L.C. Howitt, as City Architect, is credited as the designer of the Toastrack. Here is a brief biography (courtesy of scottisharchitects.org.uk), alongside a fascinating series of photographs kindly provided for Manchester Modernist Society by Leonard’s grandson Ed. Leonard Cecil Howitt 1896-1964 Leonard Cecil Howitt was born in Islington in 1896, the only child of William … Continue reading
Margaret Connolly (nee Pemberton), of Chorlton-cum-Hardy, shares her personal experiences of the Toastrack: “I attended classes for silversmiths at Hollings College from 1962 (circa) until 1974. This was a further education class and my tutor was Mr Hollings. I learnt a lot from him, and after the class closed went on to get 2 NVQs and … Continue reading
Sylvia Dow (nee Thorpe) contacted Manchester Modernist Society after seeing our Toastrack residency featured in the Manchester Evening News online. Now living in Margate, northwest of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Sylvia has shared some memories of her time at Hollings College between 1961-63. “I was a student in the early 1960s in the Catering department. The building was … Continue reading
Possibly our favourite archive photo so far. Another fashion selection from the students at Hollings, this time from 1959. Notice the Toastrack still incomplete in the background – and a couple of amazed builders looking on. The short dressing gown (or is it a smoking jacket?) in the front left is surely ripe for a return … Continue reading
The Hollings rooftop continues to inspire. A great meeting today with Haleh and Laura should result in the MMU Architecture students becoming involved in the Toastrack project. Continue reading
A Toastrack chef from the 1970s appears to have reached the end of his tether… Continue reading
Toastrack 