'Manchester's changed so much I get lost, so when I found this I was speechless'

In the 1980s a little house on Hathersage Road opposite Victoria Baths was inhabited by a group of university students. Freshly relocated from her hometown of London, Freya North was one of them.

Marking the first time she had any sense of independence, moving to Manchester gave her a new sense of freedom. As the city’s Madchester scene began to take flight and nights at The Haçienda became a common part of any student’s itinerary, Freya - who studied Fine Art at the University of Manchester - says she saw the city for what it relished every moment.

“It really was just a special place at a special time,” Freya, now 56. “I distinctly remember there was this rolling green where the Academy is now, where we’d all just hang out in-between classes. There’d always be some enterprising student there selling watermelon slices for 10p.

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“The Haçienda’s reputation precedes it but it was just an interesting period not only in the history of the club but in clubbing in Europe. To have something founded by the visionary Tony Wilson for the kids right here was just special.

“He felt that every youth culture needed a cathedral so turned the old yacht showroom into this cathedral for us. It really was just a happening - there’s no other way to explain it. The time and the music all just coalesced into something that ultimately just swept everyone alone for the ride. In retrospect, it has historic significance.”

Now a novelist - having written a number of best-sellers including Polly, Love Rules, The Turning Point and Little Wing - Freya decided to turn back to her days in Manchester for her latest book as she waved her own son off to