BBC History

BBC TWO Restoration

Past and Present in West Yorkshire

Sense of Place

West Yorkshire Civic Societies

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Photographer Tim Daley has been allowed inside Manningham Mills to capture the atmosphere of the building before renovation. CLICK HERE TO TAKE A LOOK

Manningham Mills - also known as Listers Mill - was a sign on Bradford's skyline of wealth and prosperity. Samuel Lister founded the original Lister's Mill in 1838 but it was destroyed by fire and rebuilt in 1871. The replacement was the biggest textile building in the north of England, a building making Bradfordians proud of their city and their prosperity.

Unfortunately, it is now more a sign of the city's changed fortunes since its heyday, with the Mill slowly falling into disrepair.

But it could now be about to rise once again like a phoenix from the flames with recent confirmation that an £85million project to convert the site into living space, shopping areas and community facilities will begin later this year.

A Manchester-based company called Urban Splash says it is ready to go ahead with a ten year plan that will breathe new life into the huge former textile complex.

So, could this planned restoration of Manningham Mills prove what can be done to other historic buildings across West Yorkshire which are currently teetering on the verge of disappearing into history?

To try and answer this question, BBC Radio Leeds reporter Spencer Stokes has been talking to former employees and regeneration experts who want to see a 'Velvet Revolution' at a mill with a turbulent past and a tantalising future!

Click here to hear our documentary, looking at the past, present and future of Manningham Mills (23'55"/56k modem)

Photographer Tim Daley has been allowed inside Manningham Mills to capture the atmosphere of the building before renovation. CLICK HERE TO TAKE A LOOK