A brief history of Nottingham skateboarding

1970s

Nottingham has a rich history of skateboarding, from as early as the boom in the 70s where the UK took inspiration from what was happening in California and other parts of the U.S. The earliest purpose-built skatepark was the Malibu Dogbowl, built in an old cinema in Lenton, which was featured in Skateboard! Magazine in 1978.

Maid Marian Way. Photo: Robin Pounder.

1980s

The Hyson Green Bowls were a creation of the 1960s high rise housing estates in the middle of Notts, and became a popular skate spot throughout the 1980s. This was the same era that the legendary Broadmarsh Banks gained fame as a regular hangout for skaters, BMXers & graffiti artists.

Hyson Green. Photo: Steve Tristram.

Broadmarsh Banks. Photo: Steve Tristram, 1987.

Broadmarsh Banks

The banks were the surviving remnants of the original playground area constructed in the early 1970s alongside the Broadmarsh Shopping Centre. They were an example of the kind of experimental design that often came with post-war brutalist architecture, and shared similarities with spaces like London’s Southbank Centre banks. Much like Southbank, Broady Banks became a ‘found space’ for skateboarders & BMX riders, where they could interpret the architecture in new ways and be challenged in a way they couldn’t by any other space in the city, or any other city, for that matter.

Decades of iconic skating happened here, with Broady Banks featuring heavily in national magazines all the way through the now legendary 90s & 2000s Sidewalk Magazine/Document Magazine era, until the banks were sadly destroyed in 2009.

Broadmarsh Banks. Photo: Andrew McDermott, 1987.

Alan Rushbrooke. Photo: Wig Worland.

Rollersnakes Nottingham. Photo: Andrew McDermott, 1988.

Rollersnakes

As an addition to their original Derby store established in 1985, Rollersnakes opened a store in Notts and was the first shop to feature an indoor mini ramp, attracting some of skateboarding’s biggest names from around the world including Eric Dressen & Mark Gonzales. The ramp also featured in one of the most influential and groundbreaking skate videos of all time, Blind’s Video Days.

Rollersnakes ramp. Photo: Andrew McDermott.

NonStop

Multiple generations of kids got their first boards and shoes from Robin and the extended NonStop family - the longest standing Nottingham skate shop, which was there on St James’s Street from 1988-2015. The NonStop/Rock City jams in the 90s became legendary.

Craig Smedley at Rock City. Photo: Benno Taylor.

1990s

The scene flourished in the 90s, with places like The Old Market Square & Broadmarsh Banks becoming iconic UK spots. Nottingham also helped put Sidewalk Magazine on its journey to becoming the longest running printed skate mag in the UK, with its creators Ben Powell, Andy Horsley & Chris Forder all calling Nottingham home for a time. Document Skateboard Magazine also featured lots of Nottingham in this era.

Pros such as Carl Shipman, Gaz Jenkins, Harry Bastard & Craig Smedley made names for themselves from their hometown or adopted home of Notts.

The Old Market Square. Photo: Matt Wrenn, c.1989.

The Chocolate team visit The Old Market Square on tour in 1994. Photo: Jody Morris.

Harry ‘Bastard’ floating above the Broady Banks hip on the cover of Sidewalk issue 3. Photo: Wig Worland.

2000s - 2010s

A lot of change happened through the 2000s era, particularly with the loss of some legendary spots of the previous decades. The Old Market Square was redeveloped in 2005, and Broadmarsh Banks were demolished in 2009.

But moving into the 2010s, the scene changed and evolved with several key additions. 2011 brought us Clifton skatepark, a decent-sized Maverick Industries park that has a big bowl as well as a street section, and has often been a go-to for local and national competitions. In the same year, the scene also gained Forty Two skate shop, a new independent shop run by local legends Rob Johnson & Scott Underdown.

Becky Jaques at Clifton skatepark, photo: Andy Horsley.

Forty Two shop

A skater-run shop in the truest sense of the word. These guys absolutely know skateboarding, and have regularly organised or sponsored local events for Nottingham. Look out for the Sunday Circuit jams at skateparks around the city most summers.

Adam Gaucher at Sneinton Market, Photo: Tom Quigley, 2019.

Sneinton Market

With the loss of Nottingham’s Old Market Square, the central meeting point for skaters on weekends, the scene became a little segregated, with everyone sticking to their local skateparks out in the various boroughs of the city. When the Sneinton Market area of town was redeveloped in 2011, a near-perfect plaza of ledges, manual pads and blocks caught everyone’s eye, and gradually became the go-to space where you knew you’d likely find other skaters.

After more than 10 years, Snenno has daily sessions, its own community Instagram account (@sneintonlife), and has been a notable stop on visiting pros touring the UK. The skaters’ presence has become part of Sneinton, and recognised by local residents as bringing life and an increased feeling of safety to an otherwise underused space.