MediaCityUK Photographic Build Timeline Journal

The MediaCityUK Photographic Build Timeline Journal is an extensive, long-term documentary project created by IT Project Manager and photographer Mark Whitfield. Working nearby in Salford Quays, Whitfield used his close proximity to methodically document the area’s massive transformation from an empty dockland into a major UK media hub.

Mark Whitfield MediaCityUK Photographic Build Timeline Journal
Mark Whitfield | MediaCityUK Photographic Build Timeline Journal

The project captured over 15,000 photos over its lifespan, focusing heavily on the phase 1 construction lifecycle from the ground up.

Key Project Timeline & Milestones

  • November 2006: Early preparation work and digging begins around the site. Temporary cabins are placed off Broadway to house the initial project staff and BBC contingents.
  • 18 May 2007: Mark Whitfield captures his first timeline photograph, marking the formal start of his build documentation. This coincides with the official “spade in the ground” by Peel Group and Bovis Lend Lease.
  • June 2007: Visible ground development scales up as the first digger arrives on-site. Concurrently, “The Pie Factory” (a refurbished bakery) opens as the first working studio space.
  • September 2007: Construction advances rapidly with the erection of the first full-sized crane on the development site.
  • 2007–2010: The core construction phase takes place. Whitfield systematically updates his weekly journal from vantage points like the Imperial War Museum North, Broadway, and the Lowry Centre side, capturing the rising crane structures and building shells.
  • September 2010: As the main grassland is replaced by the finished media campus, Whitfield shares an abridged public high-resolution timeline containing a curated selection of his massive archive.
  • August 2011: Documentation expands to capture the next steps of growth, including the initial construction phases of the ITV studios situated directly opposite BBC North.

Exploring the Photo Journal

The full history and comprehensive photo collections can be found across Mark Whitfield’s active journals:

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Author: Mark Whitfield

Welcome to my site! After graduating in Computing in 1990, I accepted a position as a programmer at a Runcorn based software house specialising in electronic banking software, namely sp/ARCHITECT-BANK on Tandem Computers (now HPE NonStop). This was before the internet became more prevalent and so the notion of enabling desktop access to company accounts for inter-account transfers and book keeping was still quite a cutting edge idea (and smartphones only ever hinted at in Space 1999). The company was called The Software Partnership (which was taken over by Deluxe Data in 1994). I spent 5 years in Runcorn developing code for SP/ARCHITECT for various banks like TSB, Bank of Scotland, Rabobank and Girofon (Denmark) to name but a few. I then moved onto a software house in Salford Quays for further bank facing projects. After a further 23 years in the IT industry and now a Senior IT Project Manager (both Agile and Waterfall delivery), I thought I would echo out my Career Profile in this corner of the internet for quick and easy access.

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