Blackpool Illuminations 2012

We went for the very last weekend of the Illuminations at Blackpool, England. From the beginning of September to the end of October, a six mile stretch of the beachfront is illuminated with a variety of imaginative lighting displays. The tradition started back in 1879 when Blackpool was the first town to have electric lights. Eight arc lamps lit up the Promenade (the road along the beach). People flocked to see them. In subsequent years, the displays became more and more elaborate (though they were off during the two World Wars).

The tower with street illuminations

Nowadays, most people look at them by bus, car, or trolley that runs down the beachfront. The traffic was amazingly bad, which I guess made it good for the passengers to see as much as they could. Some blokes were collecting donations along the roadside to help fund the lights, which cost about £2 million each year. We took a train north to start at the top of the lights.

The section at the north end of town has various tableaux. We walked to get the most enjoyment from the lights.

Pirates of Blackpool, with a cool shark!

Dancing girls

A tribute to royalty

The Ali Baba display

Say it...

And it opens!

There was no way to get a picture with both lit

Egyptian theme

There was a Doctor Who display but that picture did not come out, alas! It was the most anticipated by J, who had seen it from the train and was very happy when we walked back past it.

We did get one display in action:



In spite of the cold and damp, we had a great time looking at the lights. And it got us excited for Christmas lights!