Horror at the Pleasure Beach

2nd July 2011

Location: Blackpool

At 8am all thirteen of us (nine adults and four kids) made our way, with flip flops flipping and cool bags swinging, to the Community Centre for the annual daytrip to Blackpool. Strangely enough, there wasn’t a single cloud in sight and not a whisper of wind to muss our hair. Usually when we go anywhere the God of bad weather tends to remind us of his presence by throwing everything he has at us – but it seems he’d taken the day off that day (which was just as well, because none of us had brought a brolly).

On the three hour coach journey we all talked, swapped seats, entertained the kids and had a half an hour loo break at Tebay – eventually arriving in Blackpool at around 11:30am...and it was still sunny!

We walked along the seafront for what seemed like forever, heading in the general direction of the Pleasure Beach – stopping for dinner at a restaurant along the way. 

We watched as numerous hen and stag parties passed by, most dressed up in fancy dress. A group of women dressed as builders in hi-vis jackets (and very little else), and a group of men wearing heavily padded superhero outfits were among the collection. And just when we thought we’d seen it all, a horse-drawn pink carriage passed by. It could only be described as looking like Cinderella’s very own taxi (before it turned back into a pumpkin, of course).

Finally, when we arrived at the Pleasure Beach, Angela somehow managed to persuade me and Paul to going through the Pasaje del Terror with her. It’s basically like a ghost train – only there is no train, because you walk through it. And all the while, in the pitch black, people dressed as famous scary people jump out and scare the living daylights out of you. Holding Angela’s hand, I dragged her, she pulled me, and Paul pushed her the entire way round – and I held tight to the teenage boy’s hood in front (apologies to whoever that poor boy was, I’d have never made it without him!). So after various run-ins with clowns, vampires, Michael Myers, Freddie Kruger, Regan from The Exorcist (bucking and writhing on a bed like she was on a bucking bronto) and Friday 13ths very own Jason (wielding a chainsaw), we burst out of the exit door – much to the amusement of onlookers who were sitting enjoying a pint in the Horror Bar!

...which was a great idea – so we enjoyed a pint in there ourselves, laughing with hilarity at all the other people who came crashing out scared witless (including one girl who emerged minus one of her shoes!)

Afterwards we popped over to the South Pier, where the kids and the rest of the group played on the slot machines, whilst Derek and I headed round to the bar for a nice pint sitting in the sun. 

Then, we all headed round to the shows – where I was drawn like a moth to light by the waltzer (my favourite ride of all time). And much to my excitement the bloke stationed on it pushed us faster whenever I asked him to. 

The kids and blokes went to play on the dodgems for a while – and by the time they got off, we realised it was time to start making our way back to the coach for our 6pm pick up. How time flies when you’re having fun and all that – we didn’t even get time to see the donkeys!

We all eat our own body weights in ice cream and candy floss on the walk back to the bus stop, and marvelled at how run-down Blackpool seems to be compared to how we remembered it from years ago. I distinctly remember visiting, and loving, Blackpool along with my nana and granda as a child in the eighties – but then maybe my National Health glasses were rose tinted back then?