Gaiety Theatre, Manchester

The Gaiety Theatre, Manchester was a theatre in Manchester, England. It opened in 1884 and was demolished in 1959. It replaced a previous Gaiety Theatre on the site that had been destroyed by fire. The new theatre was designed by Alfred Darbyshire for United Theatres Co. Ltd. and built on a plot of land near to the corner of Peter Street and Mount Street. It opened as the Comedy Theatre in 1884. On 9 November 1908, it was bought by Annie Horniman for £25,000 and reconstructed to plans by Frank Matcham, reducing its capacity from 2,500 to 1,300. The theatre reopened as the Gaiety Theatre in 1912. It was Britain's first regional repertory theatre. In 1920 the theatre was taken over by Samuel Fitton & Associates but closed in 1922. It was in use again between 1945 and 1947 but was demolished in 1959.

During the time the theatre was being run by Annie Horniman, a wide variety of types of plays was produced. Anne Horniman also encouraged local writers, who became known as the Manchester School of playwrights. They included Allan Monkhouse, Harold Brighouse, writer of Hobson's Choice, and Stanley Houghton, who wrote Hindle Wakes. Actors who performed at the Gaiety early in their careers include Sybil Thorndike and Basil Dean. In 2008 Annie Horniman's centenary was celebrated by a performance of Houghton's play Independent Means, which had been recently "rediscovered" in the British Library by Chris Honer, the theatre's artistic director.

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Theatre Royal, Manchester

The Theatre Royal in Manchester, England, opened in 1845. Situated next to the Free Trade Hall, it is the oldest surviving theatre in Manchester. It was commissioned by Mancunian businessman John Knowles who wanted a theatre venue in the city, and it is the oldest theatre building in Manchester city centre. The Theatre Royal operated as a theatre from 1845 until 1921, when it closed in the face of growing competition from the Palace Theatre and Opera House. The building has since been converted numerous times for use as a cinema, bingo hall and nightclub. It has been unoccupied since 2011, with the nightclub hosting its last night on 31 December 2010. In 2012, the building was purchased by Edwardian Hotels, owner of the neighbouring Radisson Edwardian. Edwardian Hotels have no intention of re-developing the Grade II listed building and it was placed on the Theatres Trust's "At Risk" register in 2013. Recent infractions include an order in 2019 for making alterations without listed consent and in 2024 for leaks into the interior.

Lawrence Buildings

Lawrence Buildings in Mount Street, Manchester, England, is a Victorian office block constructed for the Inland Revenue in 1874–76 by Pennington and Bridgen in the Gothic Revival style. It is a Grade II* listed building as of 3 October 1974. The building is of sandstone ashlar with a slate roof. Its skyline is dramatic, with "tourelles and slated spirelet, tall crocketed gable(s), low dormers and tall chimneys". Heavily decorated, it displays a statue of Queen Victoria beneath a canopy on the central front, together with a doorcase flanked by "a lion and a unicorn on pedestals, with an elaborate two-storey oriel window above". Lawrence Buildings forms a group with St Andrew's Chambers, to the right, in a similar style. As of 2024, the ground floor is a café, and the remaining building, floors 1–5, are occupied by flexible office space company, incspaces.

Manchester City Police Headquarters

The Manchester City Police Headquarters historic building is located in Manchester, England. It was built during 1933–37 as the headquarters of the Manchester City Police.

Intercontinental Tower, Manchester

The Intercontinental Tower, Manchester is a cancelled landmark skyscraper that was proposed in Manchester city centre, England. The building would have been a five-star luxury hotel run by InterContinental Hotels Group, and developed by Northern Irish development firm, Benmore. The skyscraper was proposed in a press release by developer Benmore in May 2009 and discussed with Manchester City Council in summer 2009. In 2010, the tower was part of the city council's preliminary plans to regenerate the surrounding civic quarter, and opposition to building a skyscraper in the heart of its historic district had been minimal. The tower would have featured a helipad and two decorative spires, much like the Willis Tower in Chicago, which would have taken its pinnacle height to approximately 200 m (660 ft), 30 m taller than Greater Manchester's tallest skyscraper at the time, the Beetham Tower. The plans for the 48-storey tower were drawn up before the Great Recession but were abandoned when the financial market crashed. Planning negotiations resumed and architect Roger Stephenson designed a 25-storey tower to contain 270 hotel rooms and a presidential suite at the top. The theatre façade was to be retained to become the entrance to the hotel foyer. The structure was intended to be created behind the theatre's façade.