Moss Side nostalgia art collection

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A4 Limited Edition Print £40  contact me

 Urban Cityscape, a Depiction of my friend Ricardo Cowie and me, we used to collect discarded pushbikes that were found in the rubbish filled alleyways of Moss Side. We would rebuild these bikes and sell them to Nevs second hand shop on the corner of Cowesby Street and Claremont Road. This was one of the ways we earnt pocket money to buy fireworks and sweets. Painted in Acrylic and Ink using the croquis method for the characters in the scene.

story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Where the good things are 

Rick Cowie and me  Collecting old pushbikes  

In rubbish filled alleyways of Moss Side  

in the 70s and 80s 

We would fix em up 

Ricky shouting hammer hammer  

Didn’t have a stammer  

sold em to Nevs second hand shop  

On the corner of Cowesby street and Claremont road  

We weren’t old       

lookin for gold 

Yeah made money to buy Treats on the streets 

Football cards you flicked at a wall, 

Fireworks, bangers, jubleys, bubblies  black jacks and sweets 

We did feats     

on these mean streets  

yeah where the good things are  

  https://youtu.be/XeCAfwj-Ups

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Street Football is a depiction of friends and I that used to play on the streets of Moss Side in the 1970s and 1980s.We used to play kerby, keepy uppy, Kick can, knock and run, making wooden bogies and riding our bikes up and down terraced streets. this scene is of caythorpe Street where my friend Mark Egerton had a green grocery shop. we played on the streets from dawn till dusk. Painted in Acrylic and Ink and pallete knife using the croquis method to give movement to the characters. impressionistic Urban Cityscape.

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Street Football in the Moss 

We used to play on the streets from dawn till dusk 

It was a must 

In The 70s and 80s it was the latest and greatest 

Like the eye of the tiger 

thrill of the fight  

Playin Kerby, keepy uppy, 

kick can knock and run 

It was lots of fun

Mind yer car mr and boy did we miss ya 

Yeah street football  

kids on the streets used to play all day  

Messin around and havin fun 

Sayin  Im pele      

Well      im maradonna 

Im gonna be the best          

Better than the rest  

Playin in me vest 

The kids didn’t rest 

Yeah Street football    Kerby     keepy uppy  

Aint No yuppy      

 feelin lucky  

Yeah street football in the moss  

it was boss  

https://youtu.be/iSJXgZYHFAQ

Comments from the general public

 this is boss , by Jack

 Use to play in Broadfield Road behind the parkside. Happy days . by Rod

 Used to play football in the rec bottom end of Broardfield Road at night . by Martin

 I used to live on Caythorpe St over 50 years ago, The Hankinsons owned the greengrocer shop on the corner with Claremont Rd and Mr Stanaway had the grocer's on the other corner. There was always kids playing on the street the boys playing football or cricket and the girls skipping or twoaball against a wall.lots of happy memories. Elaine

 I remember Minnie Maguires shop in the corner of caythorpe street we lived at 28 . Great memories of playing street games never bored . by Susan

 More great memories mate I remember them having the green groceries and us using the gable end for football nets and kick the can  by BEnjy

 goals in Greame Street. Rushing away in panic when a cop came round the corner of Broadfield Raod on his bike - scattering in all directions! . by Barry

 Our football pitch in the mid 60's was on Alison Street, between Cowesby St & Roseberry St....Happy Days!! . by John

 Andew, you are taking me back millions of years! by Richard

A4 Limited Edition Print £40  contact me

Penny for the Guy is a depiction of friends and I that used to make Guy Fawkes out of old clothes and collected money from passers by outside the claremont pub in Moss Side. One time a drunk from the pub gave us a penny for the guy and he stole it, so we placed Peter in the box with a bag on his head,unfortunately another drunk booted him in the face and somebody threw a banger in his lap for a joke. Moss Side was a rough place to grow up in the 1970's and 1980's and kids from poor backgrounds had to find ways of earning money for sweets and fireworks as there parents were not able to fund this. Painted in Acrylic and Ink using the croquis method to bring the characters to life, Impressionistic Urban Cityscape.

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Penny for the Guy 

We made Guy Fawkes  

And collected money from passers by  

we didn’t cry 

yeah Outside the Claremont pub in Moss Side 

a drunk gave us a penny for the guy and stole it  

placed Peter in the box with a bag on his head 

we thought he was dead  

cos a drunk booted him in the face  

what a disgrace all in bad taste 

we all had to laugh      

it was a gaff 

then somebody threw a banger in his lap for a joke 

he smoke    

thought he would croak 

yeah Moss Side      

a rough place to grow up in the 70s and 80s 

poor kids findin ways to earn money for the  honey 

yeah sweets and treats on these mean streets 

fireworks and bangers galore  

we knew the score 

we used to knock run on the door 

yeah penny for the guy     

what a guy  

https://youtu.be/MLT5f7hDirA

Comments from the general public

 True I grew up in the 50 s /60s never had any problems on the street it was a good place to grow up every body knew every body  .  

It was a mint place to grow up ! Good or bad we all

Had a moral compass that seems to be missing from Lou’s today !

by Mike

 As kids we used to do penny for the guy outside the Wycliffe cinema and the old reno until a black guy coming out of the club pulled a knife and chased us down princess road, stayed outside Bakers Union club after that, was safer. ,  rough place to grow up. Moss side was by Steven 

 The story of the guy made me laugh   I remember having to run up to the Claremont Saturday night to get the papers so my dad could check the pools a man stood out side the pub selling the late paper then calling into the chippy on Claremont road for my mams treat on Saturday night fish and chips and a small bottle of Vimeo 1/6 d mam worked all week cleaning in town till 8/30 at night and that was her treat we used to ask chippy man have you got any scrapings bit that come of the fish and chips when they were frying them and he used to fill a small bag and give you them free Those were the days  by Fay

 We used to run in and out tooquite a few pubs had revolving doors great fun . , by John

 As a very young child, I used to play around the Claremont pub. BUT unlike in your picture it had a circular swing door that went round 360 degrees. I once got trapped in it when some idiot swung it the wrong way! by Barry

A3 Limited Edition Print £40  contact me

Moss Side had a Carnival every year, I remember it being colourful and there was always a great party atmosphere mixed with drug dealers selling their wares. 

