What has happened in Sheffield recently that could be considered interesting? I understand that most of the young talent still leaves the city to go south where the real jobs are. Plus, the city is certainly not as clean as it could be. Is there any money available for upgrades from the council? Any suggestions on what would make this city better?

I.M.Joe King
Darnall

:D

i do find sheffield quite boring actually.i find that if you are not into pubs as i am not there doesn't seem to be much to do.i also find there is not much choice as i am normally used to and to get a table at a good restaurant(slammers etc)i have to book weeks in advance.

Sheffield boring ??
Not sure what makes a place boring, I would have thought Sheffield has as much or as little to do as any other big city. All depends what your interests and your budget are. Sport, theatre, music, restaurants, cinema, shopping, rock climbing, going to the country side ?
What has Sheffield not got ?

I've lived in Birmingham, Portsmouth and Sheffield.
All have plenty of things to do. If going to the pub is the only thing you can think of, and something you don't like, then it's your imagination that is lacking, not Sheffield.

I don't like going to pubs but I do like going to jazz cafes, cocktail bars and good coffee houses. I also like going to art galleries, interesting independant restaurants and at weekends, somewhere to eat breakfast at any time of the day and read the papers. Sheffield it has to be said is woefully lacking in all of these 'big city' attributes.

Sheffield does have alot to do, if you're in the right mood, although personally the fact that it's so close to the Peak District is what keeps me entertained most weekends. If you're into sports I think theres quite alot here. Mainly we have alot of park land and trees, which is good, if you like parks, I think most other things you have to pay for and if it rains, well you can only go round the Mappin a few times before you know every beetle in every draw off by heart.
A bad point is that all the bars are the same now too and the clubs don't offer the wealth of choice as can be found in cities like Manchester and Bristol which have a lot of smaller clubs affering loads of different music choices. I have edited this bit now... you know we do OK for late entertainment really.
I think I'd rather live here than any other English city, it's friendly, mostly, it's pretty safe and it's got character. The ski slopes a good laugh and there's not many other places with one as big as ours! You can climb and cycle, or eat and drink and we've got more cinema seats per head than any where else. Skaters have got a pretty good choice of places to go and we've got some good sports centers too.
I reckon Sheffield'll improve alot in the next few years and I don't think I'll get that bored waiting to see what happens.

An emphatic NO,
there is much entertainment here now, pubs clubs, la chambre, cinemas.night schools, parks, sheffields lake district, theatres, massage parlours, colleges,universitys, hotels, restaurants, peace gardens, winter gardens librarys, supertram,meadowhall,don valley stadium, city centre shopping, parking is relatively easy, excellent police service, excellent council, free parking for disabled, city centre regeneration, and much more that I cannot think of the moment. Oh, and surrounded by beautifull derbyshire. Still think it is boring? :D

and lots of people who shout. :evil:

Moon Maiden

......La Chambre......massage parlours........??

hmm...............

An emphatic No, it's not boring.

I have to say that whatever you wish to do (money permitting) you can do it in or nearby Sheffield.

Restuarants - Good selection including some very good small independent restaurants, Coffee bars - proliferation on Ecclesall Road (Nonna's etc), Cinemas - So many including the very comfortable Showroom,
walking/Climbing etc. - So much countryside to choose from, Stately Homes etc., Sports - 2 football clubs, athletics stadium, go karting, 5 a side pitches, hockey pitches, tennis centre, indoor cricket, etc....., Book reading clubs, Other meeting clubs, 2 commercial and many other small independent theatres, Art galleries, Public parks, Gigs going on throughout the city covering so many music types..., comedy clubs...

As well as a good range of pubs and clubs.

If you've got a broad mind and wish to try something new then get out there and just join in. Don't have a narrow mind and winge - do something.

The one thing that would improve Sheffield is a city centre with a distinctive personality and a wider range of cultural events. Somehow you go into the city and feel 'there's nothing here'. It's not entirely true - there are decent places to go - but Sheffield is a city in sack cloth, eyes cast down as Leeds laughs in its face. Sheffield needs attitude, it needs to build on its strengths, it needs to sell itself.

