The rise of package holidays took many of Blackpool's traditional visitors abroad, where the weather was more reliably warm and dry, and improved road communications, epitomised by the construction of the M55 motorway in , made Blackpool more feasible as a day trip rather than an overnight stay. The economy, however, remains relatively undiversified, and firmly rooted in the tourism sector. The Blackpool Co-operative Society Emporium, a flagship store built in , which incorporated the Jubilee Theatre, stood on Coronation Street, until when it was demolished for a planned shopping centre.
The site remained empty until eventually becoming a car park and then was redeveloped when the Hounds Hill Centre was expanded to include the Debenhams Store.
Between and , Blackpool formed a county borough independent of the administrative county of Lancashire. With the passage of the Local Government Act , Blackpool's county borough status was abolished and it was made part of the shire county of Lancashire. On 1 April , however, Blackpool was made a unitary authority and re-formed as an autonomous local government unit.
It remains part of Lancashire for ceremonial purposes, however. As of the election Blackpool Council is currently controlled by the Labour Party , who took control from the Conservatives in They are the largest party represented with 23 councillors followed by the Conservative Party with 15 councillors. The population of Blackpool has been declining constantly since and is expected to decline even further in the future.
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In the census Blackpool was stated to have the highest percentage of divorced people in the country, In , Blackpool had the fourth highest rate of antidepressant prescription in England with the most common health problems being depression, stress and anxiety. At Blackpool also has high rates of obesity This is a chart of the trend of regional gross value added GVA of Blackpool at current basic prices by the Office for National Statistics with figures in millions of British Pounds Sterling.
While Blackpool hosts a large number of small businesses and self-employed people, there are some large employers. Burton's Biscuit Company , Tangerine Confectionery produce biscuits and other confectionery products, Klarius UK manufactures automotive components, Victrex manufactures high-performance polymers and the Glasdon Group is a plastics manufacturer making litter bins , park benches and reflective road signs. TVR formerly produced sports cars at its Bispham factory.
The HSBC research on rental yields ranks Blackpool in the top three cities with the best rental returns. There is currently one shopping centre within the town, Houndshill Shopping Centre. This has recently been redeveloped with the opening of a new Debenhams department store along with other major high street names. Blackpool rests in the middle of the western edge of The Fylde , which is a coastal plain atop a peninsula. Due to the low-lying terrain, Blackpool experiences occasional flooding, [27] with a large-scale project completed in to rebuild the seawall and promenade to mitigate this.
Thus the same cool summer, frequent overcast skies, and small annual temperature range is typical. The absolute maximum temperature recorded in Blackpool was The highest temperature to occur in recent years is Blackpool is within a green belt region that extends into the wider surrounding counties, and is in place to reduce urban sprawl , prevent the towns in the Blackpool and nearby Merseyside conurbations from further convergence, protect the identity of outlying communities, encourage brownfield reuse, and preserve nearby countryside.
This is achieved by restricting inappropriate development within the designated areas, and imposing stricter conditions on the permitted building. As the town's urban area is highly built up, only 70 hectares 0. Blackpool is heavily dependent on tourism. In what is often regarded as its heyday — , Blackpool thrived as the factory workers of Northern England took their annual holidays there en masse, known as wakes weeks. Photographs from that era show crowds of tourists on the beach and promenade. Blackpool was also a preferred destination of visitors from Glasgow and remains so to this day.
In July , an independent survey of 4, members of the general public by consumer magazine Which? Holiday now Which? In February , a number of tourist attractions in Blackpool collaborated to produce the Blackpool Resort Pass which allows for discounted access in one ticket. Blackpool has a pioneering publicly owned Municipal wireless network Wi-Fi, which covers the entire town centre, promenade and beach front.
Visitors can take a virtual tour of Blackpool, and full internet access is available. Outside the main holiday season, Blackpool's Winter Gardens routinely used to host major political and trade union conferences. However, in recent years these are increasingly taking place in major cities with modern, purpose-built conference centres.
The Young Farmers convention has been held regularly in Blackpool since the late s. Blackpool remains a summer entertainment venue but many local establishments now trade all year round. It is known for specialising in variety shows featuring entertainers catering to a broad range of tastes, from family-friendly Ken Dodd to the 'adults only' humour of Roy 'Chubby' Brown.
In The Blackpool festival took place on the comedy carpet in front of the Blackpool Tower which over three days played host to world class DJs and entertainers. For the following four Fridays after the illuminations switch-on the town plays host to the world fireworks championship where four teams from around the world design their displays in time with music and are judged on their technique and display.
On the fifth Friday following the illuminations switch-on the competition winner is announced and performs another display. These displays often attract thousands of visitors to the promenade. The town has also seen a number of new food outlets opening. The Tower Ballroom still opens daily for dancing and hosts international dance competitions as well as playing host to many episodes of Strictly Come Dancing.
The project was conceived and financed by local theatre manager Thomas Sergenson who had been using the site of the Grand for several years to stage a circus.
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He had also transformed the fortunes of other local theatres. Matcham's brief was to build Sergenson the "prettiest theatre in the land". The Grand was Matcham's first theatre to use an innovative 'cantilever' design to support the tiers, thereby reducing the need for the usual pillars and so allowing clear views of the stage from all parts of the auditorium. The town also plays host to the longest-running seaside show in Britain, Legends, which features multiple tribute artists with a live band and dance troupe, first appearing at the North Pier in , then at the Central Pier from to and now at the Sands Venue.
