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Daily Mail
05-07-2025
- Daily Mail
The 'unloved' town abandoned by tourists: How once-thriving seaside jewel is now packed with derelict ghost hotels leaving locals 'heartbroken'
While for some it still brings back fond childhood memories of a fun-filled seaside holiday, Blackpool is long past its heyday. It is now one of the most deprived towns in the UK. Plagued by drugs, poverty and crime, the seaside resort has been in decline for decades. It has the highest proportion of alcohol-related deaths in England and was recently named the local authority area where men have the lowest life expectancy. And while it may come as a shock to those who visited the resort religiously during its booming post-war years, to anyone who takes a stroll down the promenade today, the deprivation is clear as day. Buildings that once housed shops and cafes lay empty, and the 'forgotten' streets behind the promenade are left in ruins. But one of the biggest indicators of the 'unloved' town are the plethora of previously bustling hotels that have since shut down and been left crumbling for years. When MailOnline visited Blackpool, not only were hotels left abandoned and boarded up, but the buildings were seen rotting and disintegrating, becoming a zone for fly-tipping and in some cases, had been targets by gangs for cannabis farms. Local councillor Paul Galley told of how he conducted an audit last year of empty properties along the Promenade and counted 28 were left abandoned. A year later, he counted 45. At the old Sherwood Hotel along Blackpool's North Promenade, which offers seafront views looking over Morecambe Bay, the site has gone into disrepair. Despite its beautiful baroque architecture, the hotel, which has laid empty for years, can be seen decaying with everything from road signs to sofas dumped on its grounds. Its roof is broken, the walls have graffiti on them, and broken windows have been boarded up. Across the roundabout from the Sherwood, behind the three-star Savoy, stands the former Moorfield Hotel. Half the letters have fallen off its signage and the bottom of the hotel is completely boarded up. One window remains propped up, and occupying the abandoned property are flocks of pigeons seen flying in and out of the broken window. Further down the Promenade from here sits the Parisienne Hotel. Also laying derelict, one can see straight through the windows to see tables, chairs and mattresses thrown across the rooms. The mold is so bad it can be clearly seen on the mattresses through the windows, and smashed windows indicate they have been the target of vandals. A group of visitors walk along the promenade looking up at the building in shock, commenting sarcastically on how 'great' and 'beautiful' it looks. Standing outside the Parisienne, Paul Reay, 54, from Manchester, told MailOnline he visits the seaside resort every year. He was with friends who have left the UK for the sunny shores of Tenerife and Madrid in Spain. He said: 'We've come here since we were children and it is soul destroying seeing a once beautiful seaside resort crumbling into destitution. 'All you see are derelict buildings. 'They are prime targets for kids smashing windows, the homeless trying to make their way in, and its a hive for drug dealing. 'Its also an easy target for gangs to farm drugs for free, hook it up to all the dodgy electrics. 'What has happened to the place? 'People are destitute. It used to be one of the most affluent areas in the northwest, if not in the country. 'Now if you go a road back you can easily get class A drugs whatever time of day.' Looking up at the derelict Parisienne Hotel, his friend chimed in: 'It looks like something you see online, a creepy abandoned house that you see this kids on social media go in and explore.' Mr Reay and his brother worked as chefs at the Grand Hotel on the North Promenade many years ago. He told of the 'heartbreaking' change. 'I've been coming here since I was a child. I got stung by my first jellyfish right down here. 'We still come every year. 'But it's heartbreaking. 'Every time you come, you see something else has closed. 'It used to be cafes galore down here, but it's all gone. We're having to walk quite a way up from our hotel to find a cafe. 'The area just needs a hell of a lot of investment. 'It would be good if some of the millionaires and billionaires in the country could inject some money into here because it was a great place. 'Some of it is literally paint work. Get some of the youngsters on community service to come down here and paint the fencing along the pier. It's little things. 'I have noticed though that they cleaned up the beach from what is was a few years ago, and you don't get much litter around here, so they are doing something.' Behind the Promenade, extremely close to the town centre lies a row of disused hotels. At the corner of Queen Street and Abingdon Street sit the abandoned Allandale Hotel, Carlton Hotel and the Continental, all one after the other. The birds can be seen nesting inside the buildings, which have boards lodged in place of broken windows. Posters are plastered over the outside of the hotels and paint can be seen ripping off the crumbling buildings. Sat outside the Allandale Hotel, locals Jade Gaughan, 32, and Jamie Jones, 38, told of how the areas behind the promenade have been 'forgotten'. The couple said: 'It has gotten worse. 'It's just a mess isn't it? 'It's not nice here and we feel the council do more for the promenade for visitors than for the people who live in it. 'They just forget about the side streets. 'They focus on what is going to generate money for them and leave the rest of us. 'It's the people who live here who have to look at this every day. 'There's a housing shortage so they could focus on making these abandoned hotels into housing for locals. 'They're knocking where we live down which hasn't got any derelict buildings and rebuilding. 'The council are getting fed up with the landlords so they are knocking them down and building less houses in its place. 'So we need to leave temporarily. We don't want to have to move out. 'Instead they should concentrate on building these ones up. Look at the state of them.' Speaking generally of Blackpool, the mother-of-five said: 'It was already bad and it is getting worse. 'There's a big drug problem, kids are carrying knives in high school. 