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25^th January 2014

Top Picture:  The Tricorn

Middle: Charlotte Street before the Tricorn

Bottom Picture: Goodbye to the Tricorn

The Tricorn

Having been heavily bombed during the 1940s, much of Commercial Road had to be rebuilt in the post-war years. The Debenhams store (formerly known as Landports and then Allders) was built in the early 1950s. A proposed extension onto the site of the adjacent surface car park was never built.

In the early 1960's, Portsmouth City Council had studied the estimated future shopping needs of the City and held discussions with various developers. One of the areas under intense discussion was the Charlotte Street area. In October 1962, outline planning was submitted and permission was granted for the comprehensive development of land for shopping, wholesale market and a multi-storey car park. Seven roads affected by the scheme were to be subject to road closures which included the closure of the Charlotte Street market which had served the populace for decades. Discussions continued and detailed plans were released in February 1964 and the Tricorn was born.

The construction company Taylor Woodrow began work on the first Stage of the development later that year. The Centre was to be built so that the general public could walk through it to reach Commercial Road. On the first floor there was to be a 2,000m² supermarket (this was very large for mid-1960s). The development also included eight flats and 490 car parking spaces. The building continued much to the dismay of many of the local residents and it was opened in 1966 and cost £2 million to complete the much heralded and architecturally controversial development. In 1967, the City Council were very proud when the Tricorn won a Civic Trust award for its "exciting visual composition". However this euphoria was short lived as in the following year it was voted Britain's fourth ugliest building in a poll of 500 designers. Its success was never assured and when it came to use it the public did not like it. The supermarket never appeared, the first floor wholesale fruit and veg market failed as did the nightclub on the ground floor. The only notable outlet in the development was the first ever Virgin Megastore. But even that did not last. The place became rundown, a home for crime and unsavory behaviour.

In 1994, Taylor Woodrow put the Tricorn up for sale for £3 million. In April 1995, Ashcroft Retail Centres Ltd submitted proposals for an 8,000m² "in-town retail park", comprising nine 'high street' shops in three blocks. The application also included leisure facilities at first floor level, surface/multi-storey car, landscaping, market stores/offices and wall/railing features to the Marketway/Cascades Approach. The City Council's Planning Committee on 11 October 1995 refused permission for the scheme because of its unsatisfactory design and its conflict with existing policies on shopping and leisure facilities in the city centre. As a result, Ashcroft withdrew their interest in the site.

The Planning Committee granted Taylor Woodrow outline planning permission for a proposal on the Tricorn site on 9 October 1996 this was for a development of retail shops and food & drink outlets with part surface and part multi-storey car parking. The scheme presented a crescent shape onto Marketway with two storeys of development, accommodating the leisure element at first floor level.

The newly adopted City Local Plan identified the Tricorn as a new retail floorspace. An approved brief, published in May 2000 preferred and amended the option providing for extensive additional retail and leisure floorspace, car parking, and the re-alignment of Marketway. This meant the destruction of the existing buildings. Planning permission was secured in March 1999 for the demolition of the Tricorn and the construction of a surface car park on the site as an interim measure.

In 2001, BBC Radio 4 listeners voted it the most hated building in the UK, and Prince Charles described it as "a mildewed lump of elephant droppings", although it was much admired by others, who saw it as an irreplaceable example of Brutalist architecture. Demolition of the Tricorn began on 24 March 2004 and lasted approximately nine months. Opponents of demolition argued that the structure, while sadly undermaintained, was still salvageable with the work of ingenious designers and a long-term city plan. However, the government and public opinion was that the building had decayed too far and had attracted such a bad reputation that the only option was to replace it. The Tricorn was the subject of such strength and diversity of public feeling that opinion boards were placed around its boarding for the public to write their comments on.

Since then little has happened on site apart from the demolition of the entire Tricorn Centre. The area being flattened and being laid to Tarmac and opened as a car park, which by looking at it today is very little, used and is almost a big an eyesore as the original building was.

As if this was not enough who remembers the fiasco that was Portsdown Park?

Stay in touch

Peter

DUSTYKEAT@aol.com

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Jonathon Writes:-

Hi Peter,

Thanks for today's blog.

In Michelle Leviers second photo of the school prefects my Carol (nee Winter) is middle row third from left with Dame Edna glasses.

News and Views:

On 2nd January Geoffrey Wheeler the presenter of Songs of Praise and Top of the Form died. He was 83. He spent 21 years presenting Songs of Praise which is now the worlds longest religious programme.

On this Day 25^th January 1960-1965

On 25/01/1960 the number one single was Why - Anthony Newley and the number one album was South Pacific Soundtrack. The top rated TV show was not listed and the box office smash was North by Northwest. A pound of today's money was worth £13.68 and Burnley were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

 On 25/01/1961 the number one single was Are you Lonesome Tonight? - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was The Russ Conway Show (ATV) and the box office smash was One Hundred and One Dalmations. A pound of today's money was worth £not very interesting and 13.25 were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions. The big news story of the day was Bootsie & Snudge (Granada).

 On 25/01/1962 the number one single was The Young Ones - Cliff Richard & the Shadows and the number one album was Blue Hawaii - Elvis Presley. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was Lawrence of Arabia. A pound of today's money was worth £12.89 and Ipswich Town were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

 On 25/01/1963 the number one single was Dance On - The Shadows and the number one album was Out of the Shadows - Shadows. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Great Escape. A pound of today's money was worth £12.64 and Everton were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

 On 25/01/1964 the number one single was Glad All Over - Dave Clark Five and the number one album was With the Beatles - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Steptoe & Son (BBC) and the box office smash was Dr Strangelove. A pound of today's money was worth £12.24 and Liverpool were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions.

 On 25/01/1965 the number one single was Yeh Yeh - Georgie Fame and the number one album was Beatles For Sale - The Beatles. The top rated TV show was Coronation Street (Granada) and the box office smash was The Sound of Music. A pound of today's money was worth £11.69 and Manchester United were on the way to becoming the Season's Division 1 champions

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