In February council chiefs attended a convention in Florida to identify a new "concert venue" concept for the town, doubling as a new purpose built centre for conferences and conventions. The site earmarked for the propose project is the old central station site which now serves as a car park and police station with law courts on Bonny Street.
The police have since moved to a brand new facility near to the M55 motorway entrance and the site in central Blackpool is earmarked for the new potential development. An Imax cinema has been announced by the council as adding on to the existing Hounds Hill shopping centre on land that is now a ground level car park. The development is to be shared with the Wilko store which is to re-locate from its current location to make way for a new hotel and transport hub as part of the current urban regeneration and infrastructure improvements in the town.
Expected final completion for these projects has still not been announced although work has begun on some of the foundation works. Blackpool is often described as "the gay capital of the North" with Brighton often being described as "the gay capital of the South". In the late 20th century and early 21st century, pollution in the seawater at Blackpool caused considerable concern. Blackpool continues to work to improve its position within today's tourism industry. One controversial proposal, which had the involvement of the local council, was to transform Blackpool into a casino resort along the lines of the Las Vegas Strip and Atlantic City , making it the centre point of gambling in the UK.
Ultimately, Manchester was selected for the initial trial by the Government's Casinos Advisory Panel. The local newspaper, the Blackpool Gazette , sent a petition signed by over 11, local residents and visitors demanding the decision be reconsidered. On 29 March , the Advisory Panel's recommendations were approved by the House of Commons , but rejected by the House of Lords , meaning the bill would be reconsidered by parliament. In , plans to develop a casino with other visitor attractions on the central car park Blackpool Central Station site were announced.
The development would be 'wrapped' around Blackpool North railway station so that rail passengers arrive at street level into the new plaza with views down onto the seafront, making their arrival into Blackpool a much more pleasant experience than at present. The regeneration company behind much of the towns current and future development, ReBlackpool, are working with Blackpool Council and AMEC to prepare a planning application.
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Regeneration work was completed in July on Waterloo Road in South Shore that transformed the area into a modern shopping centre. In March it was confirmed that a deal had been made between Blackpool Council and Leisure Parcs to purchase some of Blackpool's most notable landmarks. Blackpool Airport operated regular charter and scheduled flights throughout the UK and Europe. The airport is actually just over the borough boundary into Fylde Borough , although a proposal to reorganise Blackpool's borders would see the airport incorporated into Blackpool Borough.
This airport, formerly known as Blackpool Squires Gate Airport, is one of the oldest in the UK having hosted public flying meetings in and After a gap, it was active from the s to mid and from December to date. Airlines that served Blackpool, before its temporary closure in late , included Jet2. The airport was reopened to small aircraft after failing to find a buyer in December Consumer champion Which? Holiday found [ when? The airport, which flies to about 20 destinations, received an overall customer score of 80 per cent.
It received five stars for the efficiency of check-in, the time it takes to clear security and distance from check-in to the gate, and the overall airport experience, including signage, design of the airport and attitude of staff. The airport's most recent scheduled services to Belfast and the Isle of Man ceased when Citywing suspended operations in March In fact, civil operations continued until the outbreak of war with scheduled services to the Isle of Man and elsewhere. The airfield closed in The land on which the airport stood now covers Blackpool Zoo and a hotel and golf course.
The hangars from the old airport are still in use at Blackpool Zoo as the main entrance building, Playbarn, Education Academy and camel house. Blackpool once had two railway terminals with a total of over 30 platforms, mainly used by excursion traffic in the summer. Blackpool Central , close to Blackpool Tower , was closed in , while Blackpool North was largely demolished and rebuilt as a smaller facility. The route of the former excursion line into Blackpool Central is now used as a link road from the M55 motorway to the town centre. The line into North station is now the more important.
The M55 motorway links the town to the national motorway network.
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It is run by Blackpool Transport , owned by Blackpool Council. The tramway was for a long time the only working tramway in the United Kingdom outside of museums. It was also the UK's first electric system. On 1 February it was announced that the Government had agreed to a joint Blackpool Transport and Blackpool Council bid for funding toward the total upgrade of the track.
The Government's decision meant that the entire length of the tramway from Starr Gate to Fleetwood was upgraded and also sixteen new trams joined the fleet. In April , the tramway reopened after the major reconstruction. Day to day services are run by the 16 Flexity 2 trams. Several double deck English Electric Balloon trams from the older fleet have been widened to work alongside the new trams to provide additional capacity in the summer months.
Several non-modified older trams also operate a heritage service from Pleasure Beach to Little Bispham on weekends and holidays. An extension of the new service to Blackpool North railway station was planned to open by April between the existing North Pier stop of the Blackpool Tramway, along Talbot Road, and terminating at Blackpool North railway station, but has been delayed. The Japanese film Shall We Dance? All the hair styling for the film was completed by Blackpool-born-and-bred hairstylist Eileen Clough, who has been in the trade since the s.
In the Hollywood remake of the film , directed by Peter Chelsom, Blackpool is mentioned but not shown. Blackpool is the setting for Bhaji on the Beach directed by Gurinder Chadha. The opening scenes were filmed in the Flamingo. The Royal Windsor Hotel was featured, with the owner talking all about the hotel seasons and industry. The resort was also featured in the three-part reality television series, Blackpool Lights on Channel 5 in December Blackpool was once again featured in a Channel 5 documentary series from 26 October , this time entitled Bargain Loving Brits in Blackpool.