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The city of Manchester isn't in Lancashire technically. It's administered separately, but it's located close at hand. In the days of beauty
contests when someone announced "Miss Manchester" it was also a travel tip. It was a dreary, industrial city worth avoiding for the tourist.
Not so today..! - Manchester rocks! - It's now a thriving, rich
and booming city - with real estate prices now rising faster
here than anywhere else in England!
The city was the world's biggest cotton milling centre in the mid 19th century, having risen from a little rural town a century earlier. Manchester
industrialised heavily and then went into rapid decline after World War II. Today, it has now totally reinvented itself and is a thriving, exciting
city with a vibrant nightlife, high employment and a powerhouse of new industry.
Manchester boasts a collection of superb 19th century public buildings and plenty of places to drink and dine. While Manchester Museum is less known than
London's British Museum, it is one of the world's top museums for Egyptology. Mummies sailed here in the 19th century, cruising out of Egypt and up the
Manchester Ship Canal, under close wraps.
Apart from massive renovation in the city to host the extremely successful (if a little wet!) 2002 Commonwealth Games, the city fathers have invested
millions in regenerating the city centre along with over �370 million of private investment.
Globally and in the UK and Europe, the Manchester "brand" is
probably best known through publicity for its awesome football
team - Manchester United, and of course its prodigal son - (now
moved on to Real Madrid in Spain for a cool �60 Million Pound
contract!!) - the good looking, now even more stupendously wealthy
ex-figurehead of Manchester United, David Beckham,
who along with his ex Spice Girls wife, Posh, is Britain's best
known and richest celebrity. David however is now best known
in recent times for his alleged "sextext" mobile phone trysts
with certain young ladies...ahhh.... now which phone was that
that rang...??!!
In the regenerated docklands of Salford Quays, an edifice of shimmering glass and stainless steel called "The Lowry" has arisen. The gallery, housing
Britain's largest collection of L.S. Lowry paintings, has been called "Salford's Guggenheim", overlooks the Manchester Ship Canal, a huge project
completed over 100 years ago to entice ocean-going ships to Manchester rather than to coastal Liverpool. Paintings by Lowry, known for his images of
matchstick people against an industrial backdrop, have sold for up to �1.9 million.
Part of the �42 million Manchester Millennium Quarter is the recently opened Urbis - an interactive, fun archive of videotape and imagery that traces
the history and experiences of people who live in the world's cities. Adult admission is a very reasonable �5 with school parties and children under 8
free. It's free admission for all in the also recently opened (July 2002) Imperial War Museum, which has exhibits from a teddy bear to a T34 tank.
The Museum of Science & Industry is partly based in the world's oldest passenger railway station. The 7.5 acre site has five historic buildings with
special exhibitions and historic working machinery. The Manchester Museum has four floors and fifteen galleries including the famous
Egyptology Gallery.
The Cornerhouse is a lively centre for contemporary art, sculpture and photography and has three cinema screens featuring independent films.
There's also a bar, cafes and a bookshop. The Chinese Arts Centre also has changing contemporary exhibitions and the Whitworth Art Gallery is home
to an internationally famous collection of watercolours, textiles and wallpapers.
Manchester Town Hall is a Victorian Gothic building and home to the Ford Maddox Brown Murals (monument to Victorian Manchester). Manchester Cathedral
has some beautiful carvings and the widest medieval nave in Britain.
And, of course, there's Sportcity, the superb sports complex that hosted the Commonwealth Games. The public can now enjoy the facilities and the
City of Manchester Stadium will become home to Manchester City Football Club in August 2003.
Being a modern city, Manchester has heaps of excellent eateries and a raging nightlife for those who want it. The Old Wellington Inn & Restaurant is
the oldest pub in Manchester, dating back to 1552. It has a ground floor bar and an all day restaurant (first floor non-smoking, second floor smoking -
make the less fit ones climb the stairs!)
The Printworks is also new and it's a futuristic entertainment complex with 24 hour licence and the city's Hard Rock Caf�. Of course, as with many fine
cities, a walk will uncover many architectural gems and surprises.
If you make Manchester your base, it's only a few hours driving to places like Chester, the Lakes, Peak District, Blackpool and Alton Towers Theme Park.
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