Manchester Town Hall

Manchester Town Hall is a building in Manchester, England that houses the city's government and administrative functions. Completed by architect Alfred Waterhouse in 1877, it is a fine example of Victorian Gothic revival, featuring imposing murals by Ford Madox Brown.

As filming is forbidden in the Palace of Westminster, Manchester Town Hall is frequently used as its "Body double" in British political dramatisations.

Completed in 1887, this most impressive neo-Gothic building cost a million pounds and is acknowledged as a masterpiece in its own right. It rises as a Victorian edifice - a monument to the civic pride of the city fathers, reaching 286 feet above Albert Square below.
Designed by Alfred Waterhouse, a leading contemporary architect, it was fitted masterfully onto an awkward triangular space - although not unanimously liked as the best looking design, it proved the most practical of the 136 other designs entered. Manchester had achieved city status in 1853, and was keen to show off its civic dignity. Inside it is lavishly and richly decorated, with mosaic floors bearing the "bees", symbols of Manchester's industry, and has wall murals by Ford Madox Brown.

Design and construction of the new building

The site chosen for a new town hall was an oddly shaped triangle and, of the 136 entries in open competition for the design, Waterhouse's exploited the constraints in the most practical and imaginative way. Despite its medieval styling, the building was designed to support the practical bureaucratic technologies of the 19th century. There was even a warm-air heating system.

Entrance

At the front main entrance, a statue of the Roman Governor, Agricola, surveys the square. He had founded the original fort of Mamuciam, from which the city began, and is thus honoured by a statue over the main front entrance to the Town Hall. The building dominates Albert Square, with its monument to Queen Victoria's consort, and statues of some of Manchester's great men.

Address: St. Peter's Ct, Manchester, M60 2LA
Telephone: 0161/2343157