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Bradford's oldest building is the cathedral, which for most of its life was a parish church. Few other Medieval buildings have survived apart from Bolling Hall, which has been preserved as a museum.
The Wool Exchange, Bradford.
Bradford has some fine Victorian buildings: apart from the mills mentioned elsewhere in this article, there is the City Hall (with statues of rulers of England unusually including Oliver Cromwell), the Wool Exchange (now used as a bookshop), and a large Victorian cemetery at Undercliffe.
Little Germany is a splendid Victorian commercial district just east of the city centre which takes its name from 19th century immigrants who ran businesses from some of the many listed buildings. Following decades of decay there have been successful conversions to office and residential use. In mid-2005 renovation began on the prominent Eastbrook Hall in Little Germany.
Like many cities, Bradford lost a number of notable buildings to developers in the 1960s and 1970s: particularly mourned at the time were the Swan Arcade and the old Kirkgate Market. In recent years some buildings from that era have themselves been demolished and replaced: Provincial House, next to Centenary Square, was demolished by controlled explosion in 2002[2], and Forster House was pulled down in 2005 as part of the Broadway development.[3]
[edit] Theatre
There are four theatres in Bradford: The Alhambra was built in 1914 for theatre impresario Frank Laidler, and later owned by the Moss Empire group (Oswald Stoll and Edward Moss) and refurbished in 1986; The Studio is a smaller studio theatre in the same complex. Both of these are operated by Bradford Council. The Theatre in the Mill is a small studio theatre in the University of Bradford which presents both student and community shows and small-scale touring professional work. The Priestley Theatre is a privately run venue with a medium-sized proscenium theatre and a small studio.
Among the professional theatre companies based in Bradford, are
- Kala Sangam
- the satirical madcap comedy troop, Komedy Kollective.
- Lost Dog (based at Theatre In The Mill)
- Mind the Gap, one of the longest established, who have always worked with a mixture of disabled and able-bodied performers.
Groups and organisations teaching theatre include
- The Asian Theatre School
- Bradford Stage and Theatre School
- Stage 84
Amateur theatre groups include:
- Actors' Community Theatre (ACT)
- Bingley Little Theatre
- The Bradford Players
- Bradford University Society for Operettas and Musicals (BUSOM)
- Bradford University Theatre Group (BUTG),
- Bradford Youth Players
- Buttershaw (St Paul's) Church Amateur Operatic and Dramatic Society
- Drama Unlimited
- Great Horton Amateur Operatic Society
[edit] Music and dance
St George's Hall is a grand concert hall, designed by Lockwood and Mawson, dating from 1853. The Hallé Orchestra have been regular visitors over the years, as have a wide range of popular entertainers including Ken Dodd. It is sometimes used for theatrical productions.
Though the university does not have an academic music department, it has a Fellow in Music who organises a range of playing and performing groups, and regular concerts around the university, in venues such as the Tasmin Little Music Centre, and the Yorkshire Craft Centre at Bradford College; there are also occasional concerts further afield, in venues such as Bradford Cathedral.
Although Bradford was home to composer Frederick Delius, there are no prominent professional music ensembles based in Bradford at present. There are some prominent amateur groups, such as the Bradford Festival Chorus.
The Topic Folk Club has been in existence since 1956, though it has changed the pub it meets in every few years. It currently meets in the Cock and Bottle on Barkerend Road, on Thursday nights.
Jazz at The Priestley is a long-running series of jazz evenings in the Cellar Bar of The Priestley on Friday nights.
Boar's Head Morris Men were a (mainly Cotswold) morris side in Bradford from the early 1970s until 2006. Persephone Ladies Morris are still active, as are Rainbow Morris in Shipley, and clog side Clogaire.
Mono is a monthly rock fanzine published in Bradford, covering the local alternative/independent rock music scene.
Bradford Music Week will take place in and around central Bradford between Mon 26th and Sun 1st June 2008. The event will feature seminars, exhibitions, workshops, films, special events and activities. There will be concerts from national breaking bands and also importantly opportunities for local artists to play in everything from small acoustic performances to full blown gigs at various venues in and around the city centre.
[edit] Cinema
The National Media Museum celebrates cinema and movies. It contains an Imax cinema, the Cubby Broccoli Cinema, and the Pictureville Cinema — described by David Puttnam as the best cinema in Britain [22]. The museum has a rich and varied programme of films from around the world.
