0:00:02 > 0:00:04Preserve, don't demolish!
0:00:04 > 0:00:08Preserve, don't demolish! Preserve, don't demolish!
0:00:08 > 0:00:10Preserve, don't demolish!
0:00:13 > 0:00:16Demolish the Victorian, the Edwardian, the Georgian.
0:00:16 > 0:00:18Replace it with skyscraper blocks.
0:00:18 > 0:00:19Lambeth Council wants to demolish
0:00:19 > 0:00:22the estate in Tulse Hill and rebuild.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25Down with the old, up with the new.
0:02:22 > 0:02:26'The Wellington Rooms today are handled by Liverpool Corporation.
0:02:26 > 0:02:28'One of the problems we were having
0:02:28 > 0:02:30'was getting enough time in the building...'
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Howdy! '..because of health and safety regulations.'
0:02:36 > 0:02:39So what... is there a problem over here?
0:02:39 > 0:02:43Yeah, well, obviously there's falling plaster...
0:02:43 > 0:02:45What, just down this way?
0:02:45 > 0:02:49..from the height and weight of it is a little bit dodgy.
0:02:52 > 0:02:55Gosh, the water is ruining the Adam ceiling.
0:02:55 > 0:02:57Yeah.
0:02:57 > 0:03:01Just up here. Just try and avoid that column there.
0:03:02 > 0:03:04- That column?- Mm.
0:03:04 > 0:03:07And you couldn't just let us,
0:03:07 > 0:03:12- um, just stay here for an hour or two and...- I couldn't, no.
0:03:12 > 0:03:16I mean, have you signed anything with Kevin or an indemnity form?
0:03:16 > 0:03:19I don't mind signing an indemnity form.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22I haven't got anything on me at the minute.
0:03:22 > 0:03:25If we sign an indemnity form that if we fell through the floor,
0:03:25 > 0:03:28we wouldn't sue Liverpool Corporation,
0:03:28 > 0:03:29would that make any difference?
0:03:29 > 0:03:31It would certainly help.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34- So this is the really bad area? - It is.
0:03:34 > 0:03:37The problem with this is whilst there's been previous
0:03:37 > 0:03:40moisture ingress,
0:03:40 > 0:03:44when you dry a place out, you've got expansion
0:03:44 > 0:03:48and contraction of material, so the plaster has shrunk
0:03:48 > 0:03:50and it's just dried and come away.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52Right.
0:03:52 > 0:03:56And whilst the individual small pieces doesn't feel as though
0:03:56 > 0:03:59they're heavy, if they fall from a decent height,
0:03:59 > 0:04:01they're going to hurt.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03- When it lands on your head?- Yeah.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08Well, we won't sue Liverpool Corporation anyway.
0:04:08 > 0:04:09You might not sue,
0:04:09 > 0:04:12but we could be... civil proceedings in terms of manslaughter or anything
0:04:12 > 0:04:14like that, couldn't we, so...
0:04:14 > 0:04:16But it feels very solidly constructed.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19HE JUMPS UP AND DOWN
0:04:19 > 0:04:21It doesn't move when I do that.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25As I say, we've got joist ends here which are potentially rotten.
0:04:25 > 0:04:26So... it's... we...
0:04:26 > 0:04:30we don't want to take that risk, hence...
0:04:30 > 0:04:32why it's a supervised visit.
0:04:32 > 0:04:33Yeah.
0:04:39 > 0:04:40'It was hard for me to imagine now,
0:04:40 > 0:04:43'but when I last knew the Wellington Rooms,
0:04:43 > 0:04:47'it was the Irish centre, full of dancing and light.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49CEILI MUSIC PLAYS
0:05:18 > 0:05:20MUSIC CONTINUES
0:05:46 > 0:05:48MUSIC ENDS
0:05:50 > 0:05:54You can't really understand what's happened to the Wellington Rooms
0:05:54 > 0:05:58today in its isolation, without first understanding
0:05:58 > 0:06:01what happened to the local community that once surrounded it.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04MUSIC: Feel Like Jumping by Marcia Griffiths
0:06:04 > 0:06:08When I first knew this area in the heart of Liverpool,
0:06:08 > 0:06:12it was full of people - Irish, Italians, Greek, Somalis, Chinese,
0:06:12 > 0:06:14all living side-by-side.
0:06:14 > 0:06:16It was a real community then.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27# Feel like jumping
0:06:27 > 0:06:29# I feel like shouting now
0:06:29 > 0:06:31# I feel like moving... #
0:06:31 > 0:06:33It was called the Abercromby community
0:06:33 > 0:06:35and existed for over 300 years.
0:06:35 > 0:06:39Most of the buildings predate the Wellington Rooms themselves.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47The community that surrounded the Wellington Rooms
0:06:47 > 0:06:49has now disappeared.
0:06:49 > 0:06:51I made my first student film here,
0:06:51 > 0:06:54told through the eyes of Ruth and Bertha
0:06:54 > 0:06:56about their friends and neighbours.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05It was the street fit to live on, I'll be truthful.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08When I came to live here, you could leave your doors open
0:07:08 > 0:07:10and you wouldn't miss a thing.
0:07:13 > 0:07:15I'll tell you how good it was.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17At that time, I lived in the basement.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20I used to open my basement window.
0:07:20 > 0:07:25Well, it'd be my turn one day to make a pot of tea.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29And buy cake, and pass it through the window
0:07:29 > 0:07:31and they'd all sit around my window.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34Well, then, it would be someone else's turn the next day
0:07:34 > 0:07:35and that's the way it went on.
0:07:40 > 0:07:42And harmless times, they were.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45You understand what I mean. There was no badness.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47No badness at all,
0:07:47 > 0:07:49just dancing and...
0:07:51 > 0:07:53..making a fool of ourselves.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03But the decision was made to demolish the housing,
0:08:03 > 0:08:05a lot of it Georgian, as seen here,
0:08:05 > 0:08:07with no regard for the community.
0:08:09 > 0:08:11LOUD BOOM
0:08:38 > 0:08:40CHILDREN SHOUT EXCITEDLY
0:08:52 > 0:08:55This is the exact spot where we filmed.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59And this is what has replaced it.
