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Southport is a seaside town in the
Metropolitan Borough of Sefton The Metropolitan Borough of Sefton is a metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England. It was formed on 1 April 1974, by the amalgamation of the county boroughs of Bootle and Southport, the municipal borough of Crosby, the urban districts of ...
in
Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wir ...
, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in
North West England North West England is one of nine official regions of England and consists of the ceremonial counties of England, administrative counties of Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside. The North West had a population of ...
. Southport lies on the
Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the C ...
coast and is fringed to the north by the Ribble estuary. The town is north of
Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
and southwest of
Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...
. Within the boundaries of the historic county of
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...
, the town was founded in 1792 when William Sutton, an innkeeper from Churchtown, built a bathing house at what is now the south end of Lord Street.''North Meols and Southport – a History'', Chapter 9, Peter Aughton (1988) At that time, the area, known as South Hawes, was sparsely populated and dominated by sand dunes. At the turn of the 19th century, the area became popular with tourists due to the easy access from the nearby
Leeds and Liverpool Canal The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a canal in Northern England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool. Over a distance of , crossing the Pennines, and including 91 locks on the main line. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal has several small branc ...
. The rapid growth of Southport largely coincided with the
Industrial Revolution The Industrial Revolution was the transition to new manufacturing processes in Great Britain, continental Europe, and the United States, that occurred during the period from around 1760 to about 1820–1840. This transition included going f ...
and the
Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edwa ...
. Town attractions include
Southport Pier Southport Pier is a pleasure pier in Southport, Merseyside, England. Opened in August 1860, it is the oldest iron pier in the country. Its length of makes it the second-longest in Great Britain, after Southend Pier. Although at one time spa ...
, the second longest seaside pleasure
pier Seaside pleasure pier in Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th century.">England.html" ;"title="Brighton, England">Brighton, England. The first seaside piers were built in England in the early 19th ...
in the
British Isles The British Isles are a group of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-western coast of continental Europe, consisting of the islands of Great Britain, Ireland, the Isle of Man, the Inner and Outer Hebrides, the Northern Isl ...
, and Lord Street, an elegant tree-lined shopping street. Extensive sand dunes stretch for several miles from Woodvale to
Birkdale Birkdale is an area of Southport, within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, though historically in Lancashire, in the north-west of England. The area is located on the Irish Sea coast, approximately a mile away from the centre of ...
, the south of the town. The Ainsdale sand dunes have been designated as a national nature reserve and a
Ramsar Ramsar may refer to: * Places so named: ** Ramsar, Mazandaran, city in Iran ** Ramsar, Rajasthan, village in India * Eponyms of the Iranian city: ** Ramsar Convention concerning wetlands, signed in Ramsar, Iran ** Ramsar site, wetland listed i ...
site. Local fauna include the natterjack toad and the sand lizard. The town contains examples of
Victorian architecture Victorian architecture is a series of architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. ''Victorian'' refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the styles known as Victorian w ...
and town planning, on Lord Street and elsewhere. A particular feature of the town is the extensive tree planting. This was one of the conditions required by the Hesketh family when they made land available for development in the 19th century. Hesketh Park at the northern end of the town is named after them, having been built on land donated by Rev. Charles Hesketh. Southport today is still one of the most popular seaside resorts in the UK. It hosts various events, including an annual air show on and over the beach, the largest independent
flower show Flower shows are horticultural exhibitions with an emphasis on flowers. For flower festivals, which are festivals with a wider range of activities with a floral theme, see :Flower festivals. Horticultural exhibitions Floristry ...
in the UK (in Victoria Park) and the British Musical Fireworks Championship. The town is at the centre of England's Golf Coast and has hosted
the Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later t ...
at the Royal Birkdale Golf Club.


History


Earliest settlements

There have been settlements in the area now comprising Southport since the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
, and some parts of the town have names of
Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
origin. The earliest recorded human activity in the region was during the
Middle Stone Age The Middle Stone Age (or MSA) was a period of African prehistory between the Early Stone Age and the Late Stone Age. It is generally considered to have begun around 280,000 years ago and ended around 50–25,000 years ago. The beginnings of ...
, when mesolithic hunter gatherers were attracted by the abundant
red deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of ...
and elk population, as well as the availability of fish, shellfish and woodland.
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...
coins have been found at Halsall Moss and Crossens, although the Romans never settled southwest Lancashire. The first real evidence of an early settlement here is in the
Domesday Book Domesday Book () – the Middle English spelling of "Doomsday Book" – is a manuscript record of the "Great Survey" of much of England and parts of Wales completed in 1086 by order of King William I, known as William the Conqueror. The manusc ...
, in which the area is called ''Otergimele''. The Domesday Book states that there were 50 huts in Otergimele, housing a population of 200. The population was scattered thinly across the region and it was at the northeast end of Otergimele (present day Crossens), where blown sand gave way to alluvial deposits from the River Ribble estuary, that a small concentration of people occurred. It was here, it seems, that a primitive church was built, which gave the emerging village its name of Churchtown, the parish being
North Meols North Meols is a civil parish and electoral ward in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England. The parish covers the village of Banks and the hamlet of Hundred End. The population of the parish/ward at the 2011 census was 4,146. His ...
(pronounced "meals", not "mells"). A church called St Cuthbert's is still at the centre of Churchtown. With a booming fishing industry, the area grew slowly and hamlets became part of the parish of North Meols. From south to north, these villages were South Hawes, Haweside, Little London, Higher
Blowick Blowick is a suburb on the east side of the town of Southport, Merseyside, England. History and etymology Blowick is part of the ancient parish of North Meols and was formerly a detached settlement, on the northern fringe of what is now Southpo ...
, Lower Blowick, Rowe-Lane, Churchtown, Marshside, Crossens, and
Banks A bank is a financial institution that accepts deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital markets. Becaus ...
. As well as Churchtown, there were vicarages in Crossens and Banks. Parts of the parish were almost completely surrounded by water until 1692 when Thomas Fleetwood of Bank Hall cut a channel to drain Martin Mere to the sea. From this point on, attempts at large-scale drainage of Martin Mere and other marshland continued until the 19th century, since when the water has been pumped away. This left behind a legacy of fine agricultural soil and created a booming farming industry.


