logo
Giant 50m Ferris wheel to visit Blackburn town centre

Giant 50m Ferris wheel to visit Blackburn town centre

BBC News27-04-2025
A 50m (164ft) observation wheel is coming to a Lancashire town centre following the success of a similar attraction. The Big Wheel will be arriving in Blackburn's Cathedral Square next month, giving guests panoramic views right across the town. A similar giant Ferris wheel attracted crowds in Darwen.Similar in height to 11 stacked double-decker buses and the largest transportable such device in the UK, Blackburn with Darwen Council's Quesir Mahmood said it would be a "spectacle" for the town.
The councillor said: "The views from the top will be incredible – especially over Blackburn Cathedral."The wheel, which will be opposite Blackburn Railway Station, is the largest the Bolton-based The Giant Wheel Company owns. The company's Evan de Koning said: "With fully enclosed gondolas, this is the largest transportable observation wheel in the UK."Riders will be able to visit the wheel from Saturday 3 May until 8 June.
The wheel has previously visited Manchester's Trafford Centre, with the company also supplying wheels for events such as the British Grand Prix at Silverstone and the Isle of Wight Festival.There are 36 gondolas available on the 50m wheel, each with space for six people with an adapted gondola with wheelchair access also available.Tickets will be available for the attraction, which is open from 12:00 BST to 22:00 Sunday to Friday, and 11:00 to 22:00 on Saturdays.
Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

'Our £325k family home on Anglesey could be all yours for just £5'
'Our £325k family home on Anglesey could be all yours for just £5'

North Wales Live

time3 minutes ago

  • North Wales Live

'Our £325k family home on Anglesey could be all yours for just £5'

An Anglesey couple have put their home in an online raffle where people could win their coastal retreat for a £5 stake. John and Jennie Bailey and their two children are looking to move from the two bedroom apartment in the seaside village of Rhoscolyn to a larger nearby bungalow to accommodate their growing family. But they've decided to try an unconventional way of selling the property - which is valued at £325,000. Rather than the usual approach of placing the home on the market they have teamed with Raffall, a UK-based company often used for property raffles. This has seen people given the opportunity to buy £5 raffle tickets to secure a chance to win the home. If the 150,000 ticket sales target is reached then one lucky winner will get the property. If the target is not reached by January 1 2026 then the draw is still held and the winner gets 50% of the pot. Jennie, 43, mum to Henry, 11, and Sebastian, nine, said it is a wonderful opportunity for someone to win a home in a dream location and they will be sad to leave the place. Join the North Wales Live Whatsapp community now She said: "As a family we have been coming to Rhoscolyn for 40 years, it was part of growing up and just where we came as my parents had another apartment in the same block here,where there are three homes. We then bought a flat for our family. "After Covid we found we were struggling to get down as often with work and family commitments and we decided as a family to move here from Stockport in Manchester in 2023. We have really settled, we already knew so many people and everyone has been so welcoming. We both mainly work from home so we could do this. "The children went to school at Ysgol Rhoscolyn and two years later are now fluent in Welsh, we are trying with our Welsh too. We love it here but while the apartment was fantastic for holidays it is too small now the children are growing up. Our eldest now wants his own room. We will be sad to leave and if it was just me and John we would be staying here." On picking this way to sell the house, Jennie, who works in home decor and helps manage a holiday property, added: 'I realise this is quite unorthodox, but that's what we love about it - imagine winning a home in the most idyllic place for a fiver - it's a life changing chance for someone!" She wants local businesses to get involved in the promotion as they can get a 75p cut in each raffle ticket sold with no cost to themselves. In total the couple need to sell 150,000 tickets for the sale to go through. This would raise a total of £750,000 but Jennie that is not what they would receive. She said: "There are a lot of costs to pay, we will do the stamp duty, potentially for a second home purchase, and the legal costs, Raffall get 10% and then we have significant marketing costs for all of this. Also when we have affiliates selling tickets they get that 75p cut per ticket. "There is a lot of marketing needed to get the sales and we have to be careful not to overspend or this could end up costing us. We started this two weeks ago and so far we have had 4,500 sales." She added: "This really is a once in a lifetime chance for people to live or holiday in a magical place by the sea. "We're only moving round the corner as we love it so much in Rhoscolyn, so we can't wait to see our home enjoyed by a new family and for them to build their own memories here.' On the property, Raffall said: "The two bedroomed coastal haven, worth £325,000 is the definition of modern elegance with an open-plan kitchen and dining area ideal for entertaining and the stylish dining-living space a perfect place to relax. "The property also features a family bathroom, downstairs WC, balcony, private garage and shared garden. Properties in Rhoscolyn are few and far between with the competition offering a rare opportunity for someone to get on the property ladder in this sought after location which has a population of just 542 residents." Property raffles like have become more common in the UK in recent years although don't end with the home changing hands at the end due to the ticket sales target not being met.

