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North Pier is the most northerly of the three coastal
pier image:Brighton Pier, Brighton, East Sussex, England-2Oct2011 (1).jpg, Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century. A pier is a raised structure that rises above a body of ...
s in
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
, England. Built in the 1860s, it is also the oldest and longest of the three. Although originally intended only as a
promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...
, competition forced the pier to widen its attractions to include theatres and bars. Unlike Blackpool's other piers, which attracted the working classes with open air dancing and amusements, North Pier catered for the " better-class" market, with orchestra concerts and respectable comedians. Until 2011, it was the only Blackpool pier that consistently charged admission. The pier is designated by
English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, medieval castles, Roman forts and country houses. The charity states that i ...
as a Grade II
listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
, due to its status as the oldest surviving pier created by
Eugenius Birch Eugenius Birch (20 June 1818 – 8 January 1884) was a 19th-century English seaside architect, civil engineer and noted builder of promenade-piers. Biography Both Eugenius and his elder brother, John Brannis (born 1813), were born in Gloucester ...
. As of 2021, it is still in regular use, despite having suffered damage from fires, storms and collisions with boats. Its attractions include bars, a theatre, a carousel and an arcade. One of the oldest remaining
Sooty Sooty is a British children's television media franchise created by Harry Corbett incorporating primarily television and stage shows. The franchise originated with his fictional glove puppet character introduced to television in 1955, with the ...
glove puppets is on display commemorating
Harry Corbett Harry Corbett OBE (28 January 1918 – 17 August 1989) was an English magician, puppeteer and television presenter. He was best known as the creator of the glove puppet character Sooty in 1952. Biography Corbett was born in Bradford, W ...
buying the original puppet there.


Location

North Pier was built at the seaward end of Talbot Road, where the town's first railway station, Blackpool North, was built. Its name reflects its location as the most northerly of Blackpool's three piers. It is about north of
Blackpool Tower Blackpool Tower is a tourist attraction in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which was opened to the public on 14 May 1894. When it opened, Blackpool Tower was the List of tallest buildings in the British Empire and the Commonwealth, tallest man m ...
, which is roughly the midpoint of Blackpool's
promenade An esplanade or promenade is a long, open, level area, usually next to a river or large body of water, where people may walk. The historical definition of ''esplanade'' was a large, open, level area outside fortress or city walls to provide cle ...
. The sea front is particularly straight and flat on this stretch of coastline, and the pier extends at right angles into the
Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...
, more or less level with the promenade.


History

The construction of Blackpool Pier (eventually North Pier) started in May 1862, in Layton-cum-Warbreck, part of the parish of Bispham. In October 1862 severe storms suggested that the planned height of the pier was insufficient, and it was increased by . North Pier was the second of fourteen piers designed by
Eugenius Birch Eugenius Birch (20 June 1818 – 8 January 1884) was a 19th-century English seaside architect, civil engineer and noted builder of promenade-piers. Biography Both Eugenius and his elder brother, John Brannis (born 1813), were born in Gloucester ...
, and since
Margate Pier The Margate Jetty (also known as Margate Pier) was a pier in Margate, Kent, in England initially constructed of wood in 1824. It was rebuilt in iron in 1855 and extended and added to over the years. It closed in 1976 over safety concerns and w ...
was destroyed by a storm in 1978, it is the oldest of the remaining examples of his work still in use. It was the first of Birch's piers to be built by Glasgow engineering firm Richard Laidlaw and Son. The pier, which cost £11,740 to build, originally consisted of a promenade long and wide, extending to wide at the pier-head. The bulk of the pier was constructed from
cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...
, with a wooden deck laid on top. The cast iron piles on which the structure rests were inserted using Birch's
screw pile A screw and a bolt (see '' Differentiation between bolt and screw'' below) are similar types of fastener typically made of metal and characterized by a helical ridge, called a ''male thread'' (external thread). Screws and bolts are used to fa ...
process; the screw-tipped piles were twisted into the sand until they hit bedrock. This made construction much quicker and easier, and guaranteed that the pier had a solid foundation. The cast iron
columns A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...
, in diameter, were filled with concrete for stability at intervals of , and supported by struts that were on average were slightly more than thick. The pier's promenade deck is lined with wooden benches with ornamental cast iron backs. At intervals along the pier are hexagonal kiosks built around 1900 in wood and glass with
minaret A minaret (; ar, منارة, translit=manāra, or ar, مِئْذَنة, translit=miʾḏana, links=no; tr, minare; fa, گل‌دسته, translit=goldaste) is a type of tower typically built into or adjacent to mosques. Minarets are generall ...
roofs topped with decorative
finial A finial (from '' la, finis'', end) or hip-knob is an element marking the top or end of some object, often formed to be a decorative feature. In architecture, it is a small decorative device, employed to emphasize the Apex (geometry), apex of a d ...
s. On opening two of the kiosks were occupied by a bookstall and confectionery stall and the kiosks near the ends of the pier were seated shelters. The pier-head is a combination of 420 tons of cast iron and 340 tons of
wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag Inclusion (mineral), inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a ...
columns; standing above the low water line, it sees a regular change in sea level due to the tide.