Early history

In the late 18th century, it was becoming fashionable for the well-to-do to desert inland spa towns and visit the seaside to bathe in the salt sea waters. At that time, doctors recommended bathing in the sea to help cure aches and pains. In 1792, William Sutton, the landlord of the ''Black Bull Inn'' in Churchtown (now the ''Hesketh Arms'') and known to locals as "The Old Duke", realised the importance of the newly created canal systems across the UK and set up a bathing house in the virtually uninhabited dunes at South Hawes by the seaside just four miles (6 km) away from the newly constructed
Leeds and Liverpool Canal The Leeds and Liverpool Canal is a canal in Northern England, linking the cities of Leeds and Liverpool. Over a distance of , crossing the Pennines, and including 91 locks on the main line. The Leeds and Liverpool Canal has several small branc ...
and two miles southwest of Churchtown. When a widow from
Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington ...
built a cottage nearby in 1797 for seasonal lodgers, Sutton quickly built a new inn on the site of the bathing house which he called the South Port Hotel, moving to live there the following season. The locals thought him mad and referred to the building as the ''Duke's Folly'', but Sutton arranged transport links from the canal that ran through
Scarisbrick Scarisbrick () is a village and civil parishes in England, civil parish in West Lancashire, England. The A570 road, A570, the main road between Ormskirk and Southport, runs through Scarisbrick, and much of the village lies along it. As a result ...
, four miles from the hotel, and trade was remarkably good. The hotel survived until 1854, when it was demolished to make way for traffic at the end of Lord Street, but its presence and the impact of its founder are marked by a plaque in the vicinity, by the name of one street at the intersection, namely Duke Street, and by a hotel on Duke Street which bears the legacy name of Dukes Folly Hotel.


19th century

Southport grew quickly in the 19th century as it gained a reputation for being a more refined seaside resort than its neighbour-up-the-coast
Blackpool Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, between the Ribble and Wyre rivers, and is ...
. In fact Southport had a head start compared to all the other places on the Lancashire coast because it had easy access to the canal system. Other seaside bathing areas could not really get going until the railways were built some years later. The Leeds and Liverpool canal brought people from Liverpool, Manchester, Bolton and Wigan amongst others. By 1820 Southport had over 20,000 visitors per year. Southport Pier is referred to as the first true "pleasure pier", being one of the earliest pier structures to be erected using iron. A design from James Brunlees was approved at a cost of £8,700 and on 4 August 1859 a large crowd witnessed the driving home of the first support pile. The opening of the pier was celebrated on 2 August 1860. On the night of 9 December 1886, the worst lifeboat disaster in the history of the UK occurred off the shores of Southport. A cargo ship called the ''Mexico'' was on its way to South America when it found itself in difficulty. Lifeboats from
Lytham Lytham St Annes () is a seaside town in the Borough of Fylde in Lancashire, England. It is on the Fylde coast, directly south of Blackpool on the Ribble Estuary. The population at the 2011 census was 42,954. The town is almost contiguous with B ...
,
St. Annes Lytham St Annes () is a seaside town in the Borough of Fylde in Lancashire, England. It is on the Fylde coast, directly south of Blackpool on the Ribble Estuary. The population at the 2011 census was 42,954. The town is almost contiguous with B ...
and Southport set off to try to rescue those aboard the vessel. The crews battled against storm-force winds as they rowed towards the casualty. The entire crew from the St. Anne's boat was lost and all but two of the Southport crew were too. In all, 28 lifeboatmen lost their lives on that night, leaving many widows and fatherless children. A memorial was erected in Duke Street Cemetery and there is a permanent display in the museum at The Atkinson on Lord Street. There is also a memorial inside the Lifeboat house, now operated by the
Southport Offshore Rescue Trust Southport Offshore Rescue Trust (SORT) is the registered charity that runs the Southport Independent Lifeboat, a marine and land based search and rescue organisation on the Sefton coastline. Independent of the RNLI, the Trust relies on donat ...
. ''Mexico'' was just one of many shipwrecks in the Southport area.


20th century

From 1894 to 1912 Birkdale and the adjoining village of Ainsdale were separate from Southport and administered by Birkdale
Urban District Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * Urban district (Great Britain and Ireland) (his ...
Council before becoming part of the
county borough County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent te ...
of Southport in 1912. This was a huge expansion of the town. In 1914, a very short romance story between a “2 park road Southport" private soldier and French lady took place in Valenciennes in north France during early
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
as described by Andrée Ducatez's ''Journal''. In 1925, the RNLI abandoned the station at Southport and left the town with no lifeboat. In the late 1980s, after a series of tragedies, local families from Southport started to raise funds and bought a new lifeboat for the town stationed at the old RNLI lifeboat house. The lifeboat, operated by the
Southport Offshore Rescue Trust Southport Offshore Rescue Trust (SORT) is the registered charity that runs the Southport Independent Lifeboat, a marine and land based search and rescue organisation on the Sefton coastline. Independent of the RNLI, the Trust relies on donat ...
, is completely
independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...
from the RNLI and receives no money from them. Instead it relies entirely on donations from the general public. On 21 March 1926,
Henry Segrave Sir Henry O'Neal de Hane Segrave (22 September 1896 – 13 June 1930) was an early British pioneer in land speed and water speed records. Segrave, who set three land and one water record, was the first person to hold both titles simultaneous ...
set the
land speed record The land speed record (or absolute land speed record) is the highest speed achieved by a person using a vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C ("Special Vehicles") flying start regul ...
in his 4-litre Sunbeam Tiger Ladybird on the sands at Southport at . This record lasted for just over a month, until broken by J.G. Parry-Thomas.


Governance

Politically, the constituency of Southport has historically been a key battleground between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats, but Labour has emerged as a serious contender in recent years.
John Pugh John David Pugh (born 28 June 1948, Liverpool) is a Liberal Democrat politician in the United Kingdom. He was the Member of Parliament for Southport from 2001 to 2017. He stood down at the 2017 snap election. In November 2017, he was elected ...
was the MP for Southport, holding the seat for 16 years until his retirement in the 2017 General election when the Conservatives took the seat and the Liberal Democrats' candidate Sue McGuire fell into third place. The incumbent Member of Parliament is
Damien Moore Damien Moore (born 26 April 1980) is a British Conservative Party politician. He is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Southport and a former Councillor on Preston City Council. He was elected in the 2017 general election with a majority of ...
who held a majority of 4,147 in
2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...
.


Lancashire

Southport is located within the historic county boundaries of
Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancas ...
, and was incorporated as a
municipal borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...
in 1866. It became a
county borough County borough is a term introduced in 1889 in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, to refer to a borough or a city independent of county council control, similar to the unitary authorities created since the 1990s. An equivalent te ...
independent of the
administrative county An administrative county was a first-level administrative division in England and Wales from 1888 to 1974, and in Ireland from 1899 until either 1973 (in Northern Ireland) or 2002 (in the Republic of Ireland). They are now abolished, although mos ...
of Lancashire in 1915, having reached the minimum 50,000 population (the 1911 census gave a figure of 51,643). The Birkdale Urban District, including the parishes of Birkdale and Ainsdale was added to Southport in 1912. The county borough had its headquarters at
Southport Town Hall Southport Town Hall is on the east side of Lord Street, Southport, Sefton, Merseyside, England. It was built in 1852–53 in Palladian style, and extended to the rear on three occasions later in the century. The town hall has a symmetrical ...
.


