Going for gold

INSIDE £15M TRANSFORMATION OF PYRAMID INTO RESTAURANT PLUS WEDDING AND EVENT DESTINATION

- JENNA CAMPBELL

THE word 'iconic' gets bandied around a little too much these days, but if you've ever been stuck in traffic on the M60 or surveyed the surroundings from the redbrick viaduct, you'll know that the big blue triangle on the horizon is worthy of this title.

Jokingly dubbed the 'eighth wonder of the world', the Stockport Pyramid - built in the late 1980s - was originally part of the 'Valley of the Kings' project, which aimed to see five pyramids erected along the River Mersey.

But the developers went bankrupt in 1992, meaning it was the only one constructed. The project's main lender - the Co-operative Bank - moved in three years later, running its call centre there before relocating to Manchester's NOMA neighbourhood in 2018.

This incongruous structure sitting at the gateway to the former mill town has remained untouched since then, but in just a few weeks it will reopen its gleaming glass doors having been transformed into one of the largest restaurant concepts in Europe.

Last November, award-winning restaurant chain Royal Nawaab received the green light to transform the pyramid into a huge restaurant and banqueting venue with space for 1,500 diners.

In a new update shared on the restaurant's social media pages, bosses said there will be 500 car parking spaces including 40 electric charging portals. They also gave more details on the banqueting suites, explaining that there will be three suites in total, catering from 60 guests all the way up to 800.

Larger than its flagship site in London - which has 1,300 covers every weekend - it will comprise a 400-cover restaurant on the ground floor, a 800-capacity first-floor banqueting space for weddings and events, and an additional banqueting area for 400 on the second floor.