Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the
Metropolitan Borough of Wirral,
Merseyside
Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan county, metropolitan and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of List of ceremonial counties of England, 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Merse ...
, England;
historically
History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbrella term comprising past events as well ...
, it was part of
Cheshire
Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...
until 1974. The town is on the
Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the
River Mersey
The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed part ...
, opposite
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
. At the 2011 census, it had a population of 88,818.
[
Birkenhead Priory and the Mersey Ferry were established in the 12th century. In the 19th century, Birkenhead expanded greatly as a consequence of the ]Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
. Birkenhead Park and Hamilton Square
Hamilton Square is a town square in Birkenhead, Wirral, England. This Georgian square, which was designed by Edinburgh architect James Gillespie Graham, has the most Grade I listed buildings outside London (after Trafalgar Square). It is named ...
were laid out as well as the first street tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
way in Britain. The Mersey Railway
The Mersey Railway was the first part of the passenger railway connecting the communities of Liverpool, Birkenhead, and now the rest of the Wirral Peninsula in England, which lie on opposite banks of the River Mersey, via the Mersey Railway Tun ...
connected Birkenhead and Liverpool with the world's first tunnel beneath a tidal estuary; the shipbuilding
Shipbuilding is the construction of ships and other floating vessels. It normally takes place in a specialized facility known as a shipyard. Shipbuilders, also called shipwrights, follow a specialized occupation that traces its roots to befor ...
firm Cammell Laird
Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...
and a seaport
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...
were established.
In the second half of the 20th century, the town suffered a significant period of decline, with containerisation causing a reduction in port activity. The Wirral Waters development is planned to regenerate much of the dockland.
Toponymy
The name Birkenhead probably means "headland overgrown with birch", from the Old English
Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain, Anglo ...
meaning birch
A birch is a thin-leaved deciduous hardwood tree of the genus ''Betula'' (), in the family Betulaceae, which also includes alders, hazels, and hornbeams. It is closely related to the beech-oak family Fagaceae. The genus ''Betula'' contains 30 ...
tree, of which many once grew on the headland which jutted into the river at Woodside
Woodside may refer to:
Places and buildings Australia
*Woodside, South Australia, a town
*Woodside, Victoria, a town
Canada
*Woodside National Historic Site, the boyhood home of William Lyon Mackenzie King
*Woodside, Nova Scotia, a neighborho ...
. The name is not derived from the Birket, a stream which enters the Mersey between Birkenhead and Seacombe. The Birket is a later name which was introduced by Ordnance Survey
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History
Medieval period
The earliest records state that the Mersey ferry began operating from Birkenhead in 1150, when Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
monks under the leadership of Hamon de Mascy
The first Hamon de Massey was the owner of the manors of Agden, Baguley, Bowdon, Dunham, Hale and Little Bollington after the Norman conquest of England (1066), taking over from the Saxon thegn Aelfward according to Domesday Book. His probable ...
built a priory
A priory is a monastery of men or women under religious vows that is headed by a prior or prioress. Priories may be houses of mendicant friars or nuns (such as the Dominicans, Augustinians, Franciscans, and Carmelites), or monasteries of mon ...
there. The priory was visited in 1275 and 1277 by Edward I
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassal o ...
. In a royal charter
A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...
of 13 April 1330, Edward III
Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring r ...
granted the priory further rights.
19th century
Distanced from the Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
in Liverpool by the physical barrier of the River Mersey, Birkenhead retained its agricultural status until the advent of steam ferry services. In 1817 a steam ferry service started from Liverpool to Tranmere and in 1822 the paddle steamer, ''Royal Mail'', began operation between Liverpool and Woodside.
Shipbuilding started in 1829. An ironworks was established by William Laird in 1824, and he was joined by his son John in 1828. The business eventually became the shipbuilder Cammell Laird
Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...
. Notable naval vessels built at Birkenhead include HMS ''Achilles'', , , , , , , the pioneer submarine , (which sank in Liverpool Bay during sea trial
A sea trial is the testing phase of a watercraft (including boats, ships, and submarines). It is also referred to as a " shakedown cruise" by many naval personnel. It is usually the last phase of construction and takes place on open water, and ...
s, and was refloated and commissioned as HMS ''Thunderbolt'', only to be lost to enemy action with the loss of the entire crew), and . Merchant vessels were also built such as and .
In 1833 an act was passed to introduce street paving, lighting and other improvements in the town. These included establishing a market and regulating the police force.
The Mersey Railway
The Mersey Railway was the first part of the passenger railway connecting the communities of Liverpool, Birkenhead, and now the rest of the Wirral Peninsula in England, which lie on opposite banks of the River Mersey, via the Mersey Railway Tun ...
tunnel opened in 1886, providing direct railway access to Liverpool.
20th century
The Grange Road West drill hall was completed in 1900.
In September 1932 thousands of unemployed people protested in a series of demonstrations organised by the local branch of the National Unemployed Workers Movement
The National Unemployed Workers' Movement was a British organisation set up in 1921 by members of the Communist Party of Great Britain. It aimed to draw attention to the plight of unemployed workers during the post First World War slump, the 1926 ...
. After three days of rioting, police were brought in from elsewhere to help quell the rioters.
In addition to the ferries and the railway, the Queensway road tunnel opened in 1934 and gave rapid access to Liverpool. This opened up the Wirral Peninsula for development, and prompted further growth of Birkenhead as an industrial centre. Bolstered by migration from rural Cheshire, southern
Ireland and Wales, the town's population had grown from 110 in 1801 to 110,912 one hundred years later and stood at 142,501 by 1951.
Birkenhead was struck by an F0/T1 tornado on 23 November 1981, as part of the record-breaking nationwide tornado outbreak on that day.
1989 saw the completion of a large shopping development within Birkenhead town centre, known as the Pyramids.
Conway Park station was opened in 1998 as part of a development that saw Wirral Metropolitan College open a new campus nearby.
21st century
The Wirral Waters development was announced in 2006, with work starting in 2011 and expecting to last for around 30 years.
Wirral Council announced in 2020 the formulation of a 20 year development plan known as the 'Birkenhead 2040 Framework'. The plan aims to regenerate parts of Birkenhead, with the creation of a new park (Dock Branch Park
Dock Branch Park is a public park which is currently being built in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The idea for the park came from Wirral Council's long–term vision for the development of Birkenhead, known as the Birkenhead 2040 Framework. ...
), new housing and an improved greener environment.
Governance
Formerly a township in Bidston Parish of the Wirral Hundred, Birkenhead was incorporated as a municipal borough
Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
in 1877, and became a county borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent ter ...
with the passing of the Local Government Act 1888. The borough included the parish of Birkenhead St. Mary and the townships of Bidston
Bidston is a village, a parish and a suburb of Birkenhead, on the Wirral Peninsula, in the modern county of Merseyside. The area is a mixture of the well-preserved Bidston Village, Bidston Hill, a modern housing estate, and the Bidston Moss nat ...
, Claughton with Grange, Oxton, Tranmere and part of Bebington
Bebington () is a town and unparished area within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England. Historically part of Cheshire, it lies south of Liverpool, close to the River Mersey on the eastern side of the Wirral Peninsula. Ne ...
, later known as Rock Ferry.
The townships of Landican, Prenton
Prenton is a suburb of Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. Administratively, it is also a ward of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral. Before local government reorganisation on 1 April 1974, it was part of the County Borough of Birkenhead, within ...
and Thingwall were added in 1928, followed by Noctorum
Noctorum is a suburb of Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. Administratively it is within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral as part of Claughton Ward. Noctorum is in the north east of the Wirral Peninsula, bounded by the Beechwood estate to the ...
, Upton
Upton may refer to:
Places United Kingdom England
* Upton, Slough, Berkshire (in Buckinghamshire until 1974)
* Upton, Buckinghamshire, a hamlet near Aylesbury
* Upton, Cambridgeshire, Peterborough
* Upton, Huntingdonshire, a location in Cambridge ...
and Woodchurch in 1933.
Prior to 1 April 1974, Birkenhead and the rest of the Wirral Peninsula were part of the county of Cheshire
Cheshire ( ) is a ceremonial and historic county in North West England, bordered by Wales to the west, Merseyside and Greater Manchester to the north, Derbyshire to the east, and Staffordshire and Shropshire to the south. Cheshire's county t ...