Merseyside

Under the 1971 Local Government White Paper, presented in February 1971, Southport would have lost its county borough status, becoming a
non-metropolitan district Non-metropolitan districts, or colloquially "shire districts", are a type of local government district in England. As created, they are sub-divisions of non-metropolitan counties (colloquially ''shire counties'') in a two-tier arrangement. Non- ...
within Lancashire. Rather than accept this fate and lose its separate education and social services departments, Southport Corporation lobbied for inclusion in the nearby planned
metropolitan county The metropolitan counties are a type of county-level administrative division of England. There are six metropolitan counties, which each cover large urban areas, with populations between 1 and 3 million. They were created in 1974 and are each di ...
of Merseyside, to join with
Bootle Bootle (pronounced ) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England, which had a population of 51,394 in 2011; the wider Parliamentary constituency had a population of 98,449. Historically part of Lancashire, Bootle's ...
and other units to form a district with the 250,000 required population. It was duly included in the
Metropolitan Borough of Sefton The Metropolitan Borough of Sefton is a metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England. It was formed on 1 April 1974, by the amalgamation of the county boroughs of Bootle and Southport, the municipal borough of Crosby, the urban districts of ...
. This decision has been regretted by some of the population. A recurring local political issue has been the cross-party movement campaigning for Southport to leave Sefton and form its own
unitary authority A unitary authority is a local authority responsible for all local government functions within its area or performing additional functions that elsewhere are usually performed by a higher level of sub-national government or the national governmen ...
, perhaps adjoined to the neighbouring
West Lancashire West Lancashire is a local government district with borough status in Lancashire, England. The council is based in Ormskirk, and the largest town in the borough is Skelmersdale. At the 2011 Census, the population of the borough was 110,68 ...
authority. Support for this has been seen amongst Liberal Democrat councillors, and also within the Southport
Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...
. A Southport born man Kevin Laroux Wood stood in the 1983 general election for the Southport Constituency. He was supported by a team of like minded people who raised the funds needed and formed the "Southport Back in Lancashire Party". Posters were distributed and articles published in the ''Visiter'' newspaper. Although he was not elected as MP, it put the issue firmly on the local agenda which continues to this day. In the same period in 1980, a
Private Member's Bill A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in wh ...
proposed restoring Southport to Lancashire, and renaming the residue of Sefton to the Metropolitan Borough of Bootle. The
Local Government Boundary Commission for England The Local Government Boundary Commission for England (LGBCE) is a parliamentary body established by statute to conduct boundary, electoral and structural reviews of local government areas in England. The LGBCE is independent of government and pol ...
conducted a review of the area in 1987, which attracted 10,000 messages, of which "70% were pro forma". In 1990 the LGBC made suggestions that Southport, Ainsdale and Birkdale should be made a district of Lancashire: the final recommendations in 1991 "concluded that public opinion was more evenly divided than initially thought", and also that eastward transport links with Lancashire were poor compared to those southward to the
Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
area.


Sefton

The government again directed the Local Government Commission for England to make a review in December 1996 (after it had finished the work on the creation of unitary authorities), commencing in January 1997. This review was constrained by the legal inability of the commission to recommend that the current Sefton-West Lancashire border be altered. In a MORI poll conducted at the behest of the LGCE, 65% of Southport residents supported the campaign, compared to 37% in the borough as a whole. Local MPs
Matthew Banks Matthew Gordon-Banks (born 21 June 1961) is a British former Conservative Party politician who was elected in 1992 as the Member of Parliament for Southport, but lost his seat in 1997. Gordon-Banks left the Conservative Party in 2004 to join t ...
and
Ronnie Fearn Ronald Cyril Fearn, Baron Fearn, (6 February 1931 – 24 January 2022) was a British Liberal Democrat politician. He was born and died in Southport. Early life Fearn was born in 1931 in Southport, the son of James (a master decorator) and Ma ...
(MPs for Southport at various times) supported making Southport a unitary authority, with Banks wishing to see it tied to Lancashire ceremonially, but Fearn wishing to see it remain, as a separate borough, in
Merseyside Merseyside ( ) is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in North West England, with a population of 1.38 million. It encompasses both banks of the Mersey Estuary and comprises five metropolitan boroughs: Knowsley, St Helens, Sefton, Wir ...
. The commission noted that Southport would have a relatively low population for a unitary authority, even including Formby (89,300 or 114,700), and that it was worried about the viability of a south Sefton authority without Southport, and therefore recommended the status quo be kept. The commission suggested the use of
area committee Many large local government councils in the United Kingdom have a system of area committees or area boards, which involve local people and organisations in decisions affecting council spending within their area. They cover a geographical area suc ...
s for the various parts of the borough and also that Southport could become a
civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...
. Another request made in 2004 was turned down, the Electoral Commission must request such a review. In 2002, a local independent party calling themselves the Southport Party was established, with many members supporting a policy of "Southport out of Sefton." Three council seats were won in the 2002 local elections, including that of the leader of Sefton Council, Liberal Democrat Councillor, David Bamber. At the following election there were no gains and a drop in the number of votes for the party. At the all out election in 2004, one of their councillors stood down, whilst the other two lost their seats. To date, there have been no further moves to change Sefton's boundaries, but the Boundary Commission indicated in 2004 that a future review is possible.


Geography

The closest cities are
Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...
approximately to the north east and
Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
approximately to the south. Existing on the West Lancashire Coastal Plain, most of the town is only slightly above sea level and thus parts of Southport used to be susceptible to
flooding A flood is an overflow of water ( or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are an area of study of the discipline hydrolog ...
. This would be most frequently noticed on Southport's Marine Drive, which was regularly closed due to flooding from
high tide Tides are the rise and fall of sea levels caused by the combined effects of the gravitational forces exerted by the Moon (and to a much lesser extent, the Sun) and are also caused by the Earth and Moon orbiting one another. Tide tables c ...
s. But in February 1997, new
sea defences The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...
started being constructed and in 2002 the whole project was completed. Southport has a maritime climate like most of the UK. Due to its position by the coast, Southport rarely sees substantial
snowfall Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...
and temperatures rarely fall below so it does not have frequent
frost Frost is a thin layer of ice on a solid surface, which forms from water vapor in an above-freezing atmosphere coming in contact with a solid surface whose temperature is below freezing, and resulting in a phase change from water vapor (a g ...
s. Southport generally has moderate precipitation, unlike the rest of western UK. The coast-to-coast Trans Pennine Trail (TPT) stretches the breadth of northern England – 215 miles (345 km) from Southport in the west to Hornsea in the east. The TPT is an exciting route for walkers, cyclists and horse riders linking the North and Irish seas and passing through the Pennines. It runs alongside rivers and canals and through some of the most historic towns and cities in the North of England. One can follow historic railways and canals and follow in the footsteps of packhorse traders on ancient salt routes.


