A look under the sheeting at town hall project

THE white sheeting around Manchester Town Hall has become a familiar sight in Albert Square.

- ETHAN DAVIES

The Our Town Hall project, a £430m refurbishment of the grade-I listed Victorian hall, is of enormous scope. Council-employed teams have to do everything from dirty work like digging new trenches in the basement for pipes, to the ever-so-delicate job of reapply ing gold leaf paint to 150-year-old murals.

Once it's complete, the resplendent town hall will keep its original feeling - more cathedral than civic centre - whilst also retaining its important civic functions.

This will be where baby Mancunians and deaths are registered, and where we can marry. But the project has hit problems.

Council chiefs have just announced it's £76m over-budget and is now expected to complete in July 2026 and open to the public in early autumn. The original date was 2024.

They say delays have been caused by the sheer complexity of the renovation, comparable only to restoring 'Big Ben and the Elizabeth Tower. To see how complex work is, the M.E.N. went behind the white sheeting and scaffolding for an in-depth look.

The first impression is that it remains a grand Gothic masterpiece. That's most evident in the Great Hall. It's where the most prestigious weddings will take place, and where banquets will be held for visiting dignitaries.