Traditional cinemas have been replaced by new entertainment complexes with multi-screen cinemas. There are two multiplex cinema in Bradford: Cineworld at the Leisure Exchange in the city centre, and Odeon Leeds-Bradford at Thornbury, on the outskirts of Bradford, to replace the old Odeon next to the Alhambra, which was the recent focus of protests by Bradfordians who didn't wish to see this building close.
The University of Bradford also has a cinema run by the Student's Union. The Bradford Student Cinema operates from the University's Great Hall.
Bradford is bidding to become a UNESCO City of Film.
[edit] Nightlife
Since around 2000, several clubs and theme pubs have opened in the West End of Bradford, around the Alhambra Theatre, turning what was previously a fairly quiet area into one that is often crowded and raucous at night.
A myriad of Indian and Pakistani restaurants cater for the most discerning curry tastes.
[edit] Hotels
Bradford has a number of architecturally historic hotels that date back to the establishment of the two railway lines into the city centre, back in Victorian times. The Victoria Hotel and the Midland Hotel were built to accommodate business travellers to the city from Scotland, the Midlands, and London, arriving at Forster Square and Bradford Victoria station (later to become Bradford Interchange, during the height of the woollen trade.
[edit] Parks and countryside
Within the city district there are 37 parks and gardens. Lister Park with its boating lake and Mughal Water Gardens, was voted Britain's Best Park for 2006[23]. Peel Park is the venue for the annual Mela — a celebration of eastern culture. And Bowling Park is the site where the annual Bradford Carnival takes place, celebrating local African and Caribbean culture.
Beauty spot Chellow Dene has two Victorian reservoirs set in pleasant woodland. To the west and north of Bradford are picturesque and atmospheric moorlands: the famous Ilkley Moor and moors above Haworth known internationally for its connection with the Brontë sisters.
Bradford has a long and proud history in sport, especially rugby league, football and cricket.
The city has a long rugby tradition, and Bradford Bulls (formerly Bradford Northern) are one of the most successful rugby league clubs in the world, winning the World Club Championship three times since 2002 and also seven times winners of the Rugby League Championship. The home of the Bulls is Grattan Stadium, Odsal (formerly Odsal Stadium) in the south of the city. The city is also home to a number of Rugby Union clubs — Bradford and Bingley RFC (The Bees) are based to the north of the city in Bingley; Bradford Salem are based in the Heaton area and Wibsey RFC can be found in that district to the south of the city centre.
League football was introduced to West Yorkshire in Bradford, when Bradford City were formed in 1903. James Whyte, a sub-editor of the Bradford Observer had met with Football Association representative John Brunt in January to discuss the plans, and in May, Manningham RFC, a rugby league side decided to change codes to association football.[4] The Football League subsequently elected Bradford City to the league, with a total of 30 votes to replace Doncaster Rovers,[5] because it saw the invitation as a chance to introduce football to the rugby-dominated county.[6] Just eight years after they were elected to the league, City won the FA Cup and recorded the highest league position in their history.[7] The club now plays in the bottom tier of The Football League following two periods of administration,[8][9][10] but their ground suffered one of the worst all-time sporting disasters in the world after 56 people died at Valley Parade on 11 May 1985.[11] A second side from the city, Bradford (Park Avenue), also competed in The Football League until it left the league in 1974.
Bradford was also home to the now-defunct Bradford Dukes speedway team, which raced at Odsal. Speedway was staged a Greenfields Stadium in the pioneer days, when it was known as the Autodrome, and it was used for a couple of seasons in the early 1960s. Odsal opened its doors soon after the war in Europe ended in 1945 and continued in the late 1950s. It entered a team in the 1960 Provincial League then fell dormant until the 1970s when it re-opened and ran for many years. The track staged a number of big meetings including Speedway World Finals.
The Richard Dunn Sports Centre is just across the road from Grattan Stadium, Odsal. The sports facilities at the university are also open to the public at certain times.
[edit] Local media
[edit] Newspapers
The Telegraph and Argus is Bradford's daily evening newspaper, published six days each week from Monday to Saturday. It is known locally as the "T&A".
Bradford was one of the first areas of the UK to get a local commercial radio station Pennine Radio in September 1975. Today this is The Pulse of West Yorkshire and Pulse Classic Gold. As of 2006 Bradford Community Broadcasting based in the city centre has broadcast on full-time Community Radio license around Bradford and the Aire Valley.