Demography

The
United Kingdom Census 2001 A nationwide census, known as Census 2001, was conducted in the United Kingdom on Sunday, 29 April 2001. This was the 20th UK census and recorded a resident population of 58,789,194. The 2001 UK census was organised by the Office for Nationa ...
showed a total resident population for Southport of 90,336. Approximately 19,000 were aged 16 or under, 60,000 were aged 16–74, and 10,000 aged 75 and over. According to the 2001 census, 96% of Southport's population claim they have been born in the UK. Historically the population of Southport began to rapidly increase during the Industrial Revolution and the Victorian era. From then the population has been stable with minor decline in some areas of the town. People from Southport are known as "Sandgrounders", although there is debate about what is sufficient to qualify for that name.


Economy


Tourism

As a seaside town Southport has a long history of leisure and recreation and is still heavily dependent on tourism. The town went into decline when cheap air travel arrived in the 1960s and people chose to holiday abroad due to competitive prices and more reliable weather. However, the town kept afloat with people coming to spend the day by the seaside on bank holidays and weekends. The town has diversified with annual events, shopping and conferences. In 2011, Southport was named the fourteenth-most popular coastal resort in the country, benefiting from a 23% rise in money spent in the resort in that year. Part of the resort's progress is a result of the money invested in Southport over recent years.


Annual events

*
Southport Airshow Southport Air Show is an annual event held in Southport, Merseyside, England, since 1991. The first show was the brainchild of Tourism & Attractions employee, Mark Brammar. The show takes place over two days, at the end of Summer, and attracts ...
, the north west's biggest airshow, held in the summer * Southport Flower Show, the UK's largest independent flower show *
British Musical Fireworks Championships British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
* Woodvale Rally * Scooter Rally at
Pontins Southport Pontins is a British company operating holiday parks in the UK, founded in 1946 by Fred Pontin. Since 2011, it has been owned by Britannia Hotels. Pontins specialises in offering half-board and self-catering holidays featuring entertainment ...
*
Southport International Jazz Festival Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish ...
*
Southport Food and Drink Festival Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish ...
*
Southport Weekender Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish ...
*
Southport Rocks Southport is a seaside town in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton in Merseyside, England. At the 2001 census, it had a population of 90,336, making it the eleventh most populous settlement in North West England. Southport lies on the Irish ...
*
Southport 24 Hour Race The West Lancashire Yacht Club 24 Hour Race, has always been more commonly known as the Southport 24 Hour Race. The race is a national endurance race for classic sailing dinghies (Enterprise, GP14, Lark and Firefly) held in Southport, Mersey ...
, A sailing race that sees boats racing continuously for 24 hours even in extreme weather conditions. Entries have included Olympic gold medallists and teams from the
Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. ...
and France, and even the US and Australia. It is regarded as one of the hardest endurance races in the world. *
Tidy Boys IDEAL Weekender Tidy may refer to: *HTML Tidy, a computer program for fixing HTML errors *PerlTidy, a computer program for nicely reformatting Perl source code * ''Tidy'' (album), a 1996 album by Kinnie Starr *Tidy (surname) *TIDY, software for managing property ...


Business

While Southport has a dependence on tourism the town is also home to many businesses both in the private and public sector. Some manufacturing facilities were situated in the town, most notably
Chewits Chewits is the brand name of a cuboid-shaped, soft chewy sweets manufactured by Cloetta. History The sweets were first produced in 1963 as "Chewzits", manufactured by J Arthur Holland in Southport. In 1965, Hollands were acquired by James Goldsm ...
were manufactured in the town from 1965 to 2006, only closing to move production to
Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...
. Manufacturing has diminished in the last few decades and only a few sites are still in production in the town today. Lord Street is the main shopping street of Southport. It is one of the great shopping streets of Northern England and is said to be the inspiration for the tree-lined boulevards of Paris. In the 2000s Chapel Street was pedestrianised and is home to some of the UK's most famous brands. Southport also has a newly renovated indoor market situated on King Street and Market Street as well as a farmers' market held on the last Thursday of every month on Chapel Street. Southport has a long history of hosting conferences dating back to at least the 1880s when the Royal Institution met in the town. The former Southport Theatre & Convention Centre closed in 2020 and a planning permission application for a new Marine Lake Events Centre was submitted at the end of June 2022. It has hosted the United Kingdom Independence Party national conference as well as the regional Labour Party conference. The Liberal Democrats held their federal Spring conference here in March 2018.


England's Golf Coast

Southport is often called ''England's Golfing Capital'' because it is at the centre of England's Golf Coast and has the UK's highest concentration of championship links courses. Royal Birkdale Golf Club is one of the clubs in the Open Championship rotation for both men and women. The club has hosted the men's championship ten times since 1954, most recently in July 2017, and has hosted the women's tournament five times, including 2010. Southport's other courses include the 9-hole Southport Old Links in High Park, the Hesketh Golf Club, Hillside Golf Club and
Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club is an 18-hole championship golf course in North West England, situated near the Merseyside (formerly Lancashire) towns of Southport and Ainsdale, north of Liverpool. The course is near the coast of the Irish Sea, ...
.


Attractions

One of Southport's main attractions for many years was Pleasureland, a fairground established in 1912. It was owned by the
Thompson Family This is a family tree of the Thomson family. The Thomsons are Canada's wealthiest family, includes some of Canada's wealthiest individuals, and hold the titles Barons of Fleet in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. {{Tree chart/end List of ...
, and was closed in September 2006. A replacement fairground on the same site, provisionally named
New Pleasureland Southport Pleasureland is an amusement park located in Southport, Merseyside, England. The park originally operated from 1913 to 2006 as Pleasureland Theme Park under the ownership of the Blackpool Pleasure Beach company. In 2007, the park re-o ...
, opened in July 2007. An earlier permanent funfair, Peter Pan's Playground, closed in the 1980s and is now the site of part of the Ocean Plaza shopping development. A former landmark of Pleasureland was the Looping Star roller coaster, which was on site from 1985 to 1987. It featured in the video for the pop single ''Wonderful Life'', by Liverpool band
Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...
, which was also shot at other parts of the Sefton and North West coastline. On 24 April 2009 a serious fire occurred at the oldest attraction within New Pleasureland. Called ''The River Caves'', it was completely destroyed in this
arson Arson is the crime of willfully and deliberately setting fire to or charring property. Although the act of arson typically involves buildings, the term can also refer to the intentional burning of other things, such as motor vehicles, wate ...
attack, and a 16-year-old boy was arrested in connection with the fire.
Southport Model Railway Village Southport Model Railway Village is a tourist attraction located in Southport, England. It is a model village with a focus on trains and railways. History In 1995, Southport residents Ray and Jean Jones were granted permission by Sefton MBC t ...
is situated in Kings Gardens opposite the Royal Clifton Hotel and near the Marine Lake Bridge. The Model Railway Village opened in May 1996 and was created by Ray and Jean Jones. The Jones family still run the attraction today. The Model Railway Village season extends from April to the end of October. The season has extended into weekend openings during November, February and March, weather permitting. An earlier model village, the Land of the Little People, was demolished in the late 1980s to make way for the aborted Winter Gardens/SIBEC shopping development. Its site is now occupied by a Morrison's supermarket. Other major attractions in Southport include Splash World, an indoor
water park A water park (or waterpark, water world) is an amusement park that features water play areas such as swimming pools, water slides, splash pads, water playgrounds, and lazy rivers, as well as areas for floating, bathing, swimming, and other bare ...
situated on the back of the Dunes swimming pool which opened in June 2007.
Meols Hall Meols Hall is a historical manor house in Churchtown, Merseyside, dating from the 12th century with a 16th-century tithe barn restored for wedding receptions and ceremonies. History Meols Hall dates back to the late 12th century when the mano ...
, a manor house, home of the Hesketh family, is open to the public for a limited period each year. Set in its own expansive grounds, it boasts a history back to the Domesday Book and is full of interesting pictures and furniture. Southport also boasts the only
lawnmower A lawn mower (also known as a mower, grass cutter or lawnmower) is a device utilizing one or more revolving blades (or a reel) to cut a grass surface to an even height. The height of the cut grass may be fixed by the design of the mower, but g ...
museum in the UK. The
British Lawnmower Museum The British Lawnmower Museum is a museum dedicated to the history of the lawnmowers in Southport, Merseyside, northern England. The museum has over 300 restored exhibits of garden machinery from over the last 200 years, as well as a collection ...
is based in Shakespeare Street, a short distance outside the town centre. The Power Station, that was the base of the town's former radio station
Dune FM Dune FM was an Independent Local Radio station serving Southport, Sefton and surrounding areas between 1997 and 2012. Origins Dune FM originally broadcast two RSL temporary licences in 1993. The first RSL was broadcast from makeshift stud ...
, on the edge of Victoria Park, which itself is home to the Southport Flower Show.


