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greater manchester statistics

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Monday, 28th July 2003

Greater Manchester Statistics

Population: Greater Manchester: 2.5m; Manchester with Salford and Trafford: 894,000
Number of passengers using Manchester Airport each year: 19m
Unemployment in travel to work area: 3%
Theatre/cultural Seats: 43,593
Professional orchestras: 3
Nightclubs: 164
Galleries/Museums: 61
Cinema screens: 159
Number of local pop acts since 1960 to sell two million albums or more: 23
Professional Football Clubs: 8
Sports seats in professional stadia: 348,636
Licensed premises in Central Manchester: c480
Natural/regional cuisines: 35
Languages spoken: 40
Number of major independent breweries: 4
Number of microbreweries: 12
Number of UFO Landing Sites: 1

Made up of ten boroughs, the other nine components of Greater Manchester crowd round the city like iron-filings around a magnet. Manchester as the clearinghouse of cotton and as the natural centre was the reason for their early growth and wealth. Yet all the towns of the conurbation have a fierce independence. To them the city can be an alien place, in thought and speech. Indeed the harder, quicker, more ethnically influenced, Manchester accent is far removed from the slower, deeper accents on either side.

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Touchstones Rochdale

To the north of the city lie the three West Pennine boroughs of Bolton (268,000), Bury (183,000) and Rochdale (205,000). Both Bolton and Rochdale have Town Halls that would grace major cities, whilst Rochdale's is set in the finest civic space in the north of England. All have football clubs with Bolton Wanderers currently in the Premier League. Two of the finest markets are at Bolton and Bury, whilst the latter town also hosts the embarkation point for the East Lancs Railway - the tourist line which runs up the Irwell valley to Rawtenstall and beyond. Rochdale is the home of the Co-operative movement and the new Touchstones visitor attraction. There is fine hill country to the north.

The two eastern boroughs are Oldham (217,000) and Tameside (220,000) both with recent visitor attractions in Gallery Oldham and Setantii respectively. The eastern Oldham district of Saddleworth contains beautiful stone-built villages and miles of moors stretching into Yorkshire.

Lyme Park

South lie Stockport (285,000) and Trafford (210,000). Stockport has an entertainingly up and down town centre with an iconic railway viaduct striding through. There are also the two excellent historic houses at Lyme Park and Bramhall Hall. Trafford has its own stately home at Dunham Massey.

Imperial War Museum North

The northern end of the borough, in reality very much part of Manchester, contains the retail palace of the Trafford Centre shopping mall. Adjacent Trafford Park is still the largest industrial estate in the United Kingdom employing 55,000 people. Here too lie Manchester United, Lancashire Cricket Club and The Imperial War Museum North. The whole arc from Disley and Bramhall in Stockport, through to Hale and Altrincham via Wilmslow and Alderley Edge is wealthy South Manchester, the 'Stockbroker belt of the North'.

Opie's Museum of Memories at Wigan Pier

To the west lies Salford (216,000) and Wigan (301,000). Immortalised by George Orwell's 1937 Road to Wigan Pier the town has responded by making the Pier a tourist attraction. Wigan has a fine country house in Haigh Hall, one of the world's best Rugby League teams with Wigan Warriers and produces its own whisky, Red Rose Whisky.

Photo Sales

Check out this selection of photographs from the M.E.N.

Expats

If you're a Mancunian abroad, this is the section for you.