Foreign YouTube stars secretly paid by UK Government for 'propaganda'
Foreign YouTube stars secretly paid by UK Government for 'propaganda'

The National

time16 minutes ago

  • The National

Foreign YouTube stars secretly paid by UK Government for 'propaganda'

A three-year investigation by Declassified UK has found that online influencers are made to sign legal contracts banning them from disclosing the government's involvement. "Feedback" on each video is given by Whitehall officials before the influencers are allowed to publish them. London-based media agency, Zinc Network Ltd – co-founded by a former Conservative Party spin doctor – is heading up the work on behalf of the Foreign Office in a deal worth nearly £10 million of public money. READ MORE: UK ministers told to increase Scottish Government borrowing limits Zinc has won lucrative contracts from the UK, US and Australian governments. Speaking to Declassified, one former employee described Zinc's work as 'state propaganda' and accused it of interference in foreign elections. Another said the relationship with some online influencers was 'extremely exploitative'. In recent years the company has recruited hundreds of internet celebrities for various clients, particularly in central and eastern Europe. Influencers are instructed to sign non-disclosure agreements prior to being told about Foreign Office involvement, so anyone watching their videos would have no idea they had been funded and signed-off by UK Government officials. The work has included a campaign to mobilise young voters in the 2023 Slovakian elections. That election was ultimately won by Robert Fico's left-wing nationalist Smer party, which is seen as being 'pro-Russian'. One former employee said that, by targeting younger voters, Zinc Network's campaign amounted to 'interference in a sovereign country's internal affairs'. READ MORE: Fresh headache for Rachel Reeves as inflation jumps to 18-month high Zinc Network claims to operate with the 'highest standards' of transparency, including a 'transparent approach to attribution'. Rules set out by the UK's Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) say: 'If an influencer is paid in any form… and the brand has shared control over the content, the post must be obviously identifiable as an ad.' The rules go on to say that 'ads mustn't materially mislead by omitting the identity of the marketer.' In 2022, Zinc signed a £9,450,000 contract with the Foreign Office, which is due to end in December this year. Usually, large contracts are published in full on the government's website, but in this instance the contract was kept secret. For almost two years, the Foreign Office tried to prevent it from being released under the Freedom of Information Act, leading to three separate reprimands from the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) who ruled in favour of transparency each time. A heavily redacted version of the contract was eventually disclosed, although the ICO is now assessing a fresh complaint over the Foreign Office's refusal to release the document's full annexes. The documents show that Zinc was contracted to help counter disinformation in 22 countries across Central, Eastern and Southern Europe, and in the Baltics. They say: "This project fits within wider 30-year UK Government objectives, to provide balanced, independent voices to more people in the regions.' In a response to a parliamentary question about Zinc last month, the government admitted it 'provides feedback on videos for social media' to 'ensure alignment with overarching project objectives, and conflict and gender sensitivity criteria'. However, the statement added: 'Due to the risks posed to our partners and beneficiaries of these projects we do not publish detailed information about them.' Responding to the investigation, a Foreign Office spokesperson said: 'The UK will always champion truth and democratic values. Working with partner governments, we use a range of efforts to resist and rebut disinformation spread by those that wish to target the British people and our allies. 'As part of this important work, we collaborate with commercial organisations, independent media outlets and civil society to combat manipulation and interference in democratic participation.' Zinc said in a statement: "Zinc Network is proud of our work helping civil society push back against hostile Russian influence, especially given the destruction being wrought on Ukraine. We operate within all applicable legislation and our own ethical frameworks around transparency and duty of care, as reviewed by an independent media ethicist."

