Information

Within the content of this web site you will find archived information about almost every aspect of Birmingham and the West Midlands. Most of the photographs are available and released into the public domain. However, you should pay due care and attention to the sensitivities of people who may have been photographed in the public or car registration plates and other identification. This is your responsibility not ours. The text within this website is NOT public domain.

For further clarification on public domain photographs please visit our You Tube channel.

Please remember that this is an archive and no longer an active website although occasionally you might find new posts.

Information may no longer be up to date and the content within this website is provided on an "as is" basis. You are welcome to use the comments function to correct or update any information. This website still receives thousands of visitors every month which is the only reason we still keep it going.

It is important for visitors to understand that this is a private site and nothing to do with the Tourist Information Office and therefore we cannot respond to requests for posters or general information. Please note that we are NOT interested in any affiliate programs or reciprocal links of any kind. We do not offer any kind of paid advertising or promotions.

To navigate the rest of the site just click on the main header tabs at the top of this web page. The site has been split into sections and each section is independent of the others. Thank you for visiting Birmingham UK Com.

Photographs of Birmingham released into the Public Domain:
Birmingham 2005 ( Part 1 ) click here or view on You Tube

Birmingham 2005 ( Part 2) click here or view on You Tube
Birmingham 2005 - 2007 ( Part 3) click here or view on You Tube

Christmas Birmingham 2012 ( Part 4 ) click here or view on You Tube
Birmingham Misc until 2015 ( Part 4 )  click here

• Birmingham Tourism
• Restaurants in Birmingham
• Hotels in Birmingham
• Things to do in Birmingham

Birmingham Library

Situated in Centenary Square by the Birmingham Rep and Symphony Hall is the Birmingham Public Library. It opened in September 2013 and is the largest public library in the UK and the largest public cultural space in Europe.

The Library cost an estimated £188 million and its unique architecture has made it a prominent landmark on the city skyline. The old Central Library failed to gain status as a listed building despite arguments for its protection as an example of brutalist architecture. It will be demolished to make way for the redevelopment of Paradise Circus.

BMC - British Motor Corporation

The British Motor Corporation or BMC was once one of the world’s largest vehicle producers. It was formed in 1952 as a result of a merger between Austin and Morris. BMC would become one of the world’s largest car manufacturers, responsible at its peak for around 39% of British car exports.

The British car industry did not keep up with the times and was very much in decline by the time it was nationalised by the government in 1975 and re-named British Leyland.  This would later become the Austin Rover Group. The group was later sold to British Aerospace in 1998 but just 3 years later they sold it to BMW. The truth was that it had been costing British Aerospace too much money to keep it going.  Some of the cars had been developed under partnership with Honda so it was a great surprise to many when BMW purchased the company.

BMW would invest heavily in the group for the next 6 years before they too came to the conclusion that they were spending too much money to keep it afloat. Enter the Pheonix Consortium who bought the business for just £10, acquired a large loan and thousands of unsold cars. With little investment in R&D and an agreement to build cars in India, it could not establish its reputation as a quality car builder and suffered against fierce competition from other manufacturers.

The five Phoenix directors made sure that they lined their pockets to the tune of more than £16 million in salaries while the MG Rover group itself continued to lose money. The last vehicles rolled off the production line in 2005 and the company went into administration. It would finally be sold to a Chinese consortium called SAIC who moved production to China albeit with the exception of MG sports cars and a small operation still at Longbridge employing a few hundred people.

The huge sprawling factory at Longbridge is now a shadow of its former past. Most of it has been demolished and has made way for new developments. This short story just gives you an insight into its history and everything could have ended there it were not for two interesting developments. British Leyland would continue in India as it does today and it still has strong connections to the UK. Website: http://www.ashokleyland.com/

You could be forgiven for thinking that BMC faded into history and died in all but name but you would be wrong. Licenses for some BMC products were passed on to a small Turkish company that kept the original name and logo and started to produce vehicles. Scroll forward to present day and you may be surprised to know that BMC is a large producer of light vehicles, trucks and buses and even exports some of its products to the UK. http://www.bmc.com.tr/hakkimizda/?lang=en

Visitors to Turkey might have noticed a very prominent Leyland Sherpa lookalike in villages and towns around the country. Mostly in a flat bed style rather than a van these vehicles are a legend in Turkey. They have been a huge success story over here and parts for these vehicles are readily available at a fraction of the cost of more modern vehicles. The flatbed pickups were suitably named Levend ( notice the similarity with Leyland ) and they were produced in their old shape right up until 1999 and then in the new format until 2009! Below is one of the Sherpa UK versions.

Ask any Turkish villager about the Levend. They are known for their durability, their strength and character and they are loved for their general ruggedness and capabilities as a good farming vehicle or city delivery truck. No one has a bad word to say about them and they are still revered and sought after. There is a very healthy second hand market for them in Turkey.

So, BMC lives on. It may no longer be British but just like Ashock Leyland both companies retain their pedigree and on reflection it is a great shame that the Leyland Sherpa was often ridiculed and lost ground to the Ford Transit when in reality, as proven in Turkey, it turned out to be something special with a long production span and a proud reputation.

New Street Station

 

Birmingham Grand Station, officially known as Birmingham New Street Station, is the main railway station in Birmingham, UK. It has undergone several major transformations over the years, with the most recent redevelopment completed in 2015. The new station features a modern, expansive design, with improved facilities and a glass-domed atrium that spans its central concourse, making it brighter and more accessible.

The station was originally opened in 1854 as the Birmingham and Gloucester Railway terminus and underwent various expansions and redesigns throughout the 20th century. It was renamed Birmingham New Street Station in the 1960s. However, by the 2000s, the station had become congested and outdated, prompting the need for a major overhaul. The redevelopment, which began in 2010 and finished in 2015, aimed to provide a more spacious, user-friendly environment with improved transport connections.

Today, Birmingham New Street serves as a key hub for local, regional, and national trains, connecting Birmingham to cities like London, Manchester, and Edinburgh. It remains one of the busiest railway stations in the UK.

Aston Villa F.C.

Aston Villa Football Club is one of the oldest and most successful clubs in the UK. Founded in 1874 the current ground has been their home since 1897.

Known as Villa or The Villa, the Villans and the Lions the club has a strong following.

Villa Park  Birmingham, B6 6HE. Tel:  0870 950 9260

For more photographs of Aston Villa FC click here