At the beginning of the 20th century the Methodist church commissioned the building of around 99 "Central Halls" in the cities of the UK.  Dr. Angela Connelly, of the Manchester Architecture Research Centre, says that only 18 of these building are still in the possession of the Methodist church, 27 of them have been lost to demolition or war damage, the rest decorate our city centres, although few passers-by would suspect that they were once churches.  This isn't surprising since the intention was to provide, " ... something more modern in an attempt to reach the religiously indifferent and economically disadvantaged. They were to be centres of civic life: not just for worship but for entertainment, leisure and education capable of seating up to 2,500 worshippers.  Their design was deliberately different from conventional church architecture to appeal to non-churchgoers."

The Albert Hall on Peter Street, in Manchester, is an excellent example of the kind of buildings the Methodists commissioned.  It was built in 1910 as the Manchester and Salford Wesleyan Mission to a design by the architect W. J. Morley.  In recent times the building has been home to Brannigans, a large and, for a period of time, a popular bar and nightclub.  Brannigans closed its doors in 2011, and when I passed the building in May of 2013, workmen occupied the building.  It is undergoing a refurbishment after which it will reopen as the latest addition to the "Trof" eating and drinking establishments in Manchester.

When I took the image below in March of 2014, it had reopened with the top floor as a concert venue.  The website describes it as, "... A Grade II listed Wesleyan chapel in Manchester City Centre closed and hidden for over 40 years. Resurrected by Trof, the people behind Gorilla and The Deaf Institute, as an unrivalled events venue, restaurant and bar. The grand and ornate chapel has been restored into a stunning purpose built music hall and is set to become one of the most atmospheric music and events venues in the UK."

Before the Albert Hall was built, the site was home to the New Jerusalem Church belonging to the Swedenborgian congregation.  As you can see from the map extract below, circa 1840, the church had a day and Sunday school on the Bootle Street end of the building.



Below is an aerial view showing the hall in 1949.  It is indicated by the red arrow.  It survived the bombing of WWII much better than some other buildings.  The blue arrow indicates the Free Trade Hall across the street which, as you can see, lost its roof and was gutted in the bombing.