Ok, now for a little history lesson (sorry I wouldn't do this unless it was very interesting). The Clifton Arcade, a beautiful Victorian version of a shopping mall, was buried under 60 tonnes of debris (including a caravan) until just 20 years ago.
The story goes, when a builder was working around the site twenty years ago and started drilling into a wall, his drill went all the way through, meaning it was hollow inside; he made the hole big enough to look through and saw this beautiful old Victorian parade of shops, untouched for decades. Now I don't know how much of that the complete truth, but pretty cool is nonetheless.
As far as shops go, they are suitably useless but fit in with this special building. They are lovely little independent businesses. There is an amazing little Mexican shop that only sells, well, Mexican things. Like wrestlers masks. Nacho Libre!!!
There are art shops & a really cool vintage clothes shop (woman only, dam!). The biggest shame is that the brilliant little record store that used to be at the far end has now closed. Dam, now this arcade really is only suitable for woman, mothers and grannies who can literally get lost in their for hours. Some peace for the rest of us. read more