I've lived in several different places and actually chose to come to Sheffield. Sometimes I wonder why when I see the weather and the job situation is dire, talent moving out of Sheffield is not the problem, the problem is there are no jobs!
I'm quite happy to stay here as a secretary, rather waste of my degree though, and there are many people who feel the same.
Good Council.....?
Are you mental? The worst council I have ever seen, and I've worked in it!
I like the night life, I am always remembering places that I haven't been in ages although the resturants are a pain.
In random concusion, thumbs up.... I'm not moving to Reading just yet. :shock:

Sheffield certainly has a certain charm or something, I mean I've alot of mates from abroad who came for a few months and stayed for years, there's some sort of pull to stay here. It's certainly not the huge amount of remaining amazing buildings, it not the fantastic public services and it's deffinately not the city centre shops etc, I think it's down to the people. We may whinge and moan but we're pretty laid back we can certainly laugh about things and we're a pretty friendly lot (on the whole).
Regarding the council, I'm meeting a councillor in a few days about something I've been ****** off about for nine months (yes it took that long to get to even have a face to face meeting), the outcome will either have me joining in with more insults or maybe trying to defend them....hmmmm, I'll let you know.

Has anyone been to Hull? Now THAT'S boring.

As an "ex-pat" Sheffielder consigned to the misery of Southampton, I can happily say that Sheffield is a fantastic place! Honestly, moving here was like taking a 15 year step back in time.

The people are unfriendly, the city centre is about as big as Fargate and the attitudes are practically neoloithic.

In the 5 years I've been here, I've made a lot of friends, but not a single one is from Southampton....the locals just do not want to know you if you aren't from their neck of the woods.

Its the only town I've seen that has local pubs divided into "student" and "non-student" areas......

Gah! I hate the place with a passion, it's flat, lifeless has a trully awful night scene (if you want a good time in Southampton, you go to Bournemouth, Portmouth or Brighton!!). A total cultural void.

Sheffield rocks and I miss it like hell!

i moved to sheffield when i was young and i think that it was a wast of time more happens in the desert than here :twisted: :evil:

I think that the 'boringness' of Sheffield heavily depends on what you are comparing it to. Cruddy places such as Hull, York and Nottingham have very little in the way of clubs and nightlife, and compared to them Sheffield is great. But it is important to realise that Sheffield is also the 3rd largest city in England, hosting a large student population with one of the best universities in the country and when compared to other large cities such as Leeds and Manchester, the nightlife is appauling. With about 7 clubs and 15ish student bars there's not much for students at all...

Nottingham!!! What are you saying? Nottingham leaves Sheffield for dead in all respects. There are Sushi restaurants, juice bars, many independant bars, Wagamamas and many other fantastic venues. You really haven't experienced it fully if you think Sheffield is a more fulfilling city. For a student perhaps Sheffield is better. That is one of the cities big problems, the council have allowed developers to cater for students too much. It's very much biased towards students on West Street, on Eccleshall Road, in Broomhill and Crookes.

I completly agree!!if you have nothing to compare sheffield to or you have a limited budget,i guess sheffield is cool.How many times can you go to the Wintergardens for goodness sake.

As many times as you feel like you want to chill out for a bit? Expecting there to be something there to keep you occupied all the time kind of misses the point - it's a space to do your own thing in in a pleasant environment.

I agree that Sheffield caters well for typical student tastes but could do with more variety elsewhere. It's a brave person who puts their money and time into something unusual but others have done that here and proved successful. I hope we get more people doing the same, and without over-pricing things because they're unique.

Boring is the wrong phrase I feel. It isn't by any means boring. Frustrating under developed would probably fit a little better.

I moved to Manchester from Sheffield back in '99 and my eyes were opened at the lack of facillities and whatnot Sheffield has in comparison.

Unlike most towns, Sheffield doesn't have a proper centre, it's strewn right from the Haymarket to the bottom of the moor. Some parts of it have improved immensely since I left, such as West Street, but some other places look terrible.

If you come to Manchester on a Sunday, you can park on the city centre streets or car parks for free, ALL the shops are open and there are lots of open air cafes and bars, which gives it a great cosmopolitan atmosphere. I never felt that Sheffield could do the same.

Sheffield has tried to recreate a 'riverside living' area down near Lady's Bridge, but with a shallow trickle of a river and the awful estates nearby, it will never have the same kind of appeal as other docklands redevelopments. What happened to the Canal Basin? That was supposed to be full of shops and activity but seems dead.

