Manchester’s Northern Quarter has, over the last twenty years, become THE place to be seen. Bang in the heart of the City Centre this is an area where Screen Manchester does a lot of its work and so we have decided to make it our ‘Location of the Month’ for November.
A maze of broad streets built on a grid and narrow back alleys bordered by impressive red brick buildings, the ‘NQ’ is an historic neighbourhood that lends itself to being a stand-in for other cities.
Dale Street runs through the Northern Quarter and is a place where any New York resident might feel at home. This is where Captain America’s producers brought 1942 Brooklyn to life and delighted fans around the world who little suspected that their action hero, as portrayed by Chris Evans, was actually here in Manchester.
A busy area of the city when it comes to filming the NQ’s characterful surroundings including Back Piccadilly & Mangle Street, Tib Street, Hilton Street and Thomas Street and have featured in a wide array of popular movies, adverts and TV programmes including Russell T Davies’ multi-award winning Its A Sin and cult BBC series Domino Day which took a trip down Back Piccadilly to shoot some thrilling scenes. The list goes on and continues to grow as producers worldwide catch on to the fact that this destination delivers what’s required to make the best things happen on screen.
Tib Street for example enjoyed a ’60s make-over with Tracey-Ann Oberman and Tamzin Outhwaite spotted wearing the styles of the times, straight from Carnaby Street. Dolly Alderton’s Everything I Know About Love was also brought to life here as were the Stephen Graham-fronted series Boiling Point and Playdate a new Disney + series.
Stevenson Square is another favourite location and will look familiar, especially to fans of The Crown. For Series 4 of the Netflix hit this impressive location was transformed into a steamy, 1980s powersuited Manhattan where Princess Diana took her first official trip abroad without the then Prince Charles.
Closer to home fans of BBC series The A Word will recall Joe’s move to Manchester from The Lakes. The young neurodiverse boy was filmed around the square and also on neighbouring Thomas Street coming to terms with the buzz of the City after the calm of his life in peaceful Cumbria. Thomas Street also starred in dramas No Offence starring Joanna Scanlon and action comedy romantic thriller Wedding Season starring Rosa Salazar and Gavin Drea.
Oh – and for Jared Leto fans out there several scenes of Morbius were filmed on the square, once again masquerading as Manhattan, or “Manc-hattan” as it has become known by many in film circles.
The Northern Quarter has so many corners and we love to explore them all. This is an area that on many occasions has provided the final piece in the jigsaw for productions looking for a home in and around Manchester.
