Grand Central, Birmingham – England - Atlas Obscura

Grand Central, Birmingham

This fantastic building now hosts an iconic sculpture named for Black Sabbath front man, Ozzy Osborne.  

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Grand Central  was , reputedly,  the original intended name of the railway  station  in the centre of Birmingham,  UK. After the construction  of the station in 1971 however it was given the, less grand, title of “Birmingham  New Street  Station “. The station is essentially below ground level and a shopping centre/atrium was built above it. This was given the name “The Palisades” after a refurbishment in 1991.

The Palisades was again redeveloped in 2015 and provided  with a remarkable  ETFE polymer roof and redesigned  to form the current  structure known as “Grand Central”. The centre was linked to the nearby “Bull Ring” shopping centre by a footbridge. 

In 2022 Birmingham  hosted the Commonwealth Games and the enduring mascot of the games became a huge mechanical sculpture of a bull, reflecting the City’s iconic symbol. It was intended only as a temporary,  moving, sculpture  but, by popular  demand, the funds were obtained  to retain it in the city. It is currently housed in the Grand Cental atrium and following an on line poll it was named Ozzy, after that great son of the city, Black Sabbath  front man, Ozzy Osborne. 

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