the city centre, but other areas like Chorlton haven't changed so much. You just have to try and keep up to date with it, that's what I try and do, though it's not easy to keep pace!
Manchester gives me hope as a city they have a great mayor who cares about people. We just need our gov to stop austerity and this city would be world class.
@@dobias28 That’s an interesting point! There are some properties for purchase but you need to be a high earner or privately wealthy to be able go afford them.
Hi Aidan, Great video. Slight pronounciation error on the architects “SimpsonHaugh” it’s pronounced more like “Simpson-Hoff” just thought the correction would be useful as it’s an architect you’ll mention very frequently!
OH NO!!! I've been pronouncing it wrong all this time!!!! I didn't even think about it! I thought it was like Haughton Green. I've only seen the name written down, I've never heard it spoken - until I watched this video just now. Rachel Haugh pronounces it herself - Huff - like like Hough End playing fields, but with an A. No one ever pointed this out, which shows others are also not aware of the correct pronunciation. Thank you so much for pointing this out. My next video is on the Beetham Tower so I reckon they might be watching at SimpsonHaugh - 'HUFF'!!! At least I'll be saying the name correctly - finally! ruclips.net/video/9uk7HRbRBGU/видео.html
@@rickyric5818 LondonCentric governments will never sanction that. If Manchester gets similar levels of autonomy to Wales, it could be something Andy Burnham has power over but he seems obsessed with commuter lines from the surrounding towns. An Underground in Manchester is long overdue. We have been deprived for decades of appropriate transport infrastructure, due to regionalism and prejudice from London governments. In 1955 the North West’s economy was almost identical in size to London’s, now their economy is almost twice the size, of course deindustrialisation annihilated our area but now we are back on the up, we are still being denied proper funding for our needs. An Underground from Victoria to Oxford Road, and one from Piccadilly to Salford Central with a hub interchange under St Peter’s Square would connect with the Metrolink too.
Yes, it will be taller than the Lighthouse, but not as tall as the one planned for Regent retail park! I'm not a gambling person but how much money would you put on it being approved?
In the 1800's Manchester saw itself and was, for a brief period, an A-List world city with architecture to match, the Town Hall, Art Gallery, Midland Hotel and Royal Exchange still the finest buildings. Even a functional building like the post office in Spring Gardens was a wonderful Classical building, now gone. Symptomatic of it's preciputous decline into B-list city status you don't have to look further than Piccadilly Gardens. Once the home of the Classical Royal Infirmary then ended up with a concrete wall. That's all you need to know about Manchester's architectural ambitions. The watchword is now functionality, with economy and practicality spawning innumerable slab--sided steel and glass designs. Not a gargoyle, statue, turret or cupola in sight. Manchester's London Road Fire Station another example. Which city would now green light a building like that for a fire station! 🤔 99% chance of it just being a "crinkly tin" warehouse-type structure, "soul-less". Mcr has been crying out for a Christopher Wren to put it back on the A-List architectural map.
@@English_Dawn Good points - you mean the 19th century, going into the 20th. Maybe the decline was parallel to the decline of the cotton industry in Manchester. There is an ornate building with a cupola, statues and classical columns - The Trafford Centre!
Yes. Manchester and Salford 's new buildings are not ugly. They are tidy but largely "copy and paste" of each other. They are economic and presentable. Some of Mcr's finest buildings are on Oxford Road, the former Refuge Assurance building, St James's Building and Manchester Royal - "streaky-bacon" building. Another is Bruntwood's Neo-Gothic South Central on Peter Street. You just wish Mcr had another Enriquetta Ryland's commissioning something that would take your breath away like the Rylands Library. There seems a poverty of ambition.
@@AidanEyewitness I have a short answer too. New and proposed buildings are efficient, tidy but strictly second division and a touch Orwelluan. How many new and proposed Manchester & Salford buildings are likely to win UNESCO Accreditation! Mcr has World class football teams & World class musicians but not buildings. Most (all(?)) A-Class cities and some B-Class ones bothered to have an underground transport system. Antwerp has one, most do. Berlin's transport system in a completely different league to Mcr. My first visit and Zoo was the main station. The Hauptbanhof was built from scratch, money was found. It's outlook is much more bold than Manchester. Manchester is a very good B-Class city but a B-Class city nonetheless. It's in attitude and ambition. That's what sets them apart. Your St. Benedict's Church. I remember it being Anglo-Catholic before it became a climbing wall. The "Smells and Bells" of the Anglican Communion. It is nevertheless a "landmark" like the Kaiser Kirche in Berlin 👍 Covid19 has changed commercial building construction. Offices, except in exceptional circumstances, (St Michael's Phase 1) are out. Salboy pulled the plug on it's fifteen storey Viadux2 office (original) building. House of Fraser, Debenhams, Mayfield, which features offices seem to have been affected, plus by higher interest rates. Developers are loathe without a pre-let to commence building. I understand Egret Studio West may well be re-designing Alberton House. Apparently 3 similar projects in the area with planning permission, have been pulled. Renaker, from Trinity Islands onwards, are incorporating work pods into their buildings as standard. These are the new hybrids, residential + offices, gymnasia, break-out rooms, mahjong rooms, cinemas and swimming-pools that are filling the brownfield, wasteland and car parks that were so numerous but are now homes to the wealthy, twenty and thirty somethings in the digital and tech industries that call the city centre their homes. Self-contained.