. The implementation of the Local Government Act 1972
The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...
caused Birkenhead to lose its county borough
County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent ter ...
status. The town has since been administered as part of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in the metropolitan county
The metropolitan counties are a type of county-level administrative division of England. There are six metropolitan counties, which each cover large urban areas, with populations between 1 and 3 million. They were created in 1974 and are each di ...
of Merseyside
Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan county, metropolitan and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of List of ceremonial counties of England, 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Merse ...
. The
Birkenhead and Tranmere electoral ward
A ward is a local authority area, typically used for electoral purposes. In some countries, wards are usually named after neighbourhoods, thoroughfares, parishes, landmarks, geographical features and in some cases historical figures connected to t ...
had a population of 15,879 in 2011.
The current Member of Parliament for constituency of Birkenhead is Mick Whitley.
Geography
The Birkenhead Urban Area
The Birkenhead Built-up area is an urban area in England, which covers the towns of Birkenhead, Wallasey, Bebington and Ellesmere Port in both Merseyside and Cheshire. It is defined for certain statistical purposes by NOMIS (National Online Manpow ...
, as defined by the Office for National Statistics
The Office for National Statistics (ONS; cy, Swyddfa Ystadegau Gwladol) is the executive office of the UK Statistics Authority, a non-ministerial department which reports directly to the UK Parliament.
Overview
The ONS is responsible for th ...
, includes Birkenhead, Wallasey
Wallasey () is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, in Merseyside, England; until 1974, it was part of the historic county of Cheshire. It is situated at the mouth of the River Mersey, at the north-eastern corner of the Wirral Pe ...
, Bebington, Ellesmere Port (which is outside the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral) and the contiguous built-up areas which link those towns. In the 2011 Census, the area so defined had a total population of 325,264, making it the 19th largest conurbation
A conurbation is a region comprising a number of metropolises, cities, large towns, and other urban areas which through population growth and physical expansion, have merged to form one continuous urban or industrially developed area. In most ca ...
in England and Wales.
Economy
Shipbuilding
Shipbuilding and ship repair has featured prominently in the local economy since the 19th century. Cammell Laird
Cammell Laird is a British shipbuilding company. It was formed from the merger of Laird Brothers of Birkenhead and Johnson Cammell & Co of Sheffield at the turn of the twentieth century. The company also built railway rolling stock until 1929, ...
entered receivership
In law, receivership is a situation in which an institution or enterprise is held by a receiver—a person "placed in the custodial responsibility for the property of others, including tangible and intangible assets and rights"—especially in ca ...
in 2001. The shipyard was sold and became 'Northwestern Shiprepairers & Shipbuilders' (NS&S), which grew into a successful business specialising in ship repair and conversion, including maintenance contracts for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary
The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is a naval auxiliary fleet owned by the UK's Ministry of Defence. It provides logistical and operational support to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines. The RFA ensures the Royal Navy is supplied and supported by ...
. In September 2007 NS&S acquired the rights to use the Cammell Laird name. The company was renamed 'Cammell Laird Shiprepairers & Shipbuilders' on 17 November 2008, seeing the famous name return to Birkenhead after a seven-year hiatus. In 2010, Cammell Laird secured a £50 million contract to construct the flight deck for , the first of two s. In 2015, Cammell Laird was selected as the preferred bidder to construct , a Royal Research Ship
A Royal Research Ship (RRS) is a merchant navy vessel of the United Kingdom that conducts scientific research for His Majesty's Government. Organisations operating such ships include; the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), the British ...
.
Commerce
Birkenhead Market was first established on what is now the site of Birkenhead Town Hall
Birkenhead Town Hall is a civic building and former town hall in Birkenhead on the Wirral Peninsula in Merseyside, England. The building was the former administrative headquarters of the County Borough of Birkenhead, and more recently, council ...
, between Chester Street and Hamilton Street, on 10 July 1835.
An increase in the town's population by 1841 led to the opening on 11 July 1845 of a much expanded market on a larger site nearby. This market hall was built by Fox, Henderson & Co, who later built The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibit ...
. Michael Marks
Michael Marks ( yi, מיכאל מארקס Polish: ''Michał Marks''; 1859? – 31 December 1907) was a businessman and entrepreneur, who with Thomas Spencer co-founded the British retail chain Marks & Spencer.
Biography
Marks was born into a ...
, of Marks & Spencer
Marks and Spencer Group plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks's or Marks & Sparks) is a major British multinational retailer with headquarters in Paddington, London that specialises in selling clothing, beauty, home ...
, opened one of his first seven 'Penny Bazaar' stalls here during the 1880s. On 31 January 2018, Marks & Spencer announced the closure of their store, in the town centre of Birkenhead, happening in April.
During the 1970s, the commercial centre of the town was redeveloped around the principal shopping area of Grange Road. Following two fires at the expanded Birkenhead Market in 1969 and 1974, it was moved to new premises adjoining the Grange Shopping Precinct development in 1977. Commercial expansion continued in the early 1990s when the Pyramids Shopping Centre was opened. The previous market site has been redeveloped with the construction of two office buildings, primarily to house Land Registry and Department for Work and Pensions offices.
Economic statistics
In February 2010, the town had an overall unemployment rate of 8.2% (males 12.4%, female 4.1%) as against a national average of 4.4%.
Demography
In 2011, Birkenhead had a population of 88,818. The wider Urban Subdivision had a population of over 142,000. However, this latter figure includes areas such as Greasby and Frankby
Frankby () is a village on the Wirral Peninsula, in Merseyside, England. It is located between Greasby and Newton on the outskirts of the town of West Kirby. The hamlet of Larton is to the north west. Historically within the county of Cheshire, ...
, which are separate from Birkenhead.
These are the 2011 ethnic groups for the town:
*93.5% White British
White British is an ethnicity classification used for the native white population identifying as English, Scottish, Welsh, Cornish, Northern Irish, or British in the United Kingdom Census. In the 2011 census, the White British population wa ...
*2.3% Other White
*1.2% Mixed Race
*2.6% Asian
Asian may refer to:
* Items from or related to the continent of Asia:
** Asian people, people in or descending from Asia
** Asian culture, the culture of the people from Asia
** Asian cuisine, food based on the style of food of the people from Asi ...
*0.2% Black
*0.2% Other
Landmarks
Birkenhead Park is acknowledged to be the first publicly funded park in Britain.
The park was the forerunner of the Parks Movement and its influence was far reaching both in Britain and abroad – most notably on Frederick Law Olmsted
Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co- ...
's design for Central Park
Central Park is an urban park in New York City located between the Upper West Side, Upper West and Upper East Sides of Manhattan. It is the List of New York City parks, fifth-largest park in the city, covering . It is the most visited urban par ...
.
Designed by Joseph Paxton
Joseph is a common male given name, derived from the Hebrew Yosef (יוֹסֵף). "Joseph" is used, along with "Josef", mostly in English, French and partially German languages. This spelling is also found as a variant in the languages of the mo ...
(later Sir Joseph Paxton) in 1843 and officially opened in 1847, with great festivity. The park's Grand Entrance, modelled on the Temple of Illysus in Athens, and its 'Roman Boathouse' are notable features. There are sandstone lodges at the three entrances, each with a different style of architecture, Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
, Norman
Norman or Normans may refer to:
Ethnic and cultural identity
* The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries
** People or things connected with the Norm ...
and Italianate. There are also two lakes and an ornate 'Swiss Bridge'.
William Laird, a Scot, and his son John, were influential in the design of the town. Parts were laid out in a grid-iron pattern like Edinburgh New Town
The New Town is a central area of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It was built in stages between 1767 and around 1850, and retains much of its original neo-classical and Georgian period architecture. Its best known street is Princes Street ...
with similar architecture. The chief architect was James Gillespie Graham
James Gillespie Graham (11 June 1776 – 11 March 1855) was a Scottish architect, prominent in the early 19th century.
Life
Graham was born in Dunblane on 11 June 1776. He was the son of Malcolm Gillespie, a solicitor. He was christened as J ...
from Edinburgh. This grid pattern was centred around Hamilton Square
Hamilton Square is a town square in Birkenhead, Wirral, England. This Georgian square, which was designed by Edinburgh architect James Gillespie Graham, has the most Grade I listed buildings outside London (after Trafalgar Square). It is named ...
which was started in 1826 and, apart from Trafalgar Square
Trafalgar Square ( ) is a public square in the City of Westminster, Central London, laid out in the early 19th century around the area formerly known as Charing Cross. At its centre is a high column bearing a statue of Admiral Nelson commemo ...
in London, contains the most Grade I listed buildings
In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
in one place in England. including Birkenhead Town Hall
Birkenhead Town Hall is a civic building and former town hall in Birkenhead on the Wirral Peninsula in Merseyside, England. The building was the former administrative headquarters of the County Borough of Birkenhead, and more recently, council ...
