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Pontins
Pontins is a British company operating holiday parks in the UK, founded in 1946 by Fred Pontin. Since 2011, it has been owned by Britannia Hotels. Pontins specialises in offering half-board and self-catering holidays featuring entertainment at resorts, or "holiday parks", as they have branded them. Accommodation is usually in the form of chalets (which Pontins calls "apartments"). Company history Fred Pontin opened his first holiday camp in 1946 on the site of a former U.S. army base (built during World War II), at Brean Sands near Weston-super-Mare in Somerset at a cost of £23,000. Pontin formed a syndicate, in which he held 50% control, to own the camp. Within a year he had six camps. Over the years he bought more camps and personally ran them for a year, before selling them to the syndicate. He gradually expanded his empire to thirty sites. The camps were smaller and less expensive than Butlin's holiday camps. Pontins had Bluecoats to entertain their guests, as oppos ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Britannia Hotels
Britannia Hotels is a British hotel group with 63 hotels in Great Britain. Britannia operates at the budget end of the market, and includes the Pontins Holiday Park portfolio. In recent years, Britannia Hotels has been a subject of widespread criticism over the hygiene and maintenance of its locations, with the consumer group Which? declaring the hotel chain to be the worst in the United Kingdom since October 2013: the controversies have contributed towards the growing general perception of Britannia Hotels as "Britain's worst hotel chain". Overview Britannia Hotels was founded in 1976 with the purchase of the Britannia Country House Hotel in Didsbury, Manchester. Its Chief Executive, founder, and largest shareholder remains Alex Langsam. Langsam is a non-domiciled taxpayer, registered as living in Austria for tax-purposes since 1999. His net personal worth was valued at £90 million in 2013 by ''The Sunday Times''. Its head office is based in the old town hall in Hale, Manc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fred Pontin
Sir Frederick William Pontin (24 October 1906 – 30 September 2000) was the founder of Pontins holiday camps and one of the two main entrepreneurs in the British holiday camp business in the 30 years after World War II, alongside Billy Butlin. He was born in Highams Park, the son of Frederick William Pontin, an East End cabinet maker, and Elizabeth Marian Tilyard, and attended Sir George Monoux Grammar School in Walthamstow but left without passing any examinations. He had a successful career in the city's Stock Exchange before World War II. During the war, he was involved in helping to establish hostels for construction workers. Based on this experience, he decided to move into the holiday camp business after the war. In 1946, he formed a syndicate to buy an old disused camp at Brean Sands near Burnham-on-Sea, Somerset which was the beginnings of the company known as Pontins. He gradually expanded his business encompass thirty sites including the popular Southport and Pres ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Butlins Redcoats
''Redcoat'' is the name given to frontline staff at Butlins holiday camps in the UK. A Redcoat has duties ranging from adult entertainer or children's entertainer to stewarding. History The first Redcoat was Norman Bradford. When Sir Billy Butlin opened his first Butlin's in Skegness he realised that his guests were not engaging with activities in the way he had envisioned: most kept to themselves, and others looked bored. He asked Bradford – who was engaged as an engineer, constructing the camp – to take on the duty of entertaining the guests which he did with a series of icebreakers and jokes. By the end of the night the camp was buzzing and the Butlins atmosphere was born. The same night Butlin decided that for his camp to work he would require an army of people to carry out the same job as Norman, and the role of Redcoat was formed. Uniform To make his new army stand out, Butlin asked Norman to purchase a uniform. Norman later returned with a jacket in the camp col ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lee Mack
Lee Gordon McKillop (born 4 August 1968), known by his stage name Lee Mack, is an English comedian, actor, podcaster and presenter. He is known for his quick wit, writing and starring in the sitcom '' Not Going Out'', being a team captain on the BBC One comedy panel show '' Would I Lie to You?'', hosting the Sky One panel show ''Duck Quacks Don't Echo'', presenting the panel show ''They Think It's All Over'', and hosting ''Freeze the Fear with Wim Hof'' (2022–) alongside Holly Willoughby. He has also been a guest host on '' Have I Got News for You'' and '' Never Mind the Buzzcocks'', a guest captain on '' 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown'', and a guest panellist on '' QI''. In 2021, he made his debut on the BBC Radio 4 panel game ''I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue''. In 2022, he began hosting the ITV game-show, '' The 1% Club''. Early life Mack was born on 4 August 1968 in Southport, now a part of Merseyside. He lived above a pub until he was 12, when his parents separated. He went ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Southport
Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish Sea coast and is fringed to the north by the Ribble estuary. The town is north of Liverpool and southwest of Preston. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, the town was founded in 1792 when William Sutton, an innkeeper from Churchtown, built a bathing house at what is now the south end of Lord Street.''North Meols and Southport – a History'', Chapter 9, Peter Aughton (1988) At that time, the area, known as South Hawes, was sparsely populated and dominated by sand dunes. At the turn of the 19th century, the area became popular with tourists due to the easy access from the nearby Leeds and Liverpool Canal. The rapid growth of Southport largely coincided with the Industrial Revolution and the Victorian e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shane Richie
Shane Patrick Paul Roche (born 11 March 1964), known as Shane Richie, is a British actor, comedian, television presenter and singer. Following initial success as a stage and screen performer, he became best known for his portrayal of the character Alfie Moon in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders'' (appearing 2002–2005, 2010–2016, 2018–2019, 2022–present) and then in its spin-off RTÉ Drama '' Redwater'' in 2017. In 2020, he appeared on the twentieth series of '' I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here'' and finished in fourth place. Richie has presented a number of BBC game shows including ''Reflex'', '' Win Your Wish List'' and ''Decimate''. He also regularly appears in pantomime and in the last few years has starred as Robin Hood. He first took the role appearing at the Mayflower Theatre, Southampton in 2016, then repeated it again in 2017 at the New Victoria Theatre, Woking. He then reprised the role once again in 2018 at the Milton Keynes Theatre. In 2019 he starr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Trevor Hemmings