@@English_Dawn Nice short answer (by your standards!) very good choice of words, I agree with all the points, including Berlin, my home for one year and still my home from home.
Fantastic to see Manchester changing into a North American Sky Scape? Places to live and rent. Who are these places aimed at? Really Concerned that overseas investors ( Buy To Let) are attracted by guaranteed rents for two or three years! What happens when highly geared finance becomes unviable because of a rent yield decline? These towers are not Housing trusts for social living. Rent decline is already playing out in Asia/China.
I don't know much about Melbourne, it seems like a great city, much bigger than Manchester, including its conurbation. I'll take a closer look at Melbourne. Many thanks.
🚨🚨 Breaking News. Progressive Living's plan for a Co-living tower was passed by Salford Council for it's Gorton Street, Greengate site. Currently a car park and railway arches it should improve considerably with plans to regenerate the railway arches.
Aidan I wonder can you help me. I was born in Salford 1961 and want to know if anything is left at all of my birthplace or surrounding streets. I have lived in Australia for most of my life leaving Salford at 13 yrs. I remember it very well and the people fondly. Born Hilda Street Salford 7. It backed onto Mocha St. Was near the Irwell river. Near Frederick Rd. A school near was Bonnyfaces ? I went to Ascension junior school. I remember a Clarence St and a bus station close on the ‘brew’ and Peel Park? Possibly a crumpet factory called Bellamy’s?? My birth home had a cobbled back entry - no garden terrace house. Number 13 Hilda St. I have no photos only memories. Bonfires on the Croft out the front and the occasional fair ground would come to same Croft. A pub named possibly Poets Corner ?? I wish I had old photos - how would I go about researching or finding photos from the past Aidan?? Not very tech savvy and still in Australia…… thank you for any direction 👏🏻👏🏻🙏🙏
@@shantishanti1949 I think the best option is to look for a Facebook Group on your home area or at least inner city Salford. You can chat with others connected to the area. Are you on Facebook?
@@AidanEyewitness no for face book. I just listened to another of your videos on Salford and you mentioned Regents Rd - that rings a bell. We used to be able to walk from Hilda St up a main road ( for what seemed like a very long time with children’s leg stride) across Trafford bridge to United’s football ground - well from memory we did. Such fond memories of coal fired terraces and fish n chips shops. ❤️❤️❤️
PPS I may get to try find a group as you suggest- just never wanted to use Facebook. Great videos your making how very informative and how so much has changed - those build to rent seem like a great idea - are they the replacement for what was once “council houses” or do they still offer those too ??
@@shantishanti1949 It’s very different today. You need to sign up to Facebook! If I see a group for your area, I’ll reply again! The film A Taste of Honey (1960) has many scenes you would recognise.
@@AidanEyewitness thank you I will locate that film. Happy and safe travels wished : it’s 3am here in Brisbane and I’m watching your videos- glad you popped up in my YT feed.
The designers and architects had a great chance to build stylish, futuristic buildings that give the city a real international feel. Instead, all we get are the same bland boxes on boxes. Everything looks the same, student flats and boring offices. Do we really need so many flats ?.Just because they put up tall new buildings, this doesn't mean they are attractive or interesting. Absolutely no imagination from the architects or council. 12:23
The area around Red Bank, Angel Meadow and Rochdale Road was in the 19th and early 20th century one of the poorest and most polluted areas in Manchester. But in the 1930s, the slum dwellings were cleared and the inhabitants were moved to other areas. That process continued into the 50s and 60s, with the development of Wythenshawe and other housing estates. The area I referred to - Red Bank, Angel Meadow, Rochdale Road, was a depopulated and purely industrial area. So as far as I am aware, no one has been displaced in order to build these new residential developments. They are building on 'brownfield' land. Many thanks for your comment.
Office buildings, other than in exceptional (pre-let) circumstances are unlikely to go ahead, Covid19 + higher interest rates). I quite liked the designs for Alberton House avd nearby Reedham House. Alegedly three projects nearby that had planning permission, do no seem to be going ahead.