I'm not knocking Sheffield, I lived here for almost 30 years and love the place and it's people and visit at least every other week, and still watch 'Calendar' every night! But, unless serious development is done, not just in the building sense, it will remain a 'forgotten town', not just on weather maps, but in the national news.

Just want to add a little P.S. to my previous post.

One thing Sheffield has thats better than Manchester is better water fountains in the Peace Gardens! Manchester recently redeveloped it's Picadilly Gardens in a similar style but it's not as good.

Victoria Quays is a fabulous area with lots of potential for open air cafes, restaurants, shops, bars, craft markets, boat trips and could become a real melting pot of Sheffield cultural diversity. Has it been promoted and pushed by the council to encourage new ventures to set up there? Don't think so. It's a crying shame.

But hey, at least we have Castle Market and the Moor. :x

It occured to me the other day that Tudor Square would make a good location for open air cafes and bars to set up

What has sheffield not got?
decent city centre stores... The Moor is shocking filled with £1 shops which clearly sell items worth less that half that price . No wonder people prefer to shop at Meadowhall

Originally posted by "Anonymous"

But it is important to realise that Sheffield is also the 3rd largest city in England,
Actually it's 4th. I've just done a bit of research and surprisingly Liverpool has a higher population, but Manchester has a slightly lower population.

How many major city centres are there without a Starbucks, Habitat, Muji, places to sit outside and eat or drink with heating for all weathers, Pret a Manger, etc.

I think transport is a big factor in why people are staying away. The city centre is too closely surrounded by busy ring roads 'fencing' it in. The roads are also in a terrible state. I had a friend from the Netherlands stay with me a few years ago and he said even Poland had better roads than us!

But, the biggest disappointment for me is the airport. It was built far too short at the start, restricting it's traffic. You have places like Manchester - fly worldwide, Liverpool - go anywhere in Europe, even Leeds now has a cheap flight service. What does Sheffield have? A shuttle service to London and Belfast and to the Channel Isles in the summer? I was lucky enough to be one of the first to fly to Amsterdam when that service launched. What happened to that?

I think Sheffield is a great city to live, when you compare other big cities like for like you have to balance the good and bad points. I do agree that the Airport was/is a big disappointment, for a city this size it was a wasted opportunity. I also think the city falls short on job opportunities, it has not seen the boom like that in Manchester and Leeds. Sheffield makes up for some of it's shortfalls with it's friendliness.

As a Sheffielder born & bred u tend to defend your city..but sometimes its "foreigners" that make u appreciate what u have. Recently I was driving a visitor from London around the city. I was commenting on the bad aspects of the City & reflecting on what were the "good times". Like "when i were young u cud walk the streets without fear of being mugged" the amount of traffic,lack of facilities etc etc. This visitor made me think about the good points. Wherever we are in Sheffield we are no more than 20 minutes from the wonderful Peak District. This City is full of character & history. There is always something happening for all age groups, for all tastes, for all cultures.....there is so much going for EVERYONE, if people will open their eyes and lookfor it!! You cant expect everything to be handed on a plate. Whatever you want Sheffield can offer it....just look for it.
After I left this visitor I thought about his comments .....and yes,I may have lived here for almost 40 years but he could see more than I what this city has to offer!!
An old Yorkshire saying "Ya can't see further than end o ya nose" HOW TRUE.

I've been in Sheffield for a few months now, and I can safely say that it has a lot more going for it than my hometown of Oxford.

I certainly haven't got bored yet!

Nobody is denying that Sheffield is a great place. But it could be a whole lot better for not a great deal more effort. It is after all a major city. This factor is not reflected in the range of opportunities here or the general state of the place, by comparison. Yes we all know it's near to the Peak District etc. but if we had a fraction of the things going on here as cities like Leeds, Manchester and Nottingham have, it would be an incredible place to live. All it needs is for people, developers and the council to be a little more forward thinking and a little less of the 'flat cap and whippet' mentality, which incidentally seems to 'dog' the whole of South Yorkshire. The airport and Meadowhall are perfect examples of this.

NO! It is never boring,not to me anyhow but then I am biased,having been born here,I go away a lot on holiday but I am alway's glad to get back.Don't go drinking,clubbing,cinema, theatre,la chambre,spearmint rhino,so I suppose I must be a dinasaur. :wink: :oops: :P

we need more quality, original restaurants, clothes shops, etc not homogeneous chains like starbucks!

