You get a different perspective on Wolverhampton when looking from high above.
Up there with a bird’s eye view the city is laid out like a map below and you see so much more. There have been dramatic changes over the years which are brought into stark focus, such as the ring road which has carved its way through the cityscape, and the Mander Centre which transformed the centre.
Now here’s a question - was Wolverhampton a better place before the major developments of the 1960s and 1970s, or did they make the town, as it was then, keep pace with the needs of the modern world?
Judge for yourselves as we take flight above the city and enjoy a selection of pictures from down the decades and share your memories and views in the comments.
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5. A bend in the road
The sweep of the road at Lloyd Hill in 1973. Those rectangular plots are quite distinctive, aren't they? If we've got our bearings right, we're looking down the A449 towards the Battlefield roundabout. One carriageway seems to be carrying traffic, but the other looks like it is still not finished. | Express & Star archive
6. Defiants were made here
Wolverhampton used to be a major aircraft manufacturer. We're looking across the Boulton Paul factory which made, among other things, Defiant fighters, which played a part in the Battle of Britain. They were unusual for fighters in that they had a gun turret. | Express & Star archive
7. This will take your breath away
Aldersley Stadium is in its 70th anniversary year, as demonstrated by this aerial view of the stadium which was published in the Express & Star on the day of its official opening, Saturday, June 9, 1956. | Express & Star archive
8. It ruined the view of the church
This is copied direct from the pages of the Express & Star of Thursday, March 3, 1938, and the original caption was: "Wolverhampton retail market hall, one of the best-known landmarks of the town since the middle of the last century, is doomed to go. Begun soon after the close of the Hungry Forties, it was opened in 1853, having been built at a cost of £29,000. In the next few years the hall will be demolished, and it is the intention of the Borough Council to leave the site vacant to provide a good view from the new public hall, seen at the back of the market hall in the picture, to St Peter's Church. Here is a bird's eye view of the market taken this morning in the early spring sunshine." The picture will have been taken from the top of the church tower. The public hall referred to is Wolverhampton Civic Hall. Presumably the outbreak of war in 1939 saved the market hall from demolition. In fact it was not demolished until 1961. | Express & Star archive