Your itinerary for Manchester when discovering Amazing Women by Rail ....
Take either the 201 or 204 bus for Hyde outside Piccadilly Tavern on London Road.
A Day Saver/Rover ticket is best value as you can use it all day.
Ask for the Manchester College (Nicholls Campus) on Hyde Road - this was formerly the Ellen Wilkinson High School (M12 6BA).
Ellen was born at 41, Coral Street, Brunswick (now demolished) but there is a blue plaque in Balsam Close (M13 9UL) near the original house.
Cross Hyde Road and walk down Devonshire Street , cross the A6 (Stockport Road) and you will soon reach Plymouth Grove. For the Victoria Baths (M13 0FE) , turn left and then turn right at Hathersage Road.
This is where Sunny Lowry learned to swim.
There are regular Wednesday tours of this extraordinary building and Open Days on the second Sunday of the month ( April - November) .
Elizabeth Gaskell House is Number 84, Plymouth Grove (M13 0FE).
The house has been lovingly restored and is open on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays.
Thursday is a good day to visit as this is the only weekday that the nearby Pankhurst Centre (M13 9WP) is open.
You can walk here from Victoria Baths or alternatively take a 197 bus from Albert Square in the city centre.
To reach the Pankhurst Centre, walk down Plymouth Grove to reach Grafton Street.
Cross Upper Brook Street and continue along Grafton Street.
Turn second left is the main Infirmary entrance.
The Pankhurst Centre is at 60-62, Nelson Street (M13 9WP) and stands out as the oldest building.
It is open between 10am and 4pm on Thursdays and occasional Sundays.
There are exhibitions, a furnished room; film shows and souvenirs and books to purchase.
There are no toilets or cafe.
Turn right out of the Pankhurst Centre and head for Oxford Road and Manchester University.
We recommend Christie's Bistro at the university (M13 9PL).
Nearby is a blue plaque for Ellen Wilkinson and a building named in her honour.
