All Change at Victoria...

A much needed £44m transformation of Manchester's Victoria station will deliver a "safer, brighter and more spacious" environment according to plans just unveiled by owners Network Rail. The station's origins can be traced back to the late 1830s and a sympathetic refurbishment of the Grade II listed Victorian buildings will be encased in a brand new sate-of-the-art see-through roof which will replace the old, leaky one. Additional retail space and updated ticket offices are included in the plans. Work on the long-awaited makeover will start almost immediately and the project is due for completion in early 2015. On a macabre note, workmen have discovered what is believed to be a mass grave for the 19th century poor. Hundreds are believed to have been buried under the station, many possibly victims of cholera epidemics. The remains will be carefully removed and taken to Southern Cemetery for reburial.