UAE airlines: Emirates to resume full operations, Wizz Air to cancel all flights; Air Arabia, flydubai and Etihad resume full operations
UAE airlines: Emirates to resume full operations, Wizz Air to cancel all flights; Air Arabia, flydubai and Etihad resume full operations

Time Out Dubai

timean hour ago

  • Time Out Dubai

UAE airlines: Emirates to resume full operations, Wizz Air to cancel all flights; Air Arabia, flydubai and Etihad resume full operations

This article was last updated at 4.20pm on Wednesday July 16. All major UAE airlines will return to a full flight schedule later this week, it has been revealed. Flights from Dubai International Airport, Dubai World Central – Al Maktoum International Airport, Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi and Sharjah International Airport have all been disrupted in recent weeks. However, operations are largely back to normal in the UAE, with Emirates set to resume its route to Tehran on Friday July 18. UAE flight cancellations: Dubai Following a temporary closure of UAE airspace on Monday June 23, Dubai Airports has since returned to normal operations as it entered its busy summer travel period. Emirates (Credit: Emirates) Emirates has announced that it will resume full operations later this week. The DXB-based airline will start flying daily to the Iranian capital of Tehran starting from Friday July 18. In a previous update, the DXB-based airline revealed that it had cancelled all flights to and from Tehran until and including Thursday July 17. But in its latest update, issued on Wednesday July 16, the airline has confirmed that customers travelling to Tehran will be accepted to travel from the point of origin. When announcing updates to the airline's flight offering in July, Emirates revealed that it has been business as usual despite disruptions to several routes. flydubai flydubai has confirmed that it has returned to full operations across its network. The DXB-based airline resumed all routes to Iran, including Bandar Abbas, Mashhad and Tehran on Friday July 4 and restarted flights to Lar and Shiraz on Saturday July 5. flydubai had recommenced travel to St. Petersburg in Russia as of Wednesday July 2. Flights to Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria are also operating. The airline will, however, continue to monitor the situation in these countries and amend its schedule where necessary. UAE flight cancellations: Abu Dhabi Credit: Zayed International Airport Zayed International Airport returns to full operations On Tuesday June 24, Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi warned that flight operations continue to face disruptions. Passengers have been advised to check with their airlines for the latest travel information before heading to the airport. However, flight operations are back to normal at the capital's airport. Etihad flights are back to the usual operating schedule but passengers should check the status of flights here before travelling to the airport. Air Arabia resumes previously suspended routes (Credit: Air Arabia) In its latest flight update on Friday July 4, Air Arabia said it has resumed previously suspended flights to Tehran, Shiraz and Lar. The previously suspended routes got back up and running on Sunday July 6. The airline has advised customers to check the website for the latest flight status updates. Anyone experiencing delays or cancellations will be notified by SMS and email. Wizz Air Abu Dhabi suspends routes until September On Thursday July 10, Wizz Air revealed that it was resuming flights to Israel a month ahead of schedule. The low-cost airline will fly to Tel Aviv from Friday August 8 instead of Friday September 15. However, Wizz Air has also announced that it will cease operations from Abu Dhabi and will no longer have a base in the UAE capital. All previously scheduled Abu Dhabi-based flights will be cancelled from Monday September 1. UAE flight cancellations: Sharjah Sharjah International Airport (Credit: WAM) In its latest flight update on Friday July 4, Sharjah-based airline Air Arabia said it has resumed previously suspended flights to Tehran, Shiraz and Lar. The previously suspended routes got back up and running on Sunday July 6. Air Arabia has also announced that it is resuming its twice-daily service between Sharjah and the Syrian capital of Damascus from Thursday July 10.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store