. A short distance from Hamilton Square are two other notable landmarks: the Queensway Tunnel Main Entrance and the Woodside Ferry Terminal. The film '' Chariots of Fire'' had scenes shot at Woodside. These scenes were as a representation of Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
in the 1920s.
Other notable landmarks include Bidston Windmill
Bidston Windmill is situated on Bidston Hill, near Birkenhead, on the Wirral Peninsula, England.
History
It is believed that there has been a windmill
A windmill is a structure that converts wind power into rotational energy using vanes cal ...
on a ridge behind the town, Flaybrick Watertower and Birkenhead Priory & St. Mary's Tower.
Transport
Trams
Birkenhead had the first street tramway in Britain. Opened on 29 August 1860, the first line ran from Woodside
Woodside may refer to:
Places and buildings Australia
*Woodside, South Australia, a town
*Woodside, Victoria, a town
Canada
*Woodside National Historic Site, the boyhood home of William Lyon Mackenzie King
*Woodside, Nova Scotia, a neighborho ...
(adjoining the terminal of the Mersey Ferry) to Birkenhead Park. This early system was horse-drawn and was the brainchild of flamboyant American, George Francis Train
George Francis Train (March 24, 1829 – January 18, 1904) was an American entrepreneur who organized the clipper ship line that sailed around Cape Horn to San Francisco; he also organized the Union Pacific Railroad and the Credit Mobilier in th ...
.
A preserved tram was on display in the Woodside ferry terminal booking hall.
The system was later electrified and operated from 1901 as Birkenhead Corporation Tramways
Birkenhead Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Birkenhead between 1901 and 1937.
History
In 1860, Birkenhead started the first street tramway in Britain, shortly before London.
The Birkenhead Corporation Tramway company was fo ...
; it closed in 1937. Two replica trams, imported from Hong Kong, have been brought into service as part of a heritage tramway between Woodside and Wirral Transport Museum
Wirral Transport Museum is a museum situated approximately from the Mersey Ferry service at Woodside, Birkenhead, England.
A vintage tram service links the museum and the ferry at certain times. Admission into the museum is free with a broad ...
; Birkenhead Corporation Tramways
Birkenhead Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Birkenhead between 1901 and 1937.
History
In 1860, Birkenhead started the first street tramway in Britain, shortly before London.
The Birkenhead Corporation Tramway company was fo ...
car No.20 is preserved on this line.
As part of the ''Wirral Waters'' development, a street car service has been proposed, to be called Wirral Street Car
The Wirral Street Car is a proposed tramway from Bidston Dock to Woodside Ferry Terminal to provide transport links for the Wirral Waters development. The line will use pre-existing rolling stock as well as incorporating both the disused Birkenh ...
.
Buses
Horse-drawn buses began operating in Birkenhead in 1848, to be replaced with motor vehicles after the First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
.
Present-day services are run by operators including Arriva and Stagecoach
A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are draw ...
, which are coordinated by Merseytravel.
National Express provides long-distance coach services to other UK cities, with direct routes including London, Glasgow, Bangor and Newcastle.
Birkenhead Bus Station
The bus station was opened in 1996. It is adjacent to The Grange shopping centre and Birkenhead Market.
It has a total of eleven stands and incorporates a travel centre. The main bus operators at the station include Arriva North West and Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire
Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire is a major operator of bus services in North West England. It is a subsidiary of the Stagecoach Group, and has its origins in the purchase of Ribble Motor Services in 1988 from the National Bus Company ( ...
.
Services using the bus station operate around the town of Birkenhead, throughout the Wirral and to the nearby city of Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
via the Queensway Tunnel. The station also has frequent services to as far away as Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
.
Railways
Railways reached Birkenhead in 1840, when the Chester and Birkenhead Railway
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
began services. Birkenhead Grange Lane station opened at the same time, becoming the town's first terminus. Birkenhead Dock station opened in 1866, as the eastern terminus of the Hoylake Railway
The Wirral Railway was a railway network in the northern part of the Wirral Peninsula, England. Its route was from Birkenhead Park in the east of the Wirral to West Kirby in the west. A branch off this line at Bidston went north to Secombe and ...
. With the opening of the Woodside and Birkenhead Dock Street Tramway
Birkenhead Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Birkenhead between 1901 and 1937.
History
In 1860, Birkenhead started the first street tramway in Britain, shortly before London.
The Birkenhead Corporation Tramway company was fo ...
in 1873, this station probably became the world's first tram
A tram (called a streetcar or trolley in North America) is a rail vehicle that travels on tramway tracks on public urban streets; some include segments on segregated right-of-way. The tramlines or networks operated as public transport are ...
to train interchange. In 1886, Birkenhead and Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
were linked by an underground railway system, which today is part of the Merseyrail
Merseyrail is a commuter rail network serving the Liverpool City Region and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. Merseyrail operates 66 railway stations across two lines – the Northern Line and Wirral Line, which are dedicated electri ...
network.
The major underground station in Birkenhead is Hamilton Square
Hamilton Square is a town square in Birkenhead, Wirral, England. This Georgian square, which was designed by Edinburgh architect James Gillespie Graham, has the most Grade I listed buildings outside London (after Trafalgar Square). It is named ...
, the nearest station to the ferry terminal. Hamilton Square station is linked to the Liverpool Loop of the Wirral Line
The Wirral line is one of two commuter rail routes operated by Merseyrail and centred on Merseyside, England, the other being the Northern line.
The Wirral line connects Liverpool to the Wirral Peninsula via the Mersey Railway Tunnel, with b ...
, which includes James Street, Moorfields, Liverpool Lime Street and Liverpool Central
Liverpool Central railway station in Liverpool, England, forms a central hub of the Merseyrail network, being on both the Northern Line and the Wirral Line. The station is located underground on two levels, below the site of a former mainline ...
stations; all of these are underground. Other stations in the town include Birkenhead Central, which is open but below ground level; Green Lane, below ground level; Rock Ferry; Conway Park, below ground level; Birkenhead Park; Birkenhead North; and Bidston
Bidston is a village, a parish and a suburb of Birkenhead, on the Wirral Peninsula, in the modern county of Merseyside. The area is a mixture of the well-preserved Bidston Village, Bidston Hill, a modern housing estate, and the Bidston Moss nat ...
.
The Wirral Line from Birkenhead travels south to Chester
Chester is a cathedral city and the county town of Cheshire, England. It is located on the River Dee, close to the English–Welsh border. With a population of 79,645 in 2011,"2011 Census results: People and Population Profile: Chester Loca ...
and Ellesmere Port, north to New Brighton and westwards, across the Wirral Peninsula, to West Kirby. The Borderlands Line leaves Bidston station, in the north of Birkenhead and travels through the rural centre of Wirral, ultimately leaving England near Shotton and terminating in Wrexham
Wrexham ( ; cy, Wrecsam; ) is a city and the administrative centre of Wrexham County Borough in Wales. It is located between the Welsh mountains and the lower Dee Valley, near the border with Cheshire in England. Historically in the count ...
, Wales.
From 1878 until its closure in 1967, Birkenhead Woodside station
Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpo ...
was the town's mainline railway terminus. Originally sited close to Woodside Ferry Terminal, the site had been redeveloped as part of Cammell Laird ship builders. Latterly, the adjacent dry dock at Cammell Laird was filled in and the area redeveloped to provide flats, a bus depot and offices for HM Land Registry
His Majesty's Land Registry is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's Government, created in 1862 to register the ownership of land and property in England and Wales. It reports to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy ...
and the Child Support Agency
The Child Support Agency (CSA) was a delivery arm of the Department for Work and Pensions (Child Maintenance Group) in Great Britain and the former Department for Social Development in Northern Ireland. Launched on 5 April 1993, the CSA was to ...
.
The town has one operational railway depot, Birkenhead North TMD
Birkenhead North TMD is a traction maintenance depot, which is owned by Network Rail and operated by Stadler. Located opposite Birkenhead North railway station, it is currently responsible for servicing and stabling Merseyrail's fleet of Clas ...
; one disused, Birkenhead Central TMD
Birkenhead Central TMD is a former traction maintenance depot located adjacent to Birkenhead Central railway station, in Birkenhead, England. The depot was located nearby to the former depot at Mollington Street. The Birkenhead Central depot ...
