Come and Have a Laugh on the Prom

by Pam Winning

What can be constructed from the printed version of hundreds of catchphrases and one-liners?  Designer Gordon Young had the imagination and inspiration to use the idea and the result is one of Blackpool’s newest attractions, the ‘Comedy Carpet’ on the Promenade.

It’s much more than a visitor attraction.  Situated on the new headland in front of the Tower, this 1880 square metre cross-shape is a unique monument capturing the history of Blackpool’s comedy entertainment.  Over 850 artistes and writers are featured on the ‘carpet’, from the music hall stars of yesteryear to modern day ‘stand-up’ comedians and more than 80 per cent of them have performed in the resort.

The artwork is in the style of newspaper columns and consists of assorted fonts, colours and sizes, separating the jokes so each item carries its own merit. The best view of the whole ‘carpet’ is from the top of the Tower, but to enjoy it properly, read it at ground level.

Laughter is said to be the best medicine, so come on down to Blackpool’s Comedy Carpet and have a good giggle in the fresh air.  And, just like the best things in life, it’s free.

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A Seaside Belle Once More

by anon

Once the ugly sister of the UK’s coastal spots, Blackpool has recently had a makeover. Well actually it’s more of a surgical facelift with a multi-million pound investment into its promenade, tram system, town centre and other tourist attractions.

Over the last seven years, Blackpool has been buffed, polished, nipped and tucked to reveal a seaside town almost unrecognisable from its dark and depressing recent past when it was cruelly nicknamed Cess-Pool by its more sophisticated seaside siblings.

But it’s Blackpool who’s having the last laugh as visitor numbers continue to grow whilst other UK holiday spots struggle and it’s not hard to see why.

Blackpool is a town that doesn’t take its self too seriously and therein lies its beauty, a juxtaposition of tacky and tradition, it’s a place that wants you to enjoy yourself and with so many things on offer, you’d be hard pushed not to.

Highlights include a trip to the top of the tower where the views on a good day allow you see as far as the Lake District. On a bad day you’d probably be lucky so see as far as the beach below but the recent addition of the Walk of Faith, whereby you’re dared to walk over a reinforced glass walkway, is pretty thrilling in itself.

A walk along the Golden Mile starts at south pier and ends at north pier and shows Blackpool at its finest with stunning views out to sea, three piers, the newly created Comedy Carpet, the tower and many amusement arcades. No walk along the promenade is complete without a Mr Whippy ice cream, it's a tradition (albeit one I may have created myself).

The new tram system runs the length of the promenade from Star Gate in the south to Fleetwood in the north and is certainly well worth hopping on especially if you can time it that you jump off again before the conductor has got to you to take your money.

The Pleasure Beach caters to the dare devil tourist with its various ghost trains and rollercoaster rides including the not so creatively named Big One which was the tallest and steepest rollercoaster in the world when it first opened in May 1994.

Town planners and tourist bosses alike have been working hard to make Blackpool relevant again and their hard work appears to be paying off. Has the tide finally turned for Blackpool?

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Shakespeare

by Dorothy Gibbons

Tuesday 23rd April 2013 - Birthday Celebrations of William Shakespeare

Why is Shakespeare so famous?

Shakespeare lived more than 400 years ago. Yet people still go to see his plays. Student's of every level learn about him!

 Every year on 23rd of April we celebrate the work and life of William Shakesphere.

 One of the best writers ever: William Shakespeare. He was born –supposedly, I know- on April 23 1563 in Strafford-upon-Avon. He wrote many of the best plays ever written for theatre. Hamlet, Othello, Henry V, King Lear, Macbeth… Today, we would like to celebrate his birthday for the glory of words, theatre and literature.

Two of my favourite works are Romeo and Juilet, and Twelfth Night.

A quote of Shakespeare :" Some are born great, some achieve greatness, and some have greatness thrust upon them."

William Shakespeare

He grew up in Tudor England in the time of Queen Elizabeth I.

He lived in exciting times. Francis Drake sailed around the world (1577-1580). Shakespeare was probably in London when the Spanish Armada sailed to attack England in 1588. He saw the coronation of King James I in 1603. 1605 was the year of the Gunpowder Plot and Guy Fawkes. Shakespeare died in 1616.

