A Favourite Manchester Building

One of the most attractive yet least known of Manchester's victorian gothic buildings is the Crown Court on Minshull Street.

Redevelopment has opened up views from the south and east. The finest facades of this building are however on the Minshull Street and Bloom Street sides although views are restricted by the narrowness of the roads and adjacent warehouses.

Appointment of architect Thomas Worthington was the result of a competition held in 1867 for the new Police and Sessions Courts. It had been intended that these should be housed in the new Town Hall but this was found to be impracticable. Construction began in 1869 and despite a builders strike of over a year, was completed in 1873.  The cost of £81,000 was more than twice the estimate. 

Design of the building appears to have been inspired by the Church of San Fermo Maggiore in Verona, the subject of a sketch by the architect. The red brick with stone detail is typical of many Gothic buildings of that region. 

Dominating the Minshull Street and Bloom Street corner is a tall tower which features four clock faces and houses a bell. The Canal Street corner features a lesser tower and between is the gabled Magistrates Entrance facing Richmond Street. Each doorway is guarded by mythical beasts carved in stone. 

The building housed four court rooms which were located in the centre of the complex and surrounded by corridors and offices.  The cells were below, in a semi-basement and each had its own toilet and wash basin. 

Also in the basement were the heating boilers, the chimney for which was disguised as an Italianate campanile.

In 1996 an extension was completed. Designed by Hurd Rolland Partnership and facing onto Aytoun Street, this added two additional courts as well as refurbishing the original building. Worthington's four courts were restored to their victorial grandeur.

The extension is to a sympathetic design of a similar colour of brickwork and stone detailing and blends well with the earlier structure..

Thomas Worthington was born in Salford in 1826. He entered the architectural profession on leaving school at the age of 14 becoming articled to the practice of  Bowman and Crowther. He established his own practice in King Steet in 1849 following a "Grand Tour" studying Gothic and Renaissance architecture. Worthington was responsible for a number of notable buildings in Manchester and perhaps his best known work is the Albert Memorial which stands in front of the Town Hall. The architectural practice that he founded is still in business and based in Cheadle.