Vintage Festival Brings Sunshine and Crowds to Morecambe
The September sun shone, the tide was in, and record crowds came to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Vintage by the Sea in Morecambe.
Organisers of this popular event couldn’t have wished for a better weekend which brought back memories of Morecambe in its heyday when visitors packed the Promenade, beach, pubs, cafes, shops and most iconic buildings.
An estimated 50,000 people attended this year’s event, much to the delight of co-founders, Morecambe-based art and culture company, Deco Publique and Morecambe-born designer, Wayne Hemingway.
“We are so pleased at the record numbers of people who visited Vintage by the Sea this weekend to experience the best of Morecambe Bay, alive with music, fashion and culture,” said Elena Jackson of Deco Publique.
“The festival created a perfect weekend, filled with the joy of the seaside as shops, cafes and bars were packed to the brim, all the way down the Promenade,” added Deco Publique’s Lauren Zawadski.
A glistening Morecambe Bay provided the perfect backdrop for all things vintage, whether it be people dressed in their best bibs and tuckers from yesteryear, dancers jitterbugging the weekend away, mesmerising Dandyism performances on the Winter Gardens stage, or a huge collection of classic cars gleaming in the sunshine, and toe-tapping music from eras past.
The Vintage Mobile Cinema- the only remaining bus of its kind – returned to the festival showing old Pathe film of the former Marineland complex, just a stone’s throw from where it once entertained holidaymakers.
Having promised something for everyone, Vintage by the Sea delivered once again, whether you were a youngster watching The Wagon of Dreams and participating in one of the many family friendly workshops, a vintage enthusiast searching out the best buys at the Vintage Marketplace, or those who enjoy being treated to afternoon tea at the Midland Hotel.
Nostalgia filled the warm air from vintage fairground rides and a family rave to rides aboard original Ribble buses.
And among the new attractions was the unveiling of The People’s Bandstand, a pop-up platform, commissioned by Deco Publique as a legacy project and produced by Morecambe’s Good Things Collective and friends.
In fact there was so much to see and do that the cancellation of the Spitfire flypast, owing to engine problems, didn’t spoil the fun.
“It was fantastic to see so many people in Morecambe over the weekend, said Coun Catherine Potter, Lancaster City Council’s cabinet member for tourism.
“It was especially lovely to see families enjoying the various activities and entertainment on offer at the festival and local businesses, such as shops and cafes, benefitting from the additional footfall.”
