The Merrion Centre Leeds, Forgotten Man of the 1960s
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- Опубліковано 7 сер 2009
- The legendary Merrion Centre, Leeds first proper shopping centre in the 1960s and mentioned in The Red Riding Trilogy - lets hope they don't knock it down just yet!!!!
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When this footage was first recorded, it would have been 5 minutes of boredom...Now it is an amazing memory. Many a time I was there. Neville's DIY was awesome.
Mention Centre Leeds. A great addition to Leeds when built in the sixties and often visited this centre to shop. The lovely Odeon Cinema when opened on the balcony was also a great addition to this centre sadly now gone and so much has changed over the years .
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Tandy used to be in there too remember that store !
There's been a few stores where Home Bargains is in the video with Shoppers World catalogue store in the 1970s and Woolworths from around 1988 until it's collapse.
captures the bleakness and consumerism so well..well done!
Love documented cities like this. Interesting to see what has changed and what hasn’t
Really sad to see the end of Nevilles, the chap that was there in the 80's was still there last time I went, like me he was a lot older, perhaps, again like me, his working days are over. The end of an era, you could buy anything at Nevilles and if you just wanted a couple of nails they were happy to sell you them. Places like that are few and far between. Very, very sad.
The Merrion seems to have gained a new lease of life lately.I went to Tesco there with my parents when it opened in 1964 and I thought it was wonderful.I still go there to this day.I do miss the old market part but it did get very rundown in its later years.Nevilles DIY store was brilliant and the little cheap cafe too.
OMG memories lots. I worked at a greeting card shop for a while then Mgr of Fashion Store called Marilyns, and a part time job at the Wayfinder a pub right in Merrion Center such memories
beautiful city 18/ 01/ 2021. ♥️♥️🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧🇬🇧👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
Great video wish I could go in and see the odeon that's been boarded up
Isn't that the amazing 2006 time traveling Ford transit at 6 seconds ;)
I thought that 🤣 kept rewinding
I spent ages as a kid trying to find this place because it had an ODEON cinema in it. Found it eventually and what a great cinema it was ( still is, it's been left untouched) spent many a happy time in there. Then they closed it and converted the bar in the headrow Odeon into a small screen. Just didn't compare.
So much has changed now. I think the loss of the merrion market is a real shame.
Very well done mate - good video
****5
My late (and lovely) Grandma used to call this the “Miriam” Centre 🤣🤣 Does anyone remember the “Skanda Grill” ? It was on the outside of the Centre on Merrion Street. I loved that place , the food was great and quite adventurous for the 60’s. Does anyone know/remember who owned it?
Whilst nothing to do with the Merrion Centre, does anyone remember the “Gourmet Cafe” on Commercial Street? (from memory on the corner of Commercial Street and Trinity Street or maybe a bit higher up towards Albion Street?) It was the best restaurant in Leeds run by a Greek man who always had a cigar in his mouth! He had the same staff for years, two Greek girls, who worked really hard. Also the Peony Chinese restaurant a bit further down, which was in a basement. That was there for years as well. You could get a very good business man’s lunch in both these places. Very happy memories of the 60’s and early 70’s
Neville's DIY, was there when I first started working in Leeds many years ago and was still there the last time that I went, hope it is still there
Last I heard it was going to be turned into a trampoline place but I think it fell through. Still up for sale I believe
Anyone remember what the name of the 90's alternative shop was called in the Georgian Arcade behind Morrisons? Used to sell incense sticks, candles, love beads and jewellery.
Was it called Drayton's????
As soon as I saw Morrisons, I saw a quick shot of Home Bargains. It only moved in a few years ago.
I think there was a brief glimpse of the Tam O' Shanter pub, which sold the ghastly Younger's Tartan Bitter. I had a pint of it there in the 1970s and it tasted so horrible I immediately had to visit another pub to take the taste away. Would love to see more photos of that pub.
It wasn't the Tam O' Shanter pub, it was called The Highlander. The Tam O' Shanter was on Eastgate and it became Hoagy's Piano Bar in the early 1980's. You are right about the horrible beer though.
Towards the end I saw a fab cafe sign, where fab cafe used to be. However I have an old picture with a tetley sign saying Pig & Whistle pub, I thought this was there from the 60s until 2003 before it turned to the fab cafe 🤔
@@kylereed9309 The Pig and Whistle was at the back of The Merrion Centre opposite The Tetleys Pub The Cobourg. Basically back of Morrisons. It closed over 25 years ago.