The larger chains represent confidence within a business centre. This in turn gives people who want to open the quality, original entreprises, the confidence to do so. successfully. Until that confidence is here in Sheffield we'll always be stuck with little better than the anything for a pound type shops.

Originally posted by "Anonymous"

How many major city centres are there without a Starbucks, Habitat, Muji, places to sit outside and eat or drink with heating for all weathers, Pret a Manger, etc.

According to an article in the Guardian recently, Sheffield holds the distinction of being the only city in which a pret a manger has shut down due to lack of custom.....

Originally posted by "tinajones"

we need more quality, original restaurants, clothes shops, etc not homogeneous chains like starbucks!

Not having been in Sheffield for a while, what happened to the Forum? That used to be full of indelendant little shops....

AS for no chains.....thats never going to happen! Sad as it is......

According to an article in the Guardian recently, Sheffield holds the distinction of being the only city in which a pret a manger has shut down due to lack of custom.....

This is a little to unfair as it wasn't in Sheffield, it was in Meadowhell. And how many people of any discerning taste go to Meadowhell.......? If they opened one in the centre now, in the right place I think it would do very well.

I am contemplating moving to Sheffield and thought i would browse the forum to see the good points and bad points of Sheffield. At first i was a little bemused by the variety of opinions :roll: . But it seems the good points outweigh the bad.

My first visit was a bit of a shock.....how steep are your streets!!!so scary! :shock: well they are to a cheshire girl who is used to flat land all around.

Hey when all said and done, those of us who do have bad opinions about Sheffield, only do so because we believe it's a fantastic city that could be a whole lot better if we had a forward thinking council. It's purely frustation......I for one wouldn't really like to live anywhere else.

I also think the sudden rush of bad opinion you have discovered here is because people like myself have never had a forum, on which to vent anger and frustration at what goes on in the city. This forum has provided a much needed soapbox for anyone who passionately believes in this wonderful, if slightly rusty steel city :D .

Originally posted by "Anonymous"

According to an article in the Guardian recently, Sheffield holds the distinction of being the only city in which a pret a manger has shut down due to lack of custom.....

This is a little to unfair as it wasn't in Sheffield, it was in Meadowhell. And how many people of any discerning taste go to Meadowhell.......? If they opened one in the centre now, in the right place I think it would do very well.

THat makes it a bit odder really.....mind you, if the Chocolate Factory can shut down, anything can...... :(

I'd've thought a City Centre Pret would've done pretty well, myself.

Is the Blue Moon Cafe still open, btw?

Yes but it has moved to the ELR building next to the cathedral. And jolly nice it is too with excellent food.

Right, I will aim to add a southerner’s perspective to this tale.
I was born and bred in London, and moved to Sheffield permanently 6 months ago. I have been coming here for the last 15 years at weekends to visit my dad who lives out in the Peak District in Froggatt. Now 26 years of age, I have also had a sister who was here at Uni a couple of years ago, so have visited the City throughout my growing years, as a chid, teenager, and adult.

I love the City, so much so that I now live here. I work in Leeds, only a couple of hours travel every day, although on the M1, when the suns shines its great scenery, in the morning . (a much more pleasant experience than the London Underground or the now new £5 charge! to drive ) With Leeds being the 2nd largest financial centre outside London, there is a lot of opportunity in the area.

Although still capable of a lot of improvement, The feel to Sheffield is what does it for me. Something I find hard to describe. I'm not going to list what there is and what I find great about it, I just want to say that you have a converted Southerner amongst you.

The diversity is what gets me, from the beauty of the Peak District to the nastiness of areas I wont mention, I am planning to stay here for a very long time.

A very warm and big HELLO to all you folk!

As someone who is soon to move down to Sheffield from Glasgow to take up a great new job I want to say what a fantastic forum this is. You really talk about issues close to your heart openly and the banter and debate are interesting. The discussion on Sheffield's image and whether or not it is boring has stimulated me to chip in with some honest thoughts.