0:09:12 > 0:09:13The people from here,
0:09:13 > 0:09:16in this area now taken over by the university,
0:09:16 > 0:09:19were moved out to places like Cantril Farm or Kirkby,
0:09:19 > 0:09:21miles from the city centre.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34'We met with George Scully, who grew up here and who answered
0:09:34 > 0:09:38'a radio appeal we made for the old community to come forward.'
0:09:38 > 0:09:42All the beautiful houses like this on that side...
0:09:42 > 0:09:44all the way up, demolished.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49Beautiful houses on that way up, demolished.
0:09:49 > 0:09:54The Faculty of Law in 1949-50 was one house on this corner.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57Now it's a massive department up there on the corner
0:09:57 > 0:10:01of Chatham Street and Myrtle Street.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04Are there streets that have gone completely that were here?
0:10:04 > 0:10:07Cambridge Street ran through there into Grove Street
0:10:07 > 0:10:09with beautiful houses there.
0:10:09 > 0:10:11They were demolished.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15And the people were kept totally uninformed.
0:10:15 > 0:10:18When we lived here, when there was a community here,
0:10:18 > 0:10:20working class community...
0:10:20 > 0:10:24there were no amenities but it was still a very rich community
0:10:24 > 0:10:26but now there is just nothing
0:10:26 > 0:10:30because the students have no affinity with this area.
0:10:30 > 0:10:32Most of them come from other towns in England.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35Most of them come from abroad so they have no affinity
0:10:35 > 0:10:38and for half of the year, you know,
0:10:38 > 0:10:41if you just take the academic year into account, they're not even here.
0:10:41 > 0:10:45They go away, so all of this area is a ghost town.
0:10:46 > 0:10:50'The irony is that George ended up as a student at the university.'
0:10:50 > 0:10:54In fact, the English Department was built on my... my house!
0:10:54 > 0:10:57Which I couldn't get my head around, you know.
0:10:57 > 0:10:59It interfered with my studies!
0:11:00 > 0:11:03When I was sitting in the common room, of a day, you know,
0:11:03 > 0:11:06I was saying, the Lloyds used to live here
0:11:06 > 0:11:09and the McNamees used to live here. We lived here.
0:11:09 > 0:11:11And I was daydreaming all the time, you know.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14So your house on Heath Street used to be right there?
0:11:14 > 0:11:16And that is the English Department.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27Now there's only the university left.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20REGENCY DANCE MUSIC
0:12:22 > 0:12:26This is the Wellington Rooms when they were built in 1815,
0:12:26 > 0:12:29when the columned entrance was still open.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31Sedan chairs brought the men and women
0:12:31 > 0:12:34to separate entrances on either side of the building.
0:12:39 > 0:12:40They met in the ballroom.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48HOOVES GALLOP
0:12:48 > 0:12:52Each year, the horse that won the Grand National
0:12:52 > 0:12:56would be brought to the ballroom to drink from a bucket of champagne.
0:12:56 > 0:12:58CORK POPS AND HORSE NEIGHS
0:13:01 > 0:13:05The only balls to be cancelled during those years
0:13:05 > 0:13:08were for the Boer War and the death of Queen Victoria.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16It didn't seem to put anyone off that the Wellington Rooms
0:13:16 > 0:13:19were built next to the biggest workhouse in Britain.
0:13:25 > 0:13:29Built in 1769, the workhouse had 4,000 people.
0:13:47 > 0:13:51In 1923, much of the wealth had left Liverpool
0:13:51 > 0:13:53and the building was sold.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58For many years, it became the Rodney youth centre
0:13:58 > 0:14:00and served the local community.
0:14:06 > 0:14:09In 1965, the Wellington Rooms became the Irish Centre
0:14:09 > 0:14:13and the spiritual home of Irish life in Liverpool.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22There was massive Irish immigration to Liverpool
0:14:22 > 0:14:24during the 19th century.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27By 1860, 20% of Liverpool's population was Irish,
0:14:27 > 0:14:30mostly the poorest and worst paid.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38There was a lot of anti-Irish feeling.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49You were involved with this place for years and years and years.
0:14:49 > 0:14:53I was. I was involved from when it opened in '64
0:14:53 > 0:14:58until about three years before it closed down, late '80s.
0:14:59 > 0:15:02And I used to work here regularly.
0:15:02 > 0:15:06Virtually every Sunday night, I did the reception desk here.
0:15:06 > 0:15:10- The reception desk?- Which was this failte reception, yes.
0:15:10 > 0:15:12So show us around.
0:15:12 > 0:15:14And you met your wife here?
0:15:14 > 0:15:17- Let's go into the big room.- Yes.
0:15:17 > 0:15:19I...
0:15:19 > 0:15:21I came here from the time it was opened.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24At the same time as I was coming here,
0:15:24 > 0:15:27my wife was helping out in the kitchens and we met here.
0:15:29 > 0:15:31- And...- And fell in love?
0:15:31 > 0:15:36Fell in love and got married and had our reception in this room.
0:15:38 > 0:15:43This ballroom, and... You can see the remains of the frieze
0:15:43 > 0:15:47along part of it and you can imagine that,
0:15:47 > 0:15:50beautifully painted and decorated
0:15:50 > 0:15:52and all the rest of it.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55And this was the dance floor here
0:15:55 > 0:16:00and down at the back, you had chairs and tables where people sat.
0:16:00 > 0:16:02IRISH WALTZ
0:16:10 > 0:16:12APPLAUSE
0:16:19 > 0:16:21- Hello!- Hello.
0:16:21 > 0:16:22Hello!
0:16:22 > 0:16:25- Say bye-bye.- Bye-bye.- Bye-bye.
0:16:37 > 0:16:45During the '80s, this ballroom was absolutely full every Friday
0:16:45 > 0:16:49and Saturday night because big bands like Big Tom And The Mainliners
0:16:49 > 0:16:52and Brendan Shine and people like that
0:16:52 > 0:16:54were coming over from Ireland...
0:16:54 > 0:16:56Because there's a stage over there, isn't there?
