Eyewitness in Manchester

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	MERSEY SQUARE is at the heart of Stockport town centre. It straddles the the river afer which it was named, which flows underneath. The A6 Wellington Road is to the right and Merseyway shopping centre is on the left. Looking at old photographs we discover that Mersey Square used to be a large open space. The surface area of the square was increased when the bridge over the Mersey was widened in the 1930's. Today however, the square is full of trees. It's hardly recognisable as Mersey Square at all, apart from the glimpse of the Plaza Cinema, just visible behind the trees on the right. Eyewitness says: Mersey Square has been ruined by too much tree planting and the addition of low quality brickwork. The trees should be pruned or better still removed altogether, along with these tacky brick flowerbed. Unfortunately current fashion says 'Anything green with branches is good', so maybe in a few more years, Mersey Square will look like a rainforest. Trees are like hair and need to be cut back from time to timw!
	MERSEYWAY SHOPPING CENTRE, Stockport, was built in the 1960's, extending outwards from the original Merseyway, a town centre road constructed in the 1930's above and along the river. Some older buildings were incorporated into the shopping centre, including the white one on the right. The plain brick clock tower is typical of the 1960's utilitarian style. Partly to compete with the Trafford Centre, Merseyway has been modernised,, though they've chosen not to do anything with the clock tower.
	MERSEYWAY SHOPPING CENTRE, Stockport, was one of the first municipal shopping centres in the UK when it opened in the 1960's. Since then the original buildings have been extended and embellished by contemporary style additions, including this glass canopy and brick cladding. This is the entrance hall leading to Mersey Square. The River Mersey flows underneath the centre, I would estmate about 40 feet (12.3 metres) below where the people are walking.
	THE STOCKPORT HAT WORKS museum is a recent addition to the town's many tourist attractions. The museum is housed in an old mill building close to the town centre. The building also contains apartments. Let's not forget, to the left of the entrance used to stand 'Seven Miles Out', a 'swinging 60's' style shop selling furniture, books, fashion, and other items in a groovy contemporary style. It closed during the seventies. EWM says: I loved 'Seven Miles Out' - I wonder if there are any pictures of it available. I'll be going inside the Hat Works museum soon on a 'rainy day' outing.