I am someone who was born and brought up in West Yorkshire but then left home for uni. My journey has taken me from Manchester to Oxford, back to West Yorkshire briefly and then up north of the border to Glasgow.
I might add that I have also travelled around the world quite a lot inclding Europe, North America , Asia, Far East. So when I look at Sheffield it is through the eyes of a traveller. So what do I think?

Well, I feel that Sheffield is a nice city which has the potential to be a very nice European city. Yes, like any big city it has its deprived areas but there are a lot of things going for it.
Its location is excellent for a start. It's so central that anywhere is within easy reach. The beautiful countryside of the Peak District is at your doorstep. You have great universities and it seems to me very friendly people. Culturally, there are theatres, cinemas and art galleries too.

What I do think is lacking at the moment is a vibrant city centre which would come with new classy shops, cafes, a greater diversity of restaurants and some nice city squares. I guess what this would add is a touch of sophistication for want of better word. If the tram system could be extended that would be a good move. I agree the shopping facilities are not adequate for England's fourth largest city and that really needs to be remedied. One should not have to settle for going to Manchester or Leeds for quality shopping. Dirty areas need to be cleaned up rather than neglected. People need to demand these changes and not settle for remaining in the shadow of Manchester and Leeds.

I suppose one thing you can hold on to is that there is hope that these type of changes have started to happen and will continue for the coming years if all the millions of European investment are to be believed.

If Leeds and Manchester can smarten up there image I don't see why Shaffield can't do the same. It deserves better.

I agree with both of El Duderino's last two posts wholeheartedly :-D

And Dr Feelgoods last post :) Sorry am being lazy! Should really write my thoughts down too but it's late.

A lot of what people are writing seems to be along the lines of 'great potential, shame so much of it is not realised as well as it could be'. Many of the suggestions made are quite minor - it's just a case of getting the ball rolling somehow, developing the means to make the money and generate the interest to develop the city to make the money and generate the interest to develop...

After some waste of time talks with the council I was just giving up on my major project for the city. I've read this again and it's amde me realise I would be stupid to give up now because of that backward lot. Sheffield is, to many people a great place, and can and will be to a great many more. Sheffield could make a lot of money for it's self, eventually. After it's paid it enormous debts that is.

Originally posted by "Malaika"

After some waste of time talks with the council I was just giving up on my major project for the city. I've read this again and it's amde me realise I would be stupid to give up now because of that backward lot. Sheffield is, to many people a great place, and can and will be to a great many more. Sheffield could make a lot of money for it's self, eventually. After it's paid it enormous debts that is.

what project is this?

[b][color=red][b]

[b][color=red]

No?

No I do not consider Sheffield boring.
Even though I now live near Wigan I still love Sheffield with a passion and always defend it when the local Lankies try to pull it to pieces.
Three of my children still live there and I visit several times a year.
Sheffield has it all:
architecture old and new,
Parks,
Pubs and clubs,
cinemas.
libraries,
museums,
and the countryside around it is the true "Golden Frame".

Definetly. You really appreciate the city when you move away from it.

:x they ought to have a liesure centre :!: :!: :!: :!:

Sheffield has loads of leisure centres.

If its sports type leisure centres then we have Ponds Forge/ Hillsboro / Graves / Concord plus other smaller ones.

If it entertainment type centre then we have the Centertainment in the Don Valley

I lived in Sheffield for 6 years - first working, and later as a student, so I guess I've seen both sides. I never found it boring!

I've noticed on here that a few people have moaned that 'there's loads for students to do, but not much else' - ????
Yes, lots of the facilities are only there cos of the high student population, but they are actually for anyone! To the best of my knowledge there's only the student unions where you have to show an NUS card to get in...

I'm living in the West Midlands and I miss Sheffield SOOO much! I'm always comparing (W.Mids usually comes off worse there). I do quite like Wolverhampton - but only cos it reminds me a little bit of Sheffield!

Having lived in Sheffield for just over two years I can honestly say that it's a great place to live :lol: 15 minutes drive and you're in the Peak District - certainly lots to do there. As far as the city itself goes, lots of sports facilities, from swimming to indoor climbing (two of the best venues in the country), City Hall - a great concert venue which could be even better with some money spent. Shopping - well yes Sheffield does have shops - can't really say much more other than Leeds isn't too far. Only problem seems to going out for a drink - as in no late bars, other than the Halcyon, which is a flea pit :cry:

All in all though I'd give Sheffield an 7/10 - nearly there but could do better

Originally posted by "alchresearch"

Definetly. You really appreciate the city when you move away from it.