Architecture

''See also
Listed buildings in Southport Southport is a seaside town in Sefton, Merseyside, England. It contains 175 buildings that are recorded in the National Heritage List for England as designated listed buildings. Of these, three are listed at Grade II*, the middle of ...
'' Southport has many unique buildings and features, many of which are privately owned Victorian villas and houses and the town centre shops are of architectural interest. The most notable buildings, gardens and places of architectural interest are: * Lakeside Miniature Railway *
Southport Pier Southport Pier is a pleasure pier in Southport, Merseyside, England. Opened in August 1860, it is the oldest iron pier in the country. Its length of makes it the second-longest in Great Britain, after Southend Pier. Although at one time spa ...
, formerly home of the
Southport Pier Tramway Southport Pier is a pleasure pier in Southport, Merseyside, England. Opened in August 1860, it is the oldest iron pier in the country. Its length of makes it the second-longest in Great Britain, after Southend Pier. Although at one time span ...
*
Marine Way Bridge The Marine Way Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge in Southport, England. The bridge was designed by Babtie (now part of Jacobs) with architect Nicol Russell Studios, and was built by Balfour Beatty to replace a cast iron bridge that closed in 1 ...
* Lord Street *
Southport Model Railway Village Southport Model Railway Village is a tourist attraction located in Southport, England. It is a model village with a focus on trains and railways. History In 1995, Southport residents Ray and Jean Jones were granted permission by Sefton MBC t ...
* Southport Town Gardens * Kings Gardens * Wellington Terrace, Lord Street * Promenade Hospital, renovated as luxury flats and renamed Marine Gate Mansions * Ribble Building, built as a railway station then adapted for use as a bus station, part of the site was redeveloped as a supermarket and the remainder converted to a hotel and 24hr gym * Scarisbrick Hotel *
Smedley Hydro Smedley Hydro is a former Victorian hydropathic spa and hotel in Birkdale, Southport, Merseyside, England. The building has been used as a college, hydropathic spa, and hotel and is currently the home of the General Register Office for England ...
(A former Victorian Hydropathic Health Spa, now under ownership of the Home Office for the UK's Birth, Deaths and Marriages) * Botanic Gardens * Hesketh Park * Park Crescent, Hesketh Park No.29 has one of the oldest existing residential garages in the UK dating from about 1899, although both house and garage have been converted to flats. * Rosefield Hall on Hesketh Road, built 1908, former home of Maurice de Forest and used as a hospital during World War II * Kew Gardens (Southport District General Hospital now occupies most of the site) *
Meols Hall Meols Hall is a historical manor house in Churchtown, Merseyside, dating from the 12th century with a 16th-century tithe barn restored for wedding receptions and ceremonies. History Meols Hall dates back to the late 12th century when the mano ...
* Round House *
Wayfarers Arcade Wayfarers Arcade (previously the Leyland Arcade and Burton Arcade) is a Grade II listed structure located in the seaside town of Southport, Merseyside on the famous boulevard of Lord Street in the town centre. The arcade is a near untouched buil ...
*
The Atkinson The Atkinson is a building on the east side of Lord Street extending round the corner into Eastbank Street, Southport, Sefton, Merseyside, England. The building is a combination of two former buildings, the original Atkinson Art Gallery and ...
* Southport Town Hall * St Cuthbert's Church * St George's United Reformed Church, Lord Street * Emmanuel Parish Church, Cambridge Road, which has an organ, installed in 1914, built by Harrisons of Durham * Holy Trinity Church, founded before 1898 *
Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previ ...
Statue – originally moved from the Town Hall Gardens to Nevill Street junction to the Promenade and again to the pedestrianised side of Nevill Street. Also of architectural interest, but not extant, are: * Cannon Cinema (Lord Street) (demolished and replaced with the Vincent Hotel that opened in 2008) * Kingsway Night Club (demolished in 2010 following an arson attack) * Open Air Baths (demolished 1990s, South Ocean Plaza complex now occupies the site) * Steamport Museum (housed inside the former 27C locomotive shed, demolished in late 2000) site now occupied by Central 12 shopping complex. *
Palace Hotel, Birkdale The Birkdale Palace Hotel was a luxury hotel located in the Lancashire coastal resort of Birkdale, Southport, on the north-west coast of England. The building towered over the surrounding area for over a hundred years before being demolished in ...
(a large Victorian hotel, demolished in 1969) *
Southport General Infirmary Southport General Infirmary was a Victorian hospital that was Southport's first major hospital. The first construction of the building started in October 1892, with the first patients being seen at the hospital in September 1895. History The firs ...
(demolished in 2008–09 with only a wing of the infirmary remaining as it is being used for mental health services)


