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Old Salford Explorer

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“Dirty old town,” sang the man. He was relaxing in between shows at Hyndman Hall on Liverpool Street, looked out of the window at the old gas works and was suitably inspired to write the song of the same name, covered perfunctorily by Rod Stewart and memorably by the Pogues. His name was Jimmy Miller, but you’ll know him better as Ewan MacColl.

He was there at the dramatic demonstration outside the old Town Hall on Bexley Square in 1931 when the crowd chanted: “Down down down with the National Starvation Government!”, and things got rather heated.

We’ll probably hear a bit more about that, and about Hobson’s Choice, the vegetarian church, the Flat Iron Market, the Working Class Library, J. P. Joule, the Catholic cathedral, Exchange Station, the elegant Crescent, the flood-happy river Irwell, Greengate, the Real Tennis court, oh and of course L. S. Lowry.