The private Manchester millionaire's row where Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan spent their 'happiest years'

16.04.2022 - 09:55 / manchestereveningnews.co.uk

The leafy suburb of Didsbury is well-known as one of Manchester’s most sought-after places to live. But one particular street, on the outskirts of the neighbourhood, is even more desirable than the rest.

Old Broadway is an exclusive, private cul-de-sac that was once home to Factory Records founder Tony Wilson and TV's favourite married couple, Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan. Judy has even described the 10 years they lived there watching their children grow up as the ‘happiest’ of her life.

Bordering Withington, just off the main drag of Wilmslow Road, Old Broadway is a tree-lined road with a grass verge running along the centre. It features two mini-roundabouts that have huge trees growing from them. There is even more greenery at the end of the street, where it leads to a park.

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The large, imposing houses, a mix of detached and semi-detached, date back to between 1911 and 1913 and are set back from the road with front gardens. Their design is typical of the Arts and Crafts movement, with gabled roofs, wooden framing, and front porches supported by feature columns.

The avenue and the period properties on either side were designed as a complete entity and built by Emmanuel Nove - an émigré from Ukraine who had arrived in Manchester in the mid-1890s. After setting up a firm of builders, he first constructed Burton Road and later in the 1920s, he built Nos. 6-14a Oxford Road, in the city centre.

It is understood that the superior quality of the houses on Old Broadway made them popular with doctors, who worked at Manchester Royal Infirmary and were required to live within four miles of the hospital.