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I also remember a Pimp that used to ride down Great Western Street in his open top pink Cadillac with leopard skin seats and perched on the back were his three bitches (prostitutes) advertising their services.

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews

Moss Side Carnival in the eighties  

Happens every year 

People sellin there gear  

Yeah drugs and beer  

Dealers sellin there gear 

Full of colour  

An African beat on the street 

Feel the heat of the people you meet 

It’s a treat      

life at full beat      

No retreat  

The Moss side carnival in the eighties  

A pimp rides around  In his pink cadilac 

His bitches sittin on the back  

of Leopard skin seats  

Yeah prostitutes selling there wares  

Stop and look and stare 

Like huggy bear  

Yeah the Moss Side carnival in the eighties 

Happens every year 

Plenty of beer    

people sellin there gear 

https://youtu.be/7-p4QBN9f9Y

 A4 Limited Edition Print £40  contact me

https://youtu.be/S7rfFKWydrU

Mind your car Mr, is a cityscape depiction of Friends and myself that used to look after cars for the fans during a manchester City Game in Moss Side. We used to earn our pocket money by minding the cars until half time. Man City used to open the gates to allow the kids to watch the second half of the game. we used to buy sweets, jubleys and fireworks, we had great fun setting them off. 

The street that I used to mind cars on was Cowesby Street in Moss Side, I would often get in to fights but this was my patch. One time an Asian Lad spat in my face for no reason, I snapped and began to fight him and was beating him when Ricky pulled me away and the Asian Lad ran off. I looked down at my right hand and it was bleeding from a cut, Ricky told me that he pulled a knife on me. Painted in Acrylic and Ink using the croquis method to give movement to the characters.

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Mind yer car mr      

 Boy did we miss ya

Kids hustlin on the street      

Guarding your patch  

Mind yer car mr      

we used to shout  

On match day in the moss    

People getting cross 

Fans are crowdin   

fussin and cussin 

Police on horseback Movin the crowd 

shoutin out loud 

Mind yer car mr 

for A penny or two   

On cue for sweets and treets      

on the streets  

Yeah Black jacks, space invader crisps  

flying saucers midget gems ,  

jubleys bubblies bangers galore 

we new the score  

football cards you flicked at the wall 

what a ball  

Then comes half time   

run to main road  

Man City opens the gates for the kids  

Runnin down tunnels getting into troubles 

Watchin the game for free with glee  

Kippax end with a friend 

I wont bend 

Yeah mind yer car mr      

 boy did we miss ya 

https://youtu.be/S7rfFKWydrU

Comments from the general public

 every other Saturday, it was great. ' please can I mind you're car Mr.' Hartington Street,Close to Maine Road. wonderful memories. My Mum never knew, she would have killed me for begging! also penny for the guy, outside the Claremont pub. Great memories, more so as I was getting away with it.  by joy

 every match day we were out there , i was only telling my grandkids about what we got up to they just looked at me like i was bonkers .  by Christine 

 I was living near the ground in the early 90's and often saw the local kids doing this. I know that they walked off once you paid them but I would rather they did this than mugging an old granny. Fair play to them.  by Nick 

Got. Bernard. MANNING’s car one time….. City. Won. So he treated us to 6d

(. 2 1/2 p )….. Tight. Get …. lol by Ged 

 My Mrs used to live in one of the houses on the left,,love it  by Fran

When I lived there it was mind your bike that was in The 50’s . by Doreen

 Mine and Andrew Salami had the spot on great Western St opposite Alvinos. Middle of 70's. Your description is beeeyutiful and what I try and explain to people. Thanks xx I lived in Cadogan Street off Broadfield Rd. . by Jimmi

 Great times they were. Mine was Broadfield road! Across the road were buses! by Dianne

 I was born on Broadfield Road and have been a lifelong City fan.  by y Dianne

 Remember those days, lived in Cranswick Street and must have been about 5/6 (1957) can remember kids asking if they could mind cars! . by Christine

 That brings back so many memories!by Norma

 I .by lived in Hibbert street , near wilmslow road , match days every street was full of cars and we minded them and some neighbours minded bikes in their backyards, I also went to secondary school opposite the old Man City grounds , had friends in the moss too , great memoriesx by Rose

I was a car minder in the late 50s

‘Just sixpence sir.by Dave

 Brings back memories .I lived in mossside near city ground and I had a mini . One match day I looked out the window and 4 football fans had lifted my car up and moved it a bit so they could get their car in .Cheeky buggers  by Jane

It’s part of ‘my his-story’. First went (unofficially) when I was eight in 1954 after trying to sneak in. A turnstile bloke grabbed me and stood me behind Bert Trautmann’s goal in the Platt Lane End.

After that I went with me dad!. by Jeff

 That's brilliant, Andrew. My grandparents owned a corner shop on Maine Road which would be mobbed by fans on match days...and then later by kids spending their 'mind your car' earnings on sweets! Happy days . by Susie

And bike storage earnings. My cousins on Dorset Avenue charged 3d. For bikes to be stored in their back yard.

The BBC series ‘Life on Mars’ had one programme featuring a game….. which I pointed out to my wife wasn’t ‘true to life’. … ‘Apart from the obvious, Why?’… ‘All the fans’ footy scarves are clean.’ It took just one Saturday in the ‘open air’ and they were various shades of sooty grey..by Jeff

 Congratulations Andrew.

I lived on Cowesby Street in the 60s and 70s so can vouch for your article, minding cars on match days was part of growing up !!. by Karen

 Brought back great memories,me & my brother minding are patch ,for minding cars . by Kadra

 Sitting on a chair in the street minding my dads car space outside our house!! . by Elaine

 This is lowthorpe street. My uncle max ..auntie Angela lived there for years. . by Jeff

 My childhood, from minding a car, to going to Kippax at half time to watch the second half. . by Joan

 Main road,has a great histoty.and its not just about winning.and it will take a long time,before Etihad has as much.for instance.the cou try had just finished a war with Germany.And we get a POW playing in goal for us.who turned out to be a great clubman.and a great goalkeeper. That is good history. by Jack

I'd love to read it but have to subscribe.

