Macdonald Ansty Hall, Ansty

Advantages: A very historial Manchester building.
Disadvantages: Outdated as a music venue.

...The History The original Free Trade Hall was built in 1838 on the corner of St Peter Street and Southmill Street, formally known as South Street. The original structure took the form of a temporary wooden hall which was built to hold protest meetings during the “Anti-Corn Law League” - the ordinary people protested against the 1846 Corn Laws as it was seen as a symbol of the dominant ruling aristocracy’s feudal power over them and of the suppliers' profiteering on the cost of the common man’s staple food. The present Free Trade Hall, the third structure, and now a permanent stone building, was built later as a monument to honour the Manchester movement and is now a listed (government heritage) building. During World War II, the façade of the Free Trade Hall was gutted by bombs –... Read review

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Advantages: Free to visit, good display of exhibits
Disadvantages: Car park charges, no original items in the house

...Cusworth Hall is an example of a fine English country mansion house, located a couple of miles to the north of Doncaster town centre in South Yorkshire. If you drive out of Doncaster town centre over the Great North Road Bridge and find yourself stuck in traffic (the road works around here have been ongoing for decades) then have a glance to your left and you will have a wonderful view of Cusworth Hall in the distance. As you drop over the bridge the hall disappears and since the land around here is so flat you do not catch a glimpse of it again until you are almost upon it. Cusworth Hall sits on the top of a small grassy hill. A large green, landscaped park with scattered woods surrounds it and when it was built in the 18th century the views from here would have been wonderful. Today, the views are mainly of Doncaster, but don't let... Read review

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Advantages: Free, lots of history
Disadvantages: None for me

...I am often amazed just how many major attractions there are within my local area that I have yet to visit and until very recently Cannon Hall, near Barnsley in South Yorkshire was one such example of a place. Cannon Hall is a grand country mansion that is located on the edge of the picturesque village of Cawthorne. Cawthorne lies approximately seven kilometres to the east of Barnsley's town centre and is roughly halfway between junctions 37 and 38 of the M1 motorway. A bus that departs from the central interchange every 30 minutes serves Cawthorne if you are visiting by public transport, but it is then a good 10-15 minute walk from where the bus terminates to Cannon Hall itself. It is however a very pleasant walk that will take you past some of the most affluent houses in this part of Yorkshire, the sort of dwellings that even... Read review

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