0:16:56 > 0:16:58And that's the stage there.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03APPLAUSE AND CHEERING
0:17:03 > 0:17:07BAND PLAYS DIRE STRAITS' WALK OF LIFE
0:17:15 > 0:17:18# Here comes Johnny and he'll tell you the story
0:17:18 > 0:17:21# Hand me down my walkin' shoes
0:17:21 > 0:17:24# Here comes Johnny with the power and the glory
0:17:24 > 0:17:27# Backbeat the talkin' blues
0:17:27 > 0:17:29# He got the action, he got the motion
0:17:29 > 0:17:32# Oh, yeah, the boy can play
0:17:32 > 0:17:36# Dedication, devotion
0:17:36 > 0:17:38# Turning all the night-time into the day
0:17:38 > 0:17:41# He do the song about the sweet lovin' woman
0:17:41 > 0:17:44# He do the song about the knife
0:17:44 > 0:17:46# He do the walk
0:17:46 > 0:17:49# He do the walk of life
0:17:49 > 0:17:51# He do the walk of life. #
0:17:51 > 0:17:54HAPPY CHATTER
0:17:56 > 0:17:59Francie, you all right?
0:18:02 > 0:18:04SHE GIGGLES
0:18:11 > 0:18:13People came here
0:18:13 > 0:18:19because this was the place where the Irish community on Merseyside met.
0:18:19 > 0:18:24And this was the place where they, er, carried on their cultural,
0:18:24 > 0:18:28- social...- It was a happy place? - A very, very happy place.
0:18:28 > 0:18:30And, um...
0:18:32 > 0:18:37It was also a place where people could come in and feel at home.
0:18:37 > 0:18:41- Yeah.- They...
0:18:41 > 0:18:46I mean, I, as you can hear from me, my Irish accent has not left me.
0:18:46 > 0:18:49And you could come in here and talk whatever way you would talk
0:18:49 > 0:18:52and nobody would be passing remarks and things like that.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55- Those kind of little things that mean so much.- Yeah.
0:19:00 > 0:19:05These are future plans submitted for the Wellington Rooms.
0:19:11 > 0:19:13- Do you think it has a future, the building?- No.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16I don't think the building has a future,
0:19:16 > 0:19:19unless some multimillionaire comes along
0:19:19 > 0:19:23and has got a few millions to spare and he can do it up
0:19:23 > 0:19:26but I don't know what it could be used for.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30It certainly could not be used again ever as an Irish centre
0:19:30 > 0:19:33because the Irish community could not support it.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37There are not enough people here at the moment.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40You said there were so many strict rules with English Heritage
0:19:40 > 0:19:42that made it very difficult?
0:19:42 > 0:19:44Well, it's a Grade II listed building
0:19:44 > 0:19:47so every time you want to get anything done,
0:19:47 > 0:19:51you have got to get the approval of English Heritage.
0:19:51 > 0:19:56And what we've found, when I was on the executive committee here,
0:19:56 > 0:20:01was that as soon as English Heritage were involved,
0:20:01 > 0:20:04the cost of everything went up.
0:20:11 > 0:20:12There has, however,
0:20:12 > 0:20:16been some recent talk of the University taking over the building.
0:20:35 > 0:20:36So, which was the spot?
0:20:41 > 0:20:45'Sean fell in love with his wife the first moment he saw her
0:20:45 > 0:20:47'in the Wellington Rooms.'
0:20:47 > 0:20:48And what happened?
0:20:50 > 0:20:54I walked across the room, having consumed a couple of pints of beer,
0:20:54 > 0:20:58and said, "I saw you across the crowded room," and all that shit,
0:20:58 > 0:21:01and she thought I was some sort of drunken eejit.
0:21:01 > 0:21:02But to cut a long story short,
0:21:02 > 0:21:04we had a dance before the end of the night
0:21:04 > 0:21:06to The Ballad Of James Connolly...
0:21:08 > 0:21:11..and we're together since.
0:21:11 > 0:21:13That's fantastic.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15And you saved a ticket or something.
0:21:15 > 0:21:17Yeah, that's correct. It was from the night.
0:21:17 > 0:21:19She gave me her phone number.
0:21:19 > 0:21:21Still got that.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25Yeah, there's the ticket and there's the phone number.
0:21:25 > 0:21:29The ticket from the night. And we've still got the same phone number.
0:21:29 > 0:21:32And it's great that you've been in love ever since.
0:21:32 > 0:21:36Well, he phones me at least once a day in work and then I say,
0:21:36 > 0:21:38"I love you, Sean. Love you, love you,"
0:21:38 > 0:21:41and everyone goes, "Oh, God..."
0:21:41 > 0:21:45But, yeah, I do. Still very close.
0:21:45 > 0:21:46You do everything together.
0:21:48 > 0:21:51- We do everything together, don't we? - Yeah.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54Not sad, we have got lots of friends as well,
0:21:54 > 0:21:56but we do do everything together.
0:22:00 > 0:22:04# A great crowd had gathered
0:22:04 > 0:22:07# Outside of Kilmainham
0:22:07 > 0:22:10# Their heads all uncovered
0:22:10 > 0:22:14# They knelt to the ground
0:22:15 > 0:22:19# For inside that grim prison
0:22:19 > 0:22:22# Lay a brave Irish soldier
0:22:22 > 0:22:26# His life for his country
0:22:26 > 0:22:29# About to lay down
0:22:30 > 0:22:34# He went to his death
0:22:34 > 0:22:37# Like a true son of Ireland
0:22:37 > 0:22:41# The firing party
0:22:41 > 0:22:44# He bravely did face
0:22:45 > 0:22:49# Then the order rang out
0:22:49 > 0:22:52# Present arms and fire
0:22:52 > 0:22:56# James Connolly fell into... #
0:22:56 > 0:23:00It's a building that has inspired a lot of love.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02When the Irish Centre closed,
0:23:02 > 0:23:05people literally took to the roof to protest.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45The staff here will stay on the rooftop protest
0:23:45 > 0:23:46as long as necessary.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55The rooftop protest lasted six months, but it failed...