Well done on the article.and the painting is wonderful.

 by Ann

 I grew up on Broadfield Rd just around the corner from maine Road I was lucky enough to have watched the great Mercer/Allison City team when I was a young kid ,I'm still a season ticket holder now and enjoying watching City at the etihad. by Peter

 used to play on broadfield baths roof proper child hoids back in the day by Peter

 Too young to go the the match on my own, but not too young to mutter "mind your car mister". My patch was Cowesby Street, great memories by John

  You've made me smile from Ear to Ear, minding cars, then straight to the paper shop for my Beezer, and some crisps (2p then) and Penny chews, then onto Floods on clearmont road to see if they had any cheap stuff 

by Anthony

You might enjoy the mail below that I sent my sisters and nephews yesterday – CTID's all.

« I sent you both a mail about this artist, Andrew Alan Matthews, whom I came across on FB. Several of his paintings have appeared on my FB since.
He is Moss Side born and bred, lives in Manchester and is a City fanatic.
Check out his website, many marvelous paintings of Moss Side, Manchester centre, Maine Road and Etihad.
My favourite is above. This street leads up to the Maine Road main entrance. When I was 8 or 9, I used to go to this street a couple of hours before ko and, with other lads, we did indeed used to cry...."Mind yer car, Mr?" for a few pennies in return if we were lucky.
Not that we ever did anything to "mind the car" nor could we have done anything if anybody tried to nick or damage the cars!
There is a lovely sound track on the YouTube link.
About a quarter of an hour before the match ended, the gates were opened and we dashed in to watch the end.
These terraced houses had door knockers and after the match we used to run like hell back down the street banging on them all.
I hope to order a print of the above. by Richard

A4 Limited Edition Print £40  contact me

A depiction of Mr Floods toy shop that was on Claremont Road Moss Side in the 1970s and 1980s, Mr flood was a kind man, I used to buy airfix kits and toy soldiers and spent hours painting and making them. the shop was darkly lit and smelly as he had cats and a parrot on a perch as you entered the shop, he was also a pigeon fancier and had a coup in his back yard. He took me and ricky on holiday one year to his caravan in wales. Painted in Acrylic and ink using a pallette knife for depth to the artwork. Impressionistic Urban cityscape.

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Mr Floods Toy Shop 

Next to my mate Rickys house  

on Claremont road in Moss Side 

 in the 70s and 80s 

they were the greatest 

Mr flood a small kind man 

did all he can 

Used to buy airfix kits and toy soldiers  

Spent hours making and painting em 

played with em for hours in showers 

Mr Floods toy shop was darkly lit and smelly 

He Didn’t have a telly 

An old fashioned toy shop 

Of times gone by 

had Cats and a parrot on a perch 

A pigeon fancier  

Had a coup in his yard

It wasn’t hard to like this old man    

 did all he can 

Took me and rick to a caravan in wales  

Dilapidated and full of moths  

Cutting the grass and cleanin up 

Yeah Mr Flood 

A kind old man 

did all he can 

To help the kids in the Moss 

it was boss 

https://youtu.be/8jSMY6_YHUM

comments from the general public

 In the late forties she also loaned books seem to think it was 2pence a week my granny used to send me to change them Still remember names of her favourite authors I'm turned 80 ! Anne 

 It had so much more in there it was really quite cluttered but the floods knew where everything was . by Colin

 ,this is where we used to buy books and toys from. Grandad used to pop in there on his way home from his shift at the bus depot.  I bought lots of books from Miss Floods by Gillian

 I remember a Miss Floods toy shop lived nearby on Caythorpe St. My brother's and l used to go in almost every week sometimes it was just for an exercise book or some plasticine, but always for a good look around . by Elaine

 I remember that shop went there to buy toys late 60s,it was a lovely shop. .by Paul

 one for the memory book by Catherine

 Loved that shop as a kit,.any a model bought there,lived on 132 Hartington St .by Lee

 Remember it well by denise

 I loved that shop.... My gran would take me in there to pick a treat  by Liz

 I used to live near and go there and I only knew her as MISS Flood. by Colin

Very old business

I could be wrong but I seem to remember that shop in the 50s by Dave

 your right, Mrs flood & her sister ran it ,the sister died,then just Mrs flood by Kadra

 Used to go toMrs Floods every Friday with my pocket money Lived in Roseberry st at the time… Happy days . by Pauline

 Got my oil painting kit from there ,great shop, . by Kadra

 I only remember Mrs floods lovely lady nice storyby Neil

 I bought all my match box cars from Mrs Floods, wonderful shop . by Paul 

 I used to love going in mrs floods toy shop it was like alladins cave I used to live at 147 hartington street and go past every morning going to Claremont Road school I loved looking through the window at all the toys . by Linda

 I only remember Mrs Flood, we used to stare through the window most days as it was at the bottom of our street, Caythorn Street by Tammy

 Remember the shop very well I also lived on cowesby  byJo

 That’s interesting, I remember that shop well, I lived round the corner in Cowesby Street . However , I can only recall a MISS Flood. Would she have been the daughter?? Can’t recall a Mr Flood . by Hilda 

 Remember the shop always smelt of cat pee but a great shop though by Douglas

 I must have paid their mortgage off alone with the 4000 fishing nets I bought plus itching powder and fart cushions .  

I forgot to mention

8 million bags of marbles not to mention 200000 dobbers by Colin

 The shop was in between Caythorpe St and cowesby Street. I remember Ricky his mam was the dinner lady at Claremont road school.. the shop smelled like a pet shop not a toy shop.. him and his wife were a good old soul... by Stefan

 you are correct her husband was a driver at Princess Rd Bus Garage he would be only in the shop when he wasn’t at work I occasionally delivered to the shop in the late 60s  by David

A4 Limited Edition Print £40  contact me

Bonfire Night is a depiction of a piece of derelict land at the back of our house on Princess Road Moss Side (since been demolished). I remember the street glowing orange and the heat was intense. We had great fun sharing treacle toffee, playing dunking the apple and putting potatoes in the bonfire and setting off fireworks and sparklers. Painted in Acrylic and ink with paintbrush and pallete knife using the croquis method for the characters to show movements. Urban Cityscape.

