Nowadays, Media City UK is one of the most fashionable places in Manchester but this area is quite a new one so what did it look like before?
Let’s focus on its background:
In fact, this place has changed a lot especially in the last decade so let’s learn a bit more about its background…..
Firstly, focusing on the Mancunian economy could be an interesting start to help to understand why this area has transformed so much. In fact in the 19th century the heart of the economy was completely different; to give you a clear example the IT sector was clearly inexistent whereas the industrial one was incredibly well developed. In the same way, Manchester was well known for its numerous cotton factories, which were incredibly profitable for the local economy. Also, all kind of goods were mainly transported by boat and the tendency was exactly the same for people who needed to travel to other cities.
These demand leds to the development of the canal network and the port which obviously was incredibly popular and developed at this time.
This happened on the present site of Media City UK, for almost a hundred years, this port was one of the biggest, able to welcome a huge quantity of boats.
But as we know the economy has changed a lot and at the beginning of the 80’s this sector was clearly unprofitable. In the same way, the recently built boats were getting bigger and bigger. Consequently many ports which couldn’t deal with this change became obsolete.
During the next 20 years this area was undeveloped and without any particular interest.
From the year 2000 to nowadays….
As I was saying before, this place was not very attractive and profitable for the city. But without any expectations the picture was going to be completely different in the short term and I’m going to explain why:
In fact, in 2003 the BBC though about relocating around 1,800 jobs in Manchester where the cost of living, including the rent, is cheaper than London. Even though this project was sure and perfectly reasonable and realistic, at this time the place was totally unknown. Finally in June 2006 this completely undeveloped area was chosen.
Consequently, from 2007 to 2011 several buildings were built (including some blocks of flats a metro link station and some entertainment areas.
Making this place profitable was quite obviously a priority that’s why everybody can walk around this place, have a drink, do some shopping, visiting the world war museum and the art gallery based in the Lowry.
The Lowry Centre:
Open since April 2001, the Lowry is a cultural place including an art gallery, drama art studios, three theatres and a cinema. The building was designed in a fashionable way by Michael Wilford, an experienced and well known architect who was clever enough to think about some modern installations which were included in the building process. The emergency fire process is one of the best examples. Thanks to one of the rooms which is fire resistant and able to hold a large quantity of people you don’t even need to go out of the building in case of fire emergency.
Today, the Lowry is clearly a well known and highly recommended place, especially for the theatre addicts who have the opportunity to watch some incredibly well produced shows.
To conclude this summary without talking about the impressive work done by the volunteers would be a pure mistake: In fact, some employees are currently in charge of doing the daily tasks but did you know that 300 volunteers are also happy to give a hand? Especially when it comes time to give to the potential costumers some piece of information about the place, the coming shows… etc. Honestly I can remember how surprised I was when I learned about this figure. For instance, there are many theatres in my own country, but the picture about volunteers is totally different.
The BBC Tour
The BBC is famous almost all over the world and clearly a huge part of the UK heritage. Did you know you can visit a radio or a TV studio and learn some interesting fact in a fun and relaxed way? If you are interested, don’t hesitate to buy your tickets, this activity is definitely for you!!! £8 for 1.5h of fun is definitely a good deal.
The Imperial War Museum
Open since 2002, this museum was designed by Daniel Liebeskind, who received a prize for his architecture. His museum aims to measure the impact of the modern conflict on people and society. I must admit that war is one of the must difficult subjects to raise but having been designed and thought-out in an incredibly fashionable way, having a look around to this place can be a good opportunity to sharpen your general skills and have a pleasant time as well for free.
Jamie White
Marketing&Advertising Expert
7
By Celine
Morosoff
A guide to one of Manchester's most interesting and attractive places to visit.
...and the same site as it looks now!
inside the Lowry Theatre
The Imperial War Museum North
Media City at night