Today’s book club selection is Blackpool Pleasure Beach: More than Just an Amusement Park, a fascinating history of the park by Professor Vanessa Toulmin.
Availability: Out of Print (sometimes available second hand). It may be available from our friends at Joyland Books.
ISBN: 978 0 9564452 1 6
Published: 09/02/2011
Publisher: Boco Publishing Ltd
Audiobook: No
Published fifteen years after the esteemed Century of Fun by Peter Bennett, the book takes a different approach to its predecessor, with deep dives into most of the major rides throughout the parks history, featuring short essays accompanied by striking rare photographs.
Alongside the rides, it takes a look at the park’s Entertainment and People associated with the park including Tom Purvis and Joseph Emberton. It also takes a brief look at Arrow Dynamics and the role the company and its predecessors played in the development of the park.
When launching the book in 2011, Professor Vanessa Toulmin said; “The Pleasure Beach is the greatest amusement park in the World. It’s a credit to both the Thompson family and the people of Blackpool – that this magnificent resort has been here for four generations and will be here for the next.”
The book features a foreword from Steve Weaver, Chief Executive of Blackpool Council and a closing chapter by Amanda Thompson OBE.
About the Author:
Vanessa Toulmin is Professor and Director of City Culture and Public Engagement at the University of Sheffield and founded the National Fairground and Circus Archive (NFCA) at the University of Sheffield. She is also chair of the Morecambe Winter Gardens Preservation Trust. Vanessa is a member of the Showmen’s Guild of Great Britain and her family operated the Blackpool Winter Gardens fairground, where she grew up.