Cabot Circus people

Now the £500m development is opening, what do residents think of it?

Some find it strange the retail outlet will have nowhere to buy a simple pint of milk or loaf of bread.

“The problem with it seems to be that there’s no food shops,” one local man told the BBC.

“Plenty of bars, cafes and coffee shops but as far as I know at the moment no food shops.”

So despite having a shopping mall on their doorsteps the people of St Judes will have to pay serious money for gourmet grub in the Circus or walk half a mile to the Horsefair or one of the convenience stores in Stapleton Road.

Others bemoan the loss of their old landscape: “It’s taken all our views away, it’s not very nice at all,” said one woman.

“We had views looking over Bristol and could see the balloons going across. Now we can see the back of a car park and the back of a hotel.”

The prospect of a wealth of new clothes shops was also not well received by the people spoken to by BBC Radio Bristol reporter Robin Markwell.

“There’s loads on my doorstep already - and these are all going to be expensive.”

And even the chance to work in one of the stores does not seem to have been forthcoming for one young woman we spoke to.

“I’ve applied for jobs down there and heard nothing back from anyone, so how’s that helping me or anyone else ‘round here?”