Since then thousands of fans have flocked to the location to have their photo taken at the same spot. But what many don’t realise is that you can visit Salford Lads Club. In fact many visitors who go there to have their photo taken are invited by volunteers to come inside and have a look around.
As you enter, the tiles, brickwork and window frames seem to exude an atmosphere of the past. The Smiths room contains memorabilia and the signatures of ‘pilgrims’ who have come here.
There is a room with snooker tables and photos on the walls showing young club members on field trips going back decades.
Upstairs the pristine green snooker tables are the orginal ones that have been used for over 100 years. In the boxing rooms I could imagine myself in a scene from the film ‘Rocky’.
But it’s important to remember this is not a museum, it’s a working club for young people, today providing activities for both girls and boys.
The building has undergone extensive renovation. Practically every room has been restored as closely as possible to how it was over 100 years ago.
Salford Lads Club is one of the most surprising and special places in the Manchester area, and wherever you’re from from you’ll receive a special Salford welcome and perhaps a personal guided tour.
To coincide with the Manchester International Festival 2017, Salford Lads Club put on an exhibition with tongue-in-cheek blue plaques. Project Manager Leslie Holmes told me he had been to London and seen them everywhere and decided to create a humorous exhibition on this theme. The plaques will put on display again at other events. I include just a selection here. To see them all you’ll need to go and visit Salford Lads Club.