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Bonfire Night in the Moss  

derelict land at the back of our house 

222 princess road          It was old 

terraced streets  and bonfires ablaze  

in a haze of smoke  

people havin a joke  

Streets glowing orange  

the heat was intense  

makes common sense   

shared treacle toffee  and dunkin the apple 

potatoes in the fire         

what a bonfire 

guy fawkes on top  makin you stop   

yeah bangers and fireworks lightin up the night  

what a sight   

sparklers and writin your name in the air  

withought a care   

people missin good old days in the moss  

in the 70s and 80s  

were the latest and greatest 

screamers, bangers and fireworks  lightin up the night  

what a sight  

gates going missing  

fireworks a hissing 

treacle toffee and dunkin the apple  

its not the big apple  

its bonfire night in the Moss  

just boss  

https://youtu.be/8TorG6UlxdI

Comments from the public

 And I remember the firemen used to drive round late at night putting fires out..   Now living in Australia, no bonfire night here …  by Wanda

 I remember them they were happy days how are you all xxxxxx by Jean

 We Had Ares ON PEACH St just off Broafild Rd Happy Days  by Dave

A3 Limited Edition Print £50  contact me

My friends family in Moss Side 

Story by Andrew Alan  Matthews

The Egertons In the Moss 

Had a green grocery shop in the Moss  

A family business that did the business  

There older now  a life filled with love  

They’ve stood the test of time for all time 

Had a few tears      

ups and downs  

Albert and Hilda  Had three kids  

Mark, Mike and Pete  Always on heat on the street 

They Banged the ball on the street with there feet  

Yeah kids in the moss 

it was boss 

All Grown up now 

got there own lives and wives 

yeah a family unit 

with kids and grand kids to carry on the family name  

yeah the Egertons  Remember the days in the Moss 

Cos it was boss  

So as you go through life  

Remember your family and friends love you  

So here’s to you  

all Your family and friends wishes you well  

So Take care  

stop and look and stare  

at this Painting 

cos your family surround you  

with love on there mind  

cos your all kind  

and with the Moss on me mind  

just want to say to you all 

we had a ball  

Yeah the Egertons in the moss 

Just boss 

https://youtu.be/qUQxYHzbplE

Hi everybody here is a painting of Cowesby street Moss Side Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History 

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.
In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years.
In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s.
Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime.
 
 Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Moss Side Streets 

Where lifelong friends are made

We played together 

from dawn till dusk

Bonds are made 

Back in the day 

True friends 

Where Family friends 

Welcomed you in 

Hearts of gold 

We weren’t old 

We knocked about 

On Claremont road 

Cowesby street 

And Caythorpe street

It’s a treat 

Life at full beat 

We had nothing 

Poor kids growing up 

Innocent and young 

Livin life to the full

We had real childhoods 

Playin on the street 

Kerby, keepy uppy 

Mind yer car mr 

Boy do we miss ya 

Were all grown up now 

Our own lives and wives 

Had ups and downs

Frowns with clowns 

But one thing I can say 

I wouldn’t change a thing 

For the friends that I’ve made 

In the Moss 

Yeah 

There all boss 

https://youtu.be/ErGyBf20VRA

Comments from the general public 

 i remember those days we lived in the flat above Eric the butchers shop on the corner of rosebery st and claremont road i until 1976 then we moved into a 3 bedroom house 28 rosebery st ! i loved them days as kid , there was connie’s that used to sell baby n kids clothes , then there was that theatrical shop fancy dress costume shop on claremont road where the big discount shop is now , the post office on princess road had a stuffed fox in a basket in the window , there was Harry the tv repair man on claremont road too , we rarely went to town we had everything local , our house had no central heating it was bloody freezing getting up for school in the morning , i went to Bishop Bilsborrow school next to the bus depot ! by Carol

 Wonderful I delivered the Christmas post round Cowesby Street in 1975. We were based at Fallowfield sorting office. On our last day they made the mistake of paying us before we completed the last delivery. Most of us posted the letters in the nearest box and cycled home. by Malcolm

 Moss side was the first place .i remember living when we first moved to manchester .what a great place to live in the 60s .i was only a child when . We moved to manchester trough the years .i lived all over manchester i got offered a one off the new houses in alaxender park in the 70s .i dident take it . I loved manchester back in the day . Even now im living in dublin .my hearth stuck in manchester .as far as i heard it changed a lot .i had happy memberes off manchester . by Mary

 My dad & I used to park in Cowesby Street for the match. Never forget " can I mind your car sir ".May not have been the best footballing days,but I loved the community xx by Kate

 Looks like the corner shops on Berrisford St where l lived for a few years in the early 90s  by Ken

 Wonderful I delivered the Christmas post round Cowesby Street in 1975. We were based at Fallowfield sorting office. On our last day they made the mistake of paying us before we completed the last delivery. Most of us posted the letters in the nearest box and cycled home . by Malcolm

Hi Everybody here is a painting and story of Champs Camp Moss side Boxing club Manchester part of my Moss Side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it 

A3 Limited Edition print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Champs Camp Moss Side

Lighthouse in the Moss 

Boss 

Phil Martin 

Founder of the club 

Gave Hard graft and sweat 

Drippin off windows 

Oozing success 

From every pore 

Yeah the kids were poor 

But got discipline 

Drummed in 

From coaches 

Joe Gallagher

Billy graham 

Oliver Harrison

And not just boxers

Came through this gym 

Teachers, Lawyers, plumbers 

Discipline and hard work paid off 

Where troubles of the Moss 

And the world

left outside 

Pride in the gym So come in 

Your welcome in 

Better people are made here 

Yeah Champs Camp Moss Side

Lighthouse in the Moss 

Just Boss 

https://youtu.be/kGH3HWIExdA

COMMENTS FROM THE GENERAL PUBLIC

 My auntie worked there when it was the co-op . by Ian

Hi Everybody here is a painting and story of Closed shops in Moss Side of old part of my Moss Side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it 