Opening

The pier was officially opened in a grand ceremony on 21 May 1863, even though the final had not yet been completed. All the shops in the area were closed and decorated with flags and streamers for the ceremony, which included a procession and a cannon salute, and was attended by more than 20,000 visitors. Although the town only had a population of approximately 4,000, more than 200,000 holiday makers regularly stayed there during the summer months; this included 275,000 admissions in 1863, 400,000 in 1864 and 465,000 the following year. The pier was officially opened by Major Preston, and he and 150 officials then travelled to the Clifton Hotel for a celebratory meal. The pier was intended primarily for leisure rather than seafaring; for the price of 2 d (worth approximately £4.90 in 2012)Comparing average earnings between 1863 and 2012, 2 old pence is valued at approximately £4.90 b
MeasuringWorth.com
/ref> the pier provided the opportunity for visitors to walk close to the sea without distractions. This fee was insufficient to deter "trippers'", which led to Major Preston campaigning for a new pier to cater for the 'trippers'. In 1866, the government agreed that a second pier could be built, despite objections from the Blackpool Pier Company that it was close to their pier and therefore unnecessary.


19th century

As permitted by the original parliamentary order, a landing jetty was built at the end of North Pier in incremental stages between 1864 and 1867. The full length of the jetty was , and the extensions increased the pier's total length to its current . The Blackpool Pier Company used the jetty to operate pleasure steamers that made trips to the surrounding areas. In 1871 swimming and diving lessons were added to the pier. In 1874, the pier-head was extended to allow
Richard Knill Freeman Richard Knill Freeman (1840, Stepney, London – 24 June 1904) was a British architect who began his career at Derby and moved to Bolton, Lancashire in the late 1860s. His work, in Victorian Gothic style and typically recalling the Decorated ...
to incorporate a pavilion, which opened in 1877. The interior decoration led it to be known as the "Indian Pavilion", and it was Blackpool's primary venue for indoor entertainment until the Winter Gardens opened in 1879. To differentiate itself from the new pier, North Pier focused on catering for the "better classes", charging for entry and including attractions such as an orchestra and band concerts, in contrast to the Central Pier (or the "People's pier"), which regularly had music playing and open-air dancing. The pier owners highlighted the difference, charging at least a
shilling The shilling is a historical coin, and the name of a unit of modern currencies formerly used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, other British Commonwealth countries and Ireland, where they were generally equivalent to 12 pence o ...
(worth approximately £19.90 in 2012)Comparing average earnings between 1879 and 2012, 1 shilling is valued at approximately £19.90 b
MeasuringWorth.com
/ref> for concerts and ensuring that advertisements for comedians focused on their lack of vulgarity. Sundays were given over to a church parade. On 8 October 1892, a storm-damaged vessel, ''Sirene'', hit the southern side of the pier, causing four shops and part of the deck to collapse onto the beach below. Several columns were also dislodged, and the ship's bowsprit hit the pier entrance. All eleven crew members were rescued when they were hauled onto the pier. Damage to the pier was estimated to be £5,000 and was promptly repaired.
Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...
's former flagship, HMS ''Foudroyant'', was moored alongside North Pier for an exhibition, but slipped anchor and was wrecked on the shore in a violent storm on 16 June 1897, damaging part of the jetty. The wreck of the ship broke up during December storms. The pier was closed for the winter during 1895–96 as it was unsafe; as a result, the pier was widened as electric lighting was added.


