Wigan's abandoned street, what happened here? Why does this once thriving main street now lie empty? 

Many problems in this country at the moment

@@andrewemmerson thank you for your feedback.its a mess .I can not think of one good thing at the moment.all things are going down hill .fast

@@MichaelFitzpatrick-b9e I think that the Wigan town centres development will become the new homes for a few hundred illegals that are currently in Hotels in the Northwest. This will enable Westminster Gov. to allow new arrivals from foreign climes to be sheltered in those Hotels. Sirkeir wants that to happen apparently.

At least save what’s left of the old buildings 🙏😃

Also born and bred! I remember it in the 80's, so very shocking that it's gone downhill so much. I still hope that it can be turned around.

Hi from Australia. Such lovely buildings. What a shame the city doesn't do something. 😢

@@mariewelstead7070 Hello! Yes we live in hope that the buildings will be restored!

What happened that we are supposed to accept this?

Not that well in some places 😁

It’s a really mixed picture in Wigan at the moment, most of it not great. I really hope this is the low point and the town gets built back up from here on in, a lot of talk about a lot of projects, one in particular in king street arcade, let’s wait and see what happens, 🤞🏻

Worst thing is most of them are still bars and clubs, I live in Wigan and I've not had a drink up king street in about 5 years and it was bad then, it's like there's no investment in the town yet there spending a fortune on flattening the galleries and market to build an cinema and whatever else there doing, ive just lost interest there ruining the town. What's the point in building a cinema when we already had one, wasting money yet king street now like a slum

@@ryanmcguinness7898 Some very good points there, I wouldn't disagree.

I’m from Wigan, and the town centre is a shadow of what it was, king street was party central years ago. As said people came from all around the uk for a night out in Wigan, i used to work in an office on market street until around 10 yrs ago, and the streets were juts full of drunken tramps all day every day. The market hall has gone, been demolished recently. Most of the shops are boarded up etc. but never mind as long as the immigrant invaders are ok it’s all good.

​@nez9751 focus on the cause not the problem. Focus on who is allowing these immigrants into this country.

Hope you enjoyed the video 👍

True

Very sad, I hope Wigan can make a comeback with the new regeneration, however I don’t know what will happen to king street 😕

@@andrewemmerson I left the UK for Australia in 1987 and only went back for the 1st time in 2022. All of those Lancs towns are in a sad state; Bolton, Blackburn etc, Preston seems to have managed a little better. My home town Chorley is all betting shops, charity shops and takeaway food shops. Southport is a hollow shell of its former self, Lord Street used to be so swish back in the day, now it is like a ghost town.

Lord street in particular has suffered, the shops are mostly converting to bars, or the ones left are just cheap shops, the quality seems to have been lost, it's sad.

It does seem like the council ultimately decide how the town is run and what development is needed, but we need to wait and see if this whole plan will pay off, u hope it will, however I’m really concerned that it’s not a good plan and not properly considered for what’s needed by the town.

Times changes, and the town must change to survive. I hope they have the right ideas in place, I'm just not so sure!

fair point, it's a bit much on that video! I tend to have less music and quieter on any dialogue on the later videos.

He doesn't look that tired

Understatement of the year 😂

Cheers 😂🙏

Sadly your not wrong, much worse than it used to be 😪

We should defiantly be preserving Wigan's great buildings, or after a certain point they won't be worth saving. Also makes the town unique.

Same thing in most towns, Nottingham is one where they have pulled some down just to be replaced by a modern monstrosity.

@@robincurwood Not been to Nottingham for a long time, but remember it as a nice town.

@@robincurwood The modern buildings today make me want to weep they are so depressing, probably slightly better than the 60s and 70s brutalist architecture but not much.

Thank you for your comment, no I won’t try that! 😂 in Wigans case the out of town shopping does have a huge impact the town centre, when you can get most things such as lunch etc from there.

Out of town retail parks have done a lot of damage but so to have Amazon

Are you in the video? What time? 😱

Good times, I remember those days!

Well spotted👍

Lack of understanding and long term planning

Some good points there, might have to do a follow up 😆

Ahhh thank you, I remember that name now you mention it 👍

I remember Dawsons, was a really good shop, also Harker and Howarth (library st)! I don't remember the Court cinema as a cinema though as it closed in 73, just before my time!

@@andrewemmerson my friend Ian Sudworth worked at Harker and Howarth we used to pick him up before gigs

I just about noticed it 👍

😩😩😩

Not had the chance to visit Maryport, but would like to get up that way sometime!

Back in the days when Wigan Casino was still going! There used to be a few underground bars in and around King Street 👍

@@andrewemmerson As a teenager I always wanted to go to the "All Nighter" at the Casino but parents never allowed it.

