Riding the storm!
Brighton Palace Pier on the south coast provides a welcoming night time scene
UK seaside piers don’t have it easy but through continued investment and by ‘keeping up with the times’ many continue to succeed and flourish, as Andrew Mellor finds out
SEASIDE piers have been a part of the UK’s amusement and entertainments industry since Victorian times and those that remain standing today are a reminder of the achievements of engineers and entrepreneurs of that long gone era. At one time Britain’s coastline boasted around 90 such
Clevedon Pier in North Somerset on the west coast is planning a new visitor facility which will help efforts to raise funds for future investment
structures, each with its own unique design and features, but today only around half that number still survive with several of those facing an uncertain future. That said, many continue to prosper and on-going investment in new attractions and facilities and, of course, in the vital maintenance programmes that piers must always adhere to, is ensuring that a good number are keeping up with the widespread competition they face in these modern times. So just what is the seemingly ever-lasting appeal of
seaside piers and why, in general, do people still visit such a traditional form of leisure attraction when there are so many other options to choose from?
“It’s the uniqueness of the venue,” says Ian Hall, general
manager of Cromer Pier in Norfolk. “Each one has its own unique style. Piers were always an unusual attraction even in their heyday. They provide a rare opportunity - you can’t go to a seaside resort with a pier and not go on it. “Generally, for those you can promenade on that is the
big attraction as it’s akin to going on a boat. They also give an unusual perspective of the resort and the local coastline as well as allowing visitors to feel in touch with the natural elements, with the surrounding waves, the tide being in or out, etc. “For us at Cromer it’s all about these opportunities but
one of our main attractions is the end of pier theatre. People can see first class shows there and at the same time have the sea below them and varying weather conditions outside, so it’s very unusual. The pier could even be moving a little. And there’s also the historical attraction of the structure.” At Mumbles Pier in South Wales, where multi-million
pound development plans are currently in the planning process, John Bollom agrees that the fact that people can walk over the sea water is one of the main attractions. “That has always been the big attraction of piers,”
he comments. “They’ve always been a bit peculiar in this respect and it goes back to when they were first built and an experience many people like, rather than bobbing around in a boat on the water.” Other pier operators also go along with these comments,
Linda Strong at Clevedon Pier in North Somerset adding that as well as people enjoying the feeling of walking over water “there will always be some who find it difficult if they look through the gaps!” The heritage and nostalgic aspects of a visit to a pier are also highlighted by William Mitchell, one of the owners of UK Piers Ltd. which runs Skegness and Paignton piers.
38 InterPark May-June 2011
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