[edit] Religion
The city of Bradford and surrounding districts are home to a wealth of places of worship that contribute to the region's cultural heritage. These include Sikh gurdwaras and Hindu mandirs, Jewish synagogues and Buddhist centres [24], but mostly Christian churches and Muslim mosques. Due to a significant Pakistani (and to a lesser extent, Bangladeshi) population in the city, Islam has become prominent throughout the city, particularly in inner city areas such as Manningham and Girlington. As well as there being a significant Muslim population, there is also a fairly large Indian immigrant community in Bradford. The area of Leeds Road probably has the largest Sikh population in the city, which is reflected by the number of Gurdwaras in the area. The area also has a significant number of Hindus, having the largest Hindu mandir in the North of England. Furthermore there is also a small Jewish population, despite the fact that over the years many of them have tended to leave Bradford, preferring various parts of Leeds instead, particularly the area of Alwoodley and Moortown. However several synagogues can still be found in the city, such as the one in Manningham.
The district has a tradition of nonconformity which is reflected in the number of chapels erected by Congregationalists, Baptists, Methodists etc. The city was a major centre of the House Church movement in the 1980s, and the Christian charity Christians Against Poverty was founded in the city. Other house churches in the city include El Shaddai International Christian Centre and the World Outreach Church. Bradford is also home to the Abundant Life Church, a large nonconforming Church, that has around 3000 members.[citation needed]
Two carved stones, probably parts of a Saxon preaching cross, were found on the site of Bradford Cathedral. They indicate that Christians may have worshipped here since Paulinus of York came to the north of England in AD 627 on a mission to convert Northumbria. He preached in Dewsbury and it was from there that Bradford was first evangelised. The vicars of Bradford later paid dues to that parish.
[edit] Religious buildings
[edit] Bradford Cathedral
-
The most prominent Christian church in Bradford, is Bradford Cathedral, originally the Parish Church of St Peter. The parish of Bradford was in existence by 1283, and there was a stone church on the shelf above Bradford Beck by 1327.
The Diocese of Bradford was created from part of the Diocese of Ripon in 1919, and the church became a cathedral at that time.
[edit] Mosques
Since the 1960s Bradford has had a significant Muslim population, and accordingly there are many mosques throughout the city. Some were converted from churches or other buildings, but there are several purpose-built mosques as well. The largest of these mosques is probably Hanfia Masjid in the majority Muslim area of Manningham. Another large mosque in Bradford, would be Madni Jamia Masjid which recently won the Model Mosque (Islam Channel) award.There is ongoing construction of a mosque and college in the area of Horton Grange, for Islamic courses.
[edit] Hindu temples
There are two Hindu temples (mandirs). The Lakshmi Narayan mandir opened officially on 20 April 2008[25]. This is the largest Hindu temple in Northern England[26]. Also in Bradford is the Hindu Temple & Community Centre on Thornton Lane [27]. There are also smaller house-based mandirs, as shown in the List of Hindu Temples.
[edit] Sikh temples
There is a prominent Sikh community in Bradford, with six gurdwaras (Sikh place of worship) around the city. The Sikh festival of Vaisakhi (Baisakhi) is also celebrated on April 14 every year, this sees Sikhs from Bradford and the surrounding area travel to each of the gurdwaras in the city in a procession called a nagar kirtan. There are three gurdwaras in the Leeds Road area of Bradford alone, Gobind Singh Gurdwara, on Gobind Marg, being the largest of these. There is a Ramgharia Gurdwara on Bolton Road and Guru Nanak Gurdwara is on Wakefield Road.
[edit] Synagogues
The Jewish community in Bradford was strong in the middle to late 19th century, and there is a 19th century Reform synagogue in Bowland Street in the Manningham area. This, "The oldest Reform synagogue outside London",[12] was established by German Jews who had moved to Bradford for the wool trade. According to historian Shatman Kadish, "The city of Bradford was unique in that it boasted a Reform synagogue before it acquired an Orthodox one".[13]
[edit] Originating in Bradford
Wm Morrison Supermarkets
The birthplace of rock bands New Model Army, Anti System, Smokie (Smokey), Dead Eye Decline, Southern Death Cult/The Cult, The Scene, One Minute Silence, Terrorvision, Morbid Humour, Violation, and Asian hip hop group Fun-Da-Mental.