London wins in terms of architecture by miles (even comparing just the glass skyscrapers in both cities) but Manchester looks better because it is orderly. London skyscrapers are too crammed and look randomly placed. Manchester can take the lead by building much taller than London. London has restrictions to high it can go because of the City Airport and views to St Paul’s Cathedral. Manchester has much cheaper looking skyscrapers than London but they are positioned in a more orderly manner which makes the city look more impressive as a whole from drone shots. London looks too crammed and messy from the air. Sadly, the UK skyscrapers are mid rises compared to China, Dubai and few American cities.
Very interesting observations. The skyscrapers in London are of a more complex design as the budget is much higher. True, the ones here are shorter than elsewhere. but by local standards they are pretty tall! Some are taller than Blackpool tower, now that’s tall! 😃
I think the word metropolis is the thing that manchester is turning into. I wonder were all the money comes from to pay for all this construction. Hope its not foreign investment. Manchester is a very happening place to live.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Much of the investment is coming from abroad, including Hong Kong, China and Malaysia. I agree, Manchester is a happening place, but I think it always has been.
I am not being negative. Some are clad well with some thought gone into it. But far too many are not. Council should insist on a higher exterior visual effect. Much of this is just artistic licence costing little or nothing extra.
That’s a reasonable point. It would be interesting to discuss this with one of the architects, for instance Ian Simpson but I don’t think he would agree to an interview with a humble RUclipsr like me!😃
@@AidanEyewitness Tenants do not have the same attention to care as owner-occupiers. Then Air B&B to make matters worse. A nightmare. Best have the blocks owned by the occupiers, even a share of the land, Commonhold. With no sub-letting written in. As an aside moves are in place to abolish rip-off leasehold. Buy to Let has ruined many London blocks. Absent landlords only care about the rent money coming in, not the quality of tenant they put in or the state of the block.
@@aorlanguages China’s crashed, Japan in the tank, Germany in the tank, overwhelming data out of the USA that it’s already in recession and that’s why the Fed is moveing to start to cutting rates. It’s a global synchronised economy and we’re very much part of it.
![I.N "HALLUCINATION" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/n5B5q1Hwt_U/mqdefault.jpg)
Thanks as ever for your comments, always respectful please. I enjoyed riding the trains and trams around central Manchester to make this video. If you have any extra info, tips, corrections comments or observations, please comment!
Manchester looks fantastic. It’s great to see a booming northern city to counterbalance the dominance of London and the south east.
There's some way to go before Manchester and the other northern cities can be a counterweight to London but things are moving in that direction!
@@aorlanguages if the northern city mayors agreed to work together, to connect their regions together through infrastructure initiatives and joined up thinking it might work. I think London has neglected the north since its industrial base became diminished, its high time the north started more unified in its strategies. As a fella from Durham, I’d have no objection to Manchester being the north’s epicenter and engine for growth (arguably it already is). Love your videos - keep up the good work.
Good development
Many thanks, all great points and thanks for the positive feedback!
Wow. Manchester is almost catching up with Newcastle! Howay the lads!
I'm a Manc and I'm loving these changes to the City. Some of the designs look very futuristic.
Brilliant video, really enjoyed it 👍🏻 👏🏼
Very glad to hear that. Many thanks for your comment!
From a Liverpudlian this is amazing. Manchester really developing its own unique city scape that's forward looking and vibrant. The vista at 8.51 is something we would never expect to see in the UK outside London 10-15 years ago
@@cmg1819 That’s right. I would never have imagined a small skyscraper city would appear on the former industrial waste ground south of the city centre. But Liverpool has a pretty good skyline, as you’ll see in my Liverpool videos.
They're just blocks of flats mate.
@@Neezabja Many thanks for your comment.
@@Neezabja
And?
The UK Manhattan in the making!
I think you might be right (obviously London is London) in terms of going tall Manchester/Salford were very impressive when we visited.
I do want our Cities to be unique though therefore I hope my home City of Birmingham doesn’t just build Skyscrapers to try and foolishly compete with Manchester…🙄.
I know of one or two people who don't like the comparison between Manchester and Manhattan. As someone who's lived in Manhattan, I would say Manchester has a long way to go, but there are some parallels - I made a video about this topic.
ruclips.net/video/QGx16vRqcoo/видео.html
Many thanks for your comment.
Manchester is finally looking like a proper city , great video👍
Well it has waited a long time for this construction boom! Like buses, you wait for ages, then 16 come all at once!
Gotta love Aidan flexing his Welsh speaking skills 😂 Great video as always, and plenty of info!
Ha ha, I think my Welsh pronunciation is not bad! Many thanks for the positive info.
Great video!
Thanks!
It has certainly changed from when i was a kid in the 90's. Wonderful to see the city thriving. Thanks for this video. Subbed so i can follow your updates on whats happening.
