Birmingham Bull Ring

Birmingham's Bull Ring market has been an important feature of Birmingham since the Middle Ages. Initially a cattle and food market, it developed into the main retail market area for Birmingham as the town grew into a modern industrial city.

In 1969 the 'new' Birmingham Bull Ring was constructed, a mixture of traditional open-air market stalls and a new indoor shopping centre, one of the first of its kind in the UK. Sadly, the Birmingham Bull Ring was very much a creation of the 1960s and was probably not a sustainable business venture over time: pedestrian access was poor and the centre itself was little more than an island in the middle of a major road system.

The Bull Ring is currently under-going a complete rebuild, the new centre mixing both traditional market activity with up-to-the-minute retail units. The new Bull Ring will open in the autumn of 2003 and will feature a dramatic new landmark building, the Birmingham branch of Selfridges[?] department store. The new Selfridges store is an exciting, futuristic design from the Future Systems architectural practic.

External Link

• http://www.bullring.co.uk/