Here’s 30 nostalgic photographs of what Manchester looked like in the 1990s.
The city centre has changed a lot over the decades, which probably comes as no surprise with the amount of construction going on – it’s changing by the day.
But as the years go by and buildings you once knew are torn down and replaced with new apartments or office blocks, it’s left to your grainy memory of how places used to look and the times you may have once had there.
Cavendish building 1990. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special Collections
The nineties was a great era for music in Manchester and saw the birth of bands including Oasis, The Doves and Take That. It was the decade of hope after the recession of the 1980s, but there were ups and downs also.
On April 1st 1990 prisoners in Strangeways (now HMP Manchester) took control of its chapel, and quickly spread throughout most of the prison to begin a riot which lasted 25 days.
Hundreds of inmates got up onto the roof, with the incident claiming the life of one prisoner and injuring 147 prison officers and 47 prisoners.
The riot was followed by similar disturbances at other prisons across the country and sparked a conversation about reform for prison conditions.
Granada Studios Tour 1990. Credit: Robert Lindsell / Wikimedia
The decade was also blighted by the IRA bomb of 1996. The Provisional Irish Republican Army detonated a 1,500-kilogram lorry bomb on Corporation Street on June 15th.
It was the biggest bomb detonated in Great Britain since the Second World War, injuring 212 innocent people and causing £700 million worth of damage to the city centre.
The event kick-started the regeneration and modernisation of the city which has evolved into the Manchester we know and love today.
After IRA bomb 1996. Credit: Len Grant
The city already began planning on improvements as part of its campaign to hold the 2000 Olympics and Paralympics. However, the bid was ultimately unsuccessful and Manchester was beaten to it by Sydney, with Beijing coming in as runner-up.
But Manchester did go on to hold the 2002 Commonwealth Games, with The Commonwealth Games Stadium becoming the new home of Manchester City after the club vacated Maine Road – which was then demolished and turned into new homes.
The Hacienda, which opened in 1982, became the nightclub at the forefront of the acid house scene. The club was owned by record label Factory Records and was famous for playing a major part in the Madchester movement.
Hacienda 1990. Credit: Patrick HarrisonRobin Webster Rochdale canal 1990. Credit: Robin Webster
Unfortunately, the club gained a reputation for drug use and after enjoying its heyday throughout the best part of the ‘90s, it fell victim to crime issues and financial troubles which eventually led to its closure in 1997.
The club was subsequently demolished and replaced by apartments.
The newly built Trafford Centre opened in 1998, the year after the film Titanic was released, which its themed food court paid homage to. Since then, Trafford Park has transformed from the derelict marshlands it once was and into a centre of retail, leisure and entertainment.
The Kippax Stand at Maine Road (1990s). Credit: Steve Garry / FlickrBlue Moon Chippy (1990s). Credit: Richard Cooke / Wikimedia
Manchester United were the most successful football team of the city during this era, and the club won numerous domestic and international titles under manager Alex Ferguson.
David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville, Phil Neville and Paul Scholes were just some of the players who played for United during the club’s golden era – playing in the newly formed Premier League, which was founded in 1992.
For the first time in English football history the Reds secured the Treble in 1999 – the League, FA Cup and Champions League.
Meanwhile, the Blue side of Manchester – Man City – went through many ups and downs. In 1998 City were relegated to the third tier of the English Football League. The club regained promotion to the top tier in 2001-02 and have remain in the Premier League since.
Dantzic Street 1993. Credit: Neil Clifton / Wikimedia Granada Studios 1990. Credit: Graham Hogg / Wikimedia
Manchester was once home to the iconic Strangeways Boddingtons Brewery, which owned pubs throughout the North West.
The brand was best known for its ‘Boddies’ – a straw-golden, hoppy bitter which was one of the first beers to be packaged in cans containing a widget, giving it a creamy draught-style head.
In the 1990s, the beer was promoted as The Cream of Manchester in a popular advertising campaign credited with raising Manchester’s profile. Model and actress Melanie Sykes was the Boddington’s girl star of the ads, which saw her take a swig of a pint and say ‘by ‘eck’, with a creamy moustache.
The brewery shut down in February 2005 and its workers clocked off their final ever shift, never to return, following its 227-year history.
Man Airport 1998. Credit: Simon Butler/ Flickr Manchester Airport 1994. Credit: Simon Butler / Flickr MMU student fashion show 1990. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special CollectionsInside the Arndale shopping centre 1993. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special CollectionsFirst Greater Manchester bus. Credit: Darren Hall / Wikimedia 1997Trinity Bridge 1995. Credit: Sludge G / FlickrMMU student fashion show 1992. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special CollectionsMMU student fashion show 1993. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special CollectionsPiccadilly 1998. Credit: Matt Taylor / FlickrPiccadilly 1992. Credit: Ben Brooksbank / Geograph Bloom Street 1992. Credit: Chris Allen / Geograph Hulme Crescents early 1990s (demolished in 1992). Credit: Nuala / Flickr MMU student fashion show 1991. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special CollectionsMMU student fashion show 1992. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special Collections Rovers Return 1991. Credit: Neil Kennedy / Geograph GMEX and car park 1990. Credit: Dr Neil Clifton /Geograph Maxwell House 1991. Credit: Manchester City CouncilBalloon Street 1991. Credit: Dr Neil Clifton / GeographMMU degree display 1993. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special CollectionsMMU fashion show 1992. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special CollectionsMMU fashion show 1992. Credit: The Manchester School of Art slide library at Manchester Metropolitan University Special Collections
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