Birmingham - yay or nay?

[Shizuoka Dolphin]

I recently spent a weekend in Brum and I was rather unimpressed. I must have been visiting the wrong parts, but the impression I got was just a big, busy city, with illusions that it was a continental hub of culture and style. There was little of either. When out, I've never seen so many trevs and sharons concentrated in such a small area. It was really quite freaky.

It was a relief to leave (although my Aston Villa choclate bar was rather lovely), so I ask you, how did I manage to avoid all the good bits Brum has to offer, becuase in my long weekend I didn't see any of it. And where should I head to next time.

 

[marvin]

Oh so you visited broad street then!

Sounds a fair description of Birmingham to me.

marvin, quietly rusting in a corner of Birmingham, arse hole of the country.

 

[fatboy]

I love the place.

 

[elbowpatches]

My sister went there to uni and I was a bit unimpresed but that was around the student areas!! She lived round the corner from Cadbury's World so it wasn't all bad.

 

[Lord Bracknell]

I lived for years in Birmingham (well, Sutton Coldfield, actually - as they say in Hove) and therefore feel impelled to jump to the defence of England's Second City.

Erm...

... that's about it.

If I can think of anything positive to say, I'll be back.

 

[Seagullible]

Nothing wrong with Brum - except maybe the accent! thank f*** my family moved when I was 6 months old!

 

[Simster]

It's not that bad. Did you visit the redeveloped canal area? And hasn't the bullring been redeveloped yet?

 

[Shizuoka Dolphin]

Not sure if I went to the Bullring - I went to a place called The Arcadian. This was the aforementioned Trev & Sharon hang out.

I did visit the canal side, it was nice to be fair, but two minutes away from more huge blocks of greyness...

 

[CAFC Matt]

Whenever I have been to Brirmingham it has pissed it down with rain

 

[Simster]

Not sure if I went to the Bullring - I went to a place called The Arcadian. This was the aforementioned Trev & Sharon hang out.

I did visit the canal side, it was nice to be fair, but two minutes away from more huge blocks of greyness...

The last time I went to Birmingham was when we stayed there the weekend we played Shrewsbury away (first championship season) and we were quite impressed. But the thing that gets me is that you don't have to go too far outside the city centre to find boarded up buildings and run-down barely-used industrial estates and accompanying horrible grey housing estates.

For me, Birmingham has potential that will be realised if our manufacturing base ever returns. It's a grey dirth with a perfectly nice centre that will definitely flourish if given a chance.

 

[nail-Z]

She lived round the corner from Cadbury's World so it wasn't all bad.

My advice to anyone thinking of going to Cadbury's world. Stay at home and spend the £20+each that you would have paid on your admission on chocolate.

Would feature on my top 5 things I'd least like to do - just behind sticking needles in my eyes.

 

[hart's shirt]

I did my final teaching practice in South Birmingham (Saltley) back in 1994 - used to get off at Adderley Park station. We were taxied all of 5 minutes to and from school because the area around Saltley and the notorious Alum Rock Road was deemed too dangerous to walk around!

Went to the 3-3 game at St Andrews when Fat Barry was head honcho there. Seem to remember Peter Smith marking the £800,000 Ricky Otto out of the game, and Dominguez's direct freekick that hit the bar. Great game.

 

[CHAPPERS]

The medecine bar is decent.

 

[Benny Seagull]

only ever passed through it - looks like an industrial shit hole

 

[looney]

Erm...

... that's about it.

If I can think of anything positive to say, I'll be back.

Same here, its like a compressed milton keynes.

 

[Rich Suvner]

Stayed in Brum several times with work. Whilst developed parts of city are nice, it's just the same ol' stuff you see anywhere. As with Middlesborough few places instill such smugness that you're not there to stay! Then the M5/M6 kick you back.

p.s. Hart's Shirt - you lucky git. Seem to remember only 500 tickets bein made available for that 3-3 at Brum. Mate says you were all hearded into tiny corner of ground next to large group of their nastier looking thugs!! Mmm... nice!

 

[Albion Dan]

The medecine bar is decent.

My mate has played a few gigs at the Medicine bar on the Trigger nights, hes in The Lawgiverz, a breakbeat act, and I have to say it goes off Royally in that place!!!

 

[CHAPPERS]

I did my final teaching practice in South Birmingham (Saltley) back in 1994 - used to get off at Adderley Park station. We were taxied all of 5 minutes to and from school because the area around Saltley and the notorious Alum Rock Road was deemed too dangerous to walk around!

Went to the 3-3 game at St Andrews when Fat Barry was head honcho there. Seem to remember Peter Smith marking the £800,000 Ricky Otto out of the game, and Dominguez's direct freekick that hit the bar. Great game.

I was at that game with my dad. The great Ian Chapman scored the equaliser to make it 3-3. Wel funny, horrid atmosphere but a blinding match. Stuart Munday scored a pseudo overhead kick too.

 

[marvin]

Right
Arcadian - Hurst Street area of Birmingham, err err I don't know how to put this but its the err err centre of the gay community in Birmingham. (Hurst Street that is). On the edge of the china town community and in the shadow of the Bull Ring which reopens next month. Complete with the huge armadillo that Debenhams have built.

The Moon and Sixpence (may have been renamed) is part of the Arcadian it had two people shot and killed in it a couple of years back.

It is also largely the area the "real IRA" tried to blow up with the bomb the other year.

Hurst Street is also the centre of Birmingham's er err porno land.

For more up market fair you needed the MailBox, former sorting office now a wind tunnel full of over priced designer shops and bars.

Brindley Place is the "redeveloped" canal area, OK but again pricey, does have a decent water feature you can walk (no not the canal) through, popular on days like today. It has a sealife centre etc and some shops. I am told the Brasserie, which is on the edge of Brindley Place and has a door on Broad Street, is ok and does a mean fish and chips. Brindley Place is also home to BRMB, Vodaphone and BT.

Broad Street is the major "club" area with lots of bars like the sports bars hard rock cafe etc. Also has a lot of hotels, Hyatt, Jury's Inn etc.

This area is usually populated by young girls and boys with very little on and having consumed far too much alcohol.

Both of these (Brindley Place and Broad Street) are in the shadow of the ICC.

Sutton Coldfield a little brough that is part of Birmingham but too snobby to admit it.

I hope this little tour of Birmingham has been helpful.

 

[Shizuoka Dolphin]

Right
Arcadian - Hurst Street area of Birmingham, err err I don't know how to put this but its the err err centre of the gay community in Birmingham.

So I noticed when I had a row with the missus and stormed off to cool down... :safeway