Blackpool nostalgia in 1998: New lifeboat station, PC's charity bike ride and seafront sculptures

New lifeboat house under construction

Work was under way to build Blackpool’s new lifeboat house, ready for launch by early summer.

The boathouse would be home to three boats including the station’s new Atlantic 75 which was being built.

The new premises were taking shape closer to the launching site, north of Central Pier, which would save vital time for rescuers.

The project was being paid for out of a £600,000 lifeboat fund, raised in Blackpool over the past 20 years.

The money was to be handed over at a special ceremony when the foundation stone was officially laid by Blackpool branch chairman Mrs Zena Burslam. The new building was also to be blessed.

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution decided to go ahead with the project because the existing building, erected in 1937, was overcrowded.

Rowland Darbyshire, honorary secretary of Blackpool Lifeboat, said: “The new lifeboat house will be bigger and more suitable for the equipment we have with modern facilities for the crews. The new boathouse was built by Blackpool building company F. Parkinson Ltd.”

Rights to roam rural areas on the agenda

Blackpool MP Gordon Marsden was spearheading a major campaign in Parliament to give people the right to roam over open country.

The Blackpool South MP was one of more than 120 Labour backbenchers pressing for legislation to give people greater access to the countryside.

A special Early Day Motion backed by the Blackpool South MP appeared on the Commons Order Paper and coincided with the publication of the Government’s consultation paper on access to the countryside.

It set out two possible approaches - a statutory approach with safeguards, for example, to protect wildlife and sensitive areas and a voluntary approach.

Mr Marsden said: “Some landowners are unremittingly hostile to the very idea of greater public access. They think ramblers carry anthrax spores on the soles of their boots.

All set for Indian charity bike ride

Charity cyclist PC Andy Duncan made a trunk call to sponsors - with a little help from Crumples the Asian elephant.

The Bispham bobby was off to India - and called in at Blackpool Zoo for a few tips on what lied ahead on his mammoth trip.

Organisers had already warned him to beware of begging baboons - which made a change from the usual hazards faced by a Lancashire motorway policeman.

PC Duncan, 39, was looking for sponsorship for his ride to raise £7,500 for Mencap’s Blue Sky Appeal.

The cycle marathon was to last eight days and cover 470 miles - averaging 60 miles a day through arduous hill terrain and forest from Shimla, in the foothills of the Himalayas, to Chilla, on the banks of the holy river Ganges.

More artwork was planned to enhance Fleetwood seafront

Sculptures on Fleetwood seafront looked set to be joined by other artwork and an exhibition thanks to a £6,500 cash boost.

Fisherman’s Friend makers Lofthouse of Fleetwood teamed up with Wyre Council to fund the sculptures, including the Welcome Home sculpture, which depicts a mother, children and pet dog welcoming their father home from a fishing trip. And thanks to that partnership, a Governement initiative called the Arts Pairing Scheme donated some cash.

The bronze Welcome Home sculpture depicts a mother, children and pet dog welcoming their father home from a fishing trip.

The Manchester-based company Majolica was looking at different designs for paving.

Majolica was renowned for durable public artworks and completed a highly acclaimed paving project in Manchester’s Northern Quarter.

The council also wanted to use the cash to set up an exhibition based around the figures and other public art schemes in Fleetwood.

The pairing scheme was funded by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.

Colin Tweedy, ABSA’s director general, said: “We are delighted to announce this award.”