Jump to content

Manx Nostalgia


GD4ELI

Recommended Posts

Some more photos of the Palace. I think it's an absolute outrage that such beautiful Victorian/Edwardian architecture was destroyed to make way for what is there now. In other places, such buildings would be listed, and the Promenade would be a UNESCO world heritage site. But it's too late now because they've already destroyed most of it.


A Bazaar at the Palace Ballroom.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=448249218636317&set=gm.10152210156850049&type=1

Palace Ballroom interior
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151711340438309&set=gm.10151958644605049&type=1


Palace exterior:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=3625003463409&set=gm.10150760130965049&type=1


Exterior of the Ballroom:
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=742179259143082&set=gm.10152083581925049&type=1

The original Palace Ballroom before the fire:

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151932060869352&set=gm.10152177305165049&type=1

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Replies 138
  • Created
  • Last Reply

Some more photos of the Palace. I think it's an absolute outrage that such beautiful Victorian/Edwardian architecture was destroyed to make way for what is there now. In other places, such buildings would be listed, and the Promenade would be a UNESCO world heritage site. But it's too late now because they've already destroyed most of it.

 

An act of pure vandalism.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Here's a good one of Finch Road I've not seen before:

 

'DRINK MORE MILK'

1620815_455320734595832_1047761880_n.jpg

 

 

Douglas would have had over 50 pubs in those days. Most people came to holiday on the Isle of Man for one thing and one thing only - booze, booze and more booze.

 

Unlike England, the Isle of Man did not close the pubs in the afternoons. The pubs were open on Sundays too but only in the Summer when the money was about. In the winter the locals had to wait until Monday. And the drink was significantly cheaper too. The spirits were 1/5 gill against the UK standard of 1/6 gill. There was as much entertainment laid on as the people could take.

 

I reckon that sign was a ploy to keep the methodists across the road in Tynwald happy. Maybe after office hours and Tynwald went home, that big sign was turned round - "music, dancing and drinking here". Maybe I made that last biit up

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Donald Trumps

 

you asked what was in the Palace complex

 

The Ballroom (the Lido) opened 3rd August 1889, roof destroyed by fire 1902 and totally destroyed 1920 and rebuilt (The White Palace). Used to build airships in WW1. became very run down and was demolished in 1994. Capacity 6,200. The Palace Opera house attached to the Lido and seating 1800 people and part of which is the only bit left and is now the Palace Cinemas and The Colliseum Theatre opened 21 July 1913 seating 3,500 and demolished 1964/5. The Colliseum and the Lido were connected by a walkway bridge. The whole was also a pleasure grounds, with bandstands, park benches and flower gardens.

 

The Palace & Derby Castle Company came to own

 

1. The Falcon Cliff with its funicular. The Falcon Cliff had a huge cast iron and glass winter garden concert hall. They bought that to close down the competition, in 1896, removed the concert hall and the first funicular (it was sold and moved to Port Soderick)

2. The Gaiety Theatre and Opera House, which still stands

3. The Derby Castle dancehall and entertainment complex, latterly Summerland

4. Several Cinemas in Douglas

Link to comment
Share on other sites

So am I right in suggesting that the Colliseum Theatre is where the Palace Hotel is now?

 

My life was spent in the Lido when I was a lad - the Harp Lager was so watered down you could drink all night & still come home sober

 

Thanks by the way JW

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As it was set back from the promenade its façade was at the back of the hotel, approximately where the original car park is and about half way along.

 

The wall at the current entrance, on the left of the roadway up into the car park, where the cinema boards (by what was Moby Dicks Fish & Chippy) are, was the left hand wall leading the left hand of the two entrance ticket booths to the Palace complex and dates from 1895

Link to comment
Share on other sites

My family were from Manchester and Oldham TJ, but like many cotton families they had summer second homes in the IOM going back to the 1880's and some retired here. She was one of the ones who retired here. My grandparents generation, and she was from the generation before that, had summer homes in Cleveleys as well. The wives and children stayed in Cleveleys the entire summer and the menfolk used to catch the morning train to commute on Mondays and came back on Fridays. Some of them clubbed together and bought their own carriage. It's bizarre.

 

So my dad spent summers in Cleveleys, but often caught the tram to Fleetwood and the boat to Douglas, to visit his relatives who were staying here or had moved here. He was at college with a number of Manx students, including Steve Cubbon who went on to be headmaster at Foxdale and Norman Quine whose brother was custodian at Peel castle in the early to mid 1960's.

 

When I was a child I visited here often, including my granddad bringing me over by tram and boat, and sometimes we stayed over. I spent glorious summers here, 6 or 8 weeks when I was 5, 7 and 11.

 

My aunt (loose term she would have been a great great aunt) stayed with a Mrs Quine in Peel who was the owner of the house powered by gas. She was the aunt of Norman Quine and I believe its where my mum and dad spent their honeymoon in 1947.

 

That do you TJ?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

 

My life was spent in the Lido when I was a lad - the Harp Lager was so watered down you could drink all night & still come home sober

 

Did you ever walk across the sticky carpet to the makeshift casino bit at the back? If so, I might just have dealt you a hand of blackjack.

 

I went walking up through Groudle today and onto the main road and was reminded of the little thatched roof, corrugated iron cottage that used to sit on the bend of the tram track, just up from the Groudle Hotel. It was a lovely little cottage. It came up for sale once for £10 000 and I sorely wanted to buy it. My father forbade it if I remember correctly. All gone now as part of the renovations for the new house built there.

 

Think it had become a burger bar when it came to my time, but the carpets were certainly sticky!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.

×
×
  • Create New...