0:23:57 > 0:24:00..and the Wellington Rooms have been empty since.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07That's it, just come towards me a little bit more.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09We got a call from Liverpool Planning
0:24:09 > 0:24:13that they were about to announce a potential £8 million scheme
0:24:13 > 0:24:16with the University to save the Wellington Rooms.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21But it didn't seem to actually add up to much.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24Well, we've still yet to define the detail of it all,
0:24:24 > 0:24:26so we've started that process.
0:24:26 > 0:24:30We will get a 12-month exclusivity which will allow us
0:24:30 > 0:24:32to go through the architectural, the costings,
0:24:32 > 0:24:36and then to look at potential sources of funding.
0:24:36 > 0:24:38And then we'll take all of that back to the city council
0:24:38 > 0:24:41and see where we are. We're very lucky, I think,
0:24:41 > 0:24:45having the universities very keen on being involved,
0:24:45 > 0:24:47cos that answers the big question
0:24:47 > 0:24:49of how are you going to use this building?
0:24:49 > 0:24:52It all sounded very hazy to me.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55I got the distinct feeling they made the announcement
0:24:55 > 0:24:57just to keep us happy.
0:24:57 > 0:24:59THUNDER RUMBLES
0:25:07 > 0:25:09WATER DRIPS RAPIDLY
0:25:47 > 0:25:50'Barbara and Ellen met 70 years ago at the Wellington Rooms
0:25:50 > 0:25:52'and they're still best friends.'
0:25:52 > 0:25:54Hello!
0:26:00 > 0:26:03- So, have you come to go dancing today?- Pardon?
0:26:03 > 0:26:07- Are you going to come and do some dancing?- Yes, we are.- Yes.- You are?
0:26:07 > 0:26:09Yes, we are. We're looking forward to it.
0:26:09 > 0:26:12And so, for how many years did you dance here?
0:26:13 > 0:26:16From...1961
0:26:16 > 0:26:18until it closed.
0:26:18 > 0:26:20- Until it closed.- Yeah.
0:26:20 > 0:26:23- So, were you teenagers then?- Yes.
0:26:23 > 0:26:24All right.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39- Oh, here's where we had our fun. - Oh, yeah.
0:26:53 > 0:26:55- Do you remember?- Oh, yeah.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00Do you know, it's lovely to see it again, though.
0:27:00 > 0:27:04Even though it's not usable, it's lovely to see it.
0:27:04 > 0:27:06It brings back everything.
0:27:09 > 0:27:11- It hasn't deteriorated, really.- No.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14- Look at the chandelier. - I know, yeah.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23Think of all the dancing I did here when I was young.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29We didn't have a care in the world then.
0:27:29 > 0:27:32- I haven't now, thank God. But, erm...- All friends together.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37You can just hear that music from years ago.
0:27:37 > 0:27:39You know, just being here.
0:27:42 > 0:27:44And the laughter, the fun.
0:27:48 > 0:27:49Oh, fantastic.
0:27:52 > 0:27:55- This is where we used to sit, over here.- Yeah.- Yeah.
0:27:57 > 0:28:00Actually, on that picture, that's where we were sitting.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04Bet you can remember everything about it.
0:28:07 > 0:28:09Look at that.
0:28:12 > 0:28:14SHE GASPS
0:28:14 > 0:28:17- Gosh, the roof is leaking. - Oh, look at that.- Wow.
0:28:22 > 0:28:26You'd wonder how they could let it go into such a state of disrepair.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28- Yeah.- And do nothing about it.
0:28:34 > 0:28:37'I really hope the university plans work out.
0:28:38 > 0:28:41'In the meantime, I just had to see dancing
0:28:41 > 0:28:44'and hear music again in the Wellington Rooms.'
0:28:44 > 0:28:47CEILI MUSIC PLAYS
0:30:22 > 0:30:23Wow, look at that.
0:30:25 > 0:30:27It's really screwed up.
0:30:30 > 0:30:32'The Coal Exchange was my favourite building
0:30:32 > 0:30:36'when I lived in Cardiff and when I recently read that it was
0:30:36 > 0:30:41'faced with demolition, I came back to visit my old friend.'
0:30:41 > 0:30:43- Hi.- Hi, come on in.
0:30:43 > 0:30:45- Nice to see you.- I'm Louisa.
0:30:45 > 0:30:49Through here is the main hall,
0:30:49 > 0:30:52which we're not allowed into any more.
0:30:52 > 0:30:54The council has put a restrictive order on it
0:30:54 > 0:30:56because they believe it is dangerous.
0:30:56 > 0:30:59- But we can't go in. - Unfortunately, no.
0:30:59 > 0:31:01You don't get to argue with the council
0:31:01 > 0:31:02health and safety department.
0:31:02 > 0:31:05They say it's dangerous, they're the bosses.
0:31:05 > 0:31:07Why do you think they wanted to close it?
0:31:07 > 0:31:09I think that's a very long story.
0:31:09 > 0:31:11Let's take you upstairs to the office and we can tell it.
0:31:11 > 0:31:15- All right.- Come on into our office - "Save The Coal Exchange".
0:31:15 > 0:31:19- And this is Ian, who is one of the other directors.- Hi.
0:31:19 > 0:31:22- Pleased to meet you. - So, what have we got here?
0:31:22 > 0:31:25This is some of the stills of the building in occupation
0:31:25 > 0:31:28and that is the floor of the exchange full of the traders.
0:31:31 > 0:31:33ECHOING VOICES
0:31:33 > 0:31:35BELL DINGS
0:31:35 > 0:31:37TYPEWRITERS CLACK
0:31:56 > 0:31:58BELL DINGS
0:32:02 > 0:32:06Albert Alexander, the last working member of the Coal Exchange,
0:32:06 > 0:32:09was 99 when this interview was given.
0:32:09 > 0:32:13I was 24, so that would have been 1925.
0:32:13 > 0:32:18And I was the youngest member on the floor of the Exchange by 30 years.
0:32:20 > 0:32:22I was really a kid.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25It was fabulous, you know.