The people in this list were either born or brought up in Bradford (not necessarily both), or had a significant connection with the city later in life. Those marked with an asterisk ('*') are described in Lister, 2004.[28]
[edit] Notable Bradfordians
Only a few particularly notable names are listed here. See Category:People from Bradford for a fuller list
[edit] Transport
In past centuries Bradford's location in Bradfordale made communications difficult, except from the north. Nonetheless, Bradford is now well-served by transport systems.
Bradford was first connected to the developing turnpike network in 1734, when the first Yorkshire turnpike was built between Manchester and Leeds via Halifax and Bradford. In 1740, the Selby to Halifax road was constructed through Leeds and Bradford. Several more local and long-distance roads were built through the rest of the century.
Today Bradford lies on several trunk roads:
The M606, a spur off the M62 motorway, connects Bradford with the national motorway network. Although it was originally planned to go directly into the city centre, this has never been built and is unlikely now ever to be, as a hotel has been built across the proposed route.
[edit] Buses and trams
Bradford's tram system was begun by Bradford Corporation in 1882: at first the vehicles were horse-drawn. They were replaced by steam-driven trams in 1883, and by electric ones in 1898.
On 20 June, 1911, Britain's first trolleybus service opened in Bradford, between Laisterdyke and Dudley Hill. It was often known as the trackless, in contradistinction to trams. The last trolleybus service in Bradford — and indeed in Britain — ceased operation on 26 March, 1972. The Bradford Trolleybus Association bought some of Bradford's trolleybuses but later sold them off to private owners most can now be found at the Trolleybus Museum at Sandtoft.
First Bradford are now the main operator of most routes in Bradford, and are part of the First Group. Some routes that include Manchester Road use guided buses.
The Bradford Canal was a four-mile long spur off the Leeds and Liverpool Canal at Shipley. It was planned and built as part of the original Leeds and Liverpool project, to connect Bradford with the limestone quarries of north Yorkshire, the industrial towns on both sides of the Pennines and the ports on each coast. It opened in 1774, closed in 1866, reopened in 1871, and finally closed in 1922. There are plans to rebuild the canal as a key part of regenerating the city centre (see the main article).
[edit] Railways
Entrance to the Bradford Interchange.
The Leeds and Bradford Railway opened Bradford's first railway station at the bottom of Kirkgate on 1 July 1846. It offered a service via Shipley to Leeds and through Leeds to other centres, including London. The line was soon absorbed by the Midland Railway, and the station was rebuilt in the early 1850s and again, much larger, in 1890. Today it is a smaller railway station dating from 1990, called Forster Square railway station though it is somewhat distant from the site of its predecessors, and from Forster Square itself. Modern electric trains connect directly to Leeds, Ilkley and Skipton. There is currently a 4 times daily National Express East Coast service linking Bradford with London King's Cross. A new company Grand Central Railway is proposing to significantly increase this London connection, with additional fast trains via Doncaster/East Coast Mainline and via Manchester/West Coast Mainline.
The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway opened its station at Drake Street on 9 May 1850, on its line between Manchester and Leeds. The Great Northern Railway opened a third terminus at Adolphus Street in 1854, serving Leeds and other places on its network, but the station was too far from the centre, and the two companies eventually agreed to build a joint station to replace the L&Y's station at Drake Street. This was Bradford Exchange railway station, opened in 1867[14]: Adolphus Street remained as a goods terminal. The Exchange Station was completely rebuilt in 1880, with ten platforms; but by 1973 it was too large and again was rebuilt on a different site. In 1983 that station was renamed Bradford Interchange when a large bus station was built alongside. Bradford Interchange railway station connects directly to Leeds, to Manchester Victoria and to Blackpool.
Both stations are under the control of the West Yorkshire Metro as part of the Leeds-Bradford Line routes.
From the 1870s, the Great Northern built several suburban railway lines around Bradford:
These all closed at various times between the 1930s and the 1960s.
There have been many schemes to build a link between Bradford's main railway terminals, but none has ever come near fruition, and indeed the recent Bradford Masterplan for the city centre regeneration has not addressed this (when asked, the writer of the masterplan admitted to not even considering it)[citation needed]. The main practical difficulty is the great difference in elevation: the Exchange/Interchange station is already at the bottom of a long slope, steep by railway standards, but it is many feet higher than Forster Square Station. Some bus services, such as the MetroConnect services to Leeds Bradford Airport, call at both stations, and a free bus service funded by Bradford Council and Metro is due to be trialled in the near future[15].