Transport


Road

Southport is the second-largest town in Britain with no direct dual-carriageway link to the national motorway network (after Eastbourne: 2011 census). Due to its position by the coast, Southport is a
linear settlement A linear settlement is a (normally small to medium-sized) settlement or group of buildings that is formed in a long line. Many of these settlements are formed along a transport route, such as a road, river, or canal. Others form due to physical re ...
and as such can only be approached in a limited number of directions by road. The main roads entering Southport are: * A565 (from Preston to the northeast, from the A59 Liverpool – Preston – York) * A570 (from
Ormskirk Ormskirk is a market town in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England, north of Liverpool, northwest of St Helens, southeast of Southport and southwest of Preston. Ormskirk is known for its gingerbread. Geography and administ ...
and St Helens to the southeast) * A565 (from Liverpool and Formby to the south) The nearest motorway connections are: *''from the east'' – junction 3 of the M58 (on the A570, twelve miles) *''from the south'' – junction 7 of the M57 (on the A565, fourteen miles) *''from the north'' – junction 1 of the M65 / junction 29 of the M6 (on the A582/ A59, nineteen miles) An east-west bypass for the A570 at Ormskirk is planned to relieve congestion on Southport's main access route to the motorway network, although the effectiveness of the proposals are still under debate. Several areas within Southport town centre have recently undergone major road redevelopment; the largest scheme was the construction of the
Marine Way Bridge The Marine Way Bridge is a cable-stayed bridge in Southport, England. The bridge was designed by Babtie (now part of Jacobs) with architect Nicol Russell Studios, and was built by Balfour Beatty to replace a cast iron bridge that closed in 1 ...
(opened May 2004), which connects the Lord Street shopping district with the new seafront developments. The high structure is thought to have cost in the region of £5 million. Also one of the main shopping areas in the town, Chapel Street, has undergone a pedestrianisation scheme to be similar to parts of Liverpool city centre.


Bus

Due to the limited number of directions by road, many of the services operated in Southport are from one place south to one place north or east of Southport. The main operator is , that operates two (previously four) services to
Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...
, and two to
Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington ...
and Skelmersdale via
Ormskirk Ormskirk is a market town in the West Lancashire district of Lancashire, England, north of Liverpool, northwest of St Helens, southeast of Southport and southwest of Preston. Ormskirk is known for its gingerbread. Geography and administ ...
, Scarisbrick and Pinfold/Burscough. Arriva also operate three regular, local services, as well as a twice a day variation of service 46 (46B), six circular services around Formby, and used to operate one seasonal service (serving Pontins to the south of the town). There are three Park and Ride facilities - one of which is operated regularly, by Arriva, one by Cumfybus and one completely disused. Stagecoach Merseyside & South Lancashire (
Preston Preston is a place name, surname and given name that may refer to: Places England *Preston, Lancashire, an urban settlement **The City of Preston, Lancashire, a borough and non-metropolitan district which contains the settlement **County Boro ...
Depot) operates four services in Southport, the 2 (Preston - Southport), the X2 (Preston – Southport - Liverpool), the 347 (
Chorley Chorley is a town and the administrative centre of the wider Borough of Chorley in Lancashire, England, north of Wigan, south west of Blackburn, north west of Bolton, south of Preston and north west of Manchester. The town's wealth came ...
- Rufford - Southport), and the 315 (Ormskirk - Southport) Cumfybus operate three regular, local services and one dedicated Park and Ride route.


Rail

Southport railway station has a frequent service of trains to Liverpool, operated by
Merseyrail Merseyrail is a commuter rail network serving the Liverpool City Region and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. Merseyrail operates 66 railway stations across two lines – the Northern Line and Wirral Line, which are dedicated el ...
and a regular service to
Wigan Wigan ( ) is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, on the River Douglas. The town is midway between the two cities of Manchester, to the south-east, and Liverpool, to the south-west. Bolton lies to the north-east and Warrington ...
,
Bolton Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area in the 14th ...
, Manchester and
Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popul ...
. In addition, there are stations at , and on the Liverpool line, part of the
Merseyrail Merseyrail is a commuter rail network serving the Liverpool City Region and adjacent areas of Cheshire and Lancashire. Merseyrail operates 66 railway stations across two lines – the Northern Line and Wirral Line, which are dedicated el ...
network, and at on the Manchester line. The Liverpool line was originally built by the Liverpool, Crosby and Southport Railway in 1848, to a terminus at Eastbank Street. It was followed on 9 April 1855 by the Manchester and Southport Railway with a line to Manchester via Wigan, with stations at and . Formerly, Southport was also served by three further railway lines: * From 1882, the West Lancashire Railway operated from Southport Derby Road station (also known as Southport Central) to
Preston Fishergate Hill Preston Fishergate Hill was a railway station at the bottom of Fishergate Hill in Preston. It formed the northeastern terminus of the West Lancashire Railway which built a direct railway link between Southport and Preston. The station was al ...
. It had stations in Southport at Ash Street, , , and . This line was shut in 1964, and nowadays, Southport and Preston are linked only by the (largely dual-carriageway) A565 and A59 roads. * In 1884, another line from Southport to Liverpool was opened: the
Cheshire Lines Committee The Cheshire Lines Committee (CLC) was formed in the 1860s and became the second-largest joint railway in Great Britain. The committee, which was often styled the Cheshire Lines Railway, operated of track in the then counties of Lancashire a ...
's
Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway The Southport & Cheshire Lines Extension Railway was an early British railway company operating in the then county of Lancashire. It was constructed to link the Cheshire Lines Committee railway at Aintree to Southport. It operated from 1884 to 19 ...
extended the CLC's North Liverpool Extension Line from
Liverpool Central Liverpool Central railway station in Liverpool, England, forms a central hub of the Merseyrail network, being on both the Northern Line and the Wirral Line. The station is located underground on two levels, below the site of a former mainl ...
to Southport Lord Street. It had stations in Southport at and . * The West Lancashire Railway sponsored the Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railway to provide a connection to the CLC line, joining it at Altcar and Hillhouse. It had stations in Southport at Butts Lane and Kew Gardens. These lines ultimately proved uncompetitive, and the Southport services were withdrawn in 1952. In July 1897, both the West Lancashire and the Liverpool, Southport and Preston Junction Railways were absorbed into the
Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway The Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway (L&YR) was a major British railway company before the 1923 Grouping. It was incorporated in 1847 from an amalgamation of several existing railways. It was the third-largest railway system based in northern ...
(L&Y). The L&Y had a large terminus at Southport Chapel Street and could see no sense in operating two termini at very close proximity. In 1901, the L&Y completed a remodelling of the approach lines to Central to allow trains to divert onto the Manchester to Southport line and into Southport Chapel Street Station. Southport Central was closed to passengers and it became a goods depot eventually amalgamating with Chapel Street depot. It survived intact well into the 1970s. On
Southport Pier Southport Pier is a pleasure pier in Southport, Merseyside, England. Opened in August 1860, it is the oldest iron pier in the country. Its length of makes it the second-longest in Great Britain, after Southend Pier. Although at one time spa ...
can be found the now closed
Southport Pier Tramway Southport Pier is a pleasure pier in Southport, Merseyside, England. Opened in August 1860, it is the oldest iron pier in the country. Its length of makes it the second-longest in Great Britain, after Southend Pier. Although at one time span ...
which used to transport passengers from the Promenade to the pier head over on a gauge. This closed in 2016 because of the effect on the pier of the weight of the trams. The Lakeside Miniature Railway passes under the pier, carrying passengers along the western side of the marine lake. The line claims to be the oldest continuously running gauge railway in the world.


