The historic roofline should be visible for the first time in years
The roof of the town hall pictured from below(Image: MCC)
The roofline of Manchester city centre’s historic town hall will be visible again for the first time in more than three years as the multi-million pound restoration project reaches a key milestone.
A huge crane with a lifting capacity of 300 tonnes has now been moved into position and the building’s temporary roof will be lifted off in a staged operation.
The work, which could start as soon as Wednesday, should expose the town hall’s roof to the naked eye.
An enormous temporary covering has kept the Grade I-listed building watertight while extensive work has taken place to its Victorian roof as part of the £430m restoration. It’s been concealed beneath the canopy since spring 2022.
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Since then, the council has revealed more than 100,000 roof slates have been replaced using slate from the same Cumbrian quarry as the 1870s originals. Each one has been spilt and trimmed by hand, with traditional detailing carefully copied.
The town hall’s 37 enormous chimney stacks have been repaired, with damaged sections replaced and reconstructed using sandstone which matches the original in type and carved detail. Capping stones had to be individually lifted by crane.
The crane in place(Image: Manchester city council)
Tonnes of original cast iron decorative work – known as brattishing – has been removed, repaired and repainted in burgundy red, the colour favoured by architect Alfred Waterhouse, who designed the town hall.
Guttering has been carefully redesigned and made larger and cast iron pipes have been repaired.
A new LED lighting system has also been installed to highlight decorative gothic architectural features and around 1,200 wooden and metal-framed windows have been restored, retaining original glass where possible or using matching handblown glass.
Statues, meanwhile, have been repaired and fixed.
The wrapped-up town hall(Image: Manchester Evening News)
Deputy leader of the council, councillor Garry Bridges, said with the hall 280ft-high clock tower having been uncovered last year, a significant part of the repaired and restored building will now have emerged from beneath the scaffolding and sheeting.
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“Manchester is getting this beloved landmark back, in magnificent shape,” he said. “Our once-in-a-century project to repair and restore the town hall is safeguarding it for future generations. It is painstaking, complicated and challenging work but it’s a nationally important heritage building and there are no short cuts.
“We’re looking forward to reaching the point where we can welcome people inside again, with greater opportunities to experience its architecture and artefacts. In the meantime, it’s great that people can see more of the progress which is being made.”
The restoration project is said to be some £76m over budget.
The town hall was built in the late 19th century, replacing another building which served as the city’s civic centre on King Street. It was designed by Waterhouse in the 13th-century Gothic style and completed in 1877 at around £1m.