; and two demolished, Birkenhead Mollington Street TMD
Birkenhead Mollington Street was a former traction maintenance depot located at Mollington Street in Birkenhead, England, on the Birkenhead Dock Branch railway. Although never directly connected by rail, the depot was situated less than from B ...
and a further depot adjacent to Birkenhead Park station. The remains of the Birkenhead Dock Branch
Birkenhead Dock Branch is a disused railway line running from the South junction of Rock Ferry, to the site of the former Bidston Dock on the Wirral Peninsula, England. The branch is approximately in length. Although called a branch, the li ...
are still extant in a cutting through the centre of the town, which was used primarily for freight services. Much of the peripheral railway infrastructure, around the docks, has been removed since the 1980s.
Roads
Junctions 1 and 3 of the M53 motorway facilitate access to the national motorway network. The A41 trunk road connects Woodside with Marble Arch in London. Two road tunnels, the Queensway road tunnel from Birkenhead and the Kingsway road tunnel from Wallasey, run underneath the River Mersey and connect the town to Liverpool.
Maritime
Birkenhead's dock system is part of the Port of Liverpool
The Port of Liverpool is the enclosed Dock (maritime), dock system that runs from Brunswick Dock in Liverpool to Seaforth Dock, Seaforth, Merseyside, Seaforth, on the east side of the River Mersey and the Great Float, Birkenhead Docks between ...
, operated by the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company
The Mersey Docks and Harbour Company (MDHC), formerly the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board (MDHB), owns and administers the dock facilities of the Port of Liverpool, on the River Mersey, England. These include the operation of the enclosed north ...
under the ownership of The Peel Group. The Twelve Quays
Twelve Quays is a ferry terminal and business park which is located between East Float and the River Mersey at Birkenhead, in England. Twelve Quays separates Woodside from Seacombe.
History
Twelve Quays is named from the quaysides which ser ...
ferry terminal allows a direct freight and passenger vehicle service to Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...
and Belfast
Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdo ...
. Daily Belfast services are run by Stena Line
Stena Line is a Swedish shipping line company and one of the largest ferry operators in the world. It services Denmark, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland and Sweden. Stena Line is a major unit of Ste ...
, using their RoPax ferries and from 2020 to 2021, which replaced and . The Mersey Ferry at Woodside operates a passenger service to Liverpool and chartered cruising.
During winter months, the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company operates a service from Birkenhead to Douglas
Douglas may refer to:
People
* Douglas (given name)
* Douglas (surname)
Animals
*Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking
*Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil W ...
using . Due to weather conditions, this service temporarily replaces the route that normally operates from the Liverpool landing stage using fast craft.
Aviation
The nearest airport is Liverpool John Lennon Airport
Liverpool John Lennon Airport is an international airport in Liverpool, England, on the estuary of the River Mersey south-east of Liverpool city centre. Scheduled domestic, European, North African and Middle Eastern services are operated fr ...
(formerly known as Speke Airport), about from Birkenhead. Manchester Airport
Manchester Airport is an international airport in Ringway, Manchester, England, south-west of Manchester city centre. In 2019, it was the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passenger numbers and the busiest of those n ...
is approximately away. Other nearby aviation facilities include Hawarden Airport and RAF Woodvale
Royal Air Force Woodvale or RAF Woodvale is a Royal Air Force Station located next to the towns of Formby and Ainsdale in an area called Woodvale which is located to the south of Southport, Merseyside. Woodvale was constructed as an all-weathe ...
. Former airfields in the area include RAF Hooton Park and Bidston
Bidston is a village, a parish and a suburb of Birkenhead, on the Wirral Peninsula, in the modern county of Merseyside. The area is a mixture of the well-preserved Bidston Village, Bidston Hill, a modern housing estate, and the Bidston Moss nat ...
Aerodrome.
Education
Schools
Birkenhead has a number of maintained schools, including Birkenhead Park School
Birkenhead Park School is a co-educational 11–16 secondary school with academy status near Birkenhead Park, in Birkenhead on the Wirral Peninsula in England. It was renamed University Academy Birkenhead in 2011 from the merger of Park High Sch ...
(formed after the merger of Rock Ferry High School and Park High School) and the only all-boys Catholic grammar school in the area St. Anselm's College.
Birkenhead also has two independently run schools. The oldest is Birkenhead School
Birkenhead School is an independent, academically-selective, co-educational day school located in Oxton, Wirral, in North West England. The school offers educational opportunities for girls and boys from three months to eighteen years of age. ...
. It was exclusively a boys' school from its founding in 1860 until 2000, when its sixth form became co-educational. It became fully co-educational for pupils aged 3–18 in 2008. "Old Birkonians" (as former pupils are known) include the lawyer F.E. Smith
Frederick Edwin Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead, (12 July 1872 – 30 September 1930), known as F. E. Smith, was a British Conservative politician and barrister who attained high office in the early 20th century, in particular as Lord High Chan ...
(Lord Birkenhead); Andreas Whittam Smith (chairman of the British Board of Film Classification
The British Board of Film Classification (BBFC, previously the British Board of Film Censors) is a non-governmental organisation founded by the British film industry in 1912 and responsible for the national classification and censorship of f ...
(BBFC) and founder of ''The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'' newspaper); mountaineer Andrew Irvine; Philip Toosey
Brigadier Sir Philip John Denton Toosey (12 August 1904 – 22 December 1975) was, as a Lieutenant Colonel, the senior Allied officer in the Japanese prisoner-of-war camp at Tha Maa Kham (known as Tamarkan) in Thailand during World War II. Th ...
(hero at the Bridge on the River Kwai
''The Bridge on the River Kwai'' is a 1957 epic war film directed by David Lean and based on the 1952 novel written by Pierre Boulle. Although the film uses the historical setting of the construction of the Burma Railway in 1942–1943, the plo ...
); and Tony Hall (former Director-General of the BBC).
Birkenhead High School Academy, formerly Birkenhead Girls High School, is an all-ability state funded girls' Academy. It was founded in 1885 and caters for girls aged 3–19. Its sponsor was the Girls' Day School Trust
The Girls' Day School Trust (GDST) is a group of 25 independent schools, including two academies, in England and Wales, catering for girls aged 3 to 18. It is the largest group of independent schools in the UK, and educates 20,000 girls each ye ...
, but is now publicly funded. Its alumnae include the actress Patricia Routledge. Birkenhead Girls High School decided to become a state-funded Academy school in 2009, increasing the availability of its education. Like the change to co-education at Birkenhead School, this decision was largely driven by falling pupil numbers; however to this date, it remains a single sex school.
Birkenhead Institute Grammar School existed from 1889 in Whetstone Lane, before being moved to Claughton in the 1970s. The school closed in 1994. The school's alumni include Wilfred Owen.
Colleges
Previously situated at Borough Road, Birkenhead's college has campuses at Europa Boulevard and Twelve Quays. The college was originally Birkenhead Technical College, and has been known as Wirral Metropolitan College
Wirral Met College is a Further and Higher Education College situated on the Wirral Peninsula, in the north-west of England.
Overview
Wirral Met is the largest provider of post 16 learning on the Wirral and is divided into five career-based ...
since the 1980s. The college had a theatre on Borough Road named after one of its most famous former students, Glenda Jackson, the Oscar-winning actress and Member of Parliament, herself a Birkonian, born in 1936. The Borough Road campus and the Glenda Jackson Theatre were demolished in late 2005, to make way for flats
Flat or flats may refer to:
Architecture
* Flat (housing), an apartment in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and other Commonwealth countries
Arts and entertainment
* Flat (music), a symbol () which denotes a lower pitch
* Flat (soldier), ...
, although Wirral Metropolitan College flourishes on other sites across Wirral. The theatre secretly housed an emergency command centre for the region in its basement, accessible via the college. Politicians and officials would have retreated to this secure bunker in the event of nuclear war to co-ordinate the recovery effort. By the 1990s, after the end of the Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because the ...
, the bunker had been decommissioned and the surrounding complex of rooms was used by the college as a rehearsal space and recording studio.
Other colleges include the Birkenhead Sixth Form College
Birkenhead Sixth Form College specialises in A Level & BTEC education and is rated as 'Outstanding' by Ofsted. In February 2018, TES FE Awards named the College UK 'Sixth Form College of the Year'.
The college prioritizes social mobility, wi ...
, in the Claughton area of the town, formerly the site of Corpus Christi Catholic High School.
Religion
Religion in Birkenhead dates back to 1150 when Hamon de Masci founded Birkenhead Priory for the Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
order.