Education

There are several schools in the town. The all-girls
Greenbank High School Greenbank High School is an all-girls secondary academy school located in Hillside, Southport, Merseyside, England. School details Greenbank currently holds The NACE (National Able Children in Education) Challenge Award, Artsmark Gold, British ...
is situated next to the Royal Birkdale Golf Club, and is a certified Specialist Language school. Actress
Miranda Richardson Miranda Jane Richardson (born 3 March 1958) is an English actress. She made her film debut playing Ruth Ellis in '' Dance with a Stranger'' (1985) and went on to receive Academy Award nominations for '' Damage'' (1992) and ''Tom & Viv'' (1994). ...
was educated at the school. The male equivalent (also situated in Birkdale) is the all-boys
Birkdale High School Birkdale High School was a secondary school located in Kirklees, West Yorkshire, England. History The school's buildings were constructed in two distinct phases; the older building, comprising mainly the former Wheelwright Grammar School for ...
, which specialises in mathematics.
Meols Cop High School Meols Cop High School, often abbreviated to MCHS, is a mixed 11-16 comprehensive school located in Southport, Merseyside, England. The school was opened in 1941 and originally consisted of two separate single sex secondary modern schools. One h ...
is situated in the Blowick area of Southport and is one of the six schools in the country written about in
OfSTED The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted is responsible for inspecting a range of educational institutions, incl ...
's School Inspections handbook of 2012. Meols Cop High School has recently become one of the highest achieving schools in Sefton, with 96% of the students obtaining at least 5 GCSEs at A*-C grades. The school is oversubscribed and, in February 2016, underwent building work to expand for the increasing number of students. It is a
specialist school Specialist schools, also known as specialised schools or specialized schools, are schools which specialise in a certain area or field of curriculum. In some countries, for example New Zealand, the term is used exclusively for schools specialis ...
in sports. There are several other high schools in the town, including Stanley High School, which is a specialist sports school (whose former students include comedian Lee Mack and chef
Marcus Wareing Marcus Wareing (born 29 June 1970) is an English celebrity chef who is currently Chef-Owner of the one-Michelin-starred restaurant Marcus (formerly Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley) in Knightsbridge. Since 2014, Wareing has been a judge on '' Mast ...
), and Christ the King High School.


Independent schools

The town's last remaining independent preparatory school, Sunnymede School, which was in Westcliffe Road,
Birkdale Birkdale is an area of Southport, within the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, though historically in Lancashire, in the north-west of England. The area is located on the Irish Sea coast, approximately a mile away from the centre of ...
closed in 2010 due to a lack of pupils. In the past the town had more independent schools which included Tower Dene, which was situated on Cambridge Road. This school closed in 2002 due to a similar fate. One of the Victorian houses that housed the school has since been turned into apartments, the other is now a nursery. Kingswood College (originally St Wyburn's) is now housed outside Southport at Scarisbrick Hall, but it takes many pupils from the town. Brighthelmston School (girls) and University School (boys) are long closed.


Further education

The town has two
further education Further education (often abbreviated FE) in the United Kingdom and Ireland is education in addition to that received at secondary school, that is distinct from the higher education (HE) offered in universities and other academic institutions. It ...
colleges:
Southport College Southport College (previously known as Southport Technical College) is a further education college located in Southport, Merseyside, England. Southport College merged with King George V College in January 2018. The combined colleges maintain th ...
, situated near to the town centre, and
King George V College King George V Sixth Form College (KGV) is a sixth form college in Southport, Merseyside, England. It provides A-level and BTEC education, and between 2009 and 2012 offered the International Baccalaureate Diploma. It was previously a grammar s ...
(KGV), located on Scarisbrick New Road in the
Blowick Blowick is a suburb on the east side of the town of Southport, Merseyside, England. History and etymology Blowick is part of the ancient parish of North Meols and was formerly a detached settlement, on the northern fringe of what is now Southpo ...
area of the town. Courses at Southport College include Diplomas,
NVQ National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) are practical work-based awards in England, Wales and Northern Ireland that are achieved through assessment and training. The regulatory framework supporting NVQs was withdrawn in 2015 and replaced by the ...
s, BTECs and
Access course The Access to Higher Education (HE) Diploma is a U.K. qualification which prepares students — usually 19+ — for study as an undergraduate at university. The diploma is designed for people who would like to study in higher education but who ...
s. In addition, Southport College offers some higher education courses in conjunction with the
University of Central Lancashire , mottoeng = "From the Earth to the Sun" , established = as Institution for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledgere-established 1992 (University status granted) , type = Public , chancellor ...
, Edge Hill University and
Liverpool John Moores University Liverpool John Moores University (abbreviated LJMU) is a public university, public research university in the city of Liverpool, England. The university can trace its origins to the Liverpool Mechanics' School of Arts, established in 1823. This lat ...
.
King George V College King George V Sixth Form College (KGV) is a sixth form college in Southport, Merseyside, England. It provides A-level and BTEC education, and between 2009 and 2012 offered the International Baccalaureate Diploma. It was previously a grammar s ...
offers both
A-Level The A-Level (Advanced Level) is a subject-based qualification conferred as part of the General Certificate of Education, as well as a school leaving qualification offered by the educational bodies in the United Kingdom and the educational au ...
and
Business And Technology Education Council The Business and Technology Education Council (BTEC) is a provider of secondary school leaving qualifications and further education qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Whilst the T in BTEC previously stood for Technical, acco ...
(BTEC). It originally opened as King George V Sixth Form College in 1979, and replaced the former King George V Grammar School for Boys, which occupied the same site from 1926 until its demolition in stages during the 1980s as the college was fully opened. In 2013, the college was the best performing state-funded college in an 18-mile radius of KGV. However, by 2015 Ofsted reported that it 'Requires improvement'. In 2016, Ofsted again rated it poorly, and a government report suggesting merging it with nearby Southport College. In the wake of the report, the college's principal left. The number of pupils at the college had plummeted from 1,530 in 2012 to just 652 in 2016. The college has somewhat recovered since then, with more positive results and a higher intake.


