A 28-year saga in Manchester city centre has a new twist

It's been left for nearly three decades and its future looked settled plenty of times

A 28-year-long planning saga in Manchester city centre has a new twist.

Medlock Mill, commonly known as Hotspur Press, is known for its iconic ‘Percy Brothers’ signage and façade.

The Victorian building shut down as a printing shop in 1996, and as the years ticked by, it fell into disrepair and dereliction.

Multiple attempts to breathe new life into the space were mooted, but none came to proper fruition.

That was until 2018, when plans to convert the mill into a 171-home, 28-storey block of flats were unveiled.

But despite proposal being given planning permission in 2020, building work never got off the ground — leaving the mill to crumble for years more.

A new bid to keep the Press alive was revealed by new developers Manner in 2023, which secured planning permission for a 36-storey student tower containing 595 rooms from Manchester council last year, on the condition the facade and Percy Brothers sign would stay intact.

It looked like, after 28 years, Medlock Mill’s future had been decided. But then came a bolt from the blue.

In the weeks following the council's decision to rubber-stamp the plans, an ‘anonymous listing application’ was made to the government to protect the building, which would have prevented the approved redevelopment.

Manner campaigned to strike the bid off, and eventually Lisa Nandy ruled it should not be protected in January 2025.

However, a new twist quietly emerged in late March, as Manner applied to dramatically change the redevelopment.

It wants to reduce the tower’s height, and make it wider and longer so the number of student bedrooms will rise from 595 to 619. Crucially, it also wants to change the exterior material of the block.

Instead of being brick facade which matched the Victorian mill, it will be finished in aluminium, according to architect Stephen Hodder.

“The decision to introduce a contemporary element above a historic brick structure stemmed from a desire to add clarity rather than compete,” he said in a statement.

“The contrast between the solidity and texture of brick and the lightness and precision of aluminium allows each component to express its own time and intention. It allows the original fabric to remain visually anchored, while the new addition reads as a distinct, legible intervention.

“This contrast can reinforce the identity of the existing building, not by imitation, but through a measured dialogue - one that respects its history while expressing a new layer of architectural intent. Anodized aluminium, by its nature, recedes—ensuring the historic structure retains its visual primacy. In doing so, the intervention allows The Hotspur Press to express both Manchester’s past and future.”

Manner has also denied the change has been made to increase profits on the £124m scheme, amid reports the new material will be cheaper.

A spokesperson for Manner added: “Since receiving unanimous approval by Manchester City Council last year for our proposals to breathe new life into The Hotspur Press, we have taken the time and opportunity to review and further improve our plans.

“As part of our continuing consultation process and commitment to community engagement we will be holding a further round of consultation with the local community in the coming weeks to talk through our updates to The Hotspur Press.”

It’s understood a new public consultation will take place in the coming weeks.

You can see the planning application for the new materials and reduced height online here.