Jon Sparks - Manchester & Salford in Photographs

Almost all of these photos were shot within a ten-month period (April 2019February 2020), an inevitable consequence of trying to stay current within a dynamic and rapidly changing urban landscape and fortuitously finished just before Covid-19 lockdown descended. However, my acquaintance with Manchester and Salford goes back a lot further. Working on this book has been a journey of both discovery and rediscovery.

Earliest memories include shopping trips, by train, in the 1960s. There have been events at venues like the Free Trade Hall, Bridgewater Hall and more recently Salford Quays, and one unforgettable night in the velodrome during the 2002 Commonwealth Games. Riding that same track myself, even at half the speed of the pros, is another treasured experience.

Background research, as well as the actual photography, has renewed my awareness that Manchester and Salford have always punched above their weight in historical and cultural terms. Above all, they were the worlds first industrial cities. And, as world leaders, their story is fittingly cosmopolitan. From the Romans to the Flemish weavers of the Middle Ages, offcomers have left their mark. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels first met here. New Zealander Ernest Rutherford first split the atom in Manchester, and graphene was first isolated by two Russian-born physicists.

In the city of the worlds first inter-city railway terminus, its fitting that I reached the great majority of locations by a mix of public transport and foot-slogging. Central Manchester, in particular, has become much more walkable and pleasant to visit, thanks principally to the Metrolink, Britains biggest and best light rail system.

Manchester skyline from Heaton Park

River Medlock, Clayton Vale

Green Salford: Chat Moss

The River Irwell and Manchester city centre