My picture above seemed at the same time happy and sad, a typical Bradford city centre scene. The young man was trying his best to brighten things (and make a bit of cash I guess) with some music. Some of the guys cheering him on looked like the kind you often see staggering around with cans or bottles in their hand, arguing among themselves or wandering around aimlessly - but they seemed to be enjoying the music.
Just on the corner here, there's a unit that shows some of the developers' vision for this area, what used to be the heart of the shopping centre in Bradford. The city council are managing a wide-scale reorientation of the city centre. Many of the shops have relocated to the Broadway Shopping Centre, lower down the town. The markets, higher up, have been closed and relocated to a new building on Darley Street. The Council has been undertaking a consultation on their plans for a 'City Village': a 'vibrant, inclusive neighbourhood in the heart of Bradford' which will be a key part of Bradford's wider regeneration story, with plans for new homes, jobs, retail spaces and public realm improvements. Whether I shall ever see this in my lifetime, who knows? And whether it will be any more successful than attempts to similarly revamp the city's historic Little Germany area... who knows? At least they are trying.