Paid Members Surf Digby Posted June 4 Paid Members Share Posted June 4 (edited) The first time I took my son to Blackpool, we parked up near the football ground, and as we walked down a street of run down and boarded up guesthouses, he asked (in the loud voice of a child with no filter), "Were these hotels all bombed in the war?" I'm glad that I started taking him when he was young, and that he likes being there, because I can't imagine what it's like taking a teenager and trying to convince them that they'll enjoy themselves. That Glasshouse building is in a shocking state already. They should have just given the Sands building a touch-up Edited June 4 by Surf Digby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Jazzy G Posted June 4 Paid Members Share Posted June 4 3 hours ago, air_raid said: Is Slots Of Fun still there? @Jazzy G I think it is. Blackpool is fine. As mentioned elsewhere Yorkshire Fisheries is a wonderful eaterie. When the weather's nice and the heritage trams are running, or the Illuminations are on it's grand. Pleasure Beach is ridiculous because you have to pay just to go in there now, whereas once upon a time you could just wander about in there willy-nilly. It's at least a fiver to get in. Arcade Club is cracking, sometimes they'll have offers on where you can get in for a tenner. Reasonably priced scran as well. Coral Island isn't too bad, and Bonny Street Market can be decent when it's on. Lytham, St Ann's, and Cleveleys are all better though because they're smaller, and quieter. Blackpool feels like it coasts on its reputation, but unfortunately doesn't realise that its reputation is slipping. Fleetwood is shit though. If you want to get a new appreciation of Blackpool go and spend a couple of hours in Fleetwood. It's a nice run on the tram, but it's well shit. Apart from on Tram Sunday. Next year will be the 140th anniversary of the trams in Blackpool, so it could be a good time to get over there for the celebrations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Some Guy Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 I live in Blackpool and love it. As usual I'm totally out of step with the rest of the UKFF. As well as the Matchplay we have the world's best Punk Festival in Rebellion. More dancing comps than you can shake a stick at. Britain's biggest magicians convention. All the above at the fantastic Winter Gardens. More great gigs at Bootleg Social & The Waterloo. There are better drink options than Spoons. Cask & Tap, Shickers Tavern, & the soon to open Railside. Food! Great burgers & Mexican at West Coast Rock. Loads of choice at Abingdon Street Food Hall. Loads of quality Italian, Indian, Thai & Chinese options. Ice cream from Notriani's. Culture at The Grundy Art Gallery or Showtown Entertainment Museum. Get your "kiss me quick" hats on, stick your kids on a donkey and enjoy yourselves! Â Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SuperBacon Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 I'll also say that I've been to two games where Blackpool have been the away fans and they have been absolutely superb both times, so there is that as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Thunderplex Posted June 4 Author Paid Members Share Posted June 4 Well, I lasted 3 hours.  Was that pent up with anger and disgust that I didn’t ever try the chippy that I wanted to do, the aforementioned Yorkshire Fisheries.  Went back to Lytham St Anne’s, got some amazing donuts from the pier and blasted out £4 of 2p’s in the arcade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Some Guy Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 (edited) Don't know if your a drinker @Thunderplex but both The Taps & Craft House in Lytham come highly recommended. Edited June 4 by Just Some Guy Clarity Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DavidB6937 Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 50 minutes ago, Thunderplex said: Well, I lasted 3 hours. Show off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Thunderplex Posted June 4 Author Paid Members Share Posted June 4 1 hour ago, Just Some Guy said: Don't know if your a drinker @Thunderplex but both The Taps & Craft House in Lytham come highly recommended. I may give that a go next time, cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
no user name Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 There's a strip club in Blackpool somewhere. Went there on my 23rd birthday Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deathrey Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 Enter at your own risk Plexy. God knows what you'll find there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Surf Digby Posted June 4 Paid Members Share Posted June 4 5 hours ago, Just Some Guy said: I live in Blackpool and love it. As usual I'm totally out of step with the rest of the UKFF. Get your "kiss me quick" hats on, stick your kids on a donkey and enjoy yourselves!  