The current Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
churches are St. James' Church, Christ Church and the Church of Christ the King which are all within the Diocese of Chester. Julie Conalty
Julie Anne Conalty (born 1963) is a British Anglican bishop. Since 19 July 2021, she has been the Bishop of Birkenhead, one of two suffragan bishops of the Church of England Diocese of Chester. She previously served as Archdeacon of Tonbridge ...
is the current suffragan
A suffragan bishop is a type of bishop in some Christian denominations.
In the Anglican Communion, a suffragan bishop is a bishop who is subordinate to a metropolitan bishop or diocesan bishop (bishop ordinary) and so is not normally jurisdictiona ...
Bishop of Birkenhead
The Bishop of Birkenhead is an episcopal title used by a suffragan bishop of the Church of England Diocese of Chester, in the Province of York, England. The title takes its name after Birkenhead, a town located on the Wirral Peninsula
Wirr ...
.
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
churches include the Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception and St. Werburgh's Church which are within the Diocese of Shrewsbury
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Shrewsbury is a Roman Catholic diocese in the Province of Birmingham which encompasses the pre-1974 counties of Shropshire and Cheshire in the North West and West Midlands of England.
The diocese includes rural are ...
.
The other religious buildings include the Wirral Christian Centre
Gateway Church Wirral (formerly known as the Wirral Christian Centre) is a church on Woodchurch Road, Birkenhead, Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is an active Elim Pentecostal Church. The church building, originally Oxton Road Congregational Ch ...
of the Elim Pentecostal Church and the Islamic
Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the mai ...
Shah Jalal Mosque
A mosque (; from ar, مَسْجِد, masjid, ; literally "place of ritual prostration"), also called masjid, is a place of prayer for Muslims. Mosques are usually covered buildings, but can be any place where prayers ( sujud) are performed, ...
. The Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
Birkenhead Synagogue
A synagogue, ', 'house of assembly', or ', "house of prayer"; Yiddish: ''shul'', Ladino: or ' (from synagogue); or ', "community". sometimes referred to as shul, and interchangeably used with the word temple, is a Jewish house of worshi ...
existed from 1890 and closed prior to 2006.
Flaybrick Memorial Gardens
Flaybrick Memorial Gardens is a memorial garden, formerly a municipal cemetery called Flaybrick Hill Cemetery, in Birkenhead, on the Wirral Peninsula, England. The cemetery has been designated a conservation area by Wirral Borough Council, whic ...
contains the town's former main cemetery, which is situated near to St. James' Church. Flaybrick Hill Cemetery has been superseded by Landican Cemetery.
Healthcare
Birkenhead has one of the highest mortality rates among men over 65 in the UK. Birkenhead is served by Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (WUTH) is an NHS Foundation Trust. It provides healthcare for people of the Wirral Peninsula and the surrounding areas of North West England and North Wales.
The trust is responsible for ...
(through its Arrowe Park Hospital
Arrowe Park Hospital is a large, acute hospital, located on a 15-acre (6.1 ha) section of Arrowe Park, close to the village of Upton, Wirral, Merseyside. It is one of three hospitals managed by Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation ...
, St Catherine's Health Centre
St Catherine's Health Centre, formerly St Catherine's Hospital, is a community hospital in Tranmere, Birkenhead, England.
St Catherine's is managed by Wirral Community Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust. Some services run from the site are o ...
and Clatterbridge Hospital
Clatterbridge Hospital is a general hospital located on Clatterbridge Health Park in Bebington, Wirral, England. It is managed by Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust.
History
The hospital has its origins in the accommod ...
sites) and Wirral Primary Care Trust
Primary care trusts (PCTs) were part of the National Health Service in England from 2001 to 2013. PCTs were largely administrative bodies, responsible for commissioning primary, community and secondary health services from providers. Until 31 May ...
. Formerly, Birkenhead was also served by Birkenhead General Hospital on Park Road North and St. James' Hospital in Claughton, now demolished and redeveloped for housing.
Arts, sports and leisure
Arts
The Laird School of Art
The Laird School of Art was a school of art situated on Park Road North, Birkenhead, Merseyside, England, overlooking Birkenhead Park. It was the first public school of art outside London and was given to the town by John Laird. The school ope ...
was the first public school of art outside London and was given to the town by John Laird. It opened on 27 September 1871. The Williamson Art Gallery
The Williamson Art Gallery and Museum is an art gallery and museum situated in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England and houses Wirral's art collection.
History
The art gallery and museum opened on 1 December 1928, the single-storey building is Neo-G ...
was opened in 1928 and houses a fine collection of paintings, porcelain and pottery.
In 1856, Birkenhead Library was opened as the country's first public library in an unincorporated borough.
The library was situated in Hamilton Street until 1909, when it moved to a new building in Market Street South, near Birkenhead Market. In the 1930s, this building (along with much of the surrounding area) was demolished to make way for the entrance to the Queensway Tunnel. The present library, Birkenhead Central Library
Birkenhead Central Library is one of twenty-four libraries (as of March 2011) forming the Wirral Library Service in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The library is located on Borough Road, Birkenhead.
History
The origi ...
, is situated on Borough Road and was opened by King George V
George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936.
Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...
in 1934.
Despite being in England, Birkenhead (known as ''Penbedw'', in Welsh) hosted Wales' National Eisteddfod
The National Eisteddfod of Wales (Welsh: ') is the largest of several eisteddfodau that are held annually, mostly in Wales. Its eight days of competitions and performances are considered the largest music and poetry festival in Europe. Competitors ...
in 1917 as well as an unofficial National Eisteddfod event in 1879. As in Liverpool, migrants from Wales, especially North Wales, contributed greatly to the growth of the town and its cultural development in the 19th century. The first local Birkenhead Eisteddfod, a precursor of the national events, took place in 1864. The 1917 National Eisteddfod was notable for the award of the chair to the poet Ellis Humphrey Evans, known as Hedd Wyn. The winner was announced, and the crowd waited for the winner to accept congratulations before the chairing ceremony, but no winner appeared. It was then announced that Hedd Wyn had been killed the previous month on the battlefield in Belgium, and the bardic chair was draped in black. These events were portrayed in the Academy Award
The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...
nominated film '' Hedd Wyn'', and were apparently intended as a protest against the war policies of Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
David Lloyd George
David Lloyd George, 1st Earl Lloyd-George of Dwyfor, (17 January 1863 – 26 March 1945) was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1916 to 1922. He was a Liberal Party politician from Wales, known for leading the United Kingdom during t ...
, who was present. There is a commemorative stone for the event in Birkenhead Park. The first meeting of the international Celtic Congress also took place at the Birkenhead Eisteddfod.
The Argyle Theatre
The Argyle Theatre was a theatre in Birkenhead, on the Wirral Peninsula, England. It was opened in December 1868, initially as the Argyle Music Hall.
The theatre had seating for about 800, with pillars in the auditorium and long, narrow gallerie ...
was a major theatre and music hall which opened on 28 December 1868 and became notable for the calibre of artistes who appeared there. Later in its life, it was also used as a cinema. The theatre was destroyed by bombing in 1940.
The ''Theatre Royal'', opened on 31 October 1864, was in Argyle Street and had a capacity of 1,850. This theatre was closed in 1919 and demolished in the 1930s. Another theatre, the ''Hippodrome'', which was converted into a cinema in the 1930s, stood on the site of what became the Co-operative
A cooperative (also known as co-operative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democratically-control ...
department store in Grange Road.
The Little Theatre was established in 1958 from a converted former Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
church. The Pacific Road Arts Centre in Woodside opened in 1999, but in 2015 was converted to a “Business Hub”.
Media
Birkenhead is served by the ''Liverpool Echo
The ''Liverpool Echo'' is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales – a subsidiary company of Reach plc and is based in St Paul's Square, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Sunday, and is Liverp ...
'' local daily newspaper. The local weekly newspaper is the ''Wirral Globe'' and the online-only news website is
Birkenhead News
'.
The local radio station Heart Wirral
Heart Wirral (formerly Wirral's Buzz) was an Independent Local Radio station broadcasting to the Wirral Peninsula, sharing its facilities with Heart Wrexham and Gold, in Gwersyllt, Wrexham.
History
The station, owned by Global Radio (origin ...
is based in offices at the Pacific Road Arts Centre. In addition, there are five other local radio stations that transmit to Birkenhead: BBC Radio Merseyside
BBC Radio Merseyside is the BBC's local radio station serving Merseyside.
It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds, from studios on Hanover Street in Liverpool.