0:32:25 > 0:32:29I had to dress in striped trousers,
0:32:29 > 0:32:34spats - black shoes - spats and striped trousers,
0:32:34 > 0:32:39and my membership was 323.
0:32:41 > 0:32:44I finished up number three.
0:32:44 > 0:32:46And I saw the thing finish.
0:32:48 > 0:32:52When I knew it in later days, it had become a live events venue.
0:32:54 > 0:32:58Then in 2013, it was suddenly closed.
0:32:58 > 0:33:02Why do you think the council actually closed the hall down?
0:33:02 > 0:33:04They closed it to allow developers
0:33:04 > 0:33:06to make a large lot of money out of it.
0:33:07 > 0:33:11At one point the idea was to build a 21-storey tower block here,
0:33:11 > 0:33:14a facade retention scheme,
0:33:14 > 0:33:17which would keep three quarters of the outside wall up
0:33:17 > 0:33:20and then basically just build a tower block in the middle
0:33:20 > 0:33:22with flats and apartments.
0:33:22 > 0:33:24Which is pretty vile, really.
0:33:24 > 0:33:26And I guess that's where the money is,
0:33:26 > 0:33:27that's where they think the money is.
0:33:27 > 0:33:30The money is per square metre. The more floors you've got,
0:33:30 > 0:33:33the more square metres you've got, the more profit you make.
0:33:33 > 0:33:34I so admire what you're doing.
0:33:34 > 0:33:37It must take a lot of time and energy and...
0:33:37 > 0:33:42Ian is the man who's here five days a week, unpaid, in the office.
0:33:42 > 0:33:44But it has been really interesting.
0:33:44 > 0:33:46I've done a lot of campaigning over the years,
0:33:46 > 0:33:48I've never come across something where
0:33:48 > 0:33:51there is so much public sentiment locally, so much support,
0:33:51 > 0:33:54so much emotional attachment to the idea that this place
0:33:54 > 0:33:56should rise again, effectively.
0:33:58 > 0:34:01So this has taken a lot of your life.
0:34:01 > 0:34:02All of it, really, at the moment,
0:34:02 > 0:34:05- yeah, about the last eight or nine months.- All of it?- Yeah.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07It's called obsession, really.
0:34:07 > 0:34:11- Ian is working here full-time. - Yes.- And the rest of us help out.
0:34:11 > 0:34:13I don't know how long I can carry on.
0:34:13 > 0:34:16- Just physically it's getting a bit difficult...- Is it?
0:34:16 > 0:34:17..and emotionally. Yeah.
0:34:23 > 0:34:27The Coal Exchange was also like a club for the hoorays of its day.
0:34:27 > 0:34:30Champagne bottles were used as skittles.
0:34:30 > 0:34:33It had its own vintners, tailors, and a dining club.
0:34:38 > 0:34:41It's in the last historical area of Butetown,
0:34:41 > 0:34:45the dock area of Cardiff, and that's all in a bad state of decay.
0:34:52 > 0:34:55It's not just the Coal Exchange that has been left to rot
0:34:55 > 0:34:57for the last 30 years.
0:35:01 > 0:35:05It's also buildings like this, the Old Post Office,
0:35:05 > 0:35:09built in 1881 by EJ Rivers in glorious Italian style
0:35:09 > 0:35:11and now in serious decay.
0:35:16 > 0:35:19The Cory Building, built in 1889,
0:35:19 > 0:35:24architects Bruton and Williams, empty now for 20 years.
0:35:28 > 0:35:34This magnificent former bank, built in 1926 by Palmer and Holden
0:35:34 > 0:35:38in classic Greek style, empty for over 20 years
0:35:38 > 0:35:40and in a bad state of neglect.
0:35:43 > 0:35:45The railway station,
0:35:45 > 0:35:50built in 1843 and left to rot for the last 30 years.
0:36:06 > 0:36:10All of these buildings, like the Coal Exchange, face an uncertain
0:36:10 > 0:36:14future, even though they have a Grade II listing for preservation.
0:36:15 > 0:36:20If they are left to rot long enough that they can be declared unsafe,
0:36:20 > 0:36:22Cardiff Council can knock them down.
0:36:24 > 0:36:29It's so expensive to develop a listed building that the council
0:36:29 > 0:36:31put on an order which allowed them to come in, declare
0:36:31 > 0:36:36it a danger to the public and then they can bring the bulldozers in.
0:36:36 > 0:36:38Simple as that.
0:36:38 > 0:36:41And then they can develop it without going to Cadw,
0:36:41 > 0:36:43without going to the Assembly and things like that.
0:36:43 > 0:36:45So you think, in the last few years,
0:36:45 > 0:36:48there's been a sort of deliberate policy of not fixing the building?
0:36:48 > 0:36:51- Yes.- One of the councillors actually said to us that,
0:36:51 > 0:36:54after they got the report, they were just told to
0:36:54 > 0:36:57pray for a high wind and hope the place fell down.
0:36:57 > 0:36:59- Really?- Yeah.- Yeah.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11But you can't really understand the threat facing the Coal Exchange
0:37:11 > 0:37:14without first looking at what has already
0:37:14 > 0:37:17happened to the nearby docks in the Butetown community.
0:37:24 > 0:37:27It was a gold rush equivalent in coal.
0:37:27 > 0:37:30Enormous fortunes were made at the Coal Exchange,
0:37:30 > 0:37:34where the first million-pound deal in the world was struck.
0:37:34 > 0:37:38At its peak, the docks exported 14 million tonnes of coal a year.
0:38:03 > 0:38:05But then the coal boom ended.
0:38:05 > 0:38:09The Coal Exchange closed in 1958.
0:38:09 > 0:38:13But no attempt was made to renovate it for some other use
0:38:13 > 0:38:16or, for that matter, the historical buildings around it,
0:38:16 > 0:38:19which have some of the best architecture in Cardiff.
0:38:21 > 0:38:25There was far quicker and easier money to be made by filling in
0:38:25 > 0:38:29the docks and tearing down the old warehouses and dock buildings.
0:38:29 > 0:38:32There was absolutely no incentive to renovate.
0:38:35 > 0:38:39New streets like this were built where the docks had been,
0:38:39 > 0:38:41now lined with new houses.
