Approximate time required for the tour– 3 hours.
Introduction
The following is for guidance only regarding the areas you should ensure you visit whilst on the field trip in Bristol. You are not obliged to follow the proposed route, but it will ensure that you cover some of the key areas. We appreciate within the short time we are in Bristol, that you will not be able to visit all the key areas, so you will need to research those locations that may be too far away to visit through a self-guided tour.
Key areas for retail
- Cabot Circus
- Broadmead
- The Galleries
- Clifton Triangle/ Park Street
- Gloucester Road*
- Cribbs Causeway*
Keys areas for offices
- Temple Quay
- Temple Quarter
- Cannons Marsh
- City/ Old Town
- Queens Square
- Clifton*
- Aztec West*
*Areas not covered by the suggested tour.
Start of the Tour
Explore Cabots Circus Shopping Centre opposite the hotel and continue into Broadmead and explore the area fully. What is your opinion of the area? Who are the key occupiers?
The Retail Quarter – Cabot Circus
Cabot Circus has over 130 shops, two department stores, several restaurants, a thirteen-screen Showcase Cinema de Lux, a Jungle Rumble Adventure Golf centre and is split into two areas, the circus itself and Quakers Friars. The Circus is divided into three streets and multiple levels. Outlets include New Look, Urban Outfitters, Zara, Hollister Co, H&M, The Body Shop, JD Sports, Pull & Bear, Smiggle, Boux Avenue and House of Fraser. Above at the highest level are the cinema and eateries which includes Giraffe, Bella Italia, Frankie & Benny’s, Nando’s, YO! Sushi, Zizzi and Gourmet Burger Kitchen. There are also cafes and restaurants on the upper ground floor, these include Five Guys, TGI Friday’s and Pret a Manger. On the opposite side of Penn street is the Quakers Friars area, which houses Harvey Nichols having been opened by Dita Von Teese.Other outlets in the area include French Connection, Hugo Boss, Michael Kors, Kurt Geiger, Fat Face and an Apple Store.
Broadmead
The name of the street was first recorded in 1383 as Brodemede. The name either means “broad meadow” or refers to brodemedes, a type of woollen cloth woven only in Bristol.[1]
The area lay just to the north of the town walls of the historic Bristol. In about 1227 Blackfriars was founded as a Dominican priory in the area. After the dissolution of the monasteries the site had various secular uses, and in 1749 became the location of a Quaker meeting house, now known as Quakers Friars. In 1671 local dissenters opened the Broadmead Baptist Chapel near the junction of Broadmead and Union Street. In 1739 John Wesley built his Methodist chapel, known as the New Room, in the street. Shops were also built in the area. In the 18th century a covered arcade was built between Horsefair and Broadmead, which still survives. St James’ Priory, founded 1129, is northwest of Broadmead and Castle Park, the site of the Norman Bristol Castle, is to the south.
When the old shopping district of Castle Street and Wine Street was heavily damaged in the Bristol Blitz, it was decided to redevelop the Broadmead area as the main shopping district of the city. Rebuilding began in 1950. The existing street, which ran between Union Street and Merchant Street, was extended north to include the former Rosemary Street.[2] Like most 1950s buildings in Britain, affordable and architecturally interesting utilitarian buildings form the bulk of the Broadmead area. In the 1980s some of these were destroyed to make way for the Galleries shopping centre, which is a three-level covered street. Broadmead and several of the surrounding streets were pedestrianised.
The Gallaries
The Galleries Shopping Centre as it was originally known, opened in October 1991 in the wake of a UK recession, the shopping centre was later bought by The Mall Shopping Centre Fund (and renamed the Mall Bristol), managed by Capital & Regional and Aviva Investors. It replaced shops including a large Woolworth and Millet on the north side of Fairfax Street, and on the south side Fairfax House (a Co-operative department store opened in March 1962) where the Galleries car park now stands. One of the entrances called “The Greyhound” was originally a historic Public House which closed in the early 1990s and incorporated into the building as an entrance. Despite being called “the Mall Bristol” for a number of years, it was still referred to by its original name “the Galleries” by many people.
In January 2011, the centre was sold to HSBC European Active Real Estate Trust for £50.1 million, and the name was restored to The Galleries.