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Grundy Art Gallery

(Blackpool’s’ premier place of Culture)

By Alan Wilkinson

Blackpool’s own art gallery sits quietly next to Central Library. It is a welcoming place-but you have to make the initial choice to cross its threshold. I suspect many people walk past it without either knowing what it is, or even noticing it.

Grundy Art Gallery organizes programmes of contemporary visual art exhibitions. Featuring both established and emerging artists. It also has its own collection. The Grundy draws on its Blackpool heritage while embracing contemporary culture. Blackpool provides a unique platform to work upon which is challenging and exciting for artists. They can develop ideas and take risks in a stimulating environment.

The Grundy Gallery opened in 1911. It was built by Blackpool Council -as a place to house an important bequest of artworks and partly financed from a gift from John and Cuthbert Grundy Both were artists. The Grundy collection, itself, is not on permanent display, but items from it are featured as part of the temporary exhibition programme throughout the year.

The Grundy Gallery is part of Blackpool’s Arts Service-which delivers art projects which engage Blackpool residents, visitors, students and artists. It is a prized, key part of the town’s unique and cultural heritage and latter-day environment.

The current featured exhibition is: “All that comes between us, until 11^th May. It is a solo exhibition by Andrew McDonald and includes a number of new sculptures and hand drawn animations.

“McDonald's drawings are an alternate world where darkness is riven with flashes of light illuminating absurd and horrifying scenes. “

“Just as all good horror films draw on the watcher's expectations of what will unfold to build suspense so McDonald's intersperses scenes of seemingly unobtrusive rooms amongst images of giant fingers ,a pair of lifeless legs or a knife piercing a table. He  arranges ordinary scenes in themselves not threatening , but disturbing in their juxtaposition."

There’s more to the Grundy…You can join a learning group. Community adult and youth groups can visit the Grundy independently or book on a tour and workshop. The tour is an interactive talk about the exhibition currently in the gallery space, followed by a creative workshop enabling the group to explore an element from the exhibition.

You can attend annual art courses to discover contemporary art, for instance on May 1st, at 12.30, Andrew McDonald will talk about his practice and current exhibition. There is an ongoing programme of events, talks, workshops, and of course exhibitions visit the website regularly.

Visit the Grundy: Blackpool's place of culture.

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Talk of the Town

 by Anne Ward

“Blackpool! What  attractions  has  Blackpool  got,  huh?”

"Aren’t  I  attractive?  Me?,   after  all   I’m  the  town  they  are  talking  about! If  I  wasn’t  here  and  as  wonderful  as  I  am, they  wouldn’t  have  anywhere  to  put  their attractions.

“No  it’s about time they gave me some credit, because  of my position on the map I provide  my  own  microclimate, which  means  my  weather  is  just  that  bit  different  to  the human  forecast.

"Here  it's ruled  by the  Irish  Sea,  very  unpredictable,  can  be  calm,  rough  or  stormy,   sometimes  all  in  the  same day. My  sandy  beaches  are  inviting. Watch  out  for the tide. It  creeps  in  when  you  aren’t   looking. Keeps  you  on  your  toes.

"I  have  eleven   miles  of  coast line  and  my  very  own smart  new  tram. It runs smoothly up and  down  its  track  there and  back. It’s  such  fun,  of course.  I  have  a train  as well. Oh  yes! Mine  is  an  end  of  line  station,  all the best  trains  come to see me!

"To  the  south  I  have  an  airport  with  planes  going  to  destinations  were they  speak  foreign languages,  it’s  all  Greek  to  me. 

"I  hear  some  dreadful  news  reports  about  Blackpool. Those  humans get  drunk,  fall  down, come  dressed  in odd clothing, doing  strange  things.   They say, 'Blackpool this and Blackpool that...' but it’s not  me. It’s  the  humans that  are  to  blame,  they  give  me  a  bad  name  and  that  hurts!

"I  have  a   friend called  Stanley. He’s  a  park,   a  haven  of  green with  trees,  flowers, birds, squirrels, a lake  and  a bandstand. A  place  were humans can  play, rest  and walk  around  in safety. Even  he  has  problems. It  seems  that  some  of  those  humans  want to cause mischief and spoil what  he has to offer.

