Tag: Born

Current Blackpool South MP – Blackpool Born and Bred

Posted by

Christopher Paul Webb, born on 26 April 1986 at Blackpool Victoria Hospital, is a British Labour MP for Blackpool South. Raised in a working-class family—his father a postman, his mother a teaching assistant—he attended Layton Primary and St Mary’s High School before going on to study British Politics and Legislative Studies at the University of Hull. While at university, he served on the student union council and led the Hull University Rugby League Club. His first job, at the age of 14, was on a souvenir stall on Blackpool Promenade, a fitting start for someone who would later describe himself… Read more »

‘King Billy’ Greenwood Opens First Tudor Bingo

Posted by

‘King Billy’ Greenwood, entrepreneur and self-made businessman, from Knott End to Fleetwood, and Blackpool’s Tudor Bingo Empire that made him a Millionaire in the swinging 1960s! William David Greenwood (1915-1991), always known as Billy, was born in Blackpool. His parents, Agnes and Harold, lived on Fenton Road, where they brought up their family including Billy’s two sisters Annie and May, along with younger brother Harry. Billy’s father worked for the railway at Blackpool’s Central Station and was on two occasions given the prestigious responsibility of commanding the Royal Train. Billy as a young man was always seeking his fortune and… Read more »

The Mystery of Paula Yates

Posted by

Do a search online for Paula Yates and you won’t find much that ties Paula Yates to Blackpool. Her Wikipedia page claims she was born on 24 April 1959 in Colwyn Bay, Wales, to English parents, and that she was brought up in a show business family. Her mother was Elaine Smith who was from Blackpool. Her stage name was Heller Toren, who later wrote under the pseudonym Helene Thornton. Up until 1997, Paula Yates believed her biological father was Jess Yates, who hosted the ITV religious programme Stars on Sunday. A DNA test in that year revealed that her… Read more »

Despite Turbulent Times in the Pub Trade, Duckworth Stays on Top

Posted by

The government’s ban on cigarette vending machines in restaurants, pubs, and clubs had a significant impact on these businesses and their suppliers. Despite this, Rod Bullough has successfully navigated these challenging times, ensuring the continuation of his family business. One of the ways he has done this is by designing a ‘back bar’ cigarette dispenser, which appears to comply with current regulations. The tobacco control industry claimed that 52,000 children in England accessed cigarettes via vending machines each year. However, this figure was based on estimates and the responses of teenagers from a limited number of surveys. While consumer opposition… Read more »

Susan Varley’s Badger’s Parting Gifts Gets Published

Posted by

Susan Varley is a British illustrator and author of children’s picture books. She was born in 1961 in Blackpool. Her best known book is Badger’s Parting Gifts, a story which aims to be a gentle introduction to old age and bereavement for young children. She both wrote and illustrated the book, and it was awarded the Mother Goose Award in 1985. Susan – who attended Baines Endowed Primary and Elmslie Girls School (background image). Varley studied graphic design and illustration at Manchester Polytechnic. Badger’s Parting Gifts was Susan Varley’s first book, it was published by Andersen Press in 1984. A… Read more »

Nathan Parker Releases First Book

Posted by

Nathan Parker is an independent author and spoken artist from Blackpool. Proud of his northern roots, Nathan is a keen champion of northern voices, committed to enabling people of all ages to engage with words, stories and conversations. He has a background in Youth Work, having worked in the community, schools, colleges and hostels in Blackpool and the North-West for over 13 years. His vision is to combine youth work values and approaches with the topic of literacy to engage and motivate people to access reading, writing and storytelling, removing barriers and enabling confidence. Nathan is proud of his northern roots… Read more »

Blackpool-Born Simon Sadler Buys His Local Football Club

Posted by

Simon Sadler, born on 18 October 1969 in Blackpool, is a British entrepreneur and the founder of Segantii Capital Management. He became the owner of Blackpool Football Club in 2019, purchasing a 96.2% stake and ending the Oyston family’s 32-year control. In his second full season at the helm, Sadler oversaw the club’s promotion to the Championship, marking their return to the second tier of English football after a six-year absence. Sadler grew up on Bispham Road in Blackpool and had a summer job renting deckchairs. He attended Moor Park Primary School, Warbreck School, and Blackpool and the Fylde College before… Read more »

Sports Historian Gerry Wolstenholme Writes First Book

Posted by

Born in Blackpool, Gerry Wolstenholme is an author and sports historian from Blackpool who wrote about football and cricket. He penned his first book in 1992 and became a strong supporter of Blackpool F.C. He attended Northlands school between the ages of three and five, and then Devonshire Road School in Blackpool and Baines Grammar School in Poulton-le-Fylde. He saw an advertisement for Civil Service examinations and decided to take them. He passed, and moved to London to begin working at Her Majesty's Treasury in Whitehall. He was promoted, and worked in the office of the Chancellor of the Exchequer. He... Read more »

Patrick Keiller, A Great Filmmaker Born in Blackpool

Posted by

Patrick Keiller is a filmmaker, writer, and lecturer, born in 1950 in Blackpool. He studied architecture at the Bartlett School of Architecture, University College London, before furthering his education at the Royal College of Art’s Department of Environmental Media as a postgraduate student in 1979. Over the years, he has combined academia with filmmaking, having taught architecture at the University of East London and fine art at Middlesex University. Keiller’s early films include Stonebridge Park (1981), Norwood (1983), The End (1986), Valtos (1987), and The Clouds (1989). These works are characterised by their use of subjective camera techniques and voice-over… Read more »

Margaret Thornton Gets Her First Book Published

Posted by

Margaret Thornton was born 21 June 1934 in a boarding house on Pleasant Street, Blackpool and lived in the town all her life. She had two children and five grandchildren, and was a qualified teacher at Grange Park, Mereside and Devonshire Road (background image) junior schools. She left teaching in her early 50s in order to concentrate on her writing and wrote short stories before turning her hand to full-length novels with her debut, It’s a Lovely Day Tomorrow, in 1992. Her son got her a computer but she only used it as a word processor and didn’t use it… Read more »