0:38:44 > 0:38:48And here's the development team, who decided to fill the docks in.
0:38:50 > 0:38:53Here's another example of their work in the exact spot where
0:38:53 > 0:38:55the Pierhead dock used to be.
0:38:56 > 0:38:58I also discovered they're not too keen
0:38:58 > 0:39:01on having their handiwork examined.
0:39:01 > 0:39:03- I'm the manager of the site. - Oh, good for you.
0:39:03 > 0:39:05And it's a licensed-premises site,
0:39:05 > 0:39:08so obviously you have to have permission to film.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11- We can't just film here?- No, sorry.
0:39:11 > 0:39:12How strange.
0:39:12 > 0:39:14No, sorry, it's a licensed-premises site,
0:39:14 > 0:39:17so obviously you've got to go through our media department,
0:39:17 > 0:39:21which is Tim Powell. You'll have to speak to him to confirm first.
0:39:21 > 0:39:23Obviously, because I don't know what you're filming.
0:39:23 > 0:39:25Well, we're just filming where the dock used to be.
0:39:25 > 0:39:29- Yeah.- What do you think of the development?
0:39:29 > 0:39:30What do you think of this...
0:39:32 > 0:39:33..yourself?
0:39:33 > 0:39:36- Nothing. I don't think anything. - You don't think anything?
0:39:36 > 0:39:38- No. So if you want to speak to Tim Powell first.- All right.
0:39:38 > 0:39:41OK. We will. All right, thank you.
0:39:47 > 0:39:50'The fight to save the Coal Exchange makes even more sense
0:39:50 > 0:39:53'when I realise what has already been lost.
0:39:54 > 0:39:56'Here are some examples of then and now.'
0:39:56 > 0:40:03# Tiger Bay, Tiger Bay
0:40:05 > 0:40:11# It's not very far from the docks
0:40:13 > 0:40:19# When you get to Loudoun Square
0:40:20 > 0:40:28# Turn to the right and you're not far from there
0:40:28 > 0:40:34# Tiger Bay, Tiger Bay
0:40:35 > 0:40:41# It's just like a fancy-dress ball... #
0:40:41 > 0:40:45Butetown was a community made up of over 50 nationalities,
0:40:45 > 0:40:47seen here in the film Tiger Bay.
0:40:51 > 0:40:53- Whey!- Whey!
0:41:02 > 0:41:06Butetown was exceptional. There was absolutely no racial tension.
0:41:07 > 0:41:11One of the quickest ways of finding a community's attitude to
0:41:11 > 0:41:14racial discrimination is to see what it thinks of mixed marriages.
0:41:14 > 0:41:17The sight of a white girl married to a coloured man can release
0:41:17 > 0:41:19the most violent prejudices.
0:41:19 > 0:41:21Does it happen in Butetown?
0:41:31 > 0:41:34Why do you think things are so peaceable down here?
0:41:34 > 0:41:36Why are things so peaceful?
0:41:53 > 0:41:56This was all races mixing in together, was it?
0:42:01 > 0:42:05This incredible community of over 50 nationalities was destroyed
0:42:05 > 0:42:10in the rehousing, as was the Georgian Loudoun Square seen here,
0:42:10 > 0:42:12which looks like this today.
0:42:19 > 0:42:23So back to the Coal Exchange. What chance did it really have?
0:42:23 > 0:42:26It slowly deteriorated until the late '70s
0:42:26 > 0:42:31when it was decided to make it the home of the Welsh National Assembly.
0:42:31 > 0:42:33But far from being its saviour,
0:42:33 > 0:42:35this was when the building was really abused.
0:42:40 > 0:42:43'I went to ask Ian if we could finally get into the hall,
0:42:43 > 0:42:46'which I understood had been drastically changed
0:42:46 > 0:42:48'since I had last seen it.'
0:42:48 > 0:42:49No, you can't go in there.
0:42:49 > 0:42:53We have actually had surveys done of our own to say it's safe
0:42:53 > 0:42:56but, unfortunately, health and safety and the council has
0:42:56 > 0:42:58so far refused to accept them.
0:43:00 > 0:43:04Supposing you let us in there, what would happen?
0:43:04 > 0:43:06If we let them in there and anyone knew about it, then
0:43:06 > 0:43:10I would be liable for a £20,000 fine
0:43:10 > 0:43:12and also six months of imprisonment.
0:43:12 > 0:43:15Are you seriously, like, intimidated by that?
0:43:15 > 0:43:19Erm... Yes, definitely, in some ways. I mean, intimidated enough.
0:43:19 > 0:43:22I'm not intimidated by it, no, but I'm equally not going to
0:43:22 > 0:43:25take you out on the balcony with a camera.
0:43:27 > 0:43:30'It's hard to make a film about saving a building
0:43:30 > 0:43:32'when you're not allowed to see it.'
0:43:32 > 0:43:34It's down this way.
0:43:34 > 0:43:37This is the place you're not allowed to go, I'm afraid,
0:43:37 > 0:43:39which is the balcony.
0:43:41 > 0:43:42That's actually the balcony?
0:43:42 > 0:43:45On the second floor, yeah. So if you...
0:43:46 > 0:43:51The wall in front of you also went in in 1970 or whatever and...
0:43:52 > 0:43:56..there's actually a balcony here, like the one downstairs,
0:43:56 > 0:43:58and they've put a wall in front of it to...
0:44:00 > 0:44:03Just to fill in this space, basically, because now...
0:44:03 > 0:44:06- It looks safe in there, though, doesn't it?- No, it's not really.
0:44:06 > 0:44:10- It's not safe?- Yeah, no, no. - Really? All right.- Sorry.
0:44:10 > 0:44:13All right. You're standing there to stop me going in?
0:44:13 > 0:44:14That's right, yeah.
0:44:16 > 0:44:17- All right.- OK.
0:44:18 > 0:44:20- OK, all right.- Good.
0:44:20 > 0:44:22OK, let's do it.
0:44:24 > 0:44:27- I'm not going to make a run for it. - OK, all right.