According to RAJAR, the station has a weekly audience of 203,000 ...
, Radio City 96.7
Radio City is an Independent Local Radio station based in Liverpool, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Merseyside, Cheshire and parts of north Wales.
As of September 2022, the station has ...
, Greatest Hits Liverpool
Greatest Hits Radio Liverpool & The North West is an Independent Local Radio station based in Liverpool, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Merseyside, North West England, Cheshire ...
, Capital Liverpool and CityTalk
Radio City Talk (previously City Talk 105.9) was an Independent Local Radio station in Liverpool, England.
In May 2020, it was announced by Bauer that Radio City Talk would cease broadcasting, after concluding that the station was no longer fi ...
.
Birkenhead is situated within the television regions of BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...
North West and ITV
ITV or iTV may refer to:
ITV
*Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of:
** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...
's Granada Television
ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was it ...
. The local television station Bay TV Liverpool
Local TV Liverpool (typeset as LOCAL TV Liverpool) is a local television station serving Liverpool City Region and surrounding areas. The station is owned and operated by Local Television Limited and forms part of a group of nine LOCAL TV stat ...
also broadcasts to the area.
Leisure
As well as Birkenhead Park, other recreational open spaces in Birkenhead include Dock Branch Park
Dock Branch Park is a public park which is currently being built in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The idea for the park came from Wirral Council's long–term vision for the development of Birkenhead, known as the Birkenhead 2040 Framework. ...
, Mersey Park and Victoria Park. Arrowe Park
Arrowe Park is an area to the west of Birkenhead, within the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. It is situated on the Wirral Peninsula, adjacent to the Woodchurch housing estate and to the south of the large village of Upto ...
is a large area of parkland at the western edge of the town. In 1929, the 3rd World Scout Jamboree
The 3rd World Scout Jamboree was held in 1929 at Arrowe Park in Upton, near Birkenhead, Wirral, United Kingdom. As it was commemorating the 21st birthday of ''Scouting for Boys'' and the Scouting movement, it is also known as the Coming of Age ...
was held there.
The first two Boy Scout
A Scout (in some countries a Boy Scout, Girl Scout, or Pathfinder) is a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split ...
groups in the world are thought to have been founded as the 1st and 2nd Birkenhead groups at YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...
on the same night in 1908. The 2nd Birkenhead Scout Group is still operating and therefore is the longest running scout group in the world.
Sport
The first known football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
club on the Wirral was Birkenhead F.C. which was founded in 1879 by Robert E. Lythgoe, a former Druids F.C.
Ruabon Druids F.C. (Welsh – ''CP Derwyddon'') were a football club based in the village of Ruabon near Wrexham, Wales. The club was founded in October 1872 as Ruabon Rovers F.C. by David Thomson and his brother, George, of Ruabon. In 1874 R ...
player. An unrelated, disbanded side had played under the name Tranmere Rovers Cricket Club in 1881–82. Other clubs included Belmont Football Club, founded in 1884. They adopted the name Tranmere Rovers F.C.
Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ado ...
the following year, and are a professional team who play at Prenton Park
Prenton Park is a large outdoor seated association football stadium in Birkenhead, England. It is the home ground of Tranmere Rovers, as well as Liverpool's women and reserves teams. The ground has had several rebuilds, with the most recent o ...
near the Tranmere area of the town. They were a founder member of Division Three North
The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Football League Third Division South, Third Division South with clubs Re-election (Football League), ele ...
in 1921, and were a member of The Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
until 2015, when they were relegated to the Conference
A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic.
Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main p ...
, the fifth tier of English football. They returned to the Football League three seasons later, after a 2-1 play off final win against Boreham Wood F.C.
Boreham Wood Football Club is a professional football club based in Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England. They are currently members of the National League, the fifth tier of English football, and play at Meadow Park. Established in 1948, they ...
Cammell Laird 1907 F.C.
Cammell Laird 1907 Football Club is a semi-professional association football, football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The club are currently members of the and play at Kirklands.
History
The club was established in 1907 as Cam ...
is the town's semi-professional football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
club who play at Kirklands in Rock Ferry. They play in the North West Counties League Division One.
The Birkenhead Park Football Club
Birkenhead Park Football Club is an English rugby union team based in Birkenhead, Wirral. The club operates five senior teams, a ladies team (Birkenhead Park Panthers) and six junior sides. The men's senior team play in North 1 West at the si ...
was founded in 1871, the same year as the Rugby Football Union
The Rugby Football Union (RFU) is the Sports governing body, national governing body for rugby union in England. It was founded in 1871, and was the sport's international governing body prior to the formation of what is now known as World Rugby ...
. The club originally played in the Lower Park but moved to their current home in the Upper Park in 1885. Birkenhead Park also has its own cricket
Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
club.
Also in the town are the Birkenhead North End and Victoria Cycling Clubs. Olympic riders from the clubs include Chris Boardman, Mark Bell, Steve Cummings
Stephen Philip Cummings (born 19 March 1981) is an English former racing cyclist
Cycle sport is Competition, competitive physical activity using bicycles. There are several categories of bicycle racing including road bicycle racing, ...
and Rachel Heal
Rachel Elisabeth Heal (born 1 April 1973) is an English former racing cyclist, who currently works a directeur sportif for UCI Women's Continental Team .
Career Professional career
Heal originally took up cycling when she was at Birmingham Uni ...
.
Birkenhead has been host to various rowing clubs since 1840. At present, Liverpool Victoria Rowing Club operates from a facility at the western end of West Float.
Cultural references
Birkenhead is mentioned in the song "What She Said" on the album '' Meat Is Murder'' by the Smiths: "''What she read/All heady books/She'd sit and prophesize/(It took a tattooed boy from Birkenhead/To really really open her eyes).''"
The town is also referred to in the song "Everything Is Sorrow" on the Boo Radleys
The Boo Radleys are an English alternative rock band who were associated with the shoegazing and Britpop movements in the 1990s. They originally formed in Wallasey, England in 1988, with Rob Harrison on drums, singer/guitarist Simon "Sice" Rowb ...
' ''C'mon Kids
''C'mon Kids'' is the fifth album by the Boo Radleys, released in September 1996. The album is considered to be purposely difficult and uncommercial. The band were said to have wanted to distance themselves from the commercial image they had cul ...
'' album: ''I worked in Birkenhead for you/It brings me tears even now.''
A fairly detailed description of the town is given in Paul O'Grady's memoirs, ''At My Mother's Knee... and Other Low Joints: The Autobiography''.
Birkenhead is indirectly referenced by "''the Birken'ead drill''" in Rudyard Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling ( ; 30 December 1865 – 18 January 1936)''The Times'', (London) 18 January 1936, p. 12. was an English novelist, short-story writer, poet, and journalist. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
...
's poem "Soldier an' Sailor Too": ''To take your chance in the thick of a rush, with firing all about, / Is nothing so bad when you've cover to 'and, an' leave an' likin' to shout; / But to stand an' be still to the Birken'ead drill is a damn tough bullet to chew, / An' they done it, the Jollies – 'Er Majesty's Jollies – soldier an' sailor too!'', as it refers to heroism by Royal Marines during the sinking of HMS Birkenhead, itself named after the town in which it was built. Other authors have done this as well.
The 1998 book, Awaydays, and the following 2009 film of the same name are set in Birkenhead.
In August 2022 the British Member of Parliament
A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...
for Birkenhead
Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liver ...
, Mick Whitley, supported the findings of local historian John Lamb, that Robert Louis Stevenson
Robert Louis Stevenson (born Robert Lewis Balfour Stevenson; 13 November 1850 – 3 December 1894) was a Scottish novelist, essayist, poet and travel writer. He is best known for works such as ''Treasure Island'', ''Strange Case of Dr Jekyll a ...
had set his 1881 classic novel '' Treasure Island'' in the towns of Birkenhead and Wallasey on the Wirral Peninsula lying opposite Liverpool. This followed a previous announcement by Alan Evans of Wirral Borough Council
Wirral Metropolitan Borough Council, or simply Wirral Council, is the local authority of the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral in Merseyside, England. It is a metropolitan district council, one of five in Merseyside and one of 36 in the metropolit ...
that the French science fiction writer Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne (;''Longman Pronunciation Dictionary''. ; 8 February 1828 – 24 March 1905) was a French novelist, poet, and playwright. His collaboration with the publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel led to the creation of the ''Voyages extraor ...
had also set his 1874 novel '' The Mysterious Island'' in Birkenhead. Their Letters of support for Mr Lamb's claims were posted on the ''Jules Verne and the Heroes of Birkenhead'' website in August 2022.
