Grand steps and promenade at Alexandra Park

Image: © Ian Greig Taken: 23 Apr 2015

Alexandra Park is one of Manchester’s earliest and most intact Victorian Parks. In 1995 the park was listed Grade 2 on the English Heritage Register of Parks and Gardens. The 60-acre site for the Park was bought by Manchester Corporation and laid out between 1868 and 1870. The design was the subject of an architectural competition which was won by Alexander Gordon Hennell of Chancery Lane, London. Hennell’s winning design was ahead of its time, integrating the provision of traditional ornamental features and sporting facilities, something we take for granted in parks today. The design exploited the flat and featureless site by creating a series of broad sweeping and curved footpaths, perfect for the Victorian fashion of promenading, whilst defining the oval activity areas. In 2014 the park was sympathetically restored, reinstating and repairing the original features and adapting facilities to meet the demands of a modern park.

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