As the medieval settlement grew in the 16th and 17th centuries, the area was on the western boundary of the town and remained as fields. The early settlement of Birmingham was focused on the parish church of St Martin in the Bull Ring, approximately 8 m (26 ft) east of the present Paradise Circus. In 2014, it was announced that the new development would be named as simply 'Paradise' to reflect the fact that the 'circus' element would disappear when Paradise Circus Queensway next to the Town Hall was pedestrianised. Areas within the site were named Paradise Place and the shopping arcade created under Central Library in the early 1990s was named Paradise Forum. When the road layout was transformed into a gyratory roundabout in the 1960s, the site became known as Paradise Circus. As a result of this the street at the southern end of the site was named Paradise Street when the street was laid out in the late 18th century. The name 'Paradise' could reflect satisfaction with the quality of land or indicate the presence of a medieval pleasure garden, among other possibilities. The field name 'Paradise Close' is shown on the map where the current site derives its name. From 2015, Argent Group will redevelop the area into new mixed use buildings and public squares.Īlthough there are no maps dating from the period to confirm this, a manorial survey of 1553 (reproduced as the conjectural 1857 Bickey and Hill map) records that the site of the present Paradise Circus is on the western boundary of the town. The site was redeveloped from 1960 to 1975 into the present Paradise Circus based within a roundabout on the Inner Ring Road system containing a new Central Library and School of Music. The area has been part of the civic centre of Birmingham, England since the 19th century when it contained buildings such as the Town Hall, Mason Science College, Birmingham and Midland Institute buildings and Central Library.

Paradise, formerly named Paradise Circus, is the name given to an area of approximately 7 hectares (17 acres) in Birmingham city centre between Chamberlain and Centenary Squares.

CGI of Chamberlain Square, currently under construction

Paradise Circus by AngelOfTheMoor