The film looks at how the redevelopment that Birmingham underwent in the 1960s changed the character of the city. Victorian buildings were demolished to make way for office blocks and the Bull Ring Shopping Centre; the construction of the inner ring road caused the demolition of many small shops and resulted in a ghetto effect on buildings outside the circular road; and terraced houses were replaced by high rise blocks which are now unpopular.
Interviewed are: Alfred Wood, West Midlands Council Architect and Planner; James Howrie, Former Head of Birmingham School of Architecture; Councillor Dick Knowles, Leader of Birmingham District Council; Councillor Andy Foster, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Committee of Birmingham District Council; Ken Hardeman, Birmingham businessman; Reverend David Collyer, Chief Executive of Trident Housing; Colin Perry, Confederation of British Industry; and Tom Caulcott, Chief Executive of Birmingham District Council.
Throughout the film we see b/w stills and archive material of Birmingham in the 1960s showing redevelopment on buildings and the ring road mixed with modern (1984) shots of the city including aerials and tracking shots along the inner ring road. The 1980s skyline shows a mix of tower blocks and older Victorian buildings. There is also an excerpt of an interview with the Lord Mayor of Birmingham Frank Price (captioned 1964) and a news item in which a councillor tests out the then new underpass system in the city. This is contrasted with a 1984 trip through an underpass.
It is hoped that lessons can be learnt from the mistakes of the past and we see a modern sympathetic housing development at St Paul's Square in Birmingham; and we learn about the potential for developing the city's canal network. We see shots of the refurbished Canning Wharf area and the derelict Gas Street Basin which is earmarked for a future development. A cleared site were the International Convention Centre is due to be built is also shown as is the site of the former Bingley Hall which burnt down and was demolished in the 1980s.
Camera - Bob Bolt, Gerry Pinches
Sound - Vaughan Roberts
Dubbing Mixer - Clive Pendry
Graphics - Brian Becker
Production Assistant - Karen Davies
Film Editor - Chris Christophe
Researcher - Carlene Crowe
Senior Researcher - Vivica Parsons
Executive Producer - Robin Brown
Director - Paul Cleary
(listed at opening only: Written and Narrated by James Bellini).
Production number 3684/84.