This unassuming building on the corner of Princess Street and Charles Street, with the River Medlock flowing past, was, until 2010, the home of the Paradise Factory Nightclub.  In January of 2010 it opened as Manchester FAC251, a new club that was a venture of Peter Hook (of the Manchester band New Order), the designer Ben Kelly and the speaker manufacturer Funktion One.  The reason they chose this particular building for their new club was that it is the former home of the legendary Manchester record label Factory Records.  According to Factorymanchester.com, FAC251 will host live bands and be predominantly an "indie rock & roll club".  The You Tube videos below will provide you with a glimpse of the process involved in the transformation of the building.  There are 6 video blogs in all, which can be seen on their website and on You Tube.  I have included episodes 1 and 6 here.

Factory Records was a Manchester based recording label founded originally by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus in 1978.  Among the acts who featured on the label were Joy Division, New Order, Happy Mondays and Orchestral Manoevers in the Dark.  In 1982 they opened up the Hacienda Club on Whitworth Street West and it was known as FAC51.  Other venues followed: The Dry Bar (FAC201), a shop called The Area (FAC281) and their headquarters in this building on Princess Street (FAC251).