A Walk Around MediaCity

A few weeks ago we visited the Imperial War Museum North. It was a glorious Saturday and we decided to make the most of it by going for a wander around Salford Quays to see the new BBC Studios in MediaCity which have opened up in the last couple of years. It's a while since we've been able to have a walk around there as the last few times we've visited in vile weather.


We were quite surprised to see the pedestrian bridge raised (bottom row centre above), I knew it did lift to allow ships through but I've never seen it before. The basin was being dredged so it was up to allow the dredger free access.

The new studios are a sight to behold. Towering glass and steel structures emblazoned with the BBC logos and some of our favourite characters. Bud (and I) were excited to see Mr Bloom, even if it did look like he'd been sleeping in compost from Compo.We also spotted Sid, Cerrie, Andy and Alex from cBeebies and Dr Who, another favourite. We even snuck inside to see a replica of the TARDIS! I was interested to see that you can tour the site and I'd love to do this when Bud gets a bit older.


I was particularly excited to see a small Blue Peter garden featuring a bust of Shep (who I'm too young to remember) and hand and paw prints from some of the presenters and animals. This was a lovely little haven, a peaceful corner of the site which Red Rose Daddy failed to spot when he walked past. He and Bud wandered back to find me and Little Miss and then we all enjoyed a quiet few moments sitting beside the covered water feature.


When we'd finished up around the BBC we wandered around to the Lowry Outlet Mall, opposite the Lowry Theatre and Gallery. We were quite surprised to see a big crowd who, it turned out, were queuing to watch the auditions for Britain's Got Talent. We saw a few big blacked out cars but didn't spot Simon Cowell. After a little time spent shopping and a wander past a veritable troupe of unicyclists. Troupe. Is that the collective noun for unicyclists? A quick Google tells me that there isn't one but unicyclists themselves seem to like 'wobble' so we wandered past a wobble of unicyclists and then we headed home after a really lovely day out.