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Ep 19 Beyond the boards: the past, present and future of Weston's iconic piers
Manage episode 389257331 series 3470870
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2023 has been designated the 'Year of the Pier', and in our final podcast of the season, we are celebrating Weston's piers. Of the 60 piers left in the UK, four can be found on North Somerset's 19-mile coastline, and three of them are in Weston!
We chat to pier experts Michelle Michael, one of the owners/directors of The Grand Pier and Revo, and Simon Talbot-Ponsonby, Director of Birnbeck Regeneration Trust, about the history and future of Weston's three very different, iconic piers.
They discuss:
- The evolution of entertainment at The Grand Pier, from its Victorian beginnings to the present day
- Michelle's family's aspirations for The Grand Pier and Weston
- The importance The Grand Pier places on hiring and training young people in Weston-super-Mare
- Large-scale events: The Grand Pier can seat up to 1,000 people, making it the biggest venue in the town
- The charity work Michelle, her team and The Grand Pier are involved with - at their recent charitable ball, they raised a staggering £410,000
- Celebrity visitor anecdotes from The Grand Pier
- Upcoming events, recent developments (including new feature lighting) and future investment happening at The Grand Pier.
- The history of Birnbeck Pier from its days as an enormous funfair to being commandeered as a secret weapons research establishment.
- How the implementation of modern transport lead to its demise.
- Birnbeck Pier's importance for the RNLI
- North Somerset Council's recent ownership of Birnbeck Pier after years of uncertainty.
- Funding, grants and future plans for the restoration of the pier.
-Michelle and Simon's favourite places to eat out, shop and go in Weston-super-Mare.
You can also read a transcript of the podcast here.
To comment on today's conversation head over to Instagram or LinkedIn.
If you enjoyed this episode, we would so appreciate it if you could rate, review and subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify - it helps us to share the amazing stories of the people of Weston-super-Mare.
Huge things are happening in Weston-super-Mare, the creative, historic seaside town on the Somerset coast in the South West of England.
Find out more on our website Super Weston
Huge thanks to our host Becky Walsh and our voiceover artist Matt Hardy
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