Market Place

Records from Tutbury Priory show that trading had begun on Derby's Market place at least as far back as the 12^th century. By the 13^th century the area was thriving, with many shops and stalls springing up. As the years progressed many fine buildings were erected, including a guildhall, assembly rooms and a number of very handsome houses. This included the Duke of Newcastles townhouse which was demolished to make way for the current Assembly Rooms building, itself a replacement for the 17^th century original which was destroyed by fire in the 1960s.

The area has undergone many changes in appearance over the centuries and today features buildings from many different eras and tastes. Turning on the spot in the market place one is able to trace a history of architecture from the 17^th century all the way up to 2008.

Although markets are no longer held on the site, the Market Place is still used for public entertainments and celebrations as well as more solemn events such as the annual Remembrance Day parade. The war memorial (above) was erected here in 1923 and was designed by Charles Clayton Thompson and carved by A G Walker ARA.

The Royal Oak

An inn is first recorded on this site about 1732, however this was destroyed by fire in the 1880s to be replaced with the current building in 1889. By 1894 however, the inn had closed and the building entered municipal ownership, serving such uses as a mayors parlour, the town clerks office, and a solicitors' premises. In 2004 it was refurbished and became home to the city Registry Office.

Franceys House

This fine house was erected in 1696 by the Franceys family who had originally moved to the area as butchers in 1582 but later became highly successful apothecaries. Their ground floor store survived on the premises until 1971. The house once had ornate interiors, fine joinery and frescoed ceilings and, outside were ornamental pleasure grounds with a small lake and summer house.

The Guildhall

The Waterfall

This controversial piece of public art was designed by William Pye and installed in 1995 as part of the pedestrianisation of the whole area. It was greeted by a decidedly mixed public response – many people had wanted a traditional fountain. However the waterfall is a unique and original design which invites interaction from the public, who can climb to the viewing platform on top or walk behind or through the water itself – very popular with children in the summer.

Quad

The Quad is the newest building on the Market Place, opening in September 2008 and brings the architecture of the area right up to date. Designed by award-winning architects Feilden Clegg Bradley and costing £11.2 million, the building provides a venue for contemporary art and cinema.

Housing two cinemas, an art gallery, work spaces, the British Film Institute’sMediatheque facility and a restaurant/café the building is designed to be one of five Arts Council funded focal points for contemporary art in the East Midlands.

Although typically controversial in its modernist design the building does pay homage to traditional architectural techniques being clad in a local Derby stone, one of the few buildings in the area to employ local materials.

It is rare that Derby is brave enough to carry out cutting edge designs in its buildings and despite much negative comment in the letters pages of the local newspaper during the design and building of Quad it nevertheless seems to be proving popular with the public since its opening.