@@hwallen9316 Ah that would have been something to see!

It was Pluto's, it was "THE bar" , hard to get in, your face had to fit if you were a guy haha, fabulous place, I loved it!! I went from 85. 3 floors of different music or was it 2, I have brain issues lol X

@@red-inmy-50s-temper-dont-match Yikes I was/am an ugly bugger but they let me in, prob cos my girl looked a Million Dollars back then and still does today.

It's a complicated picture, but I agree 2020 and 2024 had a negative effect in some place. Towns like Shrewsbury, Lincoln and York are not suffering, full of shops! So it appears to me the local economic conditions are wrong?

@@andrewemmerson To be fair, Lincoln and York are cities rather than towns, and both tourist spots to an extent - York more so, but Lincoln cathedral is a big draw too. Shrewsbury is a town, but is the county town of Shropshire. Wigan has Manchester and Liverpool to compete with for revellers, as well as dozens of other small towns and 'trendy' villages within easy reach. That said, the town was booming as recently as the 2000's, when King Street was filled with bars and clubs, the Pier nightclub was still around, the football club was in the Premier League and you'd bump into people from all over the north of England (plus a few from further afield) on any given weekend night out. It's sad to see this decline, but we can rise again! There are lots of good groups and individuals with enough passion for Wigan to fight back - we can't just sit back and moan and argue, like so many people on social media groups choose to do, whilst doing absolutely nothing at all themselves to help.

@@jam-nc8ut Both Lincoln and Shrewsbury are towns, (Lincoln City is the football club) I mentioned these as I have filmed a video on both. LIncoln population is about 100k and Shrewbury even less, where as Wigan is over 300k, (York admittedly not really a fair comparison). I think Wigan has other things to offer than Manchester or Liverpool, and a lot of people prefer to go to towns of this size. However I do agree with you, Wigan has so much potential and I hope this video wasn't too negative, I do genuinely believe like yourself that it will come up!

I remember the ritz in Saturday mornings! 😃

@@andrewemmerson I worked there until closure in 1983.

Hope it will return to glory soon! 😢

Somebody has ruined it 😪

That’s a really good point that king street doesn’t lead to anything, that giant car park is bearly used as it’s not a good location, so not many people walk there. Yes it needs a lot of investment and work for this area. I hope it will improve but right now I’m not so hopeful.

Good times, I remember maxims rock night and the John Bull! Also have not been out in Wigan for many decades!

Hopefully not beyond revival

I'm not sure if that sounds like a good idea or not? Money might be better spent elsewhere. But yes as you say not as popular as it once was so won't happen now.

A bit sinister that! 😬

I believe a company has bought the empire cinema so should be getting refurbished and a reopen soon

Ah right, that’s good local knowledge thank you so much 🙏

Very interesting about the funding issues, I don’t personally think that retail parks should be allowed unless they are properly connected to the town and accessible by foot, otherwise they will always take trade from the high street.

@@andrewemmerson Thank you hansom and trade moved to Robin Park

Sadly true

Might have to try that! 😆👍

I make up all my videos myself 😆

I would love to see that!

@@andrewemmerson go next Friday trust me Wigan warriors vs St Helens it will be mayhem after it has

Still alive 😆

Like the birdhouse in my brain

Hopefully it will be back someday!

Hopefully not, but doesn’t look too promising in many places

@@andrewemmerson Over 70 y ago my father used to take me occasionally from Liverpool to Wigan to see his aunt Alice. As I recall she lived in a terraced house, with her front lower room being a small newsagent/tobacconist. She had a very small rear garden where she kept a rabbit. I have a soft spot for Wigan and like the name Alice. Best etc. amigo.

@@BruceJackson-lx2dw nice story thanks for sharing it 👍

I'm fairly sure that in the video I heard that this was filmed on a Sunday, and clearly it's during the day. King Street has been a night time economy for as long as I can remember - I'm 45 - so it's unfair to describe it as a ghost town or abandoned. It still gets decent trade on weekend nights, albeit a long way off what it once was.

@@jam-nc8ut Wigan is not alone as to English towns becoming distressed in recent years. Let's hope for a revival for this town, with its Orwellian links fame. Has the town commercialy exploited it's Wigan Pier literary fame? What about a book festival celebrating Orwell's works? All the best my friend.

🙏

Will make a comeback!

I hope not irretrievably 🙏

It does seem like the conditions for creating prosperity are not in place at all!

@@andrewemmerson Indeed. It's so sad to see

💯

Although the Labour-controlled council and the Labour MP don't seem to be doing much for Wigan, do they? Apart from for themselves, of course!

@@billysollox4697 they get their money from central government

Probably stay at home on their phones 😆

Sadly right!