[edit] Airport
- The city is served by Leeds Bradford International Airport, 6 miles to the north east of the city. Bradford and Leeds councils jointly opened the airport in 1931 as Yeadon Aerodrome. There has been rapid expansion in recent years and direct flights are now available to over 70 destinations (October 2006). Around 3 million passengers used the airport in 2006. It is the home base of economy Airline Jet2.com, voted Best European Short Haul Airline 2006. In May 2007 the joint councils sold the airport to Bridgepoint Capital for £145.5 m. Bridgepoint announced that a further £70 m would be invested in airport improvements, to boost passenger figures to over 7 million by 2015.[16] The airport has recently announced a new long-haul route to Islamabad using wide-bodied Airbus A310 aircraft, it is hoped this spurs on new routes from the airport.[citation needed]
[edit] In popular culture
In the BBC political satire The Amazing Mrs Pritchard, the Prime Minister considers a proposal to move Parliament to Bradford, as it is closer to the geographic centre of the country than London.
The Buttershaw area of the city featured in the 1986 film Rita, Sue and Bob Too, in which two 16-year-old girls were involved in a love triangle with a wealthy married man (played by George Costigan). The film was created by Andrea Dunbar, who died four years after it was made. It was initially unpopular with local residents due to its negative image of the area, but has since earned itself a good reputation in the local community as Buttershaw's claim to fame.[citation needed]
Bradford features in the 1983 film Monty Python's The Meaning of Life with footage filmed in Lister Park.[17]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- , Allen, C (2003). Fair justice: the Bradford disturbances, the sentencing and the impact. London: Forum Against Islamophobia and Racism.
- , Lister, Derek A J (2004). Bradford's Own. Sutton. ISBN 0-7509-3826-9.
- , Ordnance Survey 1:10,560 County Series Map: Yorkshire Sheet 216. Heritage Cartography. ISBN 1-903004-34-9. . This was surveyed 1847-1850, and published in 1852, though it was reprinted at various dates with certain (unidentified) details updated. The modern edition from Heritage Cartography is 'redrawn' from the original, and titled Bradford 1849, but the railways shown indicate that it is from a printing of at least 1854.
- , History of Bradford. visitbradford.com. Retrieved on 2008-04-23.
- , ImplosionWorld.com
- , [1]
- , Frost, Terry (1988). Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988. Breedon Books Sport, p. 9. ISBN 0907969380.
- , Division 2 1902/03. Footballsite. Retrieved on 2008-02-20.
- , Frost. Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988, p. 13.
- , Frost. Bradford City A Complete Record 1903–1988, p. 184.
- , Parker, Simon. "Woeful City relegated", Telegraph & Argus, 2007-04-28. Retrieved on 2008-05-03.
- , "Carbone hits back", BBC Sport, 2002-05-21. Retrieved on 2008-05-03.
- , "Bantams in administration", BBC Sport, 2004-02-27. Retrieved on 2008-05-03.
- , BBC On this day - 1985: Fans killed in Bradford stadium fire. BBC Sport. Retrieved on 2008-03-16.
- , European Day of Jewish Culture and Heritage, 5 September 2004, leaflet issued by the European Association for the Preservation and Promotion of Jewish Culture and Heritage
- , Kadish, Sharman (2002). "Constructing Identity: Anglo-Jewry and Synagogue Architecture" (PDF). Architectural History 45: 386-408. SAHGB Publications Limited. ISSN: 0066622X. Retrieved on 2007-04-22.
- , Bradford Exchange. Subterranea Britannica. Retrieved on 2008-02-05.
- , Free bus set to be trialled. Telegraph & Argus (2008-01-30). Retrieved on 2008-02-05.
- , "Airport sold for £145m to Bridgepoint", Telegraph & Argus. Retrieved on 2008-02-18.
- , Monty Python's The Meaning Of Life (1983). 80s Movies Rewind. Retrieved on 2008-03-30.
[edit] Bibliography
- , Firth, Gary (1997). A History of Bradford. Phillimore. ISBN 1-86077-057-6.
- Wilmott, Elvira (1987). The Ryburn Map of Victorian Bradford. Ryburn. ISBN 1-85331-004-2. The map itself is a reproduction of the Plan of the Town of Bradford ... revised and corrected to the present time by Dixon & Hindle, 1871.
[edit] External links
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