A3 Limited Edition print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Closed shops in the Moss 

Seen better days 

But back in the day 

Victorian streets 

Grocery shops,

Hardware shops 

All types of shops 

on street corners 

no supermarkets back then 

community spirit 

on every street corner

a mainly white community 

to the 70s and 80s

where diverse community 

ruled the day 

black white and Asian 

a multi cultural mix 

brought a spice of life 

to a Moss side life 

also trouble and strife 

of gun toting gangs 

in the heartlands 

gave the Moss a Bad name 

mud sticks 

in the urban sticks 

to today 

Moss Side Story 

Trying to bring glory 

Back to the hearts 

Of the people 

Where alleyways 

Turn into a gardeners delight 

So Moss Siders 

make it a better place 

in yer face

https://youtu.be/vsNpLiNy2pA

Hi Everybody here is a painting and story of Princess Road bus depot and a story about My Dad. part of my Moss Side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it 

A3 Limited Edition print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Princess Road Bus Depot

Trams used to come in and out 

Back in the day 1909

They made a scene 

A Moss side dream 

Then buses came on the scene 

Commuters like computers 

Buzzed about 

This way and that 

Me Dad 

always the joker 

60 a day smoker 

worked on GM buses 

Known as Big H 

conductor 

Then driver 

took ill 

GM buses kept him on

Worked in the cash rooms 

At the Depot 

always laughin 

Crackin jokes 

To all the blokes

They all loved Big H

He was a joker 

60 a day Smoker 

Drinker and thinker

passed out 

In the safe room

cut the doors off 

And pensioned him off 

He loved that job on the buses 

He cusses

Makin people laugh 

At his old gaff 

He was a character 

In the Moss of old 

Drinkin in the Claremont 

pubs and clubs

after a hard days work

worked 18 hour shifts 

back in the day 

people used to say 

no way 

So yeah 

Princess Road Bus Depot

Trams used to come in and out 

Back in the day 1909

They made a scene 

A Moss side dream 

buses came on the scene 

Commuters like computers 

Buzzed about 

This way and that 

Me Dad always the joker 

60 a day smoker 

https://youtu.be/UNW8U8dRncI

Hi everybody here is a painting of The Reno and Nile Club Moss Side Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

The Reno and Nile Club in the Moss 

It was boss 

my Dad said 

Used to go there 

With his best mate Alec

Back in the day 

On the corner of 

Moss Lane East and Princess Road 

It was old

Bold music 

On the Moss Side scene 

King and queen 

With a Black Market 

Park it

Bob Marley 

Mohammed Ali 

Went there 

Funk and Soul Music 

pounded out loud

vibed and tribed 

on the moss side street 

treat 

characters oozed from the place 

an iconic place 

in yer face 

mixed race accepted here 

beer and cheer 

in the reno and Nile club 

proper Moss Side Club 

its gone 

but not forgotten

yeah The Reno and Nile Club in the Moss 

It was boss 

my Dad said 

https://youtu.be/KSWPIVGI4ok

Hi everybody here is a painting of Arties Hairdressers Moss Side Manchester of old part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Arties Hairdressers in the Moss 

Claremont Road 

Used to knock around outside 

When I was a kid 

Man City Footballers 

used to go in 

for a Trim 

kids used to see em 

on the Moss Side streets 

treats 

and one night 

as I was walking home 

a gunman in a car 

shooting down the road 

bullet whizzed over me head

shot the A 

out of the Arties sign 

just above me head 

thought I was dead 

instead 

legged it down an alleyway 

round the back 

heart attack 

Claremont road 

Was the place to be 

In the heart of the Moss 

People getting cross 

Yeah  

Arties Hairdressers in the Moss 

Claremont Road 

Used to knock around outside 

When I was a kid 

Man City Footballers 

used to go in 

for a Trim 

kids used to see em 

on the Moss Side streets 

treats 

on these mean streets

https://youtu.be/G3bYH7r_nH0

COMMENTS FROM THE GENERAL PUBLIC

Awesome it's the first time I csme across this I worked in Arties back in those days and next door was HarrySpencer the best TV repair man around various none he was a legend ,and

Ossie Sharp had the Grocers next door and Tom's bakery on the end of Cowesby Street,  by Colin

 thank you iwas just thinking it would be awesome to have the 70s shops too amazing road back then ,I was even working there in the riots and had yo come down and clean up the shop . by Colin

Hi everybody here is a painting of Asian shop owners in Moss Side and Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Asian shop owners 

In Moss Side and Manchester 

Hard workers 

No shirkers 

Makin a life 

They Came From south Asia 

Punjab, Pakistan 

From 1911 

Students to shop owner’s 

And back in the Moss 

There was a cultural mix 

Asians Blacks and whites 

Getting on 

always respectful 

Not forgetful

Yeah they had there share 

Of racism 

On the streets of the moss 

They had it tough

But us kids 

who grew up back then

were brought up together 

getting on 

them times are gone 

a heady mix 

of black Asian and white 

coming together 

clever 

yeah we had our tribes 

Asian, black and white 

But it was the Irish gang

That gave me grief 

On the streets of the Moss 

We learned our hard knocks 

In the Moss

But it was a proper community 

Unity 

on the streets of the Moss 

made life long friends 

Yeah 

Asian shop owners 

In Moss Side and Manchester 

Hard workers 

No shirkers 

Makin a life

In a Moss Side Life 

https://youtu.be/cv8sSuhwmX4

Hi everybody here is a painting of Newsagent on the corner of a Moss Side street part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Newsagent on the corner of the street 

A Moss side street 

Treat

Marvel comics 

Super heroes 

Come to life 

Young boys dream 

Spiderman 

Spins a web 

And saves the day 

Yeah this boy 

Draws in class 

A junior class 

Pay more attention 

Stop reading comics 

The teacher says 

Learn your lesson 

And learn it well 

get your schoolin 

Stop yer foolin 

Yer droolin over art 

Hes Young at heart 

This boys gotta heart 

Wants to be an Artist 

When he grows up 

dreams of a life 

in a Moss Side life 

Innocent and young 

He carries on 

mates look on 

from afar 

the doors a jar 

now hes grown 

with nostalgia in his eyes 

he paints a scene 

a Moss Side theme 

no longer a dream 

cos hes an Artist 

painting 

and hes been waitin 

all his life 

for his dream to come true 

so yeah

Newsagent on the corner of the street 

A Moss side street 

Treat

Marvel comics 

Super heroes 

Come to life 

A Young boys dream 

Come true

He knew

phew

https://youtu.be/4MkRE_Yx0YQ

Hi everybody here is a painting of Shebeens in the Moss side of old part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Shebeens 

