Blackpool trips light fantastic

BLACKPOOL’S Illuminations have lit up British summer holidays for 146 years and now archive photos shine a light on their unique history.

- By Chris Riches

Singer Olly Murs will switch on the lights later this month as part of an hour-long concert, marking the start of the free four-month attraction that lures 12 million visitors a year.

Holidaymakers will be greeted by three 22ft-high smoke-breathing dragons beside Blackpool Tower, the centrepiece of 500 shimmering displays of more than one million LED lights running along the promenade’s six miles.