@@SpLiC3 That’s great, many thanks. Nice to hear your positive words 😊
Great video as always!
Many thanks for your support!
Manchester is looking very cool with so many new skyscrapers. I live in Birmingham and we are starting to have a skyscraper boom at the moment. Problem is none of the new skyscrapers in Birmingham have carpark spaces.
Interesting, I am on mailing lists for construction in Birmingham and a lot is happening. Hope to do an AidanEyewitness video from there sonn.
Years ago when Deansgate Square was going up I revisited Manchester for the first time in years. You can imagine my shock that the formerly Beetham-dominated skyline had totally shifted! Things are just getting more and more tall and dense! The skyline is unrecognisable! Very exciting to see.
It’s certainly impressive and unprecedented in Manchester. Who knows where it will lead? Many thanks
Great videos - fantastic to see so much happening. Lots of it great, some good, some not so! One small point - it’s pronounced Simpson “Huff” Architects :-)
@@B3NCAPP3R Yes I only recently discovered the correct pronunciation, I was annoyed with myself I should have checked it, but no one corrected me as you have. In my last video I finally got it right and will do so in all future videos. Many thanks for your comment and correction!
@@AidanEyewitnessmy pleasure Aidan. Es ist wirklich toll diese Videos anzuschauen aus der Schweiz…. ich vermisse Manchester! I worked for years alongside a number of the names you mention in these videos. Great to see!
@@B3NCAPP3R Wow sehr interessant! You are Swiss? Are you also working in architecture in Switzerland?
Brilliant video as always. Would love to see what's going with Trafford Waters and even Cotton and Clipper Quays. May have to have a visit up to Manchester soon !
I've made a mental note of those and will put them on my list! Many thanks!
@AidanEyewitness Thank you so much! I'm aware the original building on Clipper Quay is complete, but there seems to be a lot of work about to start over that way, especially with the next phase of Media City too.
@@LizThomas-gk9sb 😊
@@LizThomas-gk9sb The disjoint between Deansgate and Mediacity needs attention. Pomona Island looks like Steptoe’s yard, and that land is in Trafford and should be a stunning residential and leisure destination . The decisions for building there are made in Stretford. This is why the GM mayor should have the final say on building projects, particularly those so close to the city centre, not a councillor who lives In Timperley. Manchester is hemmed in, in its own Centre, it is a nonsensical state of affairs. I accept that Salford is a separate city and respect that but why Trafford has the final say on places, which are part of the booming centre is ridiculous, hence this disjoint. Pomona Island should be full of beautiful treelined streets of townhouses overlooking water. It could be the jewel in the Crown. It has everything, including tram stops.
Awesome video
Thanks very much for your comment!
Another great video @AidenEyewitness - Well made and informative. Also, its been a while since I did, but it was good to meet you next to the runway at Manchester Airport last month. You should have a selfie with me, taken after our brief chat, before I head off to watch the aircraft and later explore a few things round and about Styal with my Mum and youngest daughter. I said that I would pop a comment on one of your videos. It just took me a bit longer to get round to it than I expected. Cheers! 🍻🍻
That's great, very nice to hear from you, many thanks for your positive comments. I've not been recognised since, but then I've not been out of the house, too busy scriptwriting and editing!
I remember moving into the first modern purpose built apartment block in Manchester - urban splash's Timber Wharf. The Manchester skyline was so different back then. It is amazing to see the changes.
Ah yes, I remember Timber Wharf opening, I think it's a nice building. The skyline was emptier then.
Who may be able to afford to live there in a studio / flat ... great video though - very very interesting - and you put so much love and detail into it ... xx :-)
There are lots of high earners active in Manchester, working in tech, finance. I saw quite a few expensive cars. Many thanks for noticing the time and effort. It takes many hours to put together a video like this. Many thanks for your positive feedback!
Brilliant 😊
Many thanks!
Very good vid. As you mentioned Iggy, I always think of Manchester at night when i listen to Joy Division's ' Shadowplay'.
@@clemfandango619 Aha that’s very interesting. It’s amazing, the power of musical associations!
Great video. It seems that North Manchester is finally due to have its day. I hope they really start to creep up Bury New road out from One Victoria that you showed in this video and make the whole Strangeways area into something nice
@@domtaylor2271 The Victoria North project will transform the area along the Irk into Collyhurst. I’m sure that will lead to new development across the nortg of Manchester. Many thanks.
@@AidanEyewitness Yes, that's a very positive change, agreed. It has felt inevitable to me ever since Ancoats and NQ got fancier that Collyhurst could expect some kind of 'adjacency bonus'. Clearly Victoria North has the potential to turbocharge all of that.