Illegal drinking houses 

in the Moss of old 

unsavoury characters 

frequent here 

drugs and beer 

cheer 

anything you want

be careful

be fearful

tearful

yeah

lookouts on the watch 

day and night 

alright 

smoke fills the room 

boom 

the main mans 

in the room 

gold teeth n chains 

drip from the man 

been in the can 

the soul man 

looks at you

gatherin his crew 

haven’t a clue 

what he can do for you 

breathin 

heavin 

acheivin 

steals your soul

in the middle of the night 

fright 

so lookout tonight 

so yeah

Shebeens 

Illegal drinking houses 

in the Moss of old 

unsavoury characters 

frequent here 

drugs and beer 

cheer 

anything you want

so be careful

and fearful

https://youtu.be/qxX1kvmOHAg

Hi everybody here is a painting of The Claremont Pub Moss Side Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, a story about my dad, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

The Claremont Pub Moss Side

My Dads local pub

Used to drink there 

After a long day 

On the buses 

He Cusses 

Holts beer 

Cheer 

He was a rum un 

Me Dad 

Always in the pub with his mates 

Till lates 

Mum got sick of it 

And walked to the pub 

Slammed his tea on the table 

“You live in the pub 

So you might as well 

eat in it as well” 

me dad looked at her 

and said 

“have you got any bread to mop it up”

he was dead 

that night 

mum gave him a fright

yeah the Claremont pubs alright 

full of characters 

my Dad was know as Big H

always laughin and jokin 

in the pubs and clubs 

of the Moss 

me Dad 

he was just boss 

https://youtu.be/rZBBlQWHH7o

 COMMENTS FROM THE GENERAL PUBLIC

My mother, born in 1921, lived in Newlyn Street
next door to Maine Road.
For the rest of her life she talked fondly about her childhood memories of the MCFC crowds walking past
and of the swell of noise from the ground.
We moved South in 1960 when I was just 7 but I had already become a City fan.

City for life…
and beyond.  .by John

 I lived in Radnor street, next one over to Moss Lane and the Alex pub (Alexander). Not sure where the others were as I wasn't a drinker. Happy years living in Hulme/Moss Side. by Suzanne

Hi everybody here is a painting of The Beehive pub Moss Side Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

The Bee Hive pub Moss Side

On Claremont road 

Be told 

Cos me mum and Dad 

Went there one night 

They had a fright 

Dad standin at the bar 

Too far 

A big man 

Sits next to me mum 

Chattin her up 

Dad sits next to him 

The guy opens his jacket 

Gun in holster 

“im lookin for a man to kill”

Thrill, Chill 

Dad starts crackin a joke

Smoke 

Hes not gonna croak 

Relaxes the guy 

And buys him a drink 

He thinks, 

a few drinks

Says “have a good night”

“Your cool man” 

The Hit man says

fist pumps me dad 

And Walks out the pub 

Mum and dad

Legs it down the road 

Yeah The Bee Hive pub Moss Side

On Claremont road 

Be told 

Cos me mum and Dad 

Went there one night 

They had a fright

On a hot summers night

https://youtu.be/ffphiND9TIA

Hi everybody here is a painting of The Heineken Brewery Moss Side Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

The Heineken Brewery 

On Princess road Moss Side

You can smell it 

Before you can see it 

Smell of cornflakes and hot milk 

A lovely smell 

Wafting on down 

As I pass on by

Under a grey Mancunian sky

Opened in 1875

Albert Brewery

Belching out Steam 

They used horses back in the day 

Made Ales and Stouts

Royal Moss Side Brewery

The Lees company went bust

Then Harp Lager 

Heineken now 

make 

Fosters and Kronenbourg 

Amongst the brew

90 thousand cans an hour

Hurtle through the place 

Robots 

24 hours at pace

Makin the amber nectar 

For Moss Side 

Manchester and beyond

So Yeah 

The Heineken Brewery 

On Princess road Moss Side

You can smell it 

Before you can see it 

Smell of cornflakes and hot milk 

A lovely smell 

Wafting on down 

As I pass on by

Under a grey Mancunian sky

https://youtu.be/4tNCiLri06E

COMMENTS FROM THE GENERAL PUBLIC

 As a contract manager, this was my fav site. What an interesting place,so much to see and learn, how Beer was made. by Sue

 Great story and a nice painting .by Robert

 Great didn’t know if it was still there by gwendeline

 When it was known as Royal Brewery I did some work there. Some really good people there. by Paul 

 I well remember the Harp Lager Brewery ( I even picked up a few export shipments from them) and that smell of hops wafting about. Just over the traffic lights the infamous Nile Club home of various Caribbean gangs prossies, dealers, it always had a couple of handy lads watching round the front door and more often a few cops band members an local 'names' inside. I played squash in the new Moss Side Sports Centre a real gem but underused and my then wife was manager at Greggs in the shopping centre  

 I'd just add years earlier while I was on school holidays I did a week with Alpine Minerals to do a canvassing run in Moss Side. When four of us took a truck down the street round Maine Road doing regular deliveries and knocking on doors to offer the free delivery service. The Driver warned me not to carry more than a little change and to keep my pants on? Well one of the streets had lots of girls stood outside in skimpy outfits and they were happily flirting with our crew while we were dropping off bottles of pop. by Derek 

 Spent a summer working there when a student. Got fired when I broke the last thermometer for measuring beer temp. What a laugh. Thought it was Harp Lager? by Bert

 As a contract manager, this was my fav site. What an interesting place,so much to see and learn, how Beer was made. by Sue