20th century

An Arcade Pavilion was added in 1903 at the entrance to the pier and contained a wide range of amusements to suit all tastes. Further alterations were made to the pier in 1932-33 when the open air stand was replaced with a stage and sun lounge. In 1936, a pleasure steamer returning from
Llandudno Llandudno (, ) is a seaside resort, town and community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2011 UK census, the community – which includes Gogarth, Penrhyn Bay, Craigsi ...
crashed into the pier. The collision left a gap, and stranded a number of people at the far end. The 1874 Indian Pavilion was severely damaged by fire in 1921. It was refurbished, but was then destroyed by a second fire in 1938. In 1939 it was replaced by a theatre, built in an
Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
style. At around the same time, the
bandstand A bandstand (sometimes music kiosk) is a circular, semicircular or polygonal structure set in a park, garden, pier, or indoor space, designed to accommodate musical bands performing concerts. A simple construction, it both creates an orname ...
was removed and replaced with a sun lounge. In the 1960s, the Merrie England bar and an amusement arcade were constructed at the end of the pier nearest to the shore. The 1939 theatre, which is still in use, narrowly escaped damage in 1985 when the early stages of a fire were noticed by performer
Vince Hill Vincent Hill (born 16 April 1934) is an English traditional pop music singer and songwriter who is best known for his recording of the Rodgers and Hammerstein show tune "Edelweiss" (1967), which reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart (staying ...
. In the 1980s, a Victorian-styled entrance was built. In 1991 the pier gained the Carousel bar as an additional attraction, and a small tramway to ease access to the pier-head. By this point, the pier had ceased to have any nautical use, but the jetty section was adapted for use as a helicopter pad in the late 1980s. The Christmas Eve storm of 1997 destroyed the landing jetty, including the helipad. The North Pier is one of the few remaining examples of Birch's classic pier architecture and is a Grade II
Listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building or listed structure is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, in Wales, and the Northern Irel ...
, the only Blackpool pier to hold that status. It was recognised as "Pier of the Year" in 2004 by the
National Piers Society The National Piers Society (NPS) is a registered charity in the United Kingdom dedicated to promoting and sustaining interest in the preservation and continued enjoyment of seaside piers. It was founded in 1979, with Sir John Betjeman as the fi ...
.