My main personal interest is a little more "anticlockwise" from the city centre - Strangeways into Broughton, Cheetwood, Cheetham Hill etc - but I'm hopeful these areas will eventually also feel the benefits of adjacent regeneration. I find Bury New Road itself hugely depressing and it feels like such a waste!
@@domtaylor2271 I agree totally. I am preparing another video including Waterhouse Gardens and the adjacent Strangeways Prison.
@@AidanEyewitness Ah yes. I'll watch with interest. I'd like to see more amenities in general as the focus in Manchester often seems disproportionately residential, without really doing anything to enhance the 'host' area - just give more people access to the existing area. With Strangeways, I guess the city centre is still on the doorstep but to be truly successful they need to do something more than plonking down flats or else that's all it'll ever be: convenient for getting somewhere else rather than interesting in its own right. It seems Waterhouse Gardens has a commercial element but I'm unclear how strong that is likely to be. Hopefully stronger than I expect
@@domtaylor2271 The Victoria North project is very exciting. St Catherine’s Woods being turned into a mega park is going to be a complete game changer for Central Manchester, and there will be thousands of extra people living in and around that area,which according to reports will be around the population of Lancaster. Those statistics are mind blowing.
Thanks man! As a macunian you have given me a bit of hope at least
@@jakeb3781 Glad to hear that!
Great presentation, thanks, hope youngsters will be able to afford these, not sure they will
They will be able to afford them if they choose a well-paid career, working in Manchester - tech, finance for example - or make sure they get money from their parents!
Great insight to all the developments in Manchester. Do you have anything on Michigan Towers in Salford Quays..?
I'll take a look into that. Things are happening over in Salford Quays as well.
One tower to watch out for by the railway line, next to the Maldron Hotel, is the Jadebricks Tower on Charles Street.
I heard it passed it's planning but I could be wrong.
Thanks for flagging that up. I found an article on Place North West, but nothing else since then. I'll keep an eye out for it.
@@AidanEyewitness Guess who the architects are? Shshshshsh! 😜
Got that on vinyl.
@@1919mum Glad to hear that! It’s a classic and even better on original vinyl.
Farwell, Owens Park. I remember it well - great views from there.
I was never in it. Those views are lost but at least we can fly the drone there to recapture them!
@@AidanEyewitness Nor was I - I visited a friend's room there once - on a clear day, fantastic view over the City & Salford.
@@andrewashdown3541Yes, I can imagine!
While the rapid expansion of Manchester is absolutely astonishing, I do have some concern for the 'Castlefield Corridor' (the section between Manchester Piccadilly and Deansgate) becoming more and more constricted. It is already at capacity and all these new developments either side of the railway line will make it extremely difficult to improve it.
Nonetheless, more arches please!
Yes I think that’s a legitimate concern, but the buildings are there now, with many more to come.
Manchester looks great from a train.I can’t wait for the Lighthouse and Viadux 2. They will be tourist attractions because of their height.
Yes, good point, the skyline is getting higher and higher.
Many thanks amazing.. is MCR saturated now?
I don't think it's saturated. You can see from the drone shots that Manchester has a huge number of empty spaces that could be built on. Many thanks for your comment.
@@AidanEyewitness Thanks a lot.. I mean BTL?
@@amanialnimr3180 That’s Buy To Let… I wouldn’t have thought so. I’d need to research that or get advice.
I must say, student accommodation is very different from what i endured 30 years ago. And better. Not sure i would want to live *that* close to a railway line, however.
Ah yes, the old student accommodation living in 'digs' with a grumpy landlord or landlady, peeling wallpaper, condensation, no 'guests of the opposite... ' allowed. Today's students don't know how lucky they are! If the windows are soundproofed, I think it should be okay.
No mention of the planned tower on Hulme Street Mackintosh Village. Has,it been kyboshed once and for all?
The most recent information about the 'Cheesegrater' was the article in Place North West. The council approved it, the residents association objected to it, lost and had to pay, I think for legal costs. But the article mentions restrictions have been placed on the proposal, which can mean it just loses momentum and will never be built. It's often impossible to find out what is happening with these things. Thanks for flagging it up anyway. Here's the article www.placenorthwest.co.uk/manchester-survives-legal-challenge-over-55-storey-tombstone/
@@Matthew4TheWin That area is a disgrace. It lets that side of the city centre down. Bulldoze it or restore it. It isn’t Durham Cathedral, so I am not sure why people are obsessed with preserving it, it isn’t even a decent looking mill,and in its current state it looks an eyesore. Pull it down and move on. Do not leave it like that for another decade.
Manchester born and bred here, its almost unrecognisable..
That's certainly true of the city centre, but other areas like Chorlton haven't changed so much. You just have to try and keep up to date with it, that's what I try and do, though it's not easy to keep pace!
Manchester gives me hope as a city they have a great mayor who cares about people. We just need our gov to stop austerity and this city would be world class.
