Central Library - St. Peter's Square, Manchester, UK


Architect
 E. Vincent Harris
Date Built
 1934
Location
 St. Peter's Square
Description
In 1927 a competition was held for a new library and an extension to the town hall. The architect E. Vincent Harris won the competition. The inspiration for the library was Rome’s Pantheon. Prime Minister Ramsey McDonald laid the foundation stone in 1930 and the library was completed in 1934. King George came to Manchester for the official opening.

Like the Pantheon, it has a circular plan and a central lantern light at the top of the dome. A portico, supported by six Corinthian columns, looks out onto St. Peter's Square. The library and the town hall extension were designed at the same time. The circular library is reflected in a curved wall in the town hall extension, thus creating a dramatic walkway between the two.

Beneath the dome on the inside is the circular Reading Room. The building is also home to the Library Theatre, a café, a reference library and a Local History Unit.

The Central Library closed in 2010 for a major refurbishment and is scheduled to reopen in 2013.





























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- Take a Look Inside -















- The Library Theatre -
The Library Theatre Company was founded in 1952.  Their theatre is located in a former lecture theatre in the basement of the Central Library.  On their web site they say that, "the company has produced consistently high quality seasons of drama, musical theatre, plays for families, and comedies. It has both helped to develop, and adapted to, Manchester’s changing theatre landscape."