Blackpool's Seaside Stars

"Blackpool's Seaside Stars" is a fascinating collection of celebrity profiles, together with many rare pictures from the archives, and sprinkled with Gazette readers' memories.

This selection only scratches the surface of Blackpool's remarkably deep and rich entertainment heritage.

It is an entertaining and enjoyable read! Oh we do like to be beside the seaside...A timeless refrain not just from millions of Blackpool holidaymakers, but also from a galaxy of stars - who helped build the Lancashire resort's reputation as THE major entertainment centre outside London.

It was the northern mill workers who helped make Blackpool into Britain's number-one holiday resort.

They came in their droves to sample its unique atmosphere and bracing sea breezes.

They loved the Tower, the Golden Mile, the Illuminations and Piers, but they also demanded to be entertained throughout the decades.

The thirties saw the start of a golden era, with Blackpool beginning to gleam as the capital of seaside fun.

Stars of music hall, stage and screen - from both sides of the Atlantic - clamoured to perform in the resort, which could boast some of the biggest and best provincial theatres. Even during the war years Blackpool was fondly regarded as a safe haven, which kept a smile on the face of thousands of service personnel and civil servants, dazzled by appearances from the country's top acts.

When the hostilities finally ended, Blackpool bounced back with the finest entertainment line-up in the country, in its heyday offering as many as 15 live shows each night during the summer season.

Just about every group and solo star of note in Britain and even America headed here during the fifties and sixties - live radio and TV specials came direct from the resort that really knew how to rock.

The fun has continued since the seventies, with families flocking to see summer season shows.

So step back in time with legends such as Gracie Fields, Jimmy Clitheroe, George Formby, Laurel and Hardy, Marlene Dietrich, Bob Hope, Morecambe and Wise, Hylda Baker, Thora Hird, Sid James, Bruce Forsyth and even The Beatles.

More recent household names include Tommy Steele, Les Dawson, Russ Abbot and Cannon and Ball. All have featured in "Seaside Stars", a weekly feature within "The Gazette's" "Memory Lane" pages, which has proved such a hit that it has provided the basis for this book - a fascinating collection of celebrity profiles, together with many rare pictures from the archives, and sprinkled with "Gazette" readers' memories.

This selection only scratches the surface of Blackpool's remarkably deep and rich entertainment heritage, but we hope it will be a lasting souvenir to rekindle memories for residents and holidaymakers alike.