Notable people
Actors and performers
In the arts, Birkenhead has produced several actors and performers including Lionel Gamlin, Roger Abbott, Glenda Jackson, Anew McMaster
Anew McMaster (24 December 1891 – 24 August 1962) was a British stage actor who during his nearly 45 year acting career toured the UK, Ireland, Australia and the United States. For almost 35 years he toured as actor-manager of his own theatri ...
, Lewis Collins, Megs Jenkins
Muguette Mary "Megs" Jenkins (21 April 1917 – 5 October 1998) was an English character actress who appeared in British films and television programmes.
Life and career
Jenkins was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, the daughter of a construction ...
, Taron Egerton
Taron Egerton ( ; born 10 November 1989) is a Welsh actor. He is the recipient of a Golden Globe Award, and has received nominations for a Grammy Award and two British Academy Film Awards.
Born in Birkenhead, England, Egerton began acting at a ...
, Patricia Routledge, Paul O'Grady (also known as Lily Savage
Paul James O'Grady MBE DL (born 14 June 1955) is an English comedian, broadcaster, actor, writer and former drag queen. He achieved notability in the London gay scene during the 1980s with his drag queen persona Lily Savage, very popular in ...
), soprano Valerie Masterson
Margaret Valerie Masterson (born 3 June 1937), is a retired English opera singer, a lecturer and Vice-President of British Youth Opera. After study in Italy, she began to sing opera in Europe. Returning to England, Masterson performed as princ ...
and baritone George Baker. The dancer and actor Lindsay Kemp was born in the town but as a child moved to South Shields
South Shields () is a coastal town in South Tyneside, Tyne and Wear, England. It is on the south bank of the mouth of the River Tyne. Historically, it was known in Roman times as Arbeia, and as Caer Urfa by Early Middle Ages. According to the 20 ...
. Opera director Graham Vick
Sir Graham Vick (30 December 1953 – 17 July 2021) was an English opera director known for his experimental and revisionist stagings of traditional and modern operas. He worked in many of the world's leading opera houses and was artistic d ...
was born in Birkenhead.
Artists
Some notable artists were born in the town, such as Philip Wilson Steer
Philip Wilson Steer (28 December 1860 – 18 March 1942) was a British painter of landscapes, seascapes plus portraits and figure studies. He was also an influential art teacher. His sea and landscape paintings made him a leading figure in ...
, Robert Talbot Kelly
Robert George Talbot Kelly (1861–1934) was an English orientalist landscape and genre painter, author and illustrator.
Early life
Kelly was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, the son of Irish landscape and portrait painter, Robert George Kel ...
, Tom Palin
Tom Palin is a British painter.
Education
Palin grew up in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. He graduated from Liverpool John Moores University with a BA (Hons) in Fine Art, and from the University of Manchester with an MA in Art History. He co ...
, Bessie Bamber
Bessie Bamber was a British artist from Birkenhead who was active between 1900 and 1910. It is not known if Bamber was her married name or maiden name.
Bessie Bamber worked in oils and specialised in painting cats, kittens and occasionally puppi ...
, Annie R. Merrylees Arnold
Annie R. Merrylees Arnold (''née'' Annie Russell Merrylees, 19 December 1866 – 5 September 1959) was a British miniature painter who worked in Scotland.
Life
She was born in Birkenhead, Cheshire, England in 1866. She studied in Edinburgh, ...
, the workers at the Della Robbia Pottery
The Della Robbia Pottery was a ceramic factory founded in 1894 in Birkenhead, near Liverpool, England. It closed in 1906. Initially it mostly made large pieces with high artistic aspirations, especially relief panels for architectural use, bu ...
and two cartoonists: Norman Thelwell
Norman Thelwell (3 May 1923 – 7 February 2004) was an English cartoonist well known for his humorous illustrations of ponies and horses.
Life and career
Born in Birkenhead, Thelwell spent World War II in the East Yorkshire Regiment, having si ...
and Bill Tidy
William Edward "Bill" Tidy, Order of the British Empire, MBE (born 9 October 1933), is a British cartoonist, writer and television personality, known chiefly for his comic strips. Tidy was appointed Member of the Most Excellent Order of the Brit ...
.
Authors and journalists
It has also produced poets and authors such as A.S.J. Tessimond
Arthur Seymour John Tessimond (19 July 1902 in Birkenhead – 13 May 1962 in Chelsea, London) was an English poet.
He went to Birkenhead School until the age of 14, before being sent to Charterhouse School, but ran away at age 16. From 1922 to 1 ...
, Adrian Henri and Michael Z. Williamson. The World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
poet Wilfred Owen, though born in Oswestry
Oswestry ( ; ) is a market town, civil parish and historic railway town in Shropshire, England, close to the Welsh border. It is at the junction of the A5, A483 and A495 roads.
The town was the administrative headquarters of the Borough of ...
, lived in Birkenhead from the age of 4 and was educated at the Birkenhead Institute High School (now demolished). Andreas Whittam Smith, founder editor of ''The Independent
''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', grew up in Birkenhead, where his father was an Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
clergyman.
Musicians
There are several musicians linked to the area. Freddie Marks
Frederick Marks (10 September 1949 – 20 May 2021) was an English actor, singer and entertainer. He was best known for being part of the musical trio Rod, Jane and Freddy which appeared in children's programming in the 1980s and 1990s.
Early ...
from Rod, Jane and Freddy
Rod, Jane and Freddy were a singing trio who appeared in children's programming on the British TV channel ITV in the 1970s, 1980s and early 1990s. They starred both in the long-running series ''Rainbow'' and their own 15-minute show. The trio ...
was born in Birkenhead, as was John Gorman John Gorman may refer to:
* John Gorman (director) (1884–1936), American movie director
*John Gorman (entertainer) (born 1936), English vocalist and musician
*John Gorman (politician) (1923–2014), Northern Ireland politician
*John Gorman (footb ...
of The Scaffold
The Scaffold were a comedy, poetry and music trio from Liverpool, England, consisting of musical performer Mike McGear (real name Peter Michael McCartney, the brother of Paul McCartney), poet Roger McGough and comic entertainer John Gorman. ...
. Indie band Half Man Half Biscuit
Half Man Half Biscuit are an English rock band, formed in 1984 in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Known for their satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs, the band comprises lead singer and guitarist Nigel Blackwell, bassist and singer Neil Cr ...
hail from Birkenhead, as did boogie-rock band Engine
An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy.
Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...
, Paul Heaton, lead singer of the Housemartins and the Beautiful South
The Beautiful South were an English pop rock group formed in 1988 by Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway, two former members of the Hull group The Housemartins, both of whom performed lead and backing vocals. Other members throughout the band's exi ...
, singer/songwriter Charlie Landsborough
Charles Alexander Landsborough (born 26 October 1941) is a British country and folk musician and singer-songwriter. He started singing professionally in the 1970s, although his major success did not come until 1994 with his song "What Colour is ...
and Desmond Briscoe
Harry Desmond Briscoe (21 June 1925 – 7 December 2006) was an English composer, sound engineer and studio manager. He was the co-founder and original manager of the pioneering BBC Radiophonic Workshop.
Born in Birkenhead, and a drama studio ...
co-founder and original manager of the pioneering BBC Radiophonic Workshop. Elvis Costello
Declan Patrick MacManus Order of the British Empire, OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in ...
moved to Birkenhead in 1971 with his mother, who was from Liverpool, although Elvis Costello's father was himself from Birkenhead. Tony Friel (bassist from the Fall and the Passage
Passage, The Passage or Le Passage may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Films
* ''Passage'' (2008 film), a documentary about Arctic explorers
* ''Passage'' (2009 film), a short movie about three sisters
* ''The Passage'' (1979 film), starring ...
), synthpop musician David Hughes David Hughes may refer to:
Arts
*Dave Hughes (born 1970), Australian comedian
*Dave Hughes (producer), American television producer and editor
*David Hughes (illustrator), British illustrator
*David Hughes (Emmerdale), fictional character in the I ...
(of Dalek I Love You
Dalek I Love You were a synthpop group from the Wirral, England. At various points in their existence, the band was also known as Dalek I. Record executives at Phonogram shortened the band's name without telling them for the "Freedom Fighter ...
, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Wirral Peninsula, Wirral, Merseyside, in 1978. The group consists of co-founders Andy McCluskey (vocals, bass guitar) and Paul Humphreys (keyboar ...
and Godot) and Malcolm Holmes
Malcolm Holmes (born 28 July 1960 in Birkenhead, England) is a British drummer. He is best known for being the original drummer with Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark.