 I lived directly in front of the original Harp Lager. 1970, before the brewery was extended. They purchased the land where our house was, (Jacobite Close) and forced us all out to expand the space. by Tim

Hi everybody here is a painting of Man City Social Club Moss Side Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Man City Social Club 

in Moss Side

Mam and dad used to go there 

On a Saturday night 

And one night 

Mum was all dolled up 

With a blond wig 

She was like a twig

And a model 

Back in the day 

On a cold wet windy night 

They walked to the club 

From 222 princess road 

Down Claremont road 

A long road 

Holdin onto each other 

Starting to quiver 

And Shiver 

The Wind picks up 

And blew off the wig 

Lands in a puddle of water 

She aughta go home 

But no 

she plops on the wig 

And goes to the city club 

In a huff

dad laughin his head off 

Drenched and soaked to the skin 

in the moss side rain 

Again 

Yeah 

Man City Social Club in Moss Side

Mam and dad used to go there 

On a Saturday night 

Mum and dad were laughin that night

https://youtu.be/Pqo0aqz53Yc

Comments by the general public

When I was a young child there used to be a church at the top of our street, many Nuns would be walking along Carlton Avenue. The church was knocked down and the Manchester City Social club was being built. Fabulous memories working & socialising in the night club. I enjoyed Tuesday Disco nights. I always worked match days.

We had many famous artists “Little & Large” “Bernard Manning” “Brotherhood of Man” etc after they won the European song Contest. Charity events & Player of the Year. Happy Days! by Denise

Hi everybody here is a painting of Under the shadow of Man City Maine Road Moss Side Manchester part of my Moss side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it

A3 Limited Edition Print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Secomnd World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribvean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Under the Shadow of Man City Maine Road

The kids played footy 

Across the road 

Street kids 

And goal posts made of coats 

Knockin the ball 

on the wall 

and now and again 

we Played on the croft

where the brown gang 

And our gang 

had competitions 

Missions 

With no Permissions 

we all dream of match day 

Saturday 

A Happy day 

Where you earnt your money 

For fireworks jubblys, bubblys 

and sweets 

Feet pound the streets 

to a Man City beat

Of a mind yer car mr 

Treat 

in the summer heat 

So lend us an ear 

And Come here today 

Reminisce 

Of the good old days 

In the Moss 

Cos It was Boss

Under the shadow 

Of Man City Maine Road 

https://youtu.be/sGdSCSwlQ0M

Claremont Road Junior School 

An innocent boy existed 

Used to Walk there 

In the wind and the rain 

Playin in the school yard 

Innocent and young

Dreams of being an Artist one day  

sung Nativity songs 

Sat on the old wooden floor

Hymns Galore 

Yeah he was the Monkey 

In the school Nativity 

Cheeky Monkey you might say

Why was he there

People stop and stare 

Dressed up and

all out of place 

In a Moss Side place

I guess he always felt outta place 

Is it his race 

That’s in yer face 

Theres a time and place 

To understand why 

He’s here 

From Claremont Road Junior school 

This lad existed 

Histories misted 

Through sands of time 

Is it time 

He woke up from his slumber 

Cos now hes grown 

Into an Artist 

Storyteller 

Peacekeeper 

No sleeper 

Hes a keeper 

Fogs of the mind 

Keep him Blind 

To the truth 

Kept hidden

God given 

But all he can do 

Is carry on 

walkin the path of life 

With no trouble and strife 

So yeah 

Claremont Road Junior School 

An innocent boy existed 

Used to Walk there 

In the wind and the rain 

Playin in the school yard 

Innocent and young

Hes grown now, 

an Artist

Storyteller 

Peacekeeper 

No sleeper 

He’s a keeper 

https://youtu.be/_eEaj63UzR8

 Hi everybody here is a painting of Len Johnson the English Flash, Champion Boxer.

a painting and story by Andrew Alan Matthews, I painted this for a good friend Julian Brown who is the Grandson of Len Johnson. We hope to raise some money to help put up a statue of Len in Manchester, a true Mancunian Hero

the Original painting has been gifted to Julian Brown and he will be organising the Sale of the painting, any enquiries contact me through my website andrewalanmatthews.co.uk 

I will also be selling Limited Edition Prints and a proportion will go to help the Fund to put up a statue of Len in Manchester City Centre if you are interested check out my website and contact me.

a bit of history of Len courtesy of Wikipedia

Leonard Benker Johnson (22 October 1902 – 28 September 1974), known simply as Len among his admirers, and dubbed "Len Johnson" by the press, was a British Boxer who competed from 1920 to 1933. He held the British Empire Middleweight title, the first non-white boxer to hold a major title during the British colour bar era, de facto reigning from 20 February 1926 to 12 July 1926. He also held the Northern Area championships at middleweight and light-heavyweight, respectively. A strategic and intelligent boxer, Johnson was considered to be one of the best middleweights of his era. He was known for his exceptional boxing skill, using an educated left-hand, as well a slippery defence that made him difficult to hit, while leaving his features largely unmarked throughout his thirteen-year career. Additionally, Johnson possessed a very long reach and rather good height. 

Johnson was regarded as one of the greatest middleweight boxers of his generation in the years between the world wars.

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews

Len Johnson champion boxer

Robbed of his belt 

Boxing board 

Should have had their collars felt 

Strategic intelligent boxer 

With an Educated left hand 

He was a grand stand 

Slippery in defence 

Never sat on the fence 

In a Thirteen year 

Boxing career 

Best middle weight boxer of his time 

Then Len goes up a gear 

Fightin rule 24 

Where No black man can win 

Its a sin 

Robbed of his belt 

Boxing board 

Should have had their collars felt 

And Len a labour activist 

Fought for equal rights 

British boxing Colour bar 

ended in 47

Len was expressing

And impressing

His fight for civil rights 

lives on 

In his name 

He was top of his game

A Mancunian boxer 

Civil rights activist

Shakin his fist 

Resistance fighter in and out of the ring 

So Sing his name 

Boxing was his game 

Put up a statue 

In Lens name

https://youtu.be/nPNtJyuz4Kk

Hi Everybody here is a painting and story of Moss Side Lost History and the derelict shops on Princess Road near the brewery in Manchester that have been erased from the scene. part of my Moss Side Nostalgia collection, hope you like it 

A3 Limited Edition print £50 contact me andrewalanmatthews.co.uk

A bit of History

Mass development in Moss Side occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when large numbers of red brick terraced houses were built, and soon attracted numerous Irish immigrants and other working people.

