Gorton, Manchester.
I ended up living in Gorton because I couldn't afford to live in Moss Side.

I didn't know much about Manchester when I decided to stop commuting and buy a house closer to my office. I asked around a bit about what would be a suitable area for a first-time buyer, and then did a price search on a few estate agency websites.

I found a few places that looked reasonable; a couple of them was in Gorton. I made appointments for viewings. On the radio in the car as I drove up the M6 for the appointments, there was a programme called Britain on the Box; they were talking about the making of Shameless - and about how it was filmed in West Gorton. This set off alarm bells. Arriving early, I checked out the area around one house - and decided not only that I was no longer interested in the property, but that I was not even going to get out of the car. I do have some standards.

The second house wasn't as grim: reader, I bought it. It's a house that in London would easily have cost twice as much. A couple of miles across Manchester, it might easily fetch several tens of thousands of pounds more. What killed the price was its location.

Gorton is not a lovely place. As you drive east out of Manchester, Gorton is the bit where you wind up your windows. This is not so much because someone will take something from your car as you stop at the lights; it's much more likely that they'll take the opportunity to throw litter in. If the lights are particularly slow to change, they might get their dog - invariably called Tyson - to foul your passenger seat as well. The physics of how there manages to be so much litter and dog crap on the streets of Gorton is baffling. How so many cigarette packets, fag ends, food wrappers manage to get through my gate is a puzzle that has me defeated. But they do.

As I said: I ended up in Gorton because Moss Side was out of reach. And yet, bizarrely, I like it. I don't mind the derelict and boarded up houses. I can tolerate the three stabbings that have happened within a two-minute walk of my front door in the past 18 months. I'm very happy living there; and despite appearances, the streets aren't nearly as dangerous as people think - I suspect there's a double-bluff in operation, inasmuch as such is the fear of being out at night that not even the muggers risk it: the result is that the streets are actually completely safe.





Though I do have to admit that if I still live in Gorton in five years, something will clearly have gone very wrong with my career.
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 13:35, 8 replies)

It all went downhill when Gorton Tub was made into a private health club.
Cunts.
( Fitznicely into a thimble, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 13:42, closed)

Is "private health club" a euphemism for knocking-shop? There's a couple of them on the Hyde Road.
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 13:48, closed)

Club 456 or whatever it's called these days?

( Wicca'd Witch needs ideas for a new sig on..., Sun 1 Nov 2009, 21:10, closed)

I remember going there was I little
It wasn't long after it 1st opened.

I have quite a family history with Gorton, and my mums side of the family were very well known in the area.

My mum grew up on Mount Road and got married at Lady of our Mercy (past The Mount - cracking pub!), uncles and aunties went to school at Spurley Hey, my grandfather was local councillor in the late 70s (he campaigned for and opened Longsight library), my uncle campaigned for the regeneration of the area until his death back in 2005.

Sadly Gorton went a bit shit from around 1995 onwards.
( SpikeyPickle wishes he was mabazaritchie, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 14:52, closed)

Funnily enough,
Gorton seems to be the destination for most of my mates upon buying their first house. I'm guessing price has a fair bit to do with that. The Moss Side being out of reach bit has me baffled though. In terms of price or location? Judging by your seemingly academic vocation I'd imagine Moss Side is closer to all of Manchesters Universities.
(The man with the flan swashed his buckle on, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 14:49, closed)

Price is everything.
I managed to get a much better house in Gorton than I would have been able to afford in most other places in the city. In fairness, my second choice for a house was in the outskirts of Moss Side - but it cost more and was smaller. And the yard wasn't South-facing.

As for location: it takes me 15 minutes to get from my door to my office by bike; it's pretty much a straight line, and only 3 miles.
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 14:54, closed)

Every tim eI've been in Manchester by cab, I go past the sign for the 'Gorton Heritage Trail.'
Every cabbie then either makes one of the two following jokes.

'The 'eritage trail takes yer back in time. Yer staart off goin' past burnt owt Ka's, then Fiestohs, then minis, then Model T's, etc all the way back to burnt owt Roman Chariots'.

Or

'They 'ad to chang eflightpath of planes from't airport as evry time they went over Gorton they were losin' tyres'.
( Amorous Badger NAKED BEA ARTHUR PHOTOS 4U, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 15:23, closed)

.
I go to the climbing centre up that way quite a bit... first time I went there 'n was trying to find the place I'd never been so scared, I definately thought I'd stumbled into the wrong part of town... it's a nasty looking area alright but I've never had any problems up there at least *touch wood*
(happynoodleboy, Fri 30 Oct 2009, 23:47, closed)