I agree. I spent four years in Portsmouth. Portsmouth's not bad, but it doesn't come close to matching what Sheffield offers. Not only that, but despite being smaller than Sheffield it takes far longer to get anywhere 'green' (my usual reason for avoiding living somewhere bigger than Sheffield).

Greetings Sheffield!

No, you're not boring. An outsiders view? I'm from Brighton, a city which is often over-hyped as being a fashion and entertainment mecca. Yes, it's a great place to live, we have better weather than you by far and the sea...but....

Sheffield is a proper city. I used to visit in the 80s when a mate of mine was at uni there. It was pretty grim in some ways but had a buzz, an edge and despite my suvvern accent, I never found anyone less than friendly or welcoming. I returned recently with the wife, who wanted to fit a bit of shopping in with a 4 day trip to the Peak District. What a difference! We found Sheffield a much brighter and thriving place than I remembered it.

There's good shoppign and plenty of restaurants, bars and the like. There's wonderful Victorian architecture and, yes, we all have grotty bits, (you want to spend some time on the Whitehawk or Moulsecombe estates in Brighton!) but a lot of Sheffield seems regenerated or just plain rich! Some of those western suburbs would shame Surrey!

Sheffield has character and despite my short visit, seems to have plenty of cultural attractions, and if we have the sea, you have the wonderful moors and the Peak District.

The only criticisms I've seen on this forum are ones you could level at any city in England. It's a national problem that our high streets are full of chain stores and chain pubs, and Sheffield and Brighton's centres both suffer from that a bit. Everywhere should have more independent shops and we should all fight to keep hold of independent pubs too.

Don't knock Sheffield, it's yours and even if you do, I'll be back, I like it!

Originally posted by "Anonymous"

Has anyone been to Hull? Now THAT'S boring.
Depends who you are. Creatively, Hull is a powerhouse, punching well above it's weight, and some excellent, intimate little pub/clubs to boot.

I lived in the avenues for 2 years, and had a great time. Quite miss it now. But I prefer Sheffield

So there you have it.

We aint boring, we have an abundance of pleasures and treasures. We need a little more effort on the nice restaurant and independent bars front but aside from that, we are just dandy.

Sheff is great.

I do find Sheffield quiet, peaceful, and maybe a little boring...that's why I love the place so much!

I've lived in Norwich and London so now Sheffield is kind of splitting the difference. Its obvious deficiency compared to both is the lack of historic/atmospheric/attractive architecture but we just have to make the best of that. What has given me my best ever quality of life here is the infectious openness and friendliness of the people. It just seems to be the done thing here to natter with strangers, so it's been really easy to make friends. You wouldn't take that for granted if you'd lived in anonymous London or taciturn Norfolk.
A curious thing about Sheffield that was brought home to me when I read the display about the construction of the canal at Kelham Island museum is that this city has always been somewhat off the beaten track. The Pennines were an intractable barrier to the west coast ports and it took the canal to the south-east to start turning the steel from a cottage industry to world domination. This is a city that's never really been on either the crossroads of history or the mainline of culture, but grew like Topsy in just a couple of hundred years due to accidents of geology, topography and imperialism. Now we're like Belgium, on the way to everywhere but nobody stops, even though the beer's good. Yet, unlike Norwich perhaps, we are big enough to have the critical mass of people and talent to make something of it (although the ongoing absence of sustainable wealth creation worries me). The not at all boring thing about Sheffield now is seeing it struggle to re-invent itself after total economic annhilation. To re-invent and celebrate a city you have to seek and exploit the unique, and one of the things that makes Sheffield unique, apart from it's industrial heritage and challenging topography, is its extraordinary location on the edge of the second most visited National Park in the world (after Mt Fuji) and the extension of that location into the city in the form of more trees and green space than any other city I know.
If you think that Starbucks and Pret a Manger doth quality of life make, be off with you and move to Manchester. Or Southampton, or Akron, or Boise.

Sheffields unique ability is to actually qualifying as a city - but yet never feeling as if you are in one.

I have lived in and around London, visited various parts of Manchester and I wouldn't swop em. London is magnificent but I don't want their crime rates or that pathetic London attitude....Manchester is a hole.