Manchester City FC moved to a new stadium on Maine Road on 25 August 1923, having moved from Hyde Road Ardwick on its opening it was one of the most capacious sports stadiums in the United Kingdom, capable of holding up to 85,000 spectators. The club would play there for the next 80 years. 

During the Manchester Blitz in the Second World War many of the terraced houses were damaged by German bombing on the night of 22/23 December 1940. Migrants from the Indian Subcontinent and Carribean settled in the locality during the 1950s and 1960s, and by the 1980s Moss Side was the hub of Manchester's Afro Caribbean Community During the 1960s and early 1970s, Manchester City Council demolished many of the Victorian and terraced houses to the west of Moss Side and replaced these with new council houses and flats. Most of the newer properties, built around the turn of the 20th century, were refurbished instead of demolished during the final two decades of the century.

In 1981, the Moss Side area was one of England's inner city areas affected by a series of riots Analysts trace the 1970s origins of Manchester's gang crime to social deprivation in the south-central part of the city – Hulme Longsight and Moss Side – where the activity of the underground economy encouraged a trade in illegal narcotics and firearms contributing to Manchester's later nickname of "Gunchester". "Turf wars" between rival drugs 'gangs', resulted in a high number of fatal shootings. During what has been termed the Madchester phase of the History of Manchester, narcotic trade in the city became "extremely lucrative" and in the early 1990s a gang war started between two groups vying for control of the market in Manchester city centre– the 'Cheetham hill gang and 'The Gooch Close Gang, in Cheetham Hill and Moss Side, respectively. There were several high-profile shootings associated with gangs and drugs in this area during the 1990s and into the 21st century. Aided by the work of Xcalibre, the Greater Manchester polices task force, founded in 2004, and the multiagency Integrated Gang Management Unit, gang related shootings in the area have fallen by about 90% in recent years. 

In April 1994, The Independent newspaper highlighted Moss Side as one of the most deprived areas on Britain, and as having some of the highest crime rates. Drug abuse was described as one of the area's biggest problems, with gun crime rates being so high that there had recently been 400 armed incidents reported within a 12-month period. Ambulance crews had resorted to wearing body armour after having to deal with a string of mostly drug-related shootings.  Several doctors had been robbed of medical bags at knife point after being called out to local patients. A number of police vehicles had been fire-bombed and there had been reports of attempted ambushes on police patrols. Unemployment stood at nearly 30% – up to three times the national average in the early 1990s. 

Many of the flats in neighbouring Hulme were demolished in the early 1990s to make way for new low rise homes. Housing on the Alexandra Park Estate in the west of Moss Side has been renovated and the streets redesigned to reduce the fear of crime. 

Story by Andrew Alan Matthews 

Moss Side Lost History 

It’s a mystery 

The boarded up 

Closed shops 

On princess road 

Lay derelict for years 

Near the Harp Larger 

Reno and Nile club 

Reflection of its neglect 

In days of thunder 

Wonder why 

Ask the Black guys 

They can tell ya 

Cant you see 

They were under the cosh 

Back in the day 

But hey 

Job opportunities 

Unities 

Starting to come there way 

The futures bright 

So shine a light on Moss Side Tonight 

Make it alright 

For people 

Don’t be sheeple 

Follow your dreams 

And take the right path

No empath

Havin a laugh 

So Yeah

Moss Side Lost History 

It’s a mystery 

To me 

Take the knee 

For thee 

https://youtu.be/kocFL-wwdPQ

COMMENTS FROM THE GENERAL PUBLIC

I lived there 1944-1957 it was a great neighborhood, very friendly people. Great street parties for VE and VJ day.

In December 1940 a German landmine destroyed a section of the street it made a great playground for us kids.

Some great Lancashire dialects around then especially from the mill towns like Oldham.. by John

 Love the poem . by Barbara

 i lived in moss side 1960 to 1977 , moss side was a great place to live , people forget moss side is where everyone wanted to live , as we had everything on our door step , it was one of the lovely place to live , when you say i live or come from moss side they say wow its lovely there , and it was , so yes im proud to say i was born and brought up in moss side lovely memories , by Maria 

 My grandmother rented a large Victorian house - number 14 Annie. street, Greenheys which was next to Moss Side. She lived in it bringing up her children while grandad was away in the First World War. Then she stayed in it after grandad died 1932 and through the last war and which her sons fought in after they’d all left home. In 1952 when she was ill and had to give up the house and came to live with us in West Gorton. As a young child, I stayed over at the big house lots of times and gran (nanna) took me with her on visits to her friends homes, to the local shops and market, to the laundry and to the town centre. It taught me a lot about how everyone managed through the war years, and how they pulled together when help was needed. I still remember those people and places from the 1940-50’s. Those districts of Miss Side, Green Heys, Stretford, Chorlton-upon-Medlock were good communities of mixed generations, all ages, all races and origins that just got on so well and supported each other in their work and leisure. by Dorothy 

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 Original Painting £450 or A3 Limited Edition Print £40  contact me

Manchester City, Maine Road, A cityscape / landscape painting looking back on past times when I was a child, remembering when I used to live and play in Moss Side, City used to open the gates at half time allowing the local kids to watch the second half of the game for free. We had great fun running down the tunnels and watching the game. My favorite player was Colin Bell. Painted in Acrylic with pallette Knife and ink outline using the croquis method to bring the characters to life, showing a bustling crowd going to a game. 

Limited Edition Signed prints available on this artwork, 

Limited to 250 prints Signed by the Artist and comes with certificate of authenticity. 

Fine Art Giclee Print on Fine at Paper 

Maximum A3 size print 11.69 x 16.53 inches price =£35incl postage & packaging in the UK

Maximum A2 size print 16.53 x 23.39 inches, price =£50 incl postage & Packaging in the UK

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