I think the problem for a lot of us, is that we're starkly aware of how much it's slipped since we first went. For me it's similar to Morecambe. When I first went there, the pier was still there (albeit condemned because it was about to fall down), Bubbles water park and Frontierland were in full swing, and there were a shed load of arcades in what we now know was the golden era of coin-ops. Bubbles is now a mass of asphalt with no clear purpose, Frontierland is wasteland and of the 50% of the arcades that remain, they're just full of 2p pushers and wanky ticket scheme games. I only have one real memory of my first holiday in Blackpool when I was four, which was my Gran buying a load of sticks of rock, putting them in a drawer, and when we got back from the clubhouse (we were at Pontins), the drawer had several hundred ants in it, having the time of their life. The first holiday there I remember properly was when I was seven, and even though it must have looked run down in some areas (eg: the lido would have still been next to South Pier, ready to be demolished), I only remember it as a bright and colourful place, which is weird, because I also know that the weather was crappy on several days, because we regularly couldn't see the top of the tower, with one day the cloud being so low that we couldn't even see the legs, as if the whole thing had disappeared. We must have had some days of sun though, because I can remember being on an absolutely packed beach, trying to find a spot big enough for us to lay out our towels. The best things though were the original Doctor Who exhibition on Chapel Street (and not under the Woolworths building, as I'd convinced myself it was for years), and the amazing Professor Peabody's Playplace in the Winter Gardens. I've no idea how many times I've been to Blackpool. There was a day trip with the Boy's Brigade in the mid-80s, I went in February two years running in the early 90s to the Magician's Convention with my uncle, a long weekend with my mother and sisters when I was 13 (Pontins again, where I saw my first live Britwres show and ended up being captivated with seeing the wooden boards when it was being dismantled, as up until then I'd assumed the canvas was just pulled very tight, like a non-bouncy trampoline. I was also captivated by one of the Blue Coats, being 13 and all). I went some time around 2001 when my daughter was young and could only go on small rides, and again with her in 2009 when they had the new Doctor Who exhibition and there was still the bridge over the promenade from Bank Hey Street, there was a stag night, a weekend spent there for Replay in 2011 in a lovely guesthouse still boasting its late 80s/early 90s decor, and then a bunch of day trips, and random evenings from when I was working in Bolton. I think to really like the time you spend in Blackpool, you have to be someone that likes Blackpool. Also, the Fish Factory does a decent fish 'n' chips too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIDDUM_N_STYLE Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 Spent a week there (Wowcher deal) with my ex about 10/11 years ago, we had a good time even though it was in the midst of a heatwave and we both got bad sunburns on our first full day just from sitting at the pier eating an ice cream. We done the likes of the waxwork place, Ripley’s Believe It or Not and the Tower (all paid by me as she’d managed to burn through her spends by the 3rd day) and visited a brilliant retro shop that was named after Doctor Who which I think is now run under a different name by a guy I regularly see at Comic Cons Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Hannibal Scorch Posted June 5 Paid Members Share Posted June 5 8 hours ago, Just Some Guy said: I live in Blackpool and love it. As usual I'm totally out of step with the rest of the UKFF. As well as the Matchplay we have the world's best Punk Festival in Rebellion. More dancing comps than you can shake a stick at. Britain's biggest magicians convention. All the above at the fantastic Winter Gardens. More great gigs at Bootleg Social & The Waterloo. There are better drink options than Spoons. Cask & Tap, Shickers Tavern, & the soon to open Railside. Food! Great burgers & Mexican at West Coast Rock. Loads of choice at Abingdon Street Food Hall. Loads of quality Italian, Indian, Thai & Chinese options. Ice cream from Notriani's. Culture at The Grundy Art Gallery or Showtown Entertainment Museum. Get your "kiss me quick" hats on, stick your kids on a donkey and enjoy yourselves! Â I pretended that William Regal read that in my head. It was the Winter Gardens bit that triggered me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members SpiritOfTheForest Posted June 5 Paid Members Share Posted June 5 Never been to Blackpool but what I know about it is it's home to one of my all-time favourite UKFFers @Stormy Weathers. A real cool guy and so if he's typical of Blackpool, then they're alright I guess. Apart from UKFF connection though, I saw video from Rate My Takeaway about a £1 burger being sold from a van there. That's definitely in the keeping of this place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paid Members Jazzy G Posted June 5 Paid Members Share Posted June 5 Lytham is nice, St Anne's is nice, but people in both towns hate when people call it "Lytham St Anne's" There's a good chippy in Lytham called The Haven. Seniors is good as well. Some decent charity shops there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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