Omg are these really from the 60s? The ground floor looks nearly the same as now, even home bargain is still there!
No. It's modern footage made to look like old cine film for some reason
Tony's observations on the Odeon are indeed correct super Cinnamecchania 70 mm projection and 6 channel magnetic sound upgraded to one source Cinerama in 1969',first shewing Ice Station Zebra.Much better viewing experience than the shitty digital experience that masquerades as Cinema these days
You certainly got a lot of footage before you were aked to leave......mustve been on their tea break!
This can't possibly be from the 1960's. I went to Central High School whose buildings are opposite the Merrion Centre from 1967 to 1974. When I left the moving pavement was still in place (although it never seemed to work) is missing at 1:43. Also Leeds Civic Trust did not start installing blue plaques until 1987 and one is shown at 1:21, that plaque was not actually installed until 1996. As it states on the plaque it was places there to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the opening of the first Leeds synagogue in 1846.
As others have said the video appears to have been altered to make it look like the 1960's but it was not shot until at least 26 years after that and therefore cannot include many of the things that were there in the 1960's.
Hi and thanks for your comment. Viewers are taking the title of the video too literally. It was shot in 2010. And the title and description makes reference to David Pearce's Red Riding Trilogy which mentions The Merrion Centre. The video was shot on old film stock, but clearly shows modern shops. However, The Merrion Centre was due to undergo huge changes including the destruction of the Merrion market, which was still there at the time, albeit empty. I've left the video with the description as is, as it gets lots of viewers, but it's a video celebrating a 60s building, not a video from the 60s. Thanks for your comments anyway and I hope the video prompted some fond memories.
@@matcoop Yes it did when we were in the sixth form we were allowed to stop having school dinners and trusted to shop in the Merrion Centre for our lunch so walking through the centre during term time was a regular occurrence.
roll on 2012 and 2013 Merrion Centre will look amazing
2020 and it still looks just like this
What about gerol's record shop used to go there every Friday 79 to 85
What about Woolworths and Millies cookies in the Merrion centre?
I used Gerol’s too! Found some great little collectibles in there! Another lost gem!
My mum used to take me shopping here on a Saturday morning and it was my first ever experience of going shopping in Leeds on my own too.. I have heard they are giving the place a facelift.. Is this true?
Avid Merrion..
What is the Phonograph now down the basement? bogs always flooded full of goths happy days!
I think it changed name to The Roxy by the late 80’s, there’s an episode of The Hitman and Her where you can see the inside
You didn't go to the hotel part.That's shut down and creepy.theres old net curtains still in the Windows.
had some mad times in phono! I loved the worlds shittest fancy dress shop round the back, they had a pink panther that was the most hideous creation I've ever seen, hilarious!
Was it a Sunday u went down there, or summat? I remember as a kid going thru, it was allways chocka
Yeah in the early days, not much opened on Sundays. Not till at least lunchtime.
@@jules.8443 that was a ten year old question 😃
I remember Tiffs under eighteens on a Monday in the early eighties.
I aways went to hug and bottle in this place
Jug
🚖Saturday mornings New Mecca
What's the music that's used in this video?
Red Shadow And Green by Scott Dunning
@@cvsdigital I'd completely forgotten about this! It's actually "Avalon" by LD Music (says in the copyright info - not sure if it did when I asked the question), but thanks anyway.
It's a very weird place. It gives me chills.I seriously get bad vibes from this place.
It's grim up North
Loiner and proud
phonographique ?
Ritzy's
Leeds is now a gentrified hell hole with no soul - posh shops-posh stuffy bars, bland shopping centres, exiled southerners & hipster ponce's
- I preferred the old Leeds....Scrumpies, Chaplin's bar, The Duchess of York, the second hand shops & army & navy stores on the dilapidated Boar Lane (like something out of a Kojak movie), the Olympics swimming pool, the Queens hall, the grime , the dirt, the beauty beneath the surface & the real people of Leeds etc, it was OUR Leeds! it belonged to us, not outsiders! .
I remember Scrumpies, well some nights ha ha.
Scurries and The Duchess....happy days indeed
Bali hai night club?
wade house is so ugly, can they please blow it up, on secound thoughts demolish merion centre and build something dence on their with some green space
Couldn't watch it all because of that terrible 'music'
Why do people do that?