Pictures show how Colchester looked in the 1970s and 1980s

These pictures show Colchester across three decades from the 70s to the 90s.

The snaps show St John’s Estate under construction and how some of the town’s most iconic locations have changed.

One picture shows Homebase in St Andrews Avenue in 1986.

The site has now dramatically changed since then.

Colchester's old Homebase store closed in 2018 after an offer was accepted by a then unknown third party.

Planning permission for the site was initially granted in 2019, despite objections from rivals Asda and Tesco.

It is now home to Lidl, Costa and Subway.

The pictures also show how the parade of shops at St Christopher have changed over the decades.

In the 70s the shops were split between banks, newsagents and laundrettes.

A decade later the Spar had set up in the parade and by the 2000s Tesco had taken over the site.

There are also pictures showing how St Botolph’s Street has seen shops come and go over the three decades.

And finally there are pictures of Sainsbury’s in its former home in London Road – the building is now home to Aldi.

Scroll through our pictures here:

St Andrews Avenue pictured in 1986

Sainsbury's in London Road back in 1987

The St Christopher shops in 1970

Sainsbury's in the town centre in 1990

St Botolph's Street in 1978

St Botolph's Street in June 1988

St Botolph's Street in the 1990s

The building of the St John's Estate