Morecambe
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Morecambe ['mɔːkəm] is a resort town in the Lancaster district of Lancashire, England. As of 2003 it has a resident population of about 45,000. It faces into Morecambe Bay.
The town is in the Morecambe and Lunesdale parliamentary constituency and is governed by Lancaster City Council.
Morecambe and Heysham are one town with a combined population of 51,400 ( Whittakers Almanac )
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[edit] History
In 1889 the villages of Bare, Poulton-le-Sands and Torrisholme collectively became known as Morecambe, and those areas of Morecambe are still known by their original names.
Morecambe has had a proud history as a thriving seaside resort in the mid-twentieth century. Whilst Blackpool attracted holiday-makers predominantly from the Lancashire mill towns, Morecambe had more visitors from Yorkshire and Scotland. Between 1956 and 1989 it was the home of the Miss Great Britain beauty contest.
However, Morecambe has suffered a decline in recent years. It once had two piers - Central Pier and West End Pier, but both are now gone. In 1994, The World of Crinkley Bottom attraction in Happy Mount Park closed only 13 weeks after its opening. The ensuing 'Blobbygate' scandal led to a legal battle between Lancaster City Council and TV star Noel Edmonds. The closures of Bubbles, Morecambe's indoor waterworld, and Frontierland, its Pleasure Beach, soon followed. The west end of Morecambe became an extremely run-down slum area with severe cocaine, heroin and alcoholism problems. However, the west end of Morecambe is now an 'up and coming area' with some investment in the area and house prices rising. Both The Times and the Daily Telegraph ran two-page features on Morecambe's revival around Easter 2006. After falling into abeyance in the mid-1980s, the Miss Morecambe beauty contest is being revived in 2006 by Margee, a local fashion store, founded in 1933 - the same year that the Midland Hotel opened its doors. And after its return Miss Morecambe was won by Laura Johnson (girlfriend of Roland (of Grange Hill fame)); she went on to achieve 23rd place in the Miss England competition as well. Morecambe has a thriving community of Polish expatriates who have entered the local employment market in recent years.
Morecambe was selected by the RNLI as the location for their first operational hovercraft (Griffon 470SAR) H-002 which was made operational on 23rd of December 2002. Despite this fact the 5th of February 2004 saw a major loss of life in Morecambe Bay when Chinese immigrant shellfish harvesters were inundated by incoming tides, resulting in multiple fatalities.
[edit] Landmarks
One of Morecambe's most famous landmarks is a statue commemorating one of its most famous sons, Eric Morecambe. It was created by sculptor Graham Ibbeson.
Morecambe is home to the Midland Hotel, an important art deco luxury hotel which still contains pieces by luminaries such as Eric Gill. It is currently undergoing a £7m restoration, headed by Manchester company Urban Splash. The company intends to restore the hotel to its former glory and open it for business in spring 2008. It is to include new additions such an outdoor swimming pool as shown in the building's new design.
Another famous landmark is the partially renovated Victoria Pavilion, otherwise popularly known as Morecambe Winter Gardens. This was once a venue for swimming baths, grand theatre, restaurant and ballroom and even became a training camp at various times in its life.
Morecambe F.C. are the local football team.
[edit] Transport
Occasional trains reverse at Morecambe, continuing to Heysham, where they connect with the ferry service to the Isle of Man. There is another railway station at Bare Lane, serving the suburb of Bare. Services are operated by Northern Rail.
Bus services in the area are operated mainly by Stagecoach Lancaster, services link the town with Lancaster where connections can take you to Keswick, Preston, Blackpool and further. Regular services up to every 10 minutes (numbers 3/3A/4) operate along the promenade to Heysham and to Lancaster University whilst services 2 and 2A operate up to every 10 minutes from Euston Road to both Heysham and Lancaster University. Services 6 and 6A operate via Westgate (where most caravan holiday parks are) to the ASDA supermarket and Salt Ayre Leisure Centre. Service 5 operates to Overton and Carnforth. Many services (2/2A/3/3A/4) operate using Low Floor Easy Access Vehicles suitable for wheelchair users and prams/pushchairs, whilst other services use older buses. Other local services are operated by Battersby's Coaches.
- For information about services call 0870 608 2 608
- For Stagecoach Lancaster Depot (including lost property) call 01524 422 217
[edit] Geography
| North: Bolton-Le-Sands, Carnforth, Kendal | ||
| West: Morecambe Bay, Barrow-in-Furness | Morecambe | East: Lancaster, Forest of Bowland |
| South: Heysham |
[edit] Twin Towns
[edit] Famous people from Morecambe
- Melanie Jane Boorman (page three model)
- Paul Hayes (antiques expert and television personality)
- Wayne Hemingway (designer)
- Thora Hird (actress)
- Cherylee Houston (actor)
- John McGuinness (motorcycle racer)
- Albert Modley (comedian). Originally from Liverpool but spent most of his life in Morecambe.
- Eric Morecambe (comedian)
- Rev (musician)- Lead guitarist in the band Towers of London
- Janette Scott (actress)
- Helen Worth (actress, Coronation Street). Born in Ossett, West Yorkshire.
[edit] Trivia
- Recent tourism initiatives have made Morecambe a centre for bird watchers with the Tern Project enhancing the resorts heritage linked to the extensive natural landscape of the Morecambe Bay and diverse wildlife.
- The resort gained the dubious distinction of being placed third in the October 2003 book Crap Towns: The 50 Worst Places to Live in the UK.
- The 1960 film The Entertainer, starring Laurence Olivier and Joan Plowright, was filmed on location in the town. Morecambe-born actress Thora Hird co-starred.
[edit] External links
- Morecambe's Tourist information
- Lancaster City Council, Local Authority
- The Winter Gardens - Friends of the Victoria Pavillion
- Morecambe Football Club
- Miss Morecambe
- Morecambe and Heysham Online Community
- Memories of Miss Great Britain
- Local News Group (Morecambe Visitor newspaper)
- Galloway's Society for the Blind, Balmoral Road, Morecambe
- The Midland Hotel - Friends of the Midland Hotel Campaign
- Photos of Morecambe
