Road in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. More recently it has become the Nicholls Campus of the Manchester College. The railway bridge across Hyde Road was known by older residents as the "Fenian Arch". On 18 September 1867 it was the scene of an attack upon a prison van carrying two Fenian prisoners to the former Belle Vue gaol (jail). One police officer was shot dead. Three Irishmen involved in the affray were caught, tried and executed. The men are referred to by their supporters as the "Manchester Martyrs". Close to the bridge, which has been replaced by a modern concrete structure, is a family-run business called Hyde Road Wheels and Tyres. In 2005 they abandoned their premises in the railway arches, which had become run down, and completed the construction of a new glass-fronted building in November 2005. The project was an unexpected recipient of a "Built in Quality" award in February 2006. Twelve awards are given annually, and the garage was awarded the recognition, despite there being over 2,600 other construction projects in Manchester which were considered. 20th Century In 1904, a new variety theatre, the Ardwick Empire, opened on the corner of Hyde Road and Higher Ardwick overlooking Ardwick Green. It was an opulent building designed by the noted theatre architect Frank Matcham for Oswald Stoll. It became established as a centre of variety entertainment and billed performers such as Fred Karno, Dan Leno, Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and Harry Lauder. Occasional Bioscope shows proved popular, and in 1930 it became a cinema, but continued to present variety acts on its stage. Stoll also owned another theatre in Manchester, the Manchester Hippodrome on Oxford Street. When this was demolished in 1935 to make way for a new Gaumont cinema, Stoll refurbished the Ardwick Empire and renamed it the New Manchester Hippodrome Theatre. Variety stars continued to appear on the stage, including Larry Adler, Max Wall and Joe Loss, and musical theatre shows such as The White Horse Inn and The Student Prince were staged. After 57 of popular entertainment, the New Hippodrome closed in 1961. There was a plan to concert it into a bowling allay, but the building was destroyed by fire in 1964 and subsequently demolished. Today, the site of the former Ardwick Empire remains empty and is used as a car park. Governance Ardwick ward is represented by three councillors, Amna Abdullatif,