500

Since the 1800s, Blackpool has been Britain’s most popular seaside resort. With entertainment at the heart of our beloved Blackpool, our seaside town has been synonymous with fun-filled and action-packed adventures. 

New for 2021 and a world premiere, at 500 we show you a small part of it as we celebrate four of the town's glittering venues that have been a mainstay of Blackpool for 125 years each with their own film. Grab a deckchair, relax, and enjoy our enviable history.

The Blackpool Tower – The Blackpool Tower has stood tall over the Fylde Coast for over 125 years, opening to the world on 14th May 1894, with Sir John Bickerstaffe, a former mayor of Blackpool at the helm. With a building full of attractions at its base, The Blackpool Tower was soon coined the ‘Wonderland of the World’!

The Blackpool Tower is one of the most iconic buildings in the UK and one of Britain’s best-loved landmarks. It houses five amazing attractions, perfect for a fun-packed day for all to enjoy.

The Blackpool Tower Ballroom is world-famous for its unique sprung dance floor and spectacular architecture and remains to this day a destination for dance fans from across the globe.

Did you know:

There are more than five million bricks in the Tower Buildings?

Each of the four legs of the Tower rest on concrete foundations 35 feet square and 12 feet deep

It takes 15,000 yards of carpet to cover the floor of The Blackpool Tower Building

The Tower alone contains 2,493 tons of steel and 93 tons of cast iron. The building at the base contains 985 tons of steel and 259 tons of cast iron

The height to the top of the flagpole is 518 feet 9 inches

It takes seven years to paint The Blackpool Tower structure from top to bottom. This time includes the replacement of any corroded steelwork

The Blackpool Tower Circus is positioned at the base of the Tower between its four legs

Long before he became famous as a Hollywood film star, the comedian, W.C.Fields, spent a season before the First World War at the Circus as a juggler

When filled with water, the Circus ring can hold up to 42,000 gallons of water to a depth of 4 feet 6 inches

The Ballroom floor measures 120 feet by 102 feet. It comprises 30,602 separate blocks of mahogany, oak and walnut

The present Ballroom was designed by Frank Matcham and opened in 1899

The names of 16 composers are to be found around the Ballroom

Winter Gardens including the Empress Ballroom -  celebrating its 140th anniversary in 2018, the  Empress Ballroom – one of the world’s finest dance venues - was added in 1896 and designed by brothers John and William Henry Littlewood. It has played host to famous acts such as The Rolling Stones, The Stone Roses, Oasis, The Prodigy and the International Blackpool Dance Festival, and has a 3,500 capacity.

The Grand Theatre - Designed by Frank Matcham, the leading theatre architect of the day, Blackpool Grand Theatre opened in 1894, celebrating 125 years in 2019. Throughout 2019, the theatre saw a range of star-studded events, record audience figures and played host to some of the UK’s top West End plays. The theatre also took on a major fundraising campaign to help fund repair work to the iconic Grade II* listed building.

Blackpool Pleasure Beach - When William George Bean purchased a 42-acre plot of land in Blackpool in1896, he had a vision.

He wanted to build an American-style theme park, a place “to make adults feel like children again and to inspire gaiety of a primarily innocent character.” Alderman Bean could never have envisaged that millions of people, both young and old would experience unbridled happiness from this fantastical idea.

Even less, that in 2021, his creation would celebrate its 125th birthday and still be bringing excitement into the lives of every person stepping through the gates to the magical wonderland that is Blackpool Pleasure Beach.