Manchester Central Convention Complex Clock – Manchester, UK
Posted by: 
dtrebilc
N 53° 28.602 W 002° 14.772
30U E 550028 N 5925566
This clock is mounted above the front entrance of what was originally a large railway station and is now a convention centre. The clock also held a secret for over one hundred years.
Waymark Code: WMDYEM
Location: North West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 03/09/2012
Views: 8
The building operated as a large railway station between 1880 and 1978. The station roof is a single span wrought iron truss structure. It had a span of 210 feet and the apex was 90 feet high above the rail tracks.
The end of the span above the station entrance was glazed with a timber frame. The clock is mounted below the apex of the arch above the entrance; and is about 2/3 of the way up on the timber frame.
The combination of the large glass arch and the clock is a well known and icon sight in the city of Manchester.
The station became a Grade II Listed Building in 1963 and so when it finally closed in 1978 it was protected and could not be demolished.
It was derelict for a while and then became a car park, but then in 1986 it was renovated and converted into an Exhibition centre as part of one of the UK’s first urban redevelopment projects.
During the renovation process a young man approached the builder’s and told them that his grandfather had told him that if any work was done on the station they should look behind the clock face.
The builders did look and they found a secret time capsule. The contents have been preserved including one of the original timetables from 1880. (
visit link)
The building has recently been upgraded again between 2008 and 2010, and the entrance hall underneath the clock was completed in 2009.