I'm leaning towards Liverpool for a venue.
If you want to call in the archives, Manchester Central Library is likely to be starting its 3-year closure.
Liverpool Central Library is a very short walk from Lime Street Station, with only St George's Hall in between.
Both cities have lost huge areas of housing to Slum Clearance and the Luftwaffe. The homes of most of my relatives from either place have gone, though many of the churches they used survive.
St George's Hall is well worth a visit - I caught it last year when the floor was uncovered (the tiles are normally covered to protect them). If you've any black sheep from the area, they are likely to have heen tried in the courts at the ends of the building.
The bus station close by will get you to most parts of the city.
Other attractions with a vaguely genealogical theme -
- Merseyside Maritime Museum (at Albert Dock)
- International Slavery Museum (at Albert Dock)
- Liverpool War Museum is in the bunker from which the Battle of the Atlantic was co-ordinated (I think this is the only place I've mentioned with a charge)
