Birmingham, the Second City

Birmingham had only ever been a mid size market town home to a few thousand people up until the Industrial Revolution where it was transformed into the second largest city in Britain.

Due to its central location in Britain it was the most prominent place for trade and manufacture in the country and an extensive canal network was built in the 1700 through to the 1900, the city has more canals then Venice!
Birmingham is now referred to as the second city after London and prides itself on being a centre for business and conference and Brummies as the people of the city are known are known for their hospitality.

The NEC is the UK’s largest events venue and hosts more exhibitions then anywhere else in Europe.
It is also the jewellery capital of Britain with 1/3 of all jewellery manufactured in the country being produced here and more in recent regeneration projects transformed itself into a world class shopping destination with the opening of the £500 million Bullring shopping mall. The building itself has one countless awards for its unique design and is worth the visit just in itself.

Whether you are visiting the city for business or for pleasure the city is linked with good public transport.
If shopping is a passion then Birmingham wont let you down, the Bullring itself has over 160 shops for you to browse catering for all your needs all under one roof, also to bear in mind is the fact that the city also boast several plazas, pavilions and markets all of which are easy to access and host a variety of shops reflecting the cities multi-ethnic make up.

In fact did you know that Birmingham’s population 21.5% are classed as ethnic minorities and the city puts on the third largest St Patrick's Day parade in the world, next to Dublin and New York! St Andrews is home to Birmingham City Football club and Birmingham has three professional football teams - Aston Villa, nicknamed the Villains; Birmingham City, nicknamed the Blues; and West Bromwich Albion, nicknamed the Baggies.
There have been many films that have had scenes shot in around Birmingham, which include Pride and Prejudice (2005), Take Me High (1973) and Brassed Off (1996) Check out the official website www.visitbirmingham.com for all the latest events and news from the city.