The 6 Best Modernist Architecture Walks in Manchester

This walk centres on the CIS Tower, which was the tallest building in the UK when it opened in 1962. It is a masterpiece of the International Style. Clean, glassy, and perched on a massive five-storey podium. Adjacent is New Century House, which features a legendary abstract mural by William Mitchell in the lobby. In 2026, the area (rebranded as NOMA) has been beautifully pedestrianised, allowing you to walk right up to these giants and appreciate the contrast between the 60s glass and the ultra-modern One Angel Square nearby.

The former UMIST campus is arguably the most important collection of modernist buildings in the North. It was designed as a "city within a city" in the 1960s, featuring the white, sculptural Renold Building, the high-rise Maths and Social Science Tower, and the bold Faraday Building. It’s a landscape of elevated walkways, concrete pilotis (stills), and hidden courtyards. In 2026, with the university consolidating toward the south, this area feels like a peaceful, slightly eerie modernist time capsule.

This walk starts at Gateway House (the "Lazy S" building), which curves elegantly along the approach to Piccadilly Station. From there, you head to Piccadilly Plaza, which includes the City Tower and the brutalist Bernard House. These buildings were designed to be a "futuristic" heart for Manchester. In 2026, the Plaza has been reclad in parts, but the massive concrete "podium" and the sheer scale of the development still capture the "Truly Madly Brutal" ambition of the 1960s.

Oxford Road is a chronological history of Manchester. Moving south from the city, you pass the Oxford Road Station (with its unique wooden "conoid" roofs) before hitting the University of Manchester campus. Here, modernist icons like the Williamson Building and the Roscoe Building sit right next to Victorian gothic halls. The highlight for modernists is the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), a heavy, textured concrete structure that is a prime example of late 60s Brutalism.

While Salford Quays is often associated with 2000s glass, its bones are 1980s and 90s Post-Modernism. This walk takes you from the angular, red-and-grey The Lowry (designed by Michael Wilford) to the aluminium-clad Imperial War Museum North (by Daniel Libeskind). You’ll also find the Anchorage buildings, which represent the 80s "business park" version of modernism. It’s a walk about how a derelict dockland was reimagined through bold, sculptural architecture.

The Toast Rack is a Grade II listed building that is exactly what it says on the tin: it looks like a giant toast rack. Designed by Leonard C. Howitt, its tapering concrete ribs are a landmark of Fallowfield. Next to it sits the semi-circular "Poached Egg" (the restaurant block). In 2026, the building is undergoing a major residential redevelopment, so while you can’t wander the halls, a walk around the perimeter is essential for any fan of "structural gymnastics."