SecretLeeds - History, culture and architecture in Leeds

When I was in the Queens Arcade on March 31 2017 I noticed there were quite a number of vacant shops. Indeed there are plenty of them in the centre of Leeds, with some being on what would be considered to be the main shopping areas. Seeing so many such places gives a somewhat run-down look to an area, caused presumably by high running costs and increasing online shopping. Thornton's Arcade did though seem only to have 2 vacant shops.

PS. I wonder why Queens Arcade is named in the plural form?

Leodian wrote:When I was in the Queens Arcade on March 31 2017 I noticed there were quite a number of vacant shops. Indeed there are plenty of them in the centre of Leeds, with some being on what would be considered to be the main shopping areas. Seeing so many such places gives a somewhat run-down look to an area, caused presumably by high running costs and increasing online shopping. Thornton's Arcade did though seem only to have 2 vacant shops.

PS. I wonder why Queens Arcade is named in the plural form?

A very topical question Leo, with current news reports about the phantom "apostrophiser" of Bristol.
We may never know whether the intention was to name it in honour of several Queens ( in the plural) or whether it's a case of a missing apostrophe. My guess is that it was named in honour of the reigning monarch at the time it was built , Queen Victoria , and should be Queen's Arcade.

You could argue that Kings Road in London should have the apostrophe ( Like KIng's Cross station) as it was a private road which once belonged to King Charles.

We are probably the last generation who will "waste time" bothering about punctuation.

Queens Arcade certainly used to have an apostrophe, for a single queen i.e. Queen's Arcade. So at some point it has been dropped, deliberately or otherwise. A prime case for a phantom apostrophiser in Leeds

I finally got a photo of what could be the World's Worst Apostrophe, shamefully it is in Leeds

And don't worry, I know a few extreme grammar pedants amongst the young generation, most notably my son. He drives his friends mad with it.

What's the big issue here?

Retailers' problems in Leeds or a missing apostrophe? I think it's worth pointing out that central Leeds is thriving when compared with somewhere like Bradford.

blackprince wrote:

Leodian wrote:When I was in the Queens Arcade on March 31 2017 I noticed there were quite a number of vacant shops. Indeed there are plenty of them in the centre of Leeds, with some being on what would be considered to be the main shopping areas. Seeing so many such places gives a somewhat run-down look to an area, caused presumably by high running costs and increasing online shopping. Thornton's Arcade did though seem only to have 2 vacant shops.

PS. I wonder why Queens Arcade is named in the plural form?

A very topical question Leo, with current news reports about the phantom "apostrophiser" of Bristol.
We may never know whether the intention was to name it in honour of several Queens ( in the plural) or whether it's a case of a missing apostrophe. My guess is that it was named in honour of the reigning monarch at the time it was built , Queen Victoria , and should be Queen's Arcade.

You could argue that Kings Road in London should have the apostrophe ( Like KIng's Cross station) as it was a private road which once belonged to King Charles.

We are probably the last generation who will "waste time" bothering about punctuation




Just up the road or so from Bristol here in Gloucester i see a fleet of Taxi Vans that take handicapped childen to my Grandsons School, they all have on the back doors a signage that reads "Please leave at least 2 Meters clearance.
There are many misspelt shop signs around our town but that could be because of foreign owners, plus poor education.

When I just got into the arcade from Briggate yesterday I noticed there were information posters about the arcade that gave its name as Queen's Arcade. So, Queens or Queen's .

The Pevsner Architectural Guide to Leeds has it as Queen's Arcade, and I'd take their word for it.

"The Queen's Arcade of 1889 by Edward Clark of London, built on the site of the Rose-and-Crown Yard behind three and four-storey older frontages of the c18 and c19 and altered in 1896 when two shops of the entrance were rebuilt and the Arcade entrance widened."

Bruno wrote:The Pevsner Architectural Guide to Leeds has it as Queen's Arcade, and I'd take their word for it.

"The Queen's Arcade of 1889 by Edward Clark of London, built on the site of the Rose-and-Crown Yard behind three and four-storey older frontages of the c18 and c19 and altered in 1896 when two shops of the entrance were rebuilt and the Arcade entrance widened."

Thanks Bruno for that interesting information .

[quote="Leodian"]When I was in the Queens Arcade on March 31 2017 I noticed there were quite a number of vacant shops. Indeed there are plenty of them in the centre of Leeds, with some being on what would be considered to be the main shopping areas. Seeing so many such places gives a somewhat run-down look to an area, caused presumably by high running costs and increasing online shopping. Thornton's Arcade did though seem only to have 2 vacant shops.

PS. I wonder why Queens Arcade is named in the plural form?


To add to the "Queens" on Page 10 of those wonderful photos of johnnyg on the "Lion in a Garage" page there is a picture of a Blue Plaque relating to buildings in the Briggate area from the Middle Ages and also then property fronting onto Briggate dated 1714 and called Queens Court.
Seem to remember i had a couple of drinks up there sometime ago in a Bar where i was a bit out of my depth as it was full of youngsters.

This little snippet below will probably explain why there are empty shops in the arcades. You need to turnover £2,500 minimum a week just to pay the rent.