Good to hear a positive view on things. I’d like to interview Andy Burnham. 😊
OP tower!!!! 😭😭😭
Thanks for your comment.
I remember Mark E Smith saying that Manchester looked better when it was filled with smog.
I think the north of England looked very dramatic in the past. I recommend the artwork of Trevor Grimshaw, look him up.
I think Manchester needs to aim for a few over 400 metres. Shard is currently the tallest at a little over 300m.
I think that will come but it may take a bit longer. We need a viewing platform like at the top of the Shard. It’s great.
What about Birmingham? It's changing as well
Yes I am planning to visit Birmingham soon but it is a bit further away! My current channel revenue doesn’t cover the return train fare!
For those who can think will see, that all these developments are "you will own nothing and you will be happy" kind of developments
@@dobias28 That’s an interesting point! There are some properties for purchase but you need to be a high earner or privately wealthy to be able go afford them.
My main worry is that there are no GP surgeries in the city centre built with these developments.
Hi Aidan, Great video. Slight pronounciation error on the architects “SimpsonHaugh” it’s pronounced more like “Simpson-Hoff” just thought the correction would be useful as it’s an architect you’ll mention very frequently!
OH NO!!! I've been pronouncing it wrong all this time!!!! I didn't even think about it! I thought it was like Haughton Green. I've only seen the name written down, I've never heard it spoken - until I watched this video just now. Rachel Haugh pronounces it herself - Huff - like like Hough End playing fields, but with an A. No one ever pointed this out, which shows others are also not aware of the correct pronunciation. Thank you so much for pointing this out. My next video is on the Beetham Tower so I reckon they might be watching at SimpsonHaugh - 'HUFF'!!! At least I'll be saying the name correctly - finally! ruclips.net/video/9uk7HRbRBGU/видео.html
Will Manchester ever get an underground system, sounds like it can do with one
To my knowledge there are no plans at present but who knows what the future might bring?
@@rickyric5818 LondonCentric governments will never sanction that. If Manchester gets similar levels of autonomy to Wales, it could be something Andy Burnham has power over but he seems obsessed with commuter lines from the surrounding towns. An Underground in Manchester is long overdue. We have been deprived for decades of appropriate transport infrastructure, due to regionalism and prejudice from London governments. In 1955 the North West’s economy was almost identical in size to London’s, now their economy is almost twice the size, of course deindustrialisation annihilated our area but now we are back on the up, we are still being denied proper funding for our needs. An Underground from Victoria to Oxford Road, and one from Piccadilly to Salford Central with a hub interchange under St Peter’s Square would connect with the Metrolink too.
Good Welsh pronunciation btw
@@davidowen2396 Thanks, I love the sound of Welsh, though my knowledge is only basic.
Viadux 2 will be even taller. It'll be approved soon.
Yes, it will be taller than the Lighthouse, but not as tall as the one planned for Regent retail park! I'm not a gambling person but how much money would you put on it being approved?
@AidanEyewitness I'd bet you a coffee lol. It'll be approved I'm sure.
@@JohnnyZenith Yes, I agree with you. 😊
In the 1800's Manchester saw itself and was, for a brief period, an A-List world city with architecture to match, the Town Hall, Art Gallery, Midland Hotel and Royal Exchange still the finest buildings. Even a functional building like the post office in Spring Gardens was a wonderful Classical building, now gone.
Symptomatic of it's preciputous decline into B-list city status you don't have to look further than Piccadilly Gardens. Once the home of the Classical Royal Infirmary then ended up with a concrete wall. That's all you need to know about Manchester's architectural ambitions.
The watchword is now functionality, with economy and practicality spawning innumerable slab--sided steel and glass designs. Not a gargoyle, statue, turret or cupola in sight.
Manchester's London Road Fire Station another example. Which city would now green light a building like that for a fire station! 🤔
99% chance of it just being a "crinkly tin" warehouse-type structure, "soul-less".
Mcr has been crying out for a Christopher Wren to put it back on the A-List architectural map.
@@English_Dawn Good points - you mean the 19th century, going into the 20th. Maybe the decline was parallel to the decline of the cotton industry in Manchester. There is an ornate building with a cupola, statues and classical columns - The Trafford Centre!
Yes.
Manchester and Salford 's new buildings are not ugly. They are tidy but largely "copy and paste" of each other. They are economic and presentable. Some of Mcr's finest buildings are on Oxford Road, the former Refuge Assurance building, St James's Building and Manchester Royal - "streaky-bacon" building.
Another is Bruntwood's Neo-Gothic South Central on Peter Street.
You just wish Mcr had another Enriquetta Ryland's commissioning something that would take your breath away like the Rylands Library.
There seems a poverty of ambition.
