25-year Masterplan for Curzon Street

A Metro extension, major retail renaissance and parks in the sky are set to form part of an ambitious vision to transform vast swathes of Birmingham city centre.

The Birmingham Curzon HS2 Masterplan, which was revealed to the Post, will be one of the biggest urban regeneration schemes in Britain and see 141 hectares of the city centre transformed.

The proposals, the biggest redevelopment announced in the wake of the high speed rail link, represent a 25-year vision to realise the potential of neglected areas of Digbeth and Eastside.

The plan includes extending the Midland Metro, which will pass through Curzon Street HS2 Station, and a park on top of the 1,100-yard-long Duddeston Viaduct.

Black Sabbath star's home on market for £2.6m

It's the opportunity devoted heavy metal fans can only dream of – a chance to snap up the that rock star pile in the country.

But now they can become masters of their own reality after Black Sabbath guitar legend Tony Iommi placed his Warwickshire mansion on the market for a cool £2.6 million.

The Birmingham-born musician's house in Lapworth – a six-bedroom, 8,000 sq ft Edwardian residence, built in 1905 – was being sold after it was reported he wanted to down-size following illness.

First look at plans for new Snobs nightclub

Designs for Birmingham's oldest nightclub were revealed ahead of a £2 million move across the city centre.

The new Snobs nightclub includes a sci-fi décor designed to mirror Doctor Who's Tardis and a recreation of the old club's famous wall of faces.

The club has traded Paradise Circus for the old Vudu Club in Smallbrook Queensway as its old home is redeveloped.

£50m invested to take Midland Metro to Curzon Street

The Midland Metro will be extended to stop directly underneath the Curzon Street Station. Fifty million pounds will be invested to extend the tram line to the HS2 station before it is completed in 2026.

A further £55 million will be invested to take the Metro on to a major park-and-ride facility in Adderley Street.

Recruitment drive for 1,700 Jaguar Land Rover jobs

Jaguar Land Rover signalled the start of its next phase of growth by opening the application process for 1,700 new jobs at its Solihull plant.

The new roles, which were announced in 2013, will support a £1.5 billion investment in manufacturing, which will see the production of a new Jaguar mid-sized saloon based on an all-new aluminium vehicle architecture.

The recruitment drive came on the back of a record-breaking 2013 for Jaguar Land Rover, the car-maker selling 425,006 vehicles globally - an increase of 19 per cent on 2012.

Birmingham New Street nominated for MIPIM award

Birmingham's New Street Station went up for a top award for urban regeneration – just days after being voted one of the worst stations in the UK.

The railway station, one of the busiest in the country, is currently undergoing a major £750 million refurbishment alongside the new Grand Central shopping mall and John Lewis department store.

The renovation project was up for an award at the world's biggest property trade fair MIPIM , to be held in Cannes.

It was one of 28 global finalists, including Battersea Power Station, battling it out for the People's Choice Award for Regeneration.

Plan for city park in the sky

An abandoned Victorian viaduct could be transformed into a tourist attraction through proposals to turn it into a park in the sky.

The Birmingham Curzon HS2 Masterplan sets out proposals to turn the Duddeston Viaduct in Digbeth into a "skypark" which would encourage tourists and improve flow to and from Digbeth.

The proposals are for an attraction similar to New York's High Line, a long-abandoned elevated railroad that spans Manhattan and has been transformed into a public park.

Airport bids farewell to legendary DC-10

Birmingham Airport bid a farewell to the last ever commercial DC-10 flight as it carried passengers for the very last time around the skies of Birmingham, before retiring.

More than a thousand passengers were treated to one hour ‘scenic' flights on the DC-10 over the last three days, taking up the sights of northern England, up towards Glasgow before looping back down to Birmingham.

Milestone for The School Yard

Local developer EDG Property reached a major milestone at The School Yard scheme in Harborne as the first phase completed. It was marked with a celebratory event held in the new central courtyard at the heart of the £5 million development.

Playing on the scheme's original use as a school, around 500 people, including Harborne residents, traders and business people, were welcomed by the "headmaster"as they enjoyed the stalls and entertainment from the children from The Blue Coat School and a Victorian "flash mob" dance troupe.

Review of 2014 - January