Attractions

North Pier's attractions include a
Gypsy The Romani (also spelled Romany or Rromani , ), colloquially known as the Roma, are an Indo-Aryan ethnic group, traditionally nomadic itinerants. They live in Europe and Anatolia, and have diaspora populations located worldwide, with sign ...
palm reader Palmistry is the pseudoscientific practice of fortune-telling through the study of the palm. Also known as palm reading, chiromancy, chirology or cheirology, the practice is found all over the world, with numerous cultural variations. Those wh ...
and an ice cream parlour, the North Pier Theatre, a Victorian
tea room A teahouse (mainly Asia) or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment whic ...
, and the Carousel and Merrie England bars. The
arcade Arcade most often refers to: * Arcade game, a coin-operated game machine ** Arcade cabinet, housing which holds an arcade game's hardware ** Arcade system board, a standardized printed circuit board * Amusement arcade, a place with arcade games * ...
, built in the 1960s, has approximately eleven million coins pass through its machines each year. One of the earliest
Sooty Sooty is a British children's television media franchise created by Harry Corbett incorporating primarily television and stage shows. The franchise originated with his fictional glove puppet character introduced to television in 1955, with the ...
bear puppets used by
Harry Corbett Harry Corbett OBE (28 January 1918 – 17 August 1989) was an English magician, puppeteer and television presenter. He was best known as the creator of the glove puppet character Sooty in 1952. Biography Corbett was born in Bradford, W ...
is on display on the pier. Corbett bought the original Sooty puppet on North Pier for his son,
Matthew Matthew may refer to: * Matthew (given name) * Matthew (surname) * ''Matthew'' (ship), the replica of the ship sailed by John Cabot in 1497 * ''Matthew'' (album), a 2000 album by rapper Kool Keith * Matthew (elm cultivar), a cultivar of the Ch ...
. When Corbett took the puppet on BBC's ''Talent Night'' programme, he marked the nose and ears with soot so that they would show up on the
black and white television Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...
, giving the puppet its name. The Carousel bar on the pier-head has a Victorian wrought iron canopy, and its outdoor sun-lounge is classified as the largest
beer garden A beer garden (German: ''Biergarten'') is an outdoor area in which beer and food are served, typically at shared tables shaded by trees. Beer gardens originated in Bavaria, of which Munich is the capital city, in the 19th century, and remain co ...
in Blackpool. Next to the bar is a two tier
carousel A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...
, the "Venetian Carousel", which is protected from sand and spray by a glass wall. After the fire in 1938, the pavilion was replaced with a 1,564-seat theatre which has since hosted a number of acts including;
Frankie Vaughan Frankie Vaughan (born Frank Fruim Abelson; 3 February 1928 – 17 September 1999) was an English singer and actor who recorded more than 80 easy listening and traditional pop singles in his lifetime. He was known as "Mr. Moonlight" after his ...
,
Frank Randle Frank Randle (born Arthur Hughes, also known as Arthur McEvoy or Arthur Twist; 30 January 1901 – 7 July 1957) was an English comedian. A contemporary of fellow Lancastrians George Formby and Gracie Fields, he was regarded as more subv ...
,
Tessie O'Shea Teresa Mary "Tessie" O'Shea (13 March 1913 – 21 April 1995) was a Wales, Welsh entertainer and actress. Early life O'Shea was born in Plantagenet Street in Riverside, Cardiff to newspaper wholesaler James Peter O'Shea, who had been a soldie ...
, Dave Morris,
Bernard Delfont Bernard Delfont, Baron Delfont (born Boris Winogradsky; 5 September 1909 – 28 July 1994) was a leading Russian-born British theatrical impresario. Life and career Delfont was born in Tokmak, Berdyansky Uyezd, Taurida Governorate, Russian ...
,
Morecambe and Wise Eric Morecambe (John Eric Bartholomew, 14 May 1926 – 28 May 1984) and Ernie Wise (Ernest Wiseman, 27 November 1925 – 21 March 1999), known as Morecambe and Wise (and sometimes as Eric and Ernie), were an English comic double act, working i ...
,
Paul Daniels Newton Edward Daniels (6 April 1938 – 17 March 2016), known professionally as Paul Daniels, was an English magician and television presenter. He achieved international fame through his television series '' The Paul Daniels Magic Show'', whic ...
,
Freddie Starr Freddie Starr (born Frederick Leslie Fowell; 9 January 1943 – 9 May 2019) was an English stand up comedian, impressionist, singer and actor. Starr was the lead singer of Merseybeat rock and roll group the Midniters during the early 1960s, an ...
,
Russ Abbot Russ Abbot (born Russell Allan Roberts; 18 September 1947) is an English musician, comedian and actor. Born in Chester, he first came to public notice during the 1970s as the singer and drummer with British comedy showband the Black Abbots, la ...
,
Bruce Forsyth Sir Bruce Joseph Forsyth-Johnson (22 February 1928 – 18 August 2017) was a British entertainer and presenter whose career spanned more than 70 years. Forsyth came to national attention from the late 1950s through the ITV series ''Sunday Night ...
,
Des O'Connor Desmond Bernard O'Connor (12 January 1932 – 14 November 2020) was an English comedian, singer and television presenter. He was a long-time TV chat-show host, beginning with ''The Des O'Connor Show'' in 1963, which ran for ten years. He a ...
,
Joe Longthorne Joseph Patrick Daniel Longthorne (31 May 1955 – 3 August 2019) was an English singer and Impressionist (entertainment), impressionist. He performed on stage and television, and released three music recording sales certification, platinum al ...
, Cannon & Ball,
Lily Savage Paul James O'Grady MBE DL (born 14 June 1955) is an English comedian, broadcaster, actor, writer and former drag queen. He achieved notability in the London gay scene during the 1980s with his drag queen persona Lily Savage, very popular in ...
,
Brian Conley Brian Paul Conley (born 7 August 1961) is an English actor, comedian, singer and television presenter. Conley has been the host of ''The Brian Conley Show'', as well as presenting the Royal Variety Performance on eight occasions. In his 40-ye ...
and
Hale and Pace Hale and Pace were an English comedy double-act that performed in clubs and on radio and television in the United Kingdom in the 1980s and 1990s. The duo was made up of Gareth Hale and Norman Pace, with the ''Hale and Pace'' television sho ...
. In 2002 a heritage room with photographs was opened up, the foyer entrance was refurbished and a disabled lift added. By 2005, there was no longer a live organist playing in the sun lounge although other live entertainment continues. In 2013, the live organist was brought back into the sun lounge.