0:44:28 > 0:44:30Well, if you do, we'll get some good workout
0:44:30 > 0:44:33- because I'll rugby tackle you. - You will what?
0:44:33 > 0:44:36- I'll rugby tackle you.- Oh, will you?
0:44:36 > 0:44:38It would be a very good... good cinema.
0:44:38 > 0:44:41I'm almost tempted to do it.
0:44:41 > 0:44:43THEY LAUGH
0:44:44 > 0:44:46'It is frustrating, though.
0:44:46 > 0:44:49'Ian had actually been pointing out the false wall that had been
0:44:49 > 0:44:53'put up in the '70s covering up the second gallery
0:44:53 > 0:44:58'and putting in a false ceiling covering the glass roof.'
0:44:58 > 0:45:01When I had last seen it as a student in the '60s,
0:45:01 > 0:45:04the Coal Exchange looked like this,
0:45:04 > 0:45:06with a second gallery and a glass roof.
0:45:08 > 0:45:11There were offices all around the galleries
0:45:11 > 0:45:14and people would shout their bids to the exchange floor.
0:45:17 > 0:45:20In the '70s, the glass roof was covered in,
0:45:20 > 0:45:24as well as the second gallery and the offices surrounding it.
0:45:27 > 0:45:31This shows the exterior of the Coal Exchange up until the 1970s.
0:45:33 > 0:45:37This is the main entrance. There was a restaurant to the right
0:45:37 > 0:45:40and steps leading to the Exchange from the street.
0:45:41 > 0:45:43Then it was decided to put in a car park,
0:45:43 > 0:45:47which would double as a nuclear air-raid shelter.
0:45:47 > 0:45:50The restaurant and main approach from the street were covered in.
0:45:52 > 0:45:55The unique exchange floor, seen here,
0:45:55 > 0:45:58a foot and a half below the normal floor where the bids were taken,
0:45:58 > 0:46:00I learned had also been filled in.
0:46:05 > 0:46:07Also, during the '70s development,
0:46:07 > 0:46:11the original ornate wooden staircases were removed
0:46:11 > 0:46:13and these put in their place.
0:46:28 > 0:46:32'I've been talking to the council about getting into the building.
0:46:32 > 0:46:35'A building I love and remember so well.
0:46:35 > 0:46:37'But weeks of phone calls have got me nowhere.'
0:46:38 > 0:46:40Urgh, jeez!
0:46:42 > 0:46:46Lucky I do these push-ups in the morning.
0:46:46 > 0:46:48CLATTERING GLASS SMASHES
0:47:03 > 0:47:07'Cardiff Council say they've spent £900,000 on this scaffolding
0:47:07 > 0:47:09'and the surrounding fence.'
0:47:19 > 0:47:22Bit of a rickety old ladder, this. Jesus.
0:47:26 > 0:47:30'I'm beginning to realise that my optimistic thoughts -
0:47:30 > 0:47:34'that making an architectural piece would be easy and not so stressful -
0:47:34 > 0:47:36'are wrong.'
0:47:48 > 0:47:52Anyway, I can't get in. It's in terrible condition.
0:48:00 > 0:48:02GLASS SMASHES
0:48:10 > 0:48:14It's estimated that it will cost £35 million
0:48:14 > 0:48:16to renovate the Coal Exchange.
0:48:16 > 0:48:19Here are recent plans backed by the council.
0:48:22 > 0:48:27Plans for a 21-storey tower block with 168 apartments.
0:48:27 > 0:48:31These plans were obtained under the Freedom of Information Act
0:48:31 > 0:48:32with much difficulty.
0:48:36 > 0:48:41Cardiff Council have been accused of abusing the Emergency Powers Act.
0:48:41 > 0:48:44These powers are normally used in a situation of real emergency.
0:48:44 > 0:48:47For example, if you have an articulated lorry hitting a building
0:48:47 > 0:48:50and it's looking perilously close to actually falling down.
0:48:50 > 0:48:56Whereas, clearly, they've been drawn upon to...
0:48:56 > 0:48:58facilitate certain...
0:48:58 > 0:49:00actions or certain activity
0:49:00 > 0:49:05and then no evidence of work going for many weeks and months.
0:49:05 > 0:49:08So there are some issues here that don't add up.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11'The sound of the capital city, Radio Cardiff.'
0:49:11 > 0:49:14'Not everyone on the council supports what is happening
0:49:14 > 0:49:15'to the Coal Exchange.
0:49:17 > 0:49:20'I went to talk to councillor Neil McEvoy
0:49:20 > 0:49:22'at the local radio station.'
0:49:22 > 0:49:25So it's back to the chat. I've got councillor Neil McEvoy.
0:49:25 > 0:49:30I've got DJ Silver and I've got Nick, back to the chat with Nick.
0:49:30 > 0:49:34- Before I ran out and left you all... - SHE LAUGHS
0:49:34 > 0:49:37..we were talking about the Coal Exchange and other beautiful
0:49:37 > 0:49:40buildings that are potentially going to be demolished.
0:49:40 > 0:49:44Is that true, councillor? Is that in the council's policy at the moment?
0:49:44 > 0:49:48It's not in the policy but it's certainly on the agenda.
0:49:48 > 0:49:49In Cardiff, in Wales, there is
0:49:49 > 0:49:53a complete lack of respect for our heritage and our history
0:49:53 > 0:49:57and these great buildings are assets which should be cherished
0:49:57 > 0:50:00and saved and used, like you said, for different purposes.
0:50:00 > 0:50:01I think it would be criminal,
0:50:01 > 0:50:04absolutely criminal, to demolish the Coal Exchange.
0:50:04 > 0:50:07It any other country in the world it would be celebrated,
0:50:07 > 0:50:09they'd have a museum, they'd have a visitor centre.
0:50:11 > 0:50:14'This is the council's head of planning, Pat Thompson.
0:50:15 > 0:50:19'He told me why he thinks the Coal Exchange should be demolished.'
0:50:19 > 0:50:23Of course its purpose was as it is, a coal exchange, which meant
0:50:23 > 0:50:24it was for the money men.