"However, not  all  humans  are  alike. Some  do care  how  I  look  and  want  to  keep  me  well maintained,   so  I  strike  a  balance  between  good  and  not   so  considerate. To  survive  I  have to  be  everyone’s  friend. It’s  hard  when  they  keep  digging  me  up,  removing  this  and  not  replacing  that.   Stanley  is  upset. They’ve  even  taken his lions away  now  for fear they would be damaged.  I comforted him, saying they would  be safer with their  friends  in Stroud.

"This  is me  Blackpool  a  coastal town  in Lancashire and now  I  have  revealed  my  feelings.

"Whilst I welcome visitors openly perhaps they may spare a  thought  for me and treat me with the respect I deserve. Remember if I wasn’t  here  they  couldn’t  be!”

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World Book Night

 by Alan Wilkinson

 World book Night is tonight on 23/04/2013 On the 07/04/2013 we had World Book Day and as night follows day we now have World Book Night

World Book Night  is tonight so everyone can queue up at their library for a designated book and a cup of Horlicks-or hot chocolate-strictly no booze, you buy that yourself-it impairs  reading pleasure ,who can read Gone Girl  while lying in a ditch in a drunken stupor?

Seriously World Book Night  is a celebration of reading and books when thousands of passionate volunteers gift specially chosen and printed books in their communities to share their love of reading with the unread.

The website says “it’s about people, communities  reaching out to others and touching lives in the simplest of ways, through the sharing of stories.”

Or is it middle class intellectuals foisting their pretensions and prejudices on the largely uninterested!

  To be fair it has worthwhile purpose in spreading the reading of books-even if in twenty years’ time such an endeavour may seem relevant,in the way its relevant  keeping steam trains working

What happens? Each year 20,000 volunteers hand out 20 copies of their favourite from 20 books chosen by an independent editorial committee. Oh no

Members of the public sign up, giving  away their chosen book with information on where, to whom and why they want to give their books. They inscribe the first page with their name,  the bookshop or library name and a unique identifying number so  each book can be tracked

In addition the mysterious World Book Knight distributes 100,000 books through the schemes partners ,libraries and bookshops; to the hardest to reach potential readers in prisons, care homes, hospitals, sheltered and the homeless and through partner charities  throughout the UK.

Hundreds of events take place across the country on April 23 to celebrate books and reading.To actually place books into the hands of those who don’t read is incredibly personal, peer to peer encouragement of potential readers

April 23 is a symbolic date for world literature. It is both the birth and death day of Shakespeare, as well as the death day of Cervantes. In their honour UNESCO appointed it the international day of the book and that is why it was chosen as World Book Night. April 23rd also marks the city of Barcelona's celebration of St George's Day. St George is the patron saint of Catalonia as well as England and traditionally, to celebrate this day, Spanish gentlemen gave their ladies roses and the ladies returned the favour with a book. If you can think of any other reason why April 23^rd is a good day for World Book Night, please email the committee, they seem to want as many reasons as possible no matter how tenuous to celebrate on this day

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Past & Present

by Pamela Winning

It’s been a weekend to celebrate the lives and work of two great British writers. Saturday marked the 60^th birthday of Sebastian Faulks. He has a compelling style of complex story telling that evolves slowly and demands attention. I wondered what had hit me when I started to read Birdsong. I couldn’t put it down, yet I couldn’t take it all in. His brilliant characterisation never fails. I will never forgive him for the ending of On Green Dolphin Street, but I will always have an affinity with his female lead, Mary van der Linden. I wonder if he ever read Charlotte Bronte?

Charlotte Bronte was born 197 years ago on Sunday. Her stories reflected the harsh, difficult times of her childhood and the unquestionable acceptance of it all. There was sacrifice and sorrow in abundance, but no bitterness.  Jane Eyre was rewarded with the happiness her eventual marriage brought her. Charlotte declined the first proposal from curate Arthur Nicholls. Later, she accepted him and settled into a comfortable, though short marriage. 

Two authors, a century and a half apart, share similarities. Both were compelled to write from an early age, both were teachers and both wrote articles before they became novelists.

The world of literature is forever blessed by the wealth of their contributions.

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Smart Phone – Twit of a user

 by anon

An expectant father-to-be risked the wrath of his wife as his passion for social media led him to spontaneously tweet the birth of their child live from hospital - complete with pictures.

Mum certainly wasn’t the word this week when Aidan McManus from Crosby Merseyside decided to tweet about the birth of his second child live from the delivery suite complete with stylised photographs.