'I don't really let my kids play out, my oldest is 13 and I don't let him wonder the streets, it's just not safe.' A report to a meeting of Blackpool Council's executive listed that at one point during 2024, there were 1,500 properties lying empty in the town. While most of these were houses and BnBs, many were also hotels. Action to reduce the number of empty buildings by working with owners is now being stepped up by the council. It comes as Ian White, of leading hoteliers group StayBlackpool, warned that the holiday sector is in 'crisis' as some hotels are having to operate in 'unloved' and 'unforgiving' streets, according to the Blackpool Gazette. Mr White said at the council meeting: 'Abandoned properties, cannabis farms and ASBs are far from welcoming experiences and don't encourage holidaymakers to want to stay around.' The derelict hotels are a telling sign of a wider issue of deprivation. The region is battling a 'zombie' drug crisis, gambling addictions, and homelessness. It is also home to the highest rate of serious mental health issues in England, suffers from four times the average number of drug deaths, and has nearly double the rate of smoking deaths. In November, police found 600 cannabis plants growing in the former New Mayfair Hotel on New South Promenade. The building had been lying empty, but from the outside, unlike some other abandoned hotels, was unsuspecting. Also on the Promenade sits the Sunny Days Hotel, which, while it might not look it, remains open. John George, 56, from Glasgow was sat outside the hotel when he spoke to MailOnline. On either side of the building lie two abandoned hotels. The Blue Waves Hotel sits out of use to its left, and the Blackpool Resort Hotel lies empty to its right. A few properties down, the Coastal Bay Hotel also sits abandoned. The 56-year-old, who was staying in Blackpool for a day with his family before heading to Manchester Airport for a holiday abroad, said: 'It's just us in there, there are no other customers. 'It's all just rundown.' 'See if we were booked in here for a week I would've checked out the same day', his wife added. 'We used to come down here every year from Glasgow. And in the summer you couldn't get a hotel it was so packed. 'It used to be so great. 'But now you can just tell it's unloved. It's a real shame, to see Blackpool now compared to what it used to be like. 'Now you've got these abandoned buildings. 'The difference is like night and day. 'When I used to come as a kid there'd be thousands of people hitting about everywhere. 'But yesterday when my kids were on the rides, sometimes they were the only ones on it.' Mr George feels an increase in prices and the option of flying abroad on cheap holidays has contributed to Blackpool's decline. He said: 'Everything is too dear now in Blackpool, we went for dinner yesterday it is was £62 for four fish suppers and four cans of juice. 'Foreign holidays are cheaper now, if you came here for a week or two it would cost you a fortune, but you could get an all-inclusive holiday abroad for less. 'It was £25 per person to get a ticket for Pleasure Beach, and that's just to walk around. I have no interest in going on the rides it's only for the kids, so I'm not paying £100 for four person just to walk around. 'And it shuts at 5pm now. It used to be open till late.'
BBC News
10-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Blackpool unfairly left out of transport funding, says councillor
The Fylde coast is losing out to big cities when it comes to investment in multibillion-pound transport projects, a councillor has Galley, leader of the opposition Conservative group on Blackpool Council, said the Labour government's recent infrastructure funding announcements amounted to a "two tier funding system designed to invest in big cities at the expense of places like Blackpool".Chancellor Rachel Reeves has pledged more than £14bn for tram, train and bus upgrades across England, but the latest announcements cover areas governed by metro government said it was "committed to delivering transport infrastructure". 'Unlocking opportunity' Recently published investment plans have included £2.5bn for Greater Manchester's tram extension, £1.6bn for Liverpool City Region improvements and £1.8bn for a new Metro link between Newcastle and month it was announced that more than £4m will be invested in improving bus services in Galley said key transport schemes on the Fylde coast, such as the long-awaited Fleetwood to Poulton Tram-Train link and the passing loop on the Blackpool South railway line, had been Anchorsholme councillor said: "Blackpool and the Fylde coast is being ignored by Westminster."While we see billions pouring into Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham, our vital local projects remain stuck on the drawing board."This isn't just about fairness, it's about unlocking opportunity for our residents, improving connectivity for businesses, and creating jobs." The Fleetwood Tram-Train project, which would reconnect Fleetwood to the national rail network and ease congestion on local roads, has long been an aspiration for many in the Blackpool South line passing loop, meanwhile, is seen as vital for delivering a more frequent and reliable rail service between Blackpool, Lytham, and still lacks government backing, the Local Democracy Reporting Service added: "When the government got rid of Levelling Up and focussed on elected mayors, I feared this would happen."The message from government is clear: unless you're in a mayoral area, your community doesn't count."It's time for our town to be treated equally, with the same level of investment and ambition seen elsewhere in the North and it should not depend on us having an elected mayor." 'Plan for Change' Councillor Mark Smith, cabinet member for economy and built environment at Labour-run Blackpool Council, said: "We're extending and improving our journey times, including those vital routes to Blackpool Victoria Hospital. "With the money we have received we can improve our infrastructure."A government spokesman said: "We are committed to delivering transport infrastructure that will boost growth and opportunity across the whole country, as part of our Plan for Change."This includes investing in Blackpool, where this year alone we are already providing £4.2m towards better bus services, £2.3m of highways maintenance funding, £286k to enable better walking, wheeling and cycling opportunities and a share of the £34,945,000 Local Transport Grant for Lancashire Combined County Authority." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on BBC Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
