These were the stories making the headlines in 2003

Seaside traditions would never die

The candyfloss and Kiss Me Quick hat culture of seaside resorts was a tradition which would never die even though visitors were becoming more sophisticated.

That was the view of the company secretary of Blackpool Pleasure Beach who was commenting on a national report which showd massive growth in jobs coming to the resort during the previous 30 years. David Cam was speaking after the two-year report from Sheffield Hallam University was published which carried out a study on 43 of the largest seaside resorts. It concluded that the majority of resorts had seen a growth in employment and investment. Mr Cam said: “Change means respecting the old and looking after it but also attracting young people, with nightclubs and sealife centres, that sort of thing."

Question marks over the future of town’s historic abattoir

The demolition was on the cards for Blackpool Abattoir to be replaced by a £1m-plus housing development.

Executives from Penrith Farmers & Kidd’s plc, owners of the historic Cooper’s Way site, were in talks with four potential buyers.

Three of the interested parties wanted to continue the site as a working abattoir.

But the fourth was planning to turn the land into a housing development, ending a century of tradition at the Layton plant.

If the buy-out was accepted from the housing developer, more than 90 jobs at the abattoir would be lost.

Neighbours living nearby would also by hit by months of demolition and building work.

It was not clear how many jobs would be kept if the abattoir was maintained under new owners.

Any deal would cost in excess of £1m.

It was feared the company was losing money with creditors concerned over its trading position.

If the site was sold to the housing developer, it will end the abattoir’s chequered history.

The spokesman added that any debts amassed by North West Foods Ltd would not be the responsibility of PF&K.

Further details on a possible buy-out were expected within the coming weeks

Flying high with bursts of colour

The sky above St Annes was awash with colour as the annual Fylde Kite Festival took off.

Huge inflatable animals and sea creatures shared space with bears and graceful birds as enthusiasts showed off their creations.

The beach was crowded with thousands of visitors on Saturday and Sunday, as sunseekers soaked up the rays and flew their own smaller kites.

Children got stuck into a sandcastle-building competition, while others got to make their own kites at a special workshop. There was also the chance to watch their teddy bears float down from the sky wearing little parachutes.

Stalls selling kites, clothes, skateboards and accessories in a nearby car park also proved to be popular with festival-goers.

Fleetwood Assassin faced biggest fight

Fleetwood boxer Jane Couch faced her biggest fight of her nine-year professional career in America.

Couch, who made history by becoming the first female to hold a professional licence in Britain, featured on the undercard of the world heavyweight showdown between Lennox Lewis and Vitali Klitschko at the Staples Centre in Los Angeles.

And she had an uphill struggle because in the opposite corner was the girl regarded by those in the know as the best pound-for-pound female boxer in the world, Lucia Rijker, of Dutch Surinam, in a super-lightweight contest.

In fact, some LA scribes previewing the fight said that Ms Rijker was a better exponent in the art of boxing than bill-topper Lewis himself!

She was coached by legendary fight trainer Emmanuel Steward, who was in Lewis’s corner for the latest defence of his world crown.

Steward paid Rijker the ultimate compliment to underline the magnitude of the task confronting Couch. The highly-respected Steward said: “I took one look at her and was amazed at the way she fought.“She fought like a man, I had to work with her.”