Photo-a-Day  (Friday, 13th October, 2023)

Looks a bit draughty !

A greener future? Protecting our Heritage? More like a BLACKER future when they've finished DEMOLISHING our heritage!

I'd heard the Nationwide had two hole in the wall facilities .

It’s been open to the elements from the beginning. No attempt to put some makeshift covering at all.
I am intrigued as to how it’s going to be finished and what is going there.

I can see Wigan is Planing for a Greener Future .....but what does the other slogan say ?
Protecting Our Heritage ?....thats a laugh !

You would have thought they would have boarded the large holes because it must be a H&S issue . If there is a strong wind blowing directly into the building there is a risk of the windows or the roof blowing out.

Its work in progress, they have just put up that RSJ rolled steel joint to stop the building falling down, then it can be easily bricked up.

What is "Our Heritage" in Wigan? It's been traditional for every generation to pull down the buildings of the generations before and rebuild as they think fit. Who tore down the Roman buildings, the Mediaeval buildings, etc? Who undermined the town with mine-workings, causing ancient buildings to fall down? Embrace your inheritance!

Why do you insist on calling yourself Rev??? Seem to have very little sympathy for the views of the majority of the population of Wigan.

The pigeons will be finding that it'll be a good roost, though it does look that there are doors in place that will close to prevent the pigeons and the wind and weather from entering. Years ago when I was volunteering at the RSPCA I would send legacy forms to a firm of solicitors who had offices on Market Place and was they was above the Nationwide BS, and some years ago on going past there I did look for the door which led to their offices but I couldn't see it, unless the entrance was behind a plain door which at one time was a alley leading to The Fleece Hotel, the postman must have known how to get in there to deliver them as they never came back as undelivered.

The Rev is one of the few who talks any sense on this site .

I think it is the rate they are demolishing that upsets people & perhaps planners not designing buildings that are in sympathy with what is there already. Its easy & quick to build a square box that fits itself neatly into the space available but it takes more time & trouble to design a good building that merges in & will last a while.
I recall my cousin Fred Foster tell me of plans some years ago to build Roman pillars at the top of Standishgate, I can't vouch for that being true but could well believe it . Someone wanting to leave something to posterity perhaps.
Why is it that other places can accept their heritage & Victorian buildings but your council wants change all the time. Nobody would want to go backwards & if nothing else look at the amount of money that is wasted.... I am not a Wigan resident & have an outsiders view but I would object to my money being used on pipe dreams.

Jan, that's a very disrespectful comment to make about the Rev David Long you should be ashamed of yourself.
Retired Doctors prefer to keep that title. And I agree.

David Reverend Long IS very much respected and should keep is title. No heard Jan before on here.

Most Wiganers are outraged at the vandalism the council have imposed on our town centre.
Change for the better is one thing but within my lifetime this constant 'now you see it now you don't' reeks of a lack of foresight, financial incompetence, lack of accountability for the wasted money and a total disregard of the towns heritage.
All the slogans on all the hoardings around the demolition are complete lies embellished with flowery slogans that fool no one.

Jan how do you know that it’s the vast majority of the population. It seems to me that the negative comments are from a handful of people who are afraid to move with the times. We all know that the high street is on its legs. After saying that I have just come back from the town centre and it is extremely busy. The negative comments seem to be mainly from the people who say they never go into
Wigan because it is dead. This will stir them up.

Well said Colin.

We are all entitled to our opinions and Reverend D Long is entitled to his and to be addressed as Reverend as a member of the clergy. I completely understand his views on the immigrants and wouldn’t expect anything else as ALL priests whichever denomination they belong to would express the same.
I have to say the sixties was the worst time for buildings in Wigan with the concrete bunkers in King St and Millgate…but that’s just two.

Embrace your Inheritance, obvious but pure genius!
Our inheritance is the North / South divide !
Places like Wigan , my birthplace, get the scraps !
If you see the investment being driven into London it’s staggering!
Another person I regard a visionary on WW , I think it was Veronica once , who said in a post , ‘ they are trying to change Wigan into a Village! That hit me , because against such an unequal opposition, you can either run or bind closer ! That I truly believe. Wigan should do , bind closer , make it a village in thought and deed because quite simply London will always be late , and when it does, it will be in chosen raindrops according to itself , that I promise you !

I have every respect for Rev David and he certainly DOES talk sense on here, (I realise some of us get a bit giddy with our jokes, but there is no harm meant; it;s just a laugh, which, let's face it, we all need at the moment!). I can't speak for the Roman and Medieval parts of Wigan....I wasn't born then....but I have seen , in my own lifetime, places like Millgate, Commercial Yard and The Old Arcade demolished, when places like York and Chester would have preserved them and been proud of them. I love Wigan and it is heartbreaking to see it in its present state. If there was a definite plan that we could all look forward to seeing come to fruition it would help us to get through this present stage of demolition, but it feels like the blind leading the blind at present....no-one seems to have any idea of what we can expect when all the demolition is over. It's like being in Limbo and is so depressing.

Obviously a rogue poster.
David your comments, photos and other contributions are very much appreciated by the genuine posters on here.

Bring back the Commercial Yard

We are all entitled to our ‘None Binding Expression Of Opinion’.
I do think that Rev. Long’s views were taken out of context, I don’t think he was saying that we should now live in preserved Roman or Medieval buildings but that times do change, many buildings in Wigan post war were run down hovels and perhaps the frontages in many cases should have been retained, at least those of significant heritage value or architectural merit.
I look at what has been created in new build, Brian House and the former C&A building Standishgate, what visual monstrosities.
Mock Tudor might not be to everyone’s taste but by comparison with those two! I will leave you to judge.

We are always blaming someone else for what happened in Wigan.I have said it before that when most of us were young we did not give two hoots about what was demolished,we wanted new and modern things.