Trevor James Hemmings (11 June 1935 – 11 October 2021) was a British billionaire businessman. Early life Hemmings was born in Woolwich, London, the son of a Royal Ordnance factory worker father. During the Second World War, part of the Royal Ordnance was relocated to Euxton, Lancashire, and the family moved there when he was aged five. Hemmings started working with diesel trains while attending Business Studies night courses. He then became an apprentice bricklayer, going on to learn all aspects of the building trade. His first fortune was amassed through a housebuilding business. He sold his house-building firm in the early '70s for £1.5 million, just before the collapse of the property market and started another building company, which he sold to Barratt Developments for £5.7million. Career Hemmings owned Preston North End F.C., Northern Trust Co. Ltd, Classic Lodges Ltd. and Trust Inns Ltd. He also owned over 100 racehorses, three of which won the Grand National: Hedgeh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Coral (bookmaker)
Coral is a chain of betting shops in the United Kingdom, owned by Entain. The Coral business was established by Joe Coral in 1926. It grew into an entertainment conglomerate before undergoing a series of ownership changes starting in 1981. As of 2015, Coral had 1,845 shops across the country. History Joe Coral (born Joseph Kagarlitski, 11 December 1904 – 16 December 1996) began his bookmaking business in 1926 and, although primarily concerned with operating betting pitches at racecourses, together with his friend Tom Bradbury-Pratt, he ran speedway meetings at Harringay and opened a credit office in the West End of London in 1943. He had greyhound racing pitches at Harringay Stadium and then White City Stadium followed later by Clapton Stadium and Walthamstow Stadium before branching into betting offices. He was one of the first to take advantage of the new legislation and opened his first licensed betting office in 1961. The new law was not intended to encourage betting and th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Carol Lee Scott
Carol Lee Scott (20 December 1942 – 4 July 2017) was an English entertainer, best known for her role on British television in the 1980s and 1990s as "Grotbags". Throughout her career, Scott regularly performed on the international cabaret circuit, and prior to her TV work, she was a singer and released two albums. Early career Born in Bridgwater, Somerset as Carol Waterman, she began her career after moving to London singing in local pubs, all while working day shifts at the record department at Rumbelows. She gained her break as a performer when she joined Pontins, ultimately working there for 19 years, playing at all of the UK holiday camps, along with those in Scandinavia, Spain, and elsewhere. During the off-season, Scott played many of the northern England and Scotland working men's clubs, sharing a bill with stars including The Four Tops, Morecambe and Wise and Tommy Cooper. During this time, she recorded an album in 1974 which she originally sold only at her concert ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nick Wilton
Nicholas Wilton is an English actor and scriptwriter. He has appeared as Mr Lister in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' as a recurring character; he has also appeared in ''Carrott's Lib'' and ''Jackanory''. Early life Wilton studied English and Drama at the University of Kent. His first professional engagement was in 1979 as a bluecoat entertainer at a Pontins holiday camp. He then spent two years as a stage manager in theatres, before moving into acting. Career Acting Wilton made his acting debut in 1980 in the Whitehall farce ''Simple Spymen'', directed by Brian Rix, and went on to play opposite Rix in the West End revival of ''Dry Rot'' at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue in 1988. He has appeared in many television shows, such as the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', '' Doctors'' (twice), ''Casualty'', '' Heartbeat'', ''The Bill'' (three times), ''Carrott's Lib'' (two series and Election Specials), ''The Omid Djalili Show'' and the children's show ''Scoop''. He appeare ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bradley Walsh
Bradley John Walsh (born 4 June 1960) is an English actor, comedian, singer, television presenter, and former professional footballer. Walsh is known for his roles as Danny Baldwin in the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'' (2004–2006), as DS Ronnie Brooks in the police procedural series '' Law & Order: UK'' (2009–2014), and as Graham O'Brien in the BBC science fiction series ''Doctor Who'' (2018–2022). He has also presented various television game shows for ITV, including ''Wheel of Fortune'' (1997), '' The Chase'' (2009–present), ''Odd One In'' (2010–2011), ''Keep It in the Family'' (2014–2015), and '' Cash Trapped'' (2016–2019). Walsh hosted the ITV variety show ''Tonight at the London Palladium'' (2016–2019) and was a team captain on the sports-themed panel show ''Play to the Whistle'' (2015–2017). He appeared as the coach in the 2001 comedy film '' Mike Bassett: England Manager.'' Since 2019, he has starred in '' Bradley Walsh & Son: Breaking Dad,'' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Scottish & Newcastle
Scottish & Newcastle plc was a brewing company headquartered in Edinburgh, Scotland, which expanded from its home base to become an international business with beer volumes growing almost tenfold. The company was listed on the London Stock Exchange until it was acquired by Heineken and Carlsberg in 2008 and its assets split between them. The name Scottish & Newcastle continued to be used for the UK trading operation of Heineken International until 2009, when it was renamed Heineken UK. The former S&N Pub Enterprises leased pub division was rebranded as S&N Pub Company after the takeover. In 2012, it was rebranded again to Star Pubs & Bars, bringing an end to Scottish & Newcastle brand. History The company was founded by Grizel Syme who ran her late second husband's brewery: this brewery and those of her sons developed into the firm of William Younger & Co. It merged with McEwan's in 1931 becoming Scottish Brewers. In 1960 it merged again this time with Newcastle Breweries t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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