@@English_Dawn I have a short answer: It’s not 1894, it’s 2024! 😊
@@AidanEyewitness I have a short answer too. New and proposed buildings are efficient, tidy but strictly second division and a touch Orwelluan. How many new and proposed Manchester & Salford buildings are likely to win UNESCO Accreditation!
Mcr has World class football teams & World class musicians but not buildings.
Most (all(?)) A-Class cities and some B-Class ones bothered to have an underground transport system. Antwerp has one, most do. Berlin's transport system in a completely different league to Mcr.
My first visit and Zoo was the main station. The Hauptbanhof was built from scratch, money was found. It's outlook is much more bold than Manchester. Manchester is a very good B-Class city but a B-Class city nonetheless. It's in attitude and ambition. That's what sets them apart.
Your St. Benedict's Church. I remember it being Anglo-Catholic before it became a climbing wall. The "Smells and Bells" of the Anglican Communion.
It is nevertheless a "landmark" like the Kaiser Kirche in Berlin 👍
Covid19 has changed commercial building construction. Offices, except in exceptional circumstances, (St Michael's Phase 1) are out.
Salboy pulled the plug on it's fifteen storey Viadux2 office (original) building. House of Fraser, Debenhams, Mayfield, which features offices seem to have been affected, plus by higher interest rates.
Developers are loathe without a pre-let to commence building. I understand Egret Studio West may well be re-designing Alberton House. Apparently 3 similar projects in the area with planning permission, have been pulled.
Renaker, from Trinity Islands onwards, are incorporating work pods into their buildings as standard. These are the new hybrids, residential + offices, gymnasia, break-out rooms, mahjong rooms, cinemas and swimming-pools that are filling the brownfield, wasteland and car parks that were so numerous but are now homes to the wealthy, twenty and thirty somethings in the digital and tech industries that call the city centre their homes. Self-contained.
@@English_Dawn Nice short answer (by your standards!) very good choice of words, I agree with all the points, including Berlin, my home for one year and still my home from home.
Fantastic to see Manchester changing into a North American Sky Scape? Places to live and rent. Who are these places aimed at? Really Concerned that overseas investors ( Buy To Let) are attracted by guaranteed rents for two or three years! What happens when highly geared finance becomes unviable because of a rent yield decline? These towers are not Housing trusts for social living. Rent decline is already playing out in Asia/China.
Many thanks. Some interesting points that need looking into. 👍🏼
Maybe Manchester can be the next Melbourne Victoria.
I don't know much about Melbourne, it seems like a great city, much bigger than Manchester, including its conurbation. I'll take a closer look at Melbourne. Many thanks.
I hope they build Viadux 2
I think planning permission will be given.
@@AidanEyewitness would look amazing
🚨🚨 Breaking News. Progressive Living's plan for a Co-living tower was passed by Salford Council for it's Gorton Street, Greengate site.
Currently a car park and railway arches it should improve considerably with plans to regenerate the railway arches.
Yes, co-living has spread to Salford. I hope to see the inside of these units some time soon.
Aidan I wonder can you help me. I was born in Salford 1961 and want to know if anything is left at all of my birthplace or surrounding streets. I have lived in Australia for most of my life leaving Salford at 13 yrs. I remember it very well and the people fondly.
Born Hilda Street Salford 7. It backed onto Mocha St. Was near the Irwell river. Near Frederick Rd. A school near was Bonnyfaces ? I went to Ascension junior school. I remember a Clarence St and a bus station close on the ‘brew’ and Peel Park?
Possibly a crumpet factory called Bellamy’s?? My birth home had a cobbled back entry - no garden terrace house. Number 13 Hilda St. I have no photos only memories.
Bonfires on the Croft out the front and the occasional fair ground would come to same Croft. A pub named possibly Poets Corner ??
I wish I had old photos - how would I go about researching or finding photos from the past Aidan?? Not very tech savvy and still in Australia…… thank you for any direction 👏🏻👏🏻🙏🙏
@@shantishanti1949 I think the best option is to look for a Facebook Group on your home area or at least inner city Salford. You can chat with others connected to the area. Are you on Facebook?
@@AidanEyewitness no for face book. I just listened to another of your videos on Salford and you mentioned Regents Rd - that rings a bell. We used to be able to walk from Hilda St up a main road ( for what seemed like a very long time with children’s leg stride) across Trafford bridge to United’s football ground - well from memory we did.
Such fond memories of coal fired terraces and fish n chips shops. ❤️❤️❤️
PPS I may get to try find a group as you suggest- just never wanted to use Facebook. Great videos your making how very informative and how so much has changed - those build to rent seem like a great idea - are they the replacement for what was once “council houses” or do they still offer those too ??
