The Britons Protection, Great Bridgewater Street, Manchester

25 September 2019 · Manchester

The Britons Protection has held its corner on Great Bridgewater Street since 1611 — white render, black trim, and gold lettering unchanged against an overcast Manchester sky. Behind it, a glass tower climbs out of frame. The Georgian pub facade does the work of centuries in a single glance; the skyscraper behind it does the work of a single decade. Urban regeneration tends to erase what it surrounds; here, the old building holds its ground.