It's no secret among Cardiff folk that walking down St Mary Street at night can be an experience no like other.
There's joy and laughter as people pile out of clubs and bars, but action too, with the gentle thud of bass from within providing the soundtrack to your mission as you dodge and weave through the crowds, avoiding the dancers, the staggerers and the crying-down-the-phoners. There can be tragedy as well, with at least one of every huddle emerging from the arterial Caroline Street tripping and sending their cheesy chips crashing to the pavement.
On nights like these, St Mary Street can resemble a Renaissance masterpiece. But what most of the thousands who walk down it every day don't know is that the street actually has a remarkable history of its own.