Ownership

The pier was built and owned by the Blackpool Pier Company, created with three thousand £5-shares in 1861 (worth approximately £2,990 in 2012).Comparing average earnings between 1861 and 2012, £5 is valued at approximately £2,990.00 b
MeasuringWorth.com
/ref> The same firm operated the pier in 1953, and the company was incorporated in 1965. The Resorts Division of First Leisure, including the pier, was sold to Leisure Parks for £74 million in 1998. In 2009, the pier was sold to the Six Piers group, which owns Blackpool's other two piers, and hoped to use it as a more tranquil alternative to them. The new owners opened the Victorian-themed tea room, and built an eight-seat shuttle running the length of the pier. In April 2011, the pier was sold to a Blackpool family firm, Sedgwick's, the owners of amusement arcades and the big wheel on Blackpool's Central Pier. Peter Sedgwick explained that he proposed to his wife on North Pier forty years ago, and promised to buy it for her one day. He said that he wants to restore the Victorian heritage of the pier and re-instate the pier's tram. An admission charge of fifty
pence A penny is a coin ( pennies) or a unit of currency (pl. pence) in various countries. Borrowed from the Carolingian denarius (hence its former abbreviation d.), it is usually the smallest denomination within a currency system. Presently, it is th ...
to access the board-walk section of the pier was abolished by the Sedgwicks.


Liquidation

A petition to wind up the Northern Victorian Pier Limited (the company used by the Sedgwick family to manage Blackpool North Pier) was presented on 17 September 2012 by Carlsberg UK Limited, a creditor of the company, and this was to be heard at Blackpool County Court on 15 November 2012. At the 11th hour, an agreement to pay the outstanding balance owed to Carlsberg was made and Peter Sedgwick's company escaped liquidation.


See also

*
Listed buildings in Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside town and unitary authority situated on The Fylde coast in Lancashire, England. This list includes the listed buildings in Blackpool and Bispham, a village within the borough of Blackpool. One is classified by English Her ...
*
Central Pier, Blackpool Central Pier is one of three piers in the town of Blackpool, England, and was built in 1868. Location The pier is central in that it is located between the other two, but it was close to the site of the now-defunct Blackpool Central railway sta ...
*
South Pier, Blackpool South Pier (originally known as Victoria Pier) is one of three piers in Blackpool, England. Located on South Promenade on the South Shore, the pier contains a number of amusement and adrenaline rides. It opens each year from March to November a ...
* List of piers in the United Kingdom


Notes


References


External links


Blackpool's North Pier HistoryEngineering timelines
– Details of the pier's construction

– Some photographs of the diesel tramway on the pier.
Blackpool North Pier Entertainment Display
{{good article Infrastructure completed in 1863 Pier fires Piers in Blackpool Grade II listed buildings in Lancashire Tourist attractions in Blackpool 1863 establishments in England