Close By. Spinningfields

The People’s History Museum is part of Spinningfields, Manchester’s newest district, rising by the banks of the River Irwell. Spinningfields embraces shops, offices, restaurants and an outdoor cinema. The Museum itself has the sunniest riverside bar in Manchester (according to Andy Pearce), one that opens beyond normal museum opening hours, while the immediate neighbourhood is dotted with restaurants such as Giraffe, Carluccio’s, Gourmet Burger Kitchen and Wagamama – offering reliably good (rather than gastronomically exciting) food.

Close by sits the John Rylands Library, a fabulous neo-Gothic confection that speaks volumes about Manchester’s grand industrial past – it was recently described by historian Ed Glinert as ‘one of the world’s great libraries’. Built in 1900 in memory of cotton magnate John Rylands, this cathedral to learning houses four million texts and is decorated with intricate stonework, stained glass and ornate bookcases that cluster around a cavernous reading room. But the real draw here is the collection: it spans five millennia and includes the St John Fragment, the oldest known surviving New Testament text. The John Rylands Library is off Deansgate and close to House of Fraser. This six-floor department store is good for a spot of shopping but, more than that, it retains some of the building’s original grace, such as the Art Deco façade designed by J.W. Beaumont.

Although the store now promotes itself under the House of Fraser moniker, it hasn’t always suffered such a prosaic name: for almost 70 years, this consumer Mecca was affectionately known as Kendal’s (it was originally owned by Messrs Kendal, Milner and Faulkner, and ‘Kendal, Milne and Co’ can still be seen above the store’s entrances). When Kendal’s was purchased by Harrod’s in 1919, the original name was dropped – but then swiftly restored after customer protests. Sadly, the decision to re-name it House of Fraser in 2005 went through without so much as a murmur, although for most locals the building remains, and will always be known as, Kendal’s.

Spinningfields.
John Rylands Library, 150 Deansgate M3 3EH (0161 306 0555).
House of Fraser, 98 Deansgate M3 2QG (0844 800 3744).

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