The contents facing page has a female stone head from
Abney Hall. the concept of Manchester as goddess is one of the themes
running through the book.
The facing page to the introduction, written by me,
is a rainswept view of the M60 at dusk, taken near Cheadle Heath where
I grew up.
Motorway style graphics introduce each chapter, which
is referred to by the junction number. This is Stockport behind Sainsbury's,
where the Goyt and the Etherow become the river Mersey.
The Blue Pyramid is an iconic structure and probably
the M60's most striking landmark. Find out all about its development in
the chapter on Junction 2
Why is Palatine Rd called such, and why was a ladder
built by the side of the weir at Northenden? Find out in the chapter on
Junction 3
Barton Bridge over the Manchester Ship Canal was one
of the first motorway bridges to be built in the UK. This part of Trafford
Park was originally agricultural, but in 1998, the Trafford Centre changed
all that! I took this photo at the Trafford Centre while I was being filmed
for an interview with Dave Guest from BBC Northwest Tonight.
The chapter on junction 12 concludes with a map taken from the bizarre but beautiful Poly Olbion, the book by Michael Drayton published 1611 and reprinted 1933. It's a journey through Britain in verse. Rivers and cities are represented by buxom goddess-like ladies often wearing a hat in the form of a cathedral or building.
Heaton Park is close to the northern tip of the city
of Manchester. The photo on the left with flowers is now an record of
the past as all has changed there. The Greek portico still stands in the
park, but from which building was it taken, when and at whose behest?
The Trafford Centre is given a lot of exposure in the
book, but don't expect a bland tourist description or a piece of PR writing.
Peter Portland's witty and perceptive piece on the M60's shopping colossus
is at once informative, subversive and rather affectionate. On the right
is my photo of the Imperial War Museum North, captured on Christmas Day
2002
The mills of Chadderton and Oldham are architectural
wonders in their own right. Matthew Hyde examines their history and present
usage in the chapter on Junction 25
Pear Mill nestles seemingly in a bed of trees in this
dusk shot I took from the M60 bridge at Brinnington. After our tour of
the M60, Peter Portland asks in the concluding chapter 'How did we get
here?'.
At the end of the book is a detailed description of
the construction of the motorway, written from the point of view of a
construction engineer. Chapter and verse on every bridge, tunnel, roundabout
and slip road is set out here. Each section is introduced by a yellow
'roadworks' sign.
The motorway itself has many photogenic qualities, as
seen in this zoom shot of the section north of Brinnington where it dips
to cross the River Tame. This is a composite of three images joined together
and fills the page. On the facing page are more facts and figures about
the motorway.
And so our journey around the M60 comes to an end. The
photo of Barnes Hospital clock tower at dusk strikes a moody concluding
note. The image credits page lists all the pictures in the book, with
the names of the repsective copyright holders. Nearly all those in the
first column, some 70 photographs, are mine.
Buy your signed copy of the M60 book now at £19.95 (plus post and
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