Moon Maiden

Sheffield architecture is very boring - there are a few examples of exciting buildings - winter gardens, millennium galleries, even the old ncpm - but the other new buildings such as the city centre developments and flats (sorry - apartments - what a joke) are the most architecturally insignificant that I have ever seen. What were they thinking at the old Wards brewery for instance! Or Devonshire Green? Did they even study aesthetics in architecture!
Sheffield was built by Victorian geniuses, damaged by Nazis and destroyed by local architects and town planners. From what I can see – Sheffield must use just one or two dismal architect firms or design and build developers. Shocking rubbish.
The Council should be ashamed. We Sheffielders who do have taste, despite the best efforts of our city planners, remain embarrassed and depressed.
We are what we live in. God help us in Sheffield!
Even Nottingham and Birmingham have done fantastic jobs on their redevelopment schemes. If they can do it surely we can?

I always get annoyed at how Sheffield gets missed out on the big rock tours.. thats boring.

Other than that, Sheffield compares more than favourably with most other cities I've been to. Londoners are spoilt, but what has Nottingham or Leeds got to offer really? Okay, Manchester seems to be a happening place but, be honest, would you really want to live there?

Originally posted by Guest
This is a little to unfair as it wasn't in Sheffield, it was in Meadowhell. And how many people of any discerning taste go to Meadowhell.......? If they opened one in the centre now, in the right place I think it would do very well.

THat makes it a bit odder really.....mind you, if the Chocolate Factory can shut down, anything can...... :(

I'd've thought a City Centre Pret would've done pretty well, myself.

Is the Blue Moon Cafe still open, btw? [/QUOTE]

Yes, last time I came it was still open (Feb 2004)

Alex

It's about balance.

Boring as in lacking in dynamic quality? Central London offers dynamic quality, the likes of which can not be found anywhere else in the UK.

Sheffield is still the biggest village in England. If your in the city centre at 18:45, its virtually shut down. I remember when I was living on the Queensway in London, its still bustling and exciting at 11:00pm.

Remember the balance bit? So sheffield is only moderately exciting, but its also infinitely more livable than London. The repressive scale of the big cities tends to numb people. Sheffield is a great place to live. Sheffield people are generally friendly. I'd rather live somewhere that didn't crush my spirit, all the time It was exciting me...

Originally posted by lucasdigital
Sheffield is still the biggest village in England. If your in the city centre at 18:45, its virtually shut down. I remember when I was living on the Queensway in London, its still bustling and exciting at 11:00pm.

Isn't this a characteristic of towns and cities across the UK?

It has always struck me, particularly when I have been to Mediteranean countries, that even medium size towns and cities are awash with life until late in the evening.

It is a shame that things are not more like that here. I have a hypothesis that it might be because our centres are retail led. Once the shops close at 5.30pm or 6pm or whatever, there is not much reason for hang around urban centres, particularly if they are not attractive.

Originally posted by Roadrunner
[QUOTE][i]

It is a shame that things are not more like that here. I have a hypothesis that it might be because our centres are retail led. Once the shops close at 5.30pm or 6pm or whatever, there is not much reason for hang around urban centres, particularly if they are not attractive.

Thats true. The reason for this is because very few people live in the city centre. The places that keep buzzing after the workers have gone home have a stronger mix of residential and commercial buildings.

Look at West Street and you can see there is more life up there after businesses close for the day. That said the collision between students and beer would probably keep West street busy even if there wasn't so many new appartments there.

the job situation here is really dire

Boring? Possibly. There is a distinct lack of variety for a drinking night out . However this is pretty common in most cities.

Originally posted by robbie
There is a distinct lack of variety for a drinking night out

And lets face it, going out on the p*ss every weekend is the most important thing in life for all of us! :)

Having been brought up in Gainsborough and lived in Nottingham for ten years and London for one, Sheffield is by FAR the better place for outright quality of Life. Yes London is exciting.. for about 4 months, when you get so fed up of travelling on tubes and dirty trains you want to scream, and Nottingham - great shopping and bars etc.. but get out of that incredibly unfriendly and crime ridden.

Of course Sheffield could tidy itself up, but it is slowly getting there. The area around the town hall looks great right now, the roadworks to the main arteries are improving the look.