Biography
Holmes’ first drumming sessions were for the Id, who included ...
(drummer with pop group Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD) are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Wirral Peninsula, Wirral, Merseyside, in 1978. The group consists of co-founders Andy McCluskey (vocals, bass guitar) and Paul Humphreys (keyboar ...
) were born there. David Balfe (music manager, and member of Dalek I Love You, Big in Japan, the Teardrop Explodes) attended primary and secondary school there. Miles Kane
Miles Peter Kane (born 17 March 1986) is an English musician, best known as a solo artist and the co-frontman of the Last Shadow Puppets. He was also the former frontman of the Rascals, before the band announced their break-up in August 2009.
...
, musician, singer and songwriter and member of The Last Shadow Puppets
The Last Shadow Puppets are an English supergroup consisting of Alex Turner (Arctic Monkeys), Miles Kane (The Rascals, solo artist), James Ford (Simian, Simian Mobile Disco, music producer), and Zach Dawes (Mini Mansions). The band released th ...
and The Rascals
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
, was born in the town as well as the opera singer Hugh Beresford
Hugh Beresford (17 December 1925 – 23 November 2020)[''Opernsänger Hugh Beresford in Wien ...](_blank)
. Classical composer William Lewarne Harris
William Lewarne Harris (23 May 1929 - 17 August 2013) was an English composer and teacher.
Harris was born in Birkenhead. He was educated at the King's School, Canterbury until the war saw him evacuated to St Austell in Cornwall. He performed N ...
(1919-2013) was born in Birkenhead.
Politicians and public figures
F. E. Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead
Frederick Edwin Smith, 1st Earl of Birkenhead, (12 July 1872 – 30 September 1930), known as F. E. Smith, was a British Conservative politician and barrister who attained high office in the early 20th century, in particular as Lord High Chan ...
, a leading Conservative politician of the early 20th century, was born in the town, as were Liberal Democrat politician Malcolm Bruce, Labour
Labour or labor may refer to:
* Childbirth, the delivery of a baby
* Labour (human activity), or work
** Manual labour, physical work
** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer
** Organized labour and the labour ...
politician Stephen Ladyman, the prominent occult
The occult, in the broadest sense, is a category of esoteric supernatural beliefs and practices which generally fall outside the scope of religion and science, encompassing phenomena involving otherworldly agency, such as magic and mysticism a ...
ist Alex Sanders, and Tony Hall, Baron Hall of Birkenhead, the Director-General of the BBC. Theodora Llewelyn Davies
Theodora Llewelyn Davies (18 April 1898 – 21 December 1988) was a British barrister and penal reform campaigner. She was the first woman to apply for admission to the British legal profession's Inner Temple in 1920 and one of the first to be ad ...
was a British barrister and penal reform campaigner. She was the first woman admitted to the Inner Temple in 1920. Frank Ernest Field, Baron Field of Birkenhead DL, is a British politician who was the Member of Parliament for Birkenhead from 1979 to 2019, serving as a Labour MP until August 2018 and thereafter as an Independent
Scientists and technologists
Aerodynamicists Gwen Alston
Hannah Gwendolen Shone (22 May 1907 – 14 July 1993) was a British aerodynamicist and educationalist most known for her work on spinning tunnels and aircraft flight-testing during World War II, as well as her involvement in flight educati ...
and Melvill Jones
Sir Bennett Melvill Jones, (28 January 1887 – 31 October 1975) was Francis Mond Professor of Aeronautical Engineering at the University of Cambridge from 1919 to 1952. He demonstrated the importance of streamlining in aircraft design. It had ...
were born in Birkenhead, as was Henry Herbert Collier
Henry Herbert Collier was one of the first British motorcycle designers, inventor and founder of the Matchless Motorcycle Company.
Early life
Collier was born in Saskatoon, Canada.
Business
Henry Collier founded a company to make bicycles u ...
, inventor and founder of the Matchless motorcycle marque.
Soldiers and explorers
Sandy Irvine
Andrew Comyn "Sandy" Irvine (8 April 1902 – 8 June 1924) was an English mountaineer who took part in the 1924 British Everest Expedition, the third British expedition to the world's highest (8,848 m) mountain, Mount Everest.
While a ...
, a participant of the 1924 British Mount Everest expedition, was born in Birkenhead. There has been speculation that George Mallory
George Herbert Leigh Mallory (18 June 1886 – 8 or 9 June 1924) was an English mountaineer who took part in the first three British expeditions to Mount Everest in the early 1920s.
Born in Cheshire, Mallory became a student at Winchester ...
and he reached the summit. Similarly, Alan Rouse
Alan Paul Rouse (19 December 1951 – 10 August 1986) was the first British climber to reach the summit of the second highest mountain in the world, K2, but died on the descent.
Education
Rouse was born in Wallasey and began climbing at the a ...
, a mountaineer who died in the 1986 K2 disaster, was educated in Birkenhead. Daniel Poole
Daniel Poole DCM & Bar (21 April 1882 – 13 August 1959) was an Australian soldier and sailor. On 15 April 1917, during the battle of Lagnicourt, Poole collected a party of men and led them forward under heavy fire, killing nine enemy and capt ...
, a recipient of the Distinguished Conduct Medal during World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
was born in the town.[Foldi, N.S. (1978)]
Poole, Daniel (1882–1959)'
Australian Dictionary of Biography
The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...
, Volume 11, Melbourne University Press, p. 255. Retrieved on 9 August 2009.
Sports people
Birkenhead has also produced notable sportsmen such as Matt Dawson, the rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
player; 'Dixie' Dean (Everton F.C.
Everton Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Liverpool that competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club was a founder member of the Football League in 1888 and has compe ...
), record-breaking footballer, who was born at 313 Laird Street; and several other footballers including Peter Davenport, Jason McAteer
Jason Wynne McAteer (born 18 June 1971) is a former professional footballer. His primary position was in centre midfield, though he was also an able right winger and full-back.
During his professional career from 1992 to 2007, McAteer played ...
, David Thompson, Max Power, Jodie Taylor England Lionesses International. The football manager Nigel Adkins also hails from the town.
Other
Gary Finlay, the murderer of Graham McKenna, was born in Birkenhead.
Twin towns
Birkenhead is twinned, as a part of Wirral, with:
* Gennevilliers, France
* Latina, Lazio, Italy
* Lorient, France
Twin towns – Sister cities
Birkenhead also has a Sister City Agreement with:
* Midland
Midland may refer to:
Places Australia
* Midland, Western Australia
Canada
* Midland, Albert County, New Brunswick
* Midland, Kings County, New Brunswick
* Midland, Newfoundland and Labrador
* Midland, Ontario
India
* Midland Ward, Kohima, Nagal ...
, Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
, United States
Future
The major redevelopment project under consideration is Peel Holdings
The Peel Group is a British infrastructure and property investment business, based in Manchester. In 2022, its Peel Land and Property estate extends to of buildings, and over of land and water. Peel retains minority stakes in its former ports ...
' " Wirral Waters". This would allow for £4.5 billion of investment in the regeneration of the dockland area. This equates with an investment of over £14,000 for each of the 320,000 residents of the Wirral. At the East Float and Vittoria Dock
Vittoria Dock is a dock in Birkenhead, Wirral Peninsula, England. It was built between 1904 and 1908, from land reclaimed during the construction of the Great Float.
History
The dock was designed by Anthony George Lyster. Construction began in ...
, the development would include of new office space and for new residential flats. A retail and leisure quarter at the former Bidston Dock
Bidston Dock was a Dock (maritime), dock at Birkenhead, in England. It was situated to the west of the Great Float, between Bidston and Poulton, Merseyside, Poulton.
History
A proposal for the construction of the dock on most of what remained ...
site would encompass another of space. The whole project would create more than 27,000 permanent new jobs, aside from the employment required for construction and other peripheral employment. The development would be expected to take up to thirty years.
See also
*Listed buildings in Birkenhead
Birkenhead is a town in Wirral, Merseyside, England. Its central area contains 150 buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England as designated listed buildings. Of these, six are listed at Grade I, the highest of ...
References
Sources
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External links
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Birkenhead & Surrounds
{{authority control
Towns in Merseyside
Port cities and towns in North West England
Port cities and towns of the Irish Sea
Towns and villages in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral
Unparished areas in Merseyside
Populated coastal places in Merseyside