A new history of Chorlton in 20 objects, number 8, an amusement arcade and the future of Beech Road circa 1983

I can’t be exactly sure of the date of the picture but it was during the early 1980s when Beech Road was about to enter its troubled period.

The old patterns of shopping were beginning to change and one by one many of the traditional shops closed.

It had begun a decade earlier with the closure of the TV shop, moved on apace with the disappearance of the grocers shops  and sweet shops followed by the hardware place with its familiar smell of paraffin and waxed string and then one by one the butchers went until only Muriel’s was left.

So this was an uncertain period with plenty of closed shops and the hint that Beech Road was past its best.  Into this came the amusement arcade at 111.  It sparked a bit of controversy and lasted but a short time.

And after its closure there was another quiet time till Patrick opened Primavera followed by the Lead Station and the rest as they say is history.

Picture; from the Lloyd collection