Anyway I like it so to me thats all that matters.

Originally posted by Guest
i moved to sheffield when i was young and i think that it was a wast of time more happens in the desert than here :twisted: :evil:

You suck.

Sheffield rocks! Where are you from originally?!

I hope that you are joking about this.

Originally posted by Moon Maiden
Sheffields unique ability is to actually qualifying as a city - but yet never feeling as if you are in one.

I have lived in and around London, visited various parts of Manchester and I wouldn't swop em. London is magnificent but I don't want their crime rates or that pathetic London attitude....Manchester is a hole.

Moon Maiden

And Mancunians have an annoying accent.

Originally posted by "Anonymous"

But it is important to realise that Sheffield is also the 3rd largest city in England..

Originally posted by "Sidla"

Actually it's 4th. I've just done a bit of research and surprisingly Liverpool has a higher population, but Manchester has a slightly lower population.


Sheffield actually now ranks as the United Kingdom's fifth largest city, but because it is a free-standing city it forms only the eighth largest conurbation.

Leeds overtook Sheffield has the 4th largest city in the United Kingdom a few years back. [url=http://www.sheffieldfirst.net/]

no...............................

Originally posted by skyfitsboy
Sheffield actually now ranks as the United Kingdom's fifth largest city, but because it is a free-standing city it forms only the eighth largest conurbation.

Leeds overtook Sheffield has the 4th largest city in the United Kingdom a few years back. [url=http://www.sheffieldfirst.net/]

I do not think this can be correct.

While Sheffield was the 4th largest city (in terms of population) in England (behind London, Birmingham, and Liverpool), it is smaller than Glasgow and so ranked as the 5th largest city in the UK.

You say Leeds now has a larger population than Sheffield: Sheffield would therefore be England's 5th largest city, and the UK's 6th.

Also, the fact that Sheffield is a "free-standing" city, as opposed to being in part of a huge conurbation, is to its advantage - at least in my eyes. It enables it to retain a clean break with the surrounding countryside, protect that countryside against encroachment of the city, and should - I suspect - add to its inhabitants' identity and, hopefully, pride in their city.

I am origionally from sheffield and live in newcastle, another city along with leeds and manchester that is seen as a vibrant cosmopolitan city. I can honestly say that since moving to newcastle my pride in my home city has improved drastically. Newcastle has absolutley NOTHING more than sheffield except maybe a very well redeveloped quayside with a new icon bridge. I was shocked at how much the people of newcastle take pride in their city, even though it is in no way superior to sheffield. I would say that is one of the problems of sheffielders, we seem to have an inferiority complex- we accept that places like leeds, manchester and newcastle are better places and that is a joke. if sheffield is boring then newcastle is extremely boring. In terms of nightlife, i fail to see why it is apparently the 3rd best party city in the world, i see more variety in sheff. in terms of shopping, i work in the city centre and it too becomes dead when the shops shut. And shopping in newcaslte by the way is very poor, especially for fashion. One thing i realised is how special the devonshire quarter is for fashion and bars etc.

we just need to be more assertive with our city and advertise its good points more. People say sheffield needs a lot of work, which is true but i see it happening now-everytime i come home i see new buildings coming up,strengthening the city centre and improving economic prospects. People only go off to manchester or newcastle because it makes a nice change. People who live in those cities will undoubtedly take trips to other cities for the same reasons. If cities are being judged by the number of starbucks and other poncey, pretentious outlets, then leeds is a mecca and those people should move there-a place i find dead of character due to over-commercialisation and what seems to be london-aspiring city.I hope sheffield doesn't get like that. People slag off the city council but i think their aspirations for regenerating our city are admirable and strike a great balance between the needs of our city centre- the new retail quarter is an exciting propspect and if completed as planned will turn sheffield into a great shopping destination, the heart of the city project is absolutley astounding. Sheffield is going from strengh to strengh. These are exciting times and we should all be very proud.

Brilliant. Well done Bikeman. 8 years and you finally realised you don't have an opinion

dont no really............

Top marks for this one.:hihi:

Only boring people get bored

there are plenty of theatres for eatries take a walk on london road every taste catered for
art galleries search more than you think
showroom for cultural films'
don't think you have looked very well
if you want a place to be boring it will
if you want something more look!