BBC News
07-04-2025
- Automotive
- BBC News
New museum 'last chance' to save Blackpool's trams
Campaigners have urged people to get behind a new visitor attraction as part of a "last chance" bid to help save a town's fleet of heritage trams.A workshop in Blackpool has been repurposed by volunteers to house the historical vehicles and is set to open later this month as the Tramtown exhibition is part of a heritage project aimed at securing the future of the tram service which was suspended by council-owned Blackpool Transport in December due to safety volunteer and Blackpool councillor Paul Galley said the vehicles were "fundamental to the DNA of Blackpool". Mr Galley said it was hoped opening the exhibition centre would help support a bid for grant funding of up to £5m from the National Lottery. Workshops at Blackpool Transport's Rigby Road have been re-purposed to become the Tramtown centre as other parts of the depot needed roof repairs, according to the Local Democracy Reporting have spent the last few weeks smartening up the centre with paint, new lights and a shop in time to welcome the public back from Good Friday. Mr Galley said: "This is the last chance to save these heritage trams and if it doesn't work we will lose them as there will be nowhere to store them. "It's about protecting them and in time being able to recruit new engineers to maintain them."Jane Cole, managing director of Blackpool Transport, previously said the aim was to restore the heritage trams later this she said there were "a number of complex operational issues that need to be addressed" before they could take to tracks once again. 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.
BBC News
28-02-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Blackpool's £90m housing revamp plan not ambitious enough
A £90m plan to regenerate deprived areas in central Blackpool "doesn't go far enough", the leader of the Conservative group on the council has said. The authority was awarded the funding from the government last year to demolish about 400 properties, which are no longer fit for purpose, and replace them with up to 280 bigger new councillor Paul Galley said the scheme needed to be "far more ambitious".But Labour MP for Blackpool South, Chris Webb, said the project was "a brilliant first step in transforming Central Drive". The BBC has contacted Blackpool Council and the government for a response. The first phase of the housing regeneration work will likely focus on one of Blackpool's most deprived areas - the area south of the town centre, between Chapel Street and Rigby Road to Park Road, and the Promenade and Central Drive corridor, the council exact area has not been confirmed yet. 'Look like Didsbury' But Galley told BBC Radio Lancashire: "There's a big chunk in there that talks about adding plazas to Central Drive and this feels more like gentrification than actually regeneration and supporting people."What's needed is a scheme that's far more ambitious, but also connects the private sector into it - sole traders, small business individuals, people who want to invest."This is just relying on a big government grant than only covers a small fraction of what's required."I don't think they go far enough." However, Webb said the Central Drive area had been "desperately needing this kind of transformation for decades, pretty much since I've been in this town in the mid-eighties"."This is a great first step for the town working with the council but also working with private business to start investing in that area for that partnership to turn that £90m into £400m," he added."For me there is no reason why Central Drive can't look like Didsbury. "That's the ambition, we have to be bold."We've got the first outline coming out soon, so we know exactly where it's going to be." Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on BBC Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
BBC News
30-01-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Blackpool: Heated exchange in grooming gang inquiry debate
There were heated exchanges as councillors debated calls for Blackpool to be part of a national inquiry into child grooming warning the resort has many of the risks associated with child sexual exploitation, Conservative group leader councillor Paul Galley failed to get a notice of motion Galley had submitted a motion to a meeting of the full council urging for a letter to be written to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper asking for a national inquiry, with Blackpool of the Justice for Charlene Downes campaign group booed and unfurled banners which said Break the Silence on Child Abuse as his notice of motion was thrown. Child targeted online The ruling Labour group instead voted for an amendment welcoming the government's decision to implement the recommendations made by the Jay Report, following a seven year inquiry into child sex Jim Hobson, cabinet member for children's services, said the outcome of an inspection into child safeguarding had been received, which praised the council's response to children at risk of Mr Galley told the meeting child grooming gangs potentially operated from hotels and amusement arcades and warned "Blackpool should have a voice" in any future inquiry which needed to cover links to coastal group deputy leader councillor Michele Scott added: "We have all seen the reports of vile crimes against children. We have heard how this is a far greater problem in our society and far more widespread than any of us could have imagined."She said a child in her own ward had recently been targeted by an online groomer and was saved only due to the vigilance of their family, while the police had recently sent text messages to residents warning them of the risks of grooming and county including councillor Jim O'Neill from Reform UK said the recommendations of the Jay Report should be implemented at the same time as a new national inquiry was the Labour group said Blackpool had been successfully tackling the risk of child sexual exploitation in the town since 2004 when the multi-agency Awaken task force had been set up following the disappearance of 14-year-old schoolgirl Charlene Downes. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Lancashire on BBC Sounds and follow BBC Lancashire on Facebook, X and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer.
