Dogbyte

Yep, Grammar school plus the convent took the land guess what for ? a car park !!,as for the stalls they still have them Fri /Sat outside and onto St Petersgate.
still here, watching and the odd !! post.lol

Englishtart

A car park! Good to know the stalls are still there, at least some things stay the same then

Nice to see you!

Steerpike

Yikes! No idea. SOMEWHERE I kept ticket stubs / etc, but I'm away from home at the moment so can't look. I saw a lot of concerts in Manchester; Genesis (Peter Gabriel flavor, lamb lies down...), Niel Diamond, Don McLean, Deep Purple, PFM (Italian band), - opened by some band that later became quite famous, I think ...

Genesis and Don McLean were at a classic 'theater', deep and narrow, more suited to a play; Deep Purple were at big venue - can't remember if it was a soccer stadium or similar; I think back then DP had a reputation as the loudest band and they didn't disappoint!

I also saw 'Yes' in Preston, and David Bowie in Blackburn! Opened by 'Queen', no less! Not bad for the 'provinces', but then I went to London and got to see Santana, Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Fleetwood Mac ... Concerts and Movies were perhaps two of the things done better in UK than US (artsy off-beat movies, that is).

Dogbyte

Obviously not certain but most were held at 'The Apollo' an old converted cinema in Longsight,corner of Hyde Road & Stockport Road and the outside venue was probably Maine Road, City's ground as a lot held their concerts there Oasis,Queen I think, Bon Jovi ,Guns n Roses etc.

Dogbyte

Manchester Apollo as seen from the road

The Manchester Apollo is a concert venue in Manchester, England.

Locally known as 'The Apollo', it is a listed building with a capacity of 3,500 (2514 standing, 986 seats).[1]

The Manchester Apollo was originally built as a cinema in 1930, which later became ABC Cinema Ardwick. It was designed by architects Peter Cummings, Alex Irvine and R Gillespie Williams. Its original purpose was as a cinema and variety hall. It was opened by famous 1930s actress Margaret Lockwood.

Right up until the 1970s the venue continued to provide the same service to the public until the cinema industry declined and the variety side of the venue took over. It focused its resources on becoming a leading concert venue competing at that time with the likes of Maine Road. It also hosts seated events to a capacity of 2,693. Split into two levels, the upstairs contains permanently fitted seating, whereas the larger downstairs can be altered to suit the event; both levels view a single concert stage. The venue has no air conditioning apart from in the 'Whiteroom' hospitality area (accessible only by those who have a Whiteroom credit card). As with all public buildings in England, the whole of the Apollo is no-smoking, and operates a strict no re-admittance policy.

The Apollo hosts a large number of popular music-based concerts and other events throughout the year. Recent years have seen successful bands perform at both the Apollo and the Arena on differing dates to create different atmospheres and reach different audiences.

It has a distinctive red ceiling and raked floor giving an excellent view of the stage from anywhere in the auditorium. Merchandise is sold in the lobby. There are three bars. The ground floor has two bars one off to the left hand side of the stage and one at the rear. There is also a bar on the second floor.

Its old cinema-style structure and size make it feel like a rather strange venue to some concert goers. It does provide fans the chance to be seated quite close to the stage in the circle though, with rows AA-FF being particularly close. The venue is located further away from the city centre than other venues, at the junction of the A6 (Stockport Road) and the A57 (Hyde Road) in Ardwick Green. Making parking more limited, with a number of smaller car parks operating close to the venue. It is stated that people should only use the official venue car parks, however it can be unclear to people which these are. On street parking is more limited than in the city centre itself, with some located in less desirable areas.

Sally Redux

Great to hear from you, Lisa

Poppy girl

Yes indeed and sounds like you are already feeling back at home

lisag8070

thanks guys...

I can say its definately good to be back..I haven't been home in 2 years and of course a lot has changed, especially the fashion!...we went to the Trafford Centre the other day for a walk round and look see...and the one thing that struck me was the colours...colour everywhere in clothes, shoes, signs and shops, it felt like I was watching a parade of peacocks strutting around with their fashionable clothes in eye catching colours..

it was lovely just to sit down in a cafe and people watch (which is one of my favourite pastimes) the best one was a 60 year old woman wearing shiny black leggings with a pair of white go-go boots and her hair in a big black beehive.. there were some hits and some very big misses..but they made interesting watching thats for sure..

Now I know everyone calls us english miserable gits but I can honestly say that whilst sat there in the trafford centre everyone seemed to be either laughing or smiling (probably giro day) but still this suprised me especially with all the doom and gloom thats on the news and in papers..it was lovely to hear the kids squealing with laughter whilst their parents made daft voices to entertain them....I walked around smiling..and yep everybody smiled back..and even the staff in shops were very polite and talkative..

Now I did find it really crowded, every mall I've ever been in where I lived there wasn't many people shopping there, but the centre was heaving...(what bloody recession) again something that suprised me...I thought everyone was watching their pennies..but nope, not here they weren't..

And the humour!., my god they're leaving me in the dust, I thought I was quick with the come backs and sarcasm but I feel like a backwater idiot compared to my friends and family...so I definately need to brush up on this quick smart..

DD has met alot of her family and she is loving it, she has a lot of cousins that are roughly the same age and she's having a blast getting to know them all over again..and of course they just love hearing her talk as she talks differently so she's teaching them some Americanisms and they're teaching her how to pronounce it the english way..

so its so far soo good, but I understand that its early days yet but I'll just roll with the punches and go with the flow because right now..its good to be back..

and the food is awesome..

Jerseygirl

I often go to the Trafford Centre when I'm in the UK. It is usually busy especially at weekends and holiday times...it's a bugger trying to get out of the car park sometimes. Presumably it's because there are not many Malls in the UK...also it's located in such a built up area.

What I do notice is the amount of very young girls pushing buggies...especially in Manchester CC.

bevinva

By next week you'll have the humour thing sorted.
Post some of those fashion peacocks if you can take pics.

DeanUK2US

John Major was the last great British PM.

Englishtart

Good to hear things are going so well Lisa! I have been to the trafford centre only once (on visit home) but I loved it, my Sister lives about 6 miles from there and goes all the time.

I'm eagerly awaiting more 'stories' from you, I wish you and family all the best and hope you are very happy there

lisag8070

Yep your right it was only after we came back from the Trafford Centre that everybody told us not to go on a Friday as it was always really busy..ah well .

I haven't made it to Manchester cc yet as it always seems to be raining and I want to go and have a good walk round to see everything..so looks like I might be waiting a while to get there.. but I can definately agree about the teenagers and buggies where I am..

lisag8070

ohhh only 6 miles away..thats dangerous..

oh and trust me they'll be more stories..when I can get near the computer..

lisag8070

first I have to work out how to use my new phone that apparently has a camera on it..