River Malago Mill hidden beneath St Catherine’s Shopping Centre featured on BBC’s Digging for Britain

Bristol-born TV archaeologist Alice Roberts and the Digging for Britain team paid a visit to Bedminster Green to explore a mill, once driven by the River Malago and now concealed beneath St Catherine’s Shopping Centre.

The shopping centre and adjacent land form part of Bedminster Green, a regeneration area made up of numerous plots that are being redeveloped to provide housing, and new commercial spaces.

The works to prepare for redevelopment have uncovered the former mill and a team from Wessex Archaeology have been working to document the site and preserve key artefacts.

Vix Hughes, who led the dig for Wessex Archaeology, said: “As a Bristolian, it was poignant to uncover the remains of what was once a thriving local mill and business. The mill adapted to so many changes during its time and continues to make its mark on the development of the area today – reminding us of those who’ve gone before. Finding the glass bottles in the mortar of one of the early mill walls was particularly fortuitous and rewarding, confirming they dated to around the 1720s.”

The Digging for Britain episode, which aired on 7 January and is now available on BBC iPlayer explores the industrial history of the River Malago and the mills it drove

Nowadays the river runs in culverts underground, hidden from view. However, as part of the Bedminster Green regeneration, sections of the river will be bought back to the surface, or ‘daylighted’, and historic features will be restored for everyone to enjoy.

The ‘Penstock’ sluice gate (which can be seen to the east of Dalby Avenue, alongside the Metalworks student accommodation) and was used to manage the flow of the river to the factories, will be restored, as well as the mill, and the brickwork of the channel walls will be returned to its former state.

As well as uncovering the rivers past, the works will also sure up its future as a home for wildlife with the planting of newly created riverbanks, habitat restoration for invertebrates and spawning fish, and adaptations to create faster flowing and shallower stretches which will all improve the river’s biodiversity.

In addition, the creation of an amphitheatre style public space around Bedminster Green will increase access to the river and allow water to spill into the wider flood storage area, reducing flood risk to Bedminster.

Whilst the construction works to restore the river have not yet begun, works on adjacent developments within Bedminster Green have started to reveal the River Malago. You can now spot the river next to Hereford Street, which has been behind hoardings for many years.

The river restoration was granted planning permission last year, and the section around Metal Works from Clarke Street to Whitehouse Lane through to Dalby Avenue will be the first phase of the three to come forward.