Columns & Opinion

After his historic win in the 2 May by-election, Chris Webb reflects on his first week as MP for Blackpool South Westminster feels a long way from Blackpool South, where voters overwhelmingly supported my bid to become their next MP on 2 May. As a new dad I’ve been no stranger to unsociable hours in recent months, but it was a truly surreal moment when, at 5.30am last Friday, I realised the extent to which Blackpool South constituents had put their faith in me. The fact that every single polling district came out in support of me still feels like…

Organisers and volunteers for Reclaim Blackpool, a project to physically map instances of harassment towards women and girls, know that the Young Farmers DIY AGM will be one of the worst weekends of the year for women. The only justification for allowing it isn't good enough, they argue. Main photo: Claire Griffiths Would you rather be stuck in Blackpool with a Young Farmer or a bear? That’s the question that Reclaim Blackpool, the grassroots project challenging sexual harassment, posed on social media last week. Bear! Women replied without hesitation. “Having worked in a bar when Young Farmers was on back…

ADHD diagnosis and treatment at 38 not only improved, but actually saved Laura Mears-Reynolds’ life. Now she dedicated it to raising ADHD awareness and uniting and empowering ADHD adults. And she’s heading to Blackpool. Three years prior to diagnosis I had been told by a friend that I presented with symptoms of the under-researched and misunderstood condition, which is a registered disability under the Equality Act 2010. Having tried to obtain a diagnosis through the NHS and never reaching the end of the waiting list, three years later I had the unexpected privilege to obtain the answers and support I…

Clare Denham is health inequality clinical lead for the Blackpool North Primary Care Network. Over the past two years she’s been working to bring the vision for a community garden in Moor Park to life. She tells us why the project is such an important one and calls on the community to help make it a reality. In a turbulent post-pandemic era, we are faced with rebuilding human connections and a society we can live well together in. A community garden is a designated green space that consists of planters or bedding areas, seating and areas that allow access for all…

15-year-old Ella Lucy Humphries is one of 20 girls locally heading to Scotland to take part in the Four Nations International Women's Day Festival. She writes about what the day means to her. For International Women’s Day this year there are lots of brilliant things going on in our local area. But why do we have International Women’s Day? What is the history behind it? And what’s it’s like to be a young women living in Blackpool now? The United Youth Alliance (UYA), an organisation that promotes social action, has provided me with a bunch of brilliant opportunities to share…

A new play set in Blackpool has just opened in the West End. The creative director of Blackpool's newest theatre, Melanie Whitehead, got an expensive train down to see it and can only assume that the high-profile writer behind it assumed no one from the town would bother. I travelled from Blackpool on Saturday 10 February 2024 to see Jez Butterworth’s new play The Hills of California. I was attending for two reasons. Firstly, as a Blackpool resident, it was exciting to see such a high-profile play set in my chosen hometown premiering in the West End. Secondly, having just…

When Rob Mason's landlord tried to increase his rent he and his son were made homeless. He writes about the precarious housing situations for his generation and how he's turned his experience into a children's book. There is a major problem that continues to disproportionately effect younger generations in the UK. Over the last two years the problem has been magnified and there doesn’t seem to be any easy solution. The problem is of course, the housing market. Priced out and backed into a corner, for millennials and the generations below, obtaining a mortgage becomes increasingly difficult year on year.…

At the age of eight, Mia Bleach announced to family and friends that she wanted to be a boy. Mostly she just wanted to play football, but there was more to it than that – she wanted to run on a level playing field. “Who told you you could wear makeup?” My 11-year-old cousin’s eyes darted around the kitchen in perplexed amusement at her uncle’s gentle mocking. She’d spent the afternoon transforming herself into a version of Wednesday Addams: wonky plaits, patchy white powder and perfectly symmetrical eye flicks, formed with sellotape. “Your auntie has skin as smooth as silk,…