The big ditch: the Manchester Ship Canal seen through the camera of John Darwell

The most complete study of the Manchester Ship Canal. Originally built in the late 1800s to connect Manchester and Liverpool, the canal was one of the marvels of the Victorian age. By the late sixties the canal was in severe decline and later became essentially unused for the transport of cargo. My intention was to capture every aspect of the canal at a time when its future lay in the balance, from the boat crews and swing bridge keepers to the industry on its banks to the landscape through which it passes, and in many cases formed, this work stands as a testament to a bygone age.