By Robert Cumber
Copyright scotsman
3. National Centre for Popular Music
The National Centre for Popular Music was dreamed up to help boost Sheffield’s economy after the rapid decline of its steel industry. The £15 million lottery-funded museum opened in March 1999, celebrating contemporary music and culture, with exhibits including instruments and outfits from the careers of legendary acts. But it never attracted enough visitors, and it closed within 18 months. Following failed attempts to convert it into a live music venue, it was sold in 2002 for a tenth of what it cost to build, and in 2003 it became home to Sheffield Hallam University’s students’ union. The building’s eye-catching design, with each of the drums representing different aspects of music, continues to divide opinion, with some admiring the unique architecture and others branding it one of Sheffield’s ugliest buildings. Its future is today unclear after Sheffield Hallam University announced that the students’ union was moving elsewhere. | YPN