Great Western Arcade

Great Western Arcade is a building constructed between 1875 and 1876 by W H Ward. It is made of stone and has three storeys with four bays; the outer two bays are narrow, while the third bay contains the entrance to the arcade. The ground floor features modern shops and an inserted mezzanine floor, where the tops of coupled Corinthianesque columns can be seen. These columns support a broad entablature with a dentilled cornice.

On the first floor, there are coupled columns leading to a boldly bracketted cornice, a window with columns beneath an entablature decorated with guilloche and a pediment, a tripartite sash window, and a richly moulded arch leading to the arcade, which features allegorical figures in the spandrels. Another window similar to the first completes this level. The second floor has a single window, two triplet windows, and another single window, with vertical floriated panels between them. The windows on the first and second floors are adorned with banding in the Mannerist style.

Inside the arcade, there is a large 'triumphal arch' at the entrance, with the outer bays represented by the shops on the ground floor and a balcony above them on the upper floor. The shops are flanked by iron railings that serve as a balcony for the set-back first floor, which has arched windows in moulded surrounds, separated by pilasters and grouped in threes by larger panelled pilasters leading to an entablature with a bold cornice. The arcade has a glazed roof, and about halfway down, the rhythm of the design is interrupted by large bows on either side. The Colmore flow end of the arcade has been entirely altered and is of no interest.