0:50:24 > 0:50:29So there is this issue that in actual fact people whose
0:50:29 > 0:50:34history and heritage is in the docks actually resent the people
0:50:34 > 0:50:39who were making all the money on the back of them who were coal trimmers
0:50:39 > 0:50:44in the docks or, of course, digging the coal up in the valleys.
0:50:44 > 0:50:47Because they hate it because they see it as an example
0:50:47 > 0:50:51of the people that made money on the back of their families.
0:50:52 > 0:50:54This seemed like a bad excuse.
0:50:54 > 0:50:58In fact, born and bred Butetowners like Betty Campbell
0:50:58 > 0:50:59love the Coal Exchange.
0:50:59 > 0:51:02When I was a child we used to look at it and think,
0:51:02 > 0:51:06"What a wonderful building." But we never entered it.
0:51:06 > 0:51:10And then times changed, and when I had been married 50 years
0:51:10 > 0:51:14I had my Golden Wedding celebrations in this building.
0:51:15 > 0:51:20And I stood in the middle of the floor and I said to myself,
0:51:20 > 0:51:21"I bet you never thought you'd see
0:51:21 > 0:51:25"so many black people in this place in one go."
0:51:25 > 0:51:27So it was like a little victory for me.
0:51:27 > 0:51:30But another evening that I had here was
0:51:30 > 0:51:34when I retired as head teacher of Mount Stuart School in 1999.
0:51:34 > 0:51:37And I didn't have an inkling of what was going to happen.
0:51:37 > 0:51:40We were supposed to meet here to meet some staff,
0:51:40 > 0:51:41we were going to go out.
0:51:41 > 0:51:45When I came here, when my husband brought me here,
0:51:45 > 0:51:47I could hear steel pans
0:51:47 > 0:51:50and it was the children from Mount Stuart School who were playing
0:51:50 > 0:51:55the steel pans as we walked in and when I went into the hall
0:51:55 > 0:51:58and saw the people there, I just couldn't believe it.
0:51:58 > 0:52:00STEEL PAN MUSIC
0:52:06 > 0:52:09And I think that, with the Golden Wedding here,
0:52:09 > 0:52:12were two of the most memorable evenings of my life.
0:52:13 > 0:52:17The hall was opened in 2001 as an events venue.
0:52:17 > 0:52:20FAST ROCK MUSIC PLAYS
0:52:33 > 0:52:37# The trumpet sounds within my soul... #
0:52:39 > 0:52:41UPBEAT ROCK MUSIC PLAYS
0:52:49 > 0:52:54Then suddenly in August, 2013, in the middle of a concert,
0:52:54 > 0:52:57Cardiff Council and the fire department closed the hall down.
0:53:00 > 0:53:02It's been closed ever since.
0:54:24 > 0:54:27I finally get permission to go inside the exchange hall.
0:54:41 > 0:54:42LIGHTS POWER ON
0:55:17 > 0:55:21'It's great to see Ian's enthusiasm for the building.'
0:55:21 > 0:55:24So I would be bidding to you from here, for example?
0:55:24 > 0:55:26This was the trading floor or just the floor.
0:55:26 > 0:55:30This was the place where if you were standing you could actually
0:55:30 > 0:55:32trade with people up there on the balcony.
0:55:32 > 0:55:36So a man out there could come out and say, "I've got a ship
0:55:36 > 0:55:43"going to Norway, leaving within two days, taking 1,000 tonnes of coal.
0:55:43 > 0:55:46"What's the best price for it?" And people down here would bid for that.
0:55:46 > 0:55:49And then at the same time other people would come in and do
0:55:49 > 0:55:53deals with them about supplies for them and things like that.
0:55:53 > 0:55:57Railway companies, paint companies for ships now.
0:55:58 > 0:56:00People who sold pit props.
0:56:00 > 0:56:02Because the boats went out with coal
0:56:02 > 0:56:06and came back with pit props from Norway.
0:56:06 > 0:56:09Often the boats went out and they didn't have a load to bring back.
0:56:09 > 0:56:13Everyone wanted coal so they had agents all over the world
0:56:13 > 0:56:18and one ship at least came back from New York full of tinned peaches.
0:56:18 > 0:56:21An American came here to write about Cardiff
0:56:21 > 0:56:22and he said you could buy tinned
0:56:22 > 0:56:25peaches on the streets of Cardiff cheaper than you could in America.
0:56:25 > 0:56:27Wow.
0:56:27 > 0:56:30So this is how important Cardiff was in those days.
0:56:30 > 0:56:35And the price of world coal was set here, at that time.
0:56:38 > 0:56:39Ian has also agreed to show us
0:56:39 > 0:56:42the back of the clock from the first-floor gallery
0:56:42 > 0:56:45which up to now has been a no-go area.
0:56:54 > 0:56:55Step this way.
0:56:58 > 0:57:03This clock was made by a man who by then was called Spiridion.
0:57:03 > 0:57:06He was a Polish refugee, possibly Jewish.
0:57:06 > 0:57:11And they came over, I think,
0:57:11 > 0:57:17when the Russians were expanding into Eastern Europe and...
0:57:18 > 0:57:20Wow! It still works.
0:57:20 > 0:57:23- It still works. It still keeps good time.- Does it?
0:57:23 > 0:57:25Yeah.
0:57:25 > 0:57:27It's worth just listening to for a minute.
0:57:27 > 0:57:28CLOCK TICKS
0:57:55 > 0:57:57Six months after we left,
0:57:57 > 0:58:00an investor came forward with serious plans
0:58:00 > 0:58:02to develop it as a boutique hotel.
0:58:04 > 0:58:08The people of Butetown deserve to see their community restored.
0:58:08 > 0:58:12Let's hope it can get back some of the old magic it once had.
0:58:12 > 0:58:20# Tiger Bay, Tiger Bay
0:58:20 > 0:58:26# It's not very far from the docks
0:58:28 > 0:58:32# When you get
0:58:32 > 0:58:35# To Loudoun Square
0:58:36 > 0:58:40# Turn to the right
0:58:40 > 0:58:43# And you're not far from there
0:58:43 > 0:58:45# Tiger Bay. #