Middlesbrough Cathedral
| Saint Mary's Cathedral, Middlesbrough | |
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| Cathedral Church of Saint Mary the Virgin | |
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 Saint Mary's Cathedral, Middlesbrough
Shown within North Yorkshire
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| Coordinates: 54°31′22″N 1°12′50″W / 54.52277°N 1.21378°W | |
| OS grid reference | NZ509144 |
| Location | Middlesbrough |
| Country | England |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic |
| Website | middlesbroughrccathedral.org |
| History | |
| Dedication | Saint Mary the Virgin |
| Consecrated | 1998 |
| Architecture | |
| Status | Active |
| Functional status | Cathedral |
| Previous cathedrals | Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Succour, Sussex Street |
| Architect(s) | Frank Swainston |
| Groundbreaking | 3 November 1985 |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Middlesbrough |
| Province | Liverpool |
| Clergy | |
| Bishop(s) | Terence Patrick Drainey |
| Dean | Very Rev. Monsignor Canon Gerard Paul Robinson |
| Canon(s) | Very Rev. Monsignor Canon Gerard Dasey, Fr Philip Cunnah |
| Pastor(s) | Fr Philip Cunnah |
| Laity | |
| Director of music | Tim Harrison |
| Organist(s) | Craig Cartwright |
Saint Mary's Cathedral, also known as Middlesbrough Cathedral, is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Coulby Newham, Middlesbrough, England. It is the see of the Bishop of Middlesbrough, who is ordinary of the Diocese of Middlesbrough in the Province of Liverpool.
The original Cathedral Church of Our Lady Of Perpetual Succour was built from 1876 and was opened on 21 August 1878. It was situated on Sussex Street, in the old St.Hilda's district of Middlesbrough. At the time, the church was located within the Diocese of Beverley as the diocese of Middlesbrough did not exist until December 1878. It was initially built not as a cathedral, but as a church that could hold 1,500 people to serve the people of Middlesbrough.
The first bishop of Middlesbrough, Richard Lacy was consecrated there on 18 December 1879.
In August 1984, news reports stated that the cathedral had structural problems and may have to be pulled down. As it was a Grade II listed building, any demolition was officially blocked. The shifting population of the town at the time also meant the cathedral had become more and more isolated. A new cathedral building was therefore required to replace the original. The new Saint Mary's Cathedral was built in the suburb of Coulby Newham, in the south of Middlesbrough, with building work commencing in late 1985.
The old cathedral was gutted by fire in May 2000. The fire was supposedly started by a group of children playing inside the building, which was by then already in a significant state of disrepair. Due to the extensive fire damage and risk of further collapse, the building was demolished soon after. The site is now the location of the Middlesbrough headquarters of Cleveland Police.
The original architect of the new cathedral at Coulby Newham was Frank Swainston, who died just after the outline plan had been agreed upon. His assistant Peter Fenton developed the detailed drawings and designed the cathedral furnishings. All this he brought to completion with the advice of J.O. Tarren and Professor Patrik Nuttgens.
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Wikipedia