Sights of UoN - Portland Building

Note: High resolution images of some of the following photos are available. These photos are marked with [HiRes] tags (Hi-Resolution) in their captions. Click on the photos to view their higher resolution images.

I mentioned about the Portland Building in a blogpost some time ago.

One of the few Portland Building signboards.

Portland building was initially built in the 1950s. The facade facing the lake sports the traditional English architecture and is, in my opinion, the best looking structure in the University after the Trent Building.

[HiRes] Portland Building's main (and old) entrance.

The four-storey building was then expanded, probably some time in the 90s or early 2000s. The extension is four-storey as well, but the floors of the newer and older halves are not aligned, ie the ground floor of the newer half is the first floor of the other. Portland thus ended up with five floors.

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Portland Building is probably the most important non-academic building in the University Park campus. Its daily visitors easily surpasses that of the others, including the Trent and possibly even the Hallward library.

[HiRes] Students enjoying their lunch break outside Portland Building.

Portland is home to the University's Students' Union, which comprises of all university societies and sports club (under Atheletic Union). The main grocery store in Portland is called the Students' Union Shop.

The Students' Union Shop is possibly operated by the Students' Union itself, though I can't be sure of that. They sell all sorts of goods, including hard drinks, stationery, University sweaters/cups/T-shirts, other than the usual food and snacks.

Alcoholic drinks, Students' Union Shop, Portland Building.

It's no wonder few UK students want to participate in the Exchange Programme to Malaysia -- University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus doesn't even allow alcoholic drinks in campus grounds, let alone selling them.

Stop dreaming about seeing this thing in any school in Malaysia.

Just outside the Students' Union Shop, there is a collection of several photos of famous alumni.

And yes, that's the Malaysian Prime Minister, Najib.

There's a pharmacy just opposite the Students' Union Shop. It is a branch of the Boots pharmacy, whose founder's son Jesse Boot donated much land to the University of Nottingham some seven or eight decades ago. This act of kindness tied the Boots Company and the University of Nottingham together, and is probably why the University is famed for its pharmacy course.

Then there's the Blackwells bookstore.

Blackwells sells new and used books. Although this Blackwells branch isn't as big as the bookstores in the city, it is still a great place to hang out if you're a book person (or worm).

Blackwells in Portland sells limited DVDs as well.


I really like how they use daylight for lighting purposes. Great for reading!

There are two food courts in Portland Building, and a Juice Bar. And, guess what, they even have a bar, called the Den, open for six nights a week.

The Den during lunch time. Yes, they're open during the day too. I wouldn't be able to shoot anything at night with my poor camera.


Bar seating. It was recently renovated over the summer.


Pool tables at the bar.


A recycled photo from the old blogpost. This was taken just outside The Den. The area was mainly used for outdoor dining or smoking.

Moving away from the bar, there's also the Portland Atrium, where activities like performances and fairs and often held.

That's not everything in Portland. There's still the Chapel (with a pipe organ), Printing Centre, Student Services Centre, two banks (HSBC and NatWest), CCD (Centre for Careers Development), a saloon, various halls and more.

Boy, I'm never gonna finish if I were to write about everything.

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