11-81-80 Liverpool University

Opened in 1967 at Alsop Building, Brownlow Hill, these purpose-built premises will cater much better for Martins Bank’s Liverpool University customers than the previous ones. Brownlow hill is redeveloped between 1965 and 1968, and the Bank has to leave the original University Branch at 164 BROWNLOW HILL, and open a temporary one at 45 BEDFORD STREET NORTH. Martins Bank’s presence at university campuses all over England has proved a successful move for the Bank, tapping in to a student banking market that is set to become a huge fighting ground for competition amongst the major banks throughout the 1970s, 80s and 90s.

In service: 1967 – 29 January 2021

Image © Martins Bank Archive Collection

Whilst many of University Branches offer only limited banking hours, Liverpool University is a full Branch, open for the full banking week across six days, and is open to all customers of the Bank, students or not. The image above comes from Martins Bank Magazine, and we have no others from Martins’ time. However, our friends at Barclays have provided us with the following exterior shot from 1981, and an interior from 1985. The Branch is still going strong today. A little further down the page, our short feature throws the spotlight on Liverpool University Branch Manager, Bill Morris, who in October 1968 appears to have changed profession altogether…

Images © Barclays Ref 30/1688

“ee’s gettin’ married in the mornin’…”

Mr W G Morris, Manager of Liverpool University Branch, outside his newly-built office.

Pardon?

Yes, it really is Bill Morris and his outfit had nothing to do with the recent strike of the Liverpool dustmen. This is how he appeared on stage at Liverpool’s Royal Court Theatre as Alfred Doolittle in ‘My Fair Lady’ which the Birkenhead Amateur Operatic Society staged for a fortnight in October.

And if that dustbin looks heavy – it was. Said Bill: “We had a session taking pictures and I picked up this dustbin full of clinkers. The expression of anguish is not altogether staged”…