@@shantishanti1949 It’s very different today. You need to sign up to Facebook! If I see a group for your area, I’ll reply again! The film A Taste of Honey (1960) has many scenes you would recognise.
@@AidanEyewitness thank you I will locate that film. Happy and safe travels wished : it’s 3am here in Brisbane and I’m watching your videos- glad you popped up in my YT feed.
The designers and architects had a great chance to build stylish, futuristic buildings that give the city a real international feel. Instead, all we get are the same bland boxes on boxes. Everything looks the same, student flats and boring offices. Do we really need so many flats ?.Just because they put up tall new buildings, this doesn't mean they are attractive or interesting.
Absolutely no imagination from the architects or council. 12:23
Can you point to a city where you think they got it right? Thanks for your comment.
Quick question: if they're building expensive flats on what was the city's poorest area, where are all the poor people going to live?
The area around Red Bank, Angel Meadow and Rochdale Road was in the 19th and early 20th century one of the poorest and most polluted areas in Manchester. But in the 1930s, the slum dwellings were cleared and the inhabitants were moved to other areas. That process continued into the 50s and 60s, with the development of Wythenshawe and other housing estates. The area I referred to - Red Bank, Angel Meadow, Rochdale Road, was a depopulated and purely industrial area. So as far as I am aware, no one has been displaced in order to build these new residential developments. They are building on 'brownfield' land. Many thanks for your comment.
🚨🚨Breaking News... Egret Studio West are reportedly re-working plans for Alberton House. Already passed for approval.
Interesting, thanks!
Office buildings, other than in exceptional (pre-let) circumstances are unlikely to go ahead, Covid19 + higher interest rates). I quite liked the designs for Alberton House avd nearby Reedham House.
Alegedly three projects nearby that had planning permission, do no seem to be going ahead.
The houses won’t be for locals
I’m not sure about that. Let’s see.
London wins in terms of architecture by miles (even comparing just the glass skyscrapers in both cities) but Manchester looks better because it is orderly. London skyscrapers are too crammed and look randomly placed. Manchester can take the lead by building much taller than London. London has restrictions to high it can go because of the City Airport and views to St Paul’s Cathedral.
Manchester has much cheaper looking skyscrapers than London but they are positioned in a more orderly manner which makes the city look more impressive as a whole from drone shots. London looks too crammed and messy from the air.
Sadly, the UK skyscrapers are mid rises compared to China, Dubai and few American cities.
Very interesting observations. The skyscrapers in London are of a more complex design as the budget is much higher. True, the ones here are shorter than elsewhere. but by local standards they are pretty tall! Some are taller than Blackpool tower, now that’s tall! 😃
I think the word metropolis is the thing that manchester is turning into. I wonder were all the money comes from to pay for all this construction. Hope its not foreign investment. Manchester is a very happening place to live.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Much of the investment is coming from abroad, including Hong Kong, China and Malaysia. I agree, Manchester is a happening place, but I think it always has been.
Depressing.
I’d say wait till they are finished before giving a final judgement.
I am not being negative. Some are clad well with some thought gone into it. But far too many are not. Council should insist on a higher exterior visual effect. Much of this is just artistic licence costing little or nothing extra.
That’s a reasonable point. It would be interesting to discuss this with one of the architects, for instance Ian Simpson but I don’t think he would agree to an interview with a humble RUclipsr like me!😃
@@AidanEyewitness
Why not. He has everything to gain.
Most of the buildings are rubbish. Same boxes on boxes. Absolutely no imagination from the architects or council.
Are there projects in other cities you think are good?
Built to rent. Oh no! Future problems.
Can you tell us more on this? What do you think is going to happen in the future?
@@AidanEyewitness
Tenants do not have the same attention to care as owner-occupiers. Then Air B&B to make matters worse. A nightmare. Best have the blocks owned by the occupiers, even a share of the land, Commonhold. With no sub-letting written in. As an aside moves are in place to abolish rip-off leasehold.
Buy to Let has ruined many London blocks. Absent landlords only care about the rent money coming in, not the quality of tenant they put in or the state of the block.
Fingers cross, but it looks like the economy is about to crash.
Is there any specific information to indicate that this is going to happen? Definitely fingers crossed!
@@aorlanguages China’s crashed, Japan in the tank, Germany in the tank, overwhelming data out of the USA that it’s already in recession and that’s why the Fed is moveing to start to cutting rates. It’s a global synchronised economy and we’re very much part of it.
Well I hope things are going to be okay. I'll keep your comment in mind.
City ruined by generic soulless blocks of grey glass.
It seems people either love them or hate them. Thanks for your comment.
its a shame its absolutely disgusting on the street level
Where are you referring to exactly?
Mcr looks shit with all these cheap looking buildings.
What buildings in Manchester do you think are good? Thanks for your comment.