Granada Television Studios, Manchester. Sunday 30 August 1970
TV cameras, flming equipment, scenery and the "Thunderbird 3" dustbin wagon in the grounds of Granada Television studios on the north side of Grape Street, Manchester. Sunday 30 August 1970.
40 years later most of this dustbin wagon still exists. For many years it has been stored in a car scapyard at Winwick Quay, immediately north of the M62 near Warrington. The rear section (crusher) of the wagon can clearly be seen from trains passing the scrapyard on the West Coast Main Line (WMCL).
Grape Street (ex. Charles Street) linked Lower Byrom Street and Water Street. On the south side of Grape Street was the Coronation Street set which was built in 1968 and rebuilt just over a year later using real bricks. To mark the 1000th episode of the soap opera it was open to the public for three days in 1970 over the August Bank Holiday weekend (29th – 31st), at least 50,000 people attended. This set remained in use until May 1982.
In 1981 a decision was made by Granada Television to buy and close off Grape Street and also to buy land adjacent to the north side of a bonded warehouse so that a new enlarged and spacious set could be built which opened in May 1982 and was visited by the Queen and Prince Philip that month. Demolition of the Grape Street set began on Tuesday 1st June 1982 and the former set site is now used as a car parking area by Granada TV. The old junction of Grape Street with Water Street later became the main entrance to Granada Studio Tours which operated between 1988 and 1999.
Camera: Kodak Instamatic 133-X
Film: Kodak Kodachrome X colour transparency film (126 cartridge format).
Photograph copyright: Ian 10B.
Granada Television Studios, Manchester. Sunday 30 August 1970
TV cameras, flming equipment, scenery and the "Thunderbird 3" dustbin wagon in the grounds of Granada Television studios on the north side of Grape Street, Manchester. Sunday 30 August 1970.
40 years later most of this dustbin wagon still exists. For many years it has been stored in a car scapyard at Winwick Quay, immediately north of the M62 near Warrington. The rear section (crusher) of the wagon can clearly be seen from trains passing the scrapyard on the West Coast Main Line (WMCL).
Grape Street (ex. Charles Street) linked Lower Byrom Street and Water Street. On the south side of Grape Street was the Coronation Street set which was built in 1968 and rebuilt just over a year later using real bricks. To mark the 1000th episode of the soap opera it was open to the public for three days in 1970 over the August Bank Holiday weekend (29th – 31st), at least 50,000 people attended. This set remained in use until May 1982.
In 1981 a decision was made by Granada Television to buy and close off Grape Street and also to buy land adjacent to the north side of a bonded warehouse so that a new enlarged and spacious set could be built which opened in May 1982 and was visited by the Queen and Prince Philip that month. Demolition of the Grape Street set began on Tuesday 1st June 1982 and the former set site is now used as a car parking area by Granada TV. The old junction of Grape Street with Water Street later became the main entrance to Granada Studio Tours which operated between 1988 and 1999.
Camera: Kodak Instamatic 133-X
Film: Kodak Kodachrome X colour transparency film (126 cartridge format).
Photograph copyright: Ian 10B.