Structural change is now widely considered to be an important aspect of national economic growth. Yet the issue is not only of relevance at the macro-economic level; it also has a direct bearing on the growth of regions and cities. In this paper we examine the relationship between structural transformation and economic (output) growth across British cities over the last half century. During this time, the British economy has gone through a series of extensive structural transformations, most notably an historical shift from an industrial to a post-industrial structure. But also within the now dominant ‘post-industrial’ economy some service activities have been growing at a faster rate and appear to be more dynamic, than others. In this paper we show how the structural transformations in the national economy have played out quite differently across British cities, shaping to a considerable extent their divergent growth trajectories over the past five decades. At a broad level, it is possible to distinguish between a number of distinct growth clubs of cities, and these also display significant differences in the extent and direction of structural change and reorientation. However, while differences in structural change have certainly been important in shaping city growth paths, other, ‘city-specific’, factors appear also to have exerted an influence, and thus require investigation.