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Local News

Plug In To The Arts With Electric Sunshine
23 Aug

Plug In To The Arts With Electric Sunshine

Linda Hampton0 CommentsLiterature & Spoken Word, Local News, Theatre, Dance & Performance
Are you an aspiring playwright? An actor with ambition? A drama practitioner with a desire to use the arts to explore deeper social issues? The supercharged Electric Sunshine Project here in Blackpool is providing some outstanding courses to help local creatives develop some of these skills. Leading artists including Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) Head of Casting, Geese Theatre Company Artistic Director and International Playwright Nick Wood will deliver workshops for Blackpool residents; all as part of new arts organisation, The Electric Sunshine Project’s (TESP) commitment to linking up local emerging artists with industry experts. The courses are taking place in…
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Have A Whale Of A Time
23 Aug

Have A Whale Of A Time

Stephen Dunstan0 CommentsLocal News
Yesterday the Sky Ocean Rescue plastic whale was a striking sight on Blackpool Promenade, one of ten dates in a nation tour.  But why was this ten metre whale made from plastic bags, bottles and straw on show. More than 8 million tonnes of plastic pollute the world’s oceans every year.  If nothing changes, by 2050 the plastic in the sea could weigh more than all the fish. The plastic whale is made from the same amount of plastic that ends up in the ocean every second, and is travelling across the UK to bring this huge problem to life and…
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Tribute: Christopher Heyworth
19 Aug

Tribute: Christopher Heyworth

Blackpool Social Club0 CommentsLocal News
Last week the team at altBlackpool and many others in the arts scene were shocked and saddened to hear that Christopher Heyworth had passed away. Christopher, or Christo James as he was known in poetry circles, was one of altBlackpool's first contributors back when the magazine began in 2012. Christopher was a hugely passionate advocate for all things artistic and all things Blackpool, and this passion shone through to everyone who met him. During his time writing for altBlackpool he wrote articles on a diverse range of art forms including visual arts at Blott Studios and the Oak Tree Studio,…
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Food Festival Cooks Up Healthy Twist
11 Aug

Food Festival Cooks Up Healthy Twist

Stephen Dunstan0 CommentsLocal News
Marine Hall's Fylde Coast Food and Drink Festival has firmly established itself as a signature dish on the local culinary calendar over the last four years.  It returns for the fifth edition on Sunday 20 August with added ingredients. New for this year will be nutritional therapist Katharine Tate, aka 'The Food Teacher'. Katharine will be doing cooking demos and talks focused on healthy eating. If you are keen to get a better understanding about how the food we eat affects our bodies, health and even how well we sleep then this is not to be missed. The staple dishes of…
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International Creatives Catch The Blackpool Vibe
11 Aug

International Creatives Catch The Blackpool Vibe

David Simper0 CommentsLocal News
AltBlackpool users know what a creative and culturally rich place Blackpool is and the rest of the world is catching on too. Now international creatives Jen Allen and Jay Fortune are moving their artistic and entrepreneurial operations to the resort. Jen is recognised as one of the UK’s most exciting young fine artists. Her partner Jay is an internationally acclaimed magician, furniture designer and showbiz entrepreneur. Jen says "Having lived in London, Bournemouth, Bristol, Devon and Hertfordshire, we did an exhaustive search of the country for the most active art communities and positive-thinking councils. Blackpool came out top. We’ve been…
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Switch-On Stage For College Birthday
02 Aug

Switch-On Stage For College Birthday

Stephen Dunstan0 CommentsLocal News, Music & Gigs
Blackpool and The Fylde College students will take the stage along with top local acts at this year’s Blackpool Illuminations Switch-On event as part of the College’s 125-year celebrations. The Friday night event will start with a 'Blackpool Introduces' showcase featuring the best of talent from the local area, including local singer songwriter James Edgar, the vocal harmonies of District 12, upcoming new band Pacific and the soulful vocals of Gloria Alderetti. This will be followed by an exclusive performance from B&FC’s student choir who will lead the crowd in a special rendition of ‘Happy Birthday’ to commemorate the College’s…
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Witty Woman Wanted
02 Aug

Witty Woman Wanted

Stephen Dunstan0 CommentsLocal News
Are you a woman?  Are you Northern? Are you really funny? By 'eck lass the following could be reet up your street tha knows. The North has a great tradition of female comics, Caroline Aherne, Carla Lane and Victoria Wood being three sadly recently departed greats.  Now the BBC has announced a new bursary scheme for aspiring northern female comedians in memory of the former, who passed away in 2016. Aimed at comedy writers and performers, the Caroline Aherne Bursary for Funny Northern Women seeks to foster a new generation of female comedy performers in the North and will award funding…
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Festival@Lightpool to feature Illuminated Tram Parade
27 Jul

Festival@Lightpool to feature Illuminated Tram Parade

David Simper0 CommentsHeritage, Local News, Theatre, Dance & Performance
The first time Dad brought us to see the Blackpool Illuminations display, including the illuminated trams, I thought it was the most incredible thing I'd ever seen; that trip was an annual highlight for many years. Since the 70s, the display has been updated to include real flames, lasers and LED lights, but it's also kept well-remembered displays from those latter years. Now an iconic illuminated vehicle parade will grace the Promenade on Thursday 26 October 2017, forming a highlight of the Festival@Lightpool event, happening between Wednesday 25 and Friday 27 October 2017. The illuminated trams join three night's entertainment…
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Pleasure Beach To Host Refreshed Slimefest
20 Jul

Pleasure Beach To Host Refreshed Slimefest

Stephen Dunstan0 CommentsLocal News
The average altBlackpool reader probably isn't in the Slimefest cognoscenti, but may know younger culture vultures in the target audience.  If so, tell them that following two sellout concerts at the Winter Gardens in 2016 it returns this October at a new home in the form of the Pleasure Beach Arena. Among the acts already confirmed for this year's Slimefest is JoJo Siwa.  The 14 year old singer and dancer will be performing her hit single 'Boomerang' live and exclusively for the first time, as well as other new songs.  JoJo has 5.8 million followers on Instagram and over 600…
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Five more magical years at Blackpool’s glorious Winter Gardens
19 Jul

Five more magical years at Blackpool’s glorious Winter Gardens

David Simper0 CommentsLocal News, Theatre, Dance & Performance, Visual Arts & Exhibitions
As a proud childhoood owner of David Nixon's magic book, I've always enjoyed a good magic show. This doesn't mean I could get the tricks to actually work. So it's good to read that the Blackpool Magicians' Club will be holding its world renowned magic convention in our resort for at least a further five years, up to 2022. Celebrating its 75th year in 2017, the club is recognised as one of the most formidable around. Held in February, its convention attracts 3,500 international performers and delegates and is worth an estimated £1m to the Blackpool economy. It's a Guinness…
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