With the opening of Cabot Circus and the recession of 2008, many of the chain shops moved out of the Galleries and into the new Cabot Circus. This resulted in a large amount of empty shops and a decline of what was Bristol’s main shopping centre from 1990s–2000s. In 2019 the shopping centre was sold by InfraRed Capital to LaSalle Investment Management for about £32 million.
The shopping centre underwent a £1.5 million redevelopment to redevelop the entrances and to refurbish the mall as of March 2013. Over the years, there have been a few re-developments. In the 2000s TKMAXX extended their shop on the top floor. In 2011 the food court was moved from the top floor to the middle floor.
In 2021 plans were announced to turn the shopping centre over the next 5 to 10 years into a mixed development of residential property, offices and retail space. Since 2008 The Galleries had struggled to compete with the newer and larger Broadmead shopping mall Cabot Circus.
Towards Redcliffe and Queens Square
Leave the Gallaries Shopping Centre and proceed along Newgate Street towards the City Centre, with Castle Park on your left. Proceed into Wine Street cross the Bridge and proceed down Redcliffe Street. Your destination is St Marys Redcliffe Church
With the Church on your left proceed back to the roundabout and cross over the Bridge into Queens Square. Note the variety and type of buildings in Queens’s square. Investigate the rent that would be applicable to these buildings
Queen Square is a 2.4 hectares (5.9 acres) Georgian square in the centre of Bristol. In 1999, a successful bid for National Lottery funding allowed Queen Square to be restored to its approximate 1817 layout. The buses were diverted, the dual carriageway was removed, forecourts and railings were restored, and Queen Square re-emerged as a magnificent public space surrounded by high-quality commercial accommodation.
Before moving on, explore Little King Street and King Street which houses some very historic pubs and restaurants. the old Duke pub is notorious for Jazz and the at the heart of the Bristol Jazz festival.
Canons Marsh
Head towards Pero’s footbridge noting the Arnolfini building to your left and turn left after crossing the bridge, pass the planetarium towards the development known as Cannon’s Wharf. Who is the main occupier?
Retrace your steps to walk up alongside the waterway heading towards the Watershed and on towards the centre of Bristol. You will note that Za Za Bazaar is on your left
Bristol Catherdral and College Green
At the end of the waterway, climb the steps and bear left up College Green. Note Bristol Cathedral on your left and explore who occupies the large building fronting college green.
Continue up College Green towards Park street , crossing the road at the first traffic lights to have a slight detour down Unity St.
The building shown above used to be part of Bristol Polytechnic Real estate department. It was identified with 70% obsolescence and no longer fit for purpose as an educational institution. What is the use of the building now? Do you think this is the best use for the building?
Park Street and Clifton Triangle
Retrace your steps to the top of Unity Street and turn right to bear up Park Street. At the very top of Park Street cross the road to enter Berkley Street leading to Berkley Square
Again, retrace your steps to emerge onto the top of Park Street turning slightly left so you walk round Clifton triangle.
Note the variety of buildings and the position of Clifton heights. Also, note the position of Brown’s restaurant and the Bristol University Wills Building. Why do you think there is such a difference in the quality of the various buildings on the triangle?
Christmas Steps and St Nicholas Market
Passing the Wills building, continue along Park row and onto Lower Park Row until you see the Christmas Steps. Walk down the Christmas steps emerging at the bottom. Head towards St Nicholas Market which is a great place for Street food and lunch. You may also wish to have a slight detour and look at the area known as Lewins Mead. this housed a number of large offices in 1970-the 2000s. What are the predominate uses of the building now?
The Office Quarter – Temple Quay
Continue south to head towards Temple Quay which is one of the largest urban regeneration projects in the UK, sits right in the heart of Bristol. Covering over 100 hectares of land and with Bristol Temple Meads at its core, it is home to a wide range of projects and initiatives that will see the area transformed into a vibrant new city quarter, with a mix of employment, residential and leisure uses.
Temple Quarter is also home to Bristol’s Enterprise Zone, which means it is a great place for business and already boasts rapidly growing clusters of small and start-up businesses, particularly in the creative, digital and hi-tech sectors.
As a minimum, you should explore Finzel reach, Temple Meads station and Bristol Floating Harbor. Take time to look through the area and view the temple quay website
Return to the Hotel
There are numerous routes back to the Hotel but take the opportunity to walk through Castles Park if you can. following signs to Broadmead and Cabot Circus will always get you close to the hotel.
School of the Built Environment Oxford Brookes 