“I made sure she didn’t feel neglected throughout and whilst we didn’t discuss it beforehand, Tracy is used to having a camera pointed in her face since I got into photography,” Aidan said.

If Tracy hasn’t killed him already somebody needs to tell Aidan there’s a slight difference between taking a few happy snaps of your wife pottering around the back garden in her sun dress and the excruciating pain of childbirth and the indignity of wearing a hospital gown with your legs akimbo.

“Given Tracy was busy with the birth, she left it to my discretion to take the photos and share them with my hundreds of followers.”

Poor Aidan, I suppose it must be quite annoying when your wife is ‘busy’ giving birth and you’re just standing around in the delivery room with nothing to do. Thank goodness he found something to keep him occupied. But in Aidan’s bid to share one of life’s most precious moments with the world, whether they were interested or not, how much of it did he actually miss because he was too busy choosing a filter on Instagram or editing his thoughts down to 40 characters?

The introduction of Smartphones has had a profound effect on social media and our ability to share information instantly with anyone who will follow, poke or bookmark us. The problem is we’re so busy crafting the perfect post, tweet or update and applying a photo effect we’re actually in danger of missing the real joy and emotion of the very same moment we’re trying to capture.

Asked if he planned to use his iPhone for other special occasions, Aidan replied that he will do a special montage of the Christening. I will be watching paint dry that day and tweeting about the process if anybody’s interested. 

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London Marathon

by Anne Ward

21st April 2013

It’s The London Marathon

I'm trying to catch up with Ron

He's running for British Red Cross

Wearing a mourning suit from Moss Bros

Me? I'm running scared,

Only entered for a dare

Wish I hadn't bothered now

Feel a fool dressed as a jersey cow

Moooving on, there's Eminem

teamed up with Mo Molem

rapping along to a great rhythm.

Looking through these sad cow eyes

It does my heart good to see all these girls and guys

Give up their time and spend their energy

Running for charity to help one and all

Thirty-three years this event has been going

So come on join in

You will have a ball.

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Dog Show

by Anne Ward

Do you have beady eyes, a cold wet nose and alert ears?

Can you strike a pose on your four paws and hold your tail up high?

If so put on your lead and bring your owner to enter you in The Dog Show at Stanley Park,

Blackpool. It starts at 2:00pm Saturday 20th April 2013.

Show how well you can strut your stuff

If you are good enough.

You may walk off with the winning trophy.

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East - etymology

by Anne Ward

E A S T

Is a noun, a descriptive word for a Compass point or a type of wind, which is normally cold, strong and searching.

The direction of the Sun rising and the area many religions face in order to pray to the sun itself, or as the

Ancient Egyptians did to pray to ( Ra ) the God Of The Sun.

The Far East refers to Oriental Regions, China, Japan, Vietnam.

The word is derived for the Godess (`Eostre), Godess Of The Dawn.

Also known as the Lavante wind causing high seas, clouds and rain.

However, the East Wind does sometimes bring good weather and in this event it is called The Lavante Blanc

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Gooseberry - etymology

by Anne Ward

MEET  THE OLD ROUGH  RED AND HAIRY  AMBER OTHERWISE  KNOWN  AS  THE  GOOSEBERRY

Taken  from  the  Dutch (Kruisbes)  German (Karausbeire)  Latin (Grossularia)

Known in the  (Specipic epithet) as Uva Crispa  meaning Curved Grape

 

This  hard skinned, hairy green or red sour fruit has been growing in our hedgerows for hundreds of years, growing between 3 to 10 feet tall, people have used it to make jams, wine, crumbles and fools.

  It was used as medicine in the middle ages for cooling  raging fevers, hence the English name  (Fea berry) ,  also in Scotland as the (Grozit)  and in Norway as  (Stikkelsbaer or prickly  berry).

       In  the  18^th  century it  became  a cottage garden plant, popular in Lancashire, grown and developed in to the larger rounder fruit we recognise today by the cotton spinners, who prized it for it’s vitamin C content.

            The  phrase (Found  under  a   Gooseberry  Bush )

Was  a 19^th century slang  term  for (Pubic Hair),  so when as a child we asked our  parents were we came from and the answer was (Under the Gooseberry Bush)   we were given a true reply

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