SURROUNDED by modern day shoppers and a brightly lit cafe, this scene of a bombed Bristol brings the reality of the Blitz to life.

To mark 70 years since the first attacks on British cities, these photographs show the true horror of the attacks on Bristol.

While Filton works was attacked on September 25, 1940, killing 160 and injuring more than 300, it was the attack on Sunday, November 24, that devastated Park Street.

Almost a third of the shops were destroyed and many others were damaged.

Eric Buston, then a reporter for our sister paper the Western Daily Press, was an eye witness at the scene and described it at the time as; "the most shocking sight of all", "an avenue of fire", "ablaze from end to end".

Other major losses were the Prince's Theatre and The Coliseum on Park Row, the University Great Hall and the Philosophic Institution, the building near the bottom of the street now occupied by the Freemasons.

In the image, the wrecked car at the top of the street, which appears to have been blown into a crater, is being attended to by air raid wardens.

The modern twist on the image has been created using archive pictures fused with present-day photographs taken from the same viewpoint.

A man, who wanted to be known only as John, recorded his memory on a Blitz website. He said: "I lived in Mardyke, Hotwells Road. My family had a cafe there. We used to have a group of Cockney dockers lodging with us. That night some planes came over at about 6pm and dropped flares.

"The dockers knew what it was, they'd seen it in London, they knew our Blitz was coming.

"I looked up the town from where I lived and all I could see was a mass of flames."

Bristol was a target for German bombing for two reasons - it had a port and the factories in the North were producing aircraft and aero-engines.

There are few signs left now to show how the attacks between November 1940 to July 1941 changed the city. St Peter's and St Mary-le-Port churches, in Castle Park, are two such reminders.

British estimates suggest that 10,000 high explosive bombs and 100,000 incendiaries showered on the city with major raids lasting up to 12 hours.

One raid alone started 167 fires and 55 fire brigades were called in to combat the blazes.

● Do you have any memories of photos of Bristol during the Blitz? Share your story with our newsdesk by calling 0117 9343330.