IMAGES TAKEN NEAR TO
College Court, Regent Circus, SWINDON, SN1 1PZ

The redevelopment of the new cinema and supermarket in Commercial Road has brought with it some modern highways theory.

This grim building is now empty and the site is awaiting redevelopment. It was put up in the early 1960s and I can recall that it was the first building in the town to have lifts. I shouldn't be too hard on the place as it did contribute in a small way to my education but it is typical of perhaps the decade that architects should be most ashamed of. Godspeed the wrecking ball to lay this sad structure to rest.

Now open, after decades, spent in temporary accommodation.

Seeing this relatively new and quite large building comes as a shock to an aged Swindonian more used to seeing a group of rather tatty and inadequate concrete huts on this site, which served for many decades as the 'temporary' library buildings. Maybe one day the town will get around to restoring its two other eyesores, the Corn Exchange building in the old town and the Mechanics Institute in the railway village.

One of a series showing the redevelopment of the site for commercial uses. This is a view east showing the steelwork for what will be the retail core. For more see below...

The Regent Circus redevelopment starts to focus on the finish. The old college site was cleared for this supermarket, cinema and restaurants and it is hoped to be completed by Autumn 2014.

Swindon's former Town Hall in Regent Circus. The early versions of the town's central point of governance had been further south in Old Town. However, the massive expansion brought about by the railways and the benevolence of the G.W.R. meant that a new civic hall was built here - saying much about the influence the railways was having on the area. For a short while there was a certain amount of friction between the two 'towns' - the 90ft clock tower could be seen from the old part. The building was designed by Ipswich architect, Brightwen Binyon, and opened in 1890. It maintained a firm hold on local and national government until 2006, when newer premises were used. Today, it is a large studio for Swindon Dance, a National Dance Agency.