Media


Newspapers

The town's media consists of two rival newspaper groups, and two radio stations. The independently owned ''Champion'' newspaper is a free weekly paper, while ''The Mid-week Visiter'' and ''The Southport Visiter'' (part of Reach plc's ''Sefton & West Lancs Media Mix'' titles) are free and paid-for newspapers respectively. The town also falls within the circulation areas of three regional hard copy newspapers; ''The
Liverpool Echo The ''Liverpool Echo'' is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales – a subsidiary company of Reach plc and is based in St Paul's Square, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Sunday, and is Liverp ...
'', ''The
Liverpool Daily Post The ''Liverpool Post'' was a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror in Liverpool, Merseyside, England. The newspaper and its website ceased publication on 19 December 2013. Until 13 January 2012 it was a daily morning newspaper, with the tit ...
'' and ''The Lancashire Evening Post''. Southport is also covered by several local and regional magazines, like ''
Lancashire Life ''Lancashire Life'' is a British monthly regional magazine, first published in 1947, devoted to the English county palatine of Lancashire. The magazine is part of Archant Life Ltd. It covers lifestyle topics including motoring, property, food, a ...
''. The local Ranger Service, which is part of Sefton MBC, runs a quarterly free magazine called ''Coastlines''. Old Southport newspapers now out of print are as follows: ''Independent'' 1861–1920s; ''Liverpool & Southport News'' 1861–1872; ''Southport News'' (West Lancs) 1881–1885; ''Southport Standard'' 1885–1899; ''Southport Guardian'' 1882–1953; – "Published from" date only ''Southport Journal'' 1904–1932; ''Southport Star''; and ''Southport Advertiser''. The area also has many online media sites, including the UK's first
online newspaper An online newspaper (or electronic news or electronic news publication) is the online version of a newspaper, either as a stand-alone publication or as the online version of a printed periodical. Going online created more opportunities for newsp ...
, the Southport Reporter, as well as Internet forums and blog sites.


Broadcasting

The town's commercial radio station
Dune FM Dune FM was an Independent Local Radio station serving Southport, Sefton and surrounding areas between 1997 and 2012. Origins Dune FM originally broadcast two RSL temporary licences in 1993. The first RSL was broadcast from makeshift stud ...
closed during August 2012. Coast 107.9 was since launched and continued to broadcast online. Southport is covered by several local and regional radio stations, including
Sandgrounder Radio Sandgrounder Radio is an Independent Local Radio Station serving the North West Coast of England covering Southport, the Liverpool City Region, the Fylde Coast, and West Lancashire. The station broadcasts on DAB and Online. The station started ...
Radio City 96.7, Radio City Talk, 97.4 Rock FM, Greatest Hits Liverpool,
Greatest Hits Lancashire Greatest Hits Radio (Lancashire) is an Independent Local Radio station based in Manchester, England, owned and operated by Bauer as part of the Greatest Hits Radio network. It broadcasts to Lancashire and North West England. As of June 2022, t ...
and
BBC Radio Merseyside BBC Radio Merseyside is the BBC's local radio station serving Merseyside. It broadcasts on FM, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds, from studios on Hanover Street in Liverpool. According to RAJAR, the station has a weekly audience of 203,000 ...
. Mighty Radio is Southport’s only local community FM radio station. Established in 2012 after the towns former station closed, local presenters set up a new station online. Mighty Radio was given a trial RSL in 2012. December 2018, OFCOM awarded Mighty Radio with their FM license. Mighty have thrived within their community. Showcasing local talent through their presenters, they provide the town with local up to date news from Radio News Hub hourly from 0700-1900 7 days a week with local headlines ‘as and when’ they come in. Mighty Radio are renowned for and are committed to supporting local and national charities. Mighty Radio may be found on 107.9 fm and online at www.mightyradio.co.uk Southport is situated within the television regions of BBC North West and ITV's
Granada Television ITV Granada, formerly known as Granada Television, is the ITV franchisee for the North West of England and Isle of Man. From 1956 to 1968 it broadcast to both the north west and Yorkshire but only on weekdays as ABC Weekend Television was its ...
.


Café Royal Books

Based in Southport and established in 2005 by Craig Atkinson.
Café Royal Books Café Royal Books is an independent publisher Coco-nut Dancers: An interview with Craig Atkinson of Café Royal Books">ic">Brittania [sic/nowiki> Coco-nut Dancers: An interview with Craig Atkinson of Café Royal Books, The Photographers' Gallery. ...
is an award winning publisher of documentary photography, producing weekl
publications
and creating a print archive of cultural, community, street & social change from Britain, Ireland & beyond.


Sports


Football

Southport is home to Southport F.C. who have played at the Haig Avenue,
Blowick Blowick is a suburb on the east side of the town of Southport, Merseyside, England. History and etymology Blowick is part of the ancient parish of North Meols and was formerly a detached settlement, on the northern fringe of what is now Southpo ...
ground since 1905. The club entered
The Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional association football, football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in Association football around the wor ...
in 1921 and became a founder member of the Third Division North. In 1978 the club was voted out of the Football League following three consecutive 23rd (out of 24) placed finishes, and was replaced by
Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...
. Southport were the last club to leave the Football League through the re-election process. Automatic relegation from the Fourth Division was introduced in 1986–1987. They are in the
National League North The National League North, formerly Conference North, is a division of the National League in England, immediately below the National League division. Along with the National League South, it is at the second level of the National League Syst ...
, the sixth tier of English football. They were previously in the National League after winning the Conference North in 2009–2010 campaign.


Rugby

Southport is also home to a rugby union club,
Southport Rugby Football Club Southport Rugby Football Club is a rugby union club based in Southport, Merseyside, now playing their home matches at Waterloo Road in Hillside. The club participates in North 2 West. History Southport Football Club was founded on 29 Novembe ...
, who play their home matches at Waterloo Road in Hillside. Southport RFC's first XV currently plays in
North 2 West North 2 West is a regional English rugby union league at the seventh tier of club rugby union for teams from Cheshire, Cumbria, Merseyside, Lancashire and Greater Manchester. The division was introduced for the 2019-20 season to form a new le ...
in the Rugby Football Union Northern Division, and the club fields many sides at all age levels, Senior: First XV, Second XV, Third XV, veterans, Ladies, U18 Colts; Junior: U13s to U17 Colts; Mini: U6s to U12s. Originally founded as, Southport Football Club, on 29 November 1872 and is one of the oldest rugby clubs in the world. The first president of the club was Samuel Swire, the
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of Southport. In line with the origins of the modern game, the club was originally composed of old public school boys, and was formed with the intention of ''improving the physical development of our young townsmen.'' The driving force behind the formation of the club was Dr George Coombe (later Sir
George Augustus Pilkington Sir George Augustus Pilkington (7 October 1848 – 28 January 1916) was an English doctor and Liberal politician. Pilkington was born at Upwell, Cambridgeshire, as George Augustus Coombe, the son of R. G. Coombe a surgeon. He was educated priva ...
) of Southport Infirmary. Notable former players include,
Samuel Perry Samuel Frederick Perry (29 June 1877 – 19 October 1954), was a Labour and Co-operative politician in the United Kingdom. He was the father of the British tennis and table tennis champion Fred Perry. Born in Stockport, Cheshire, Sam Perry bega ...
, England International,
Gordon Rimmer Gordon Rimmer (28 February 1925 – 2002) was an English rugby union player who played in the scrum-half position. Rimmer played club rugby with Southport RFC and Waterloo FC, represented Lancashire county, was capped 12 times for England, a ...
, former England International, and British Lion and *
Bob Burdell Robert Burdell (1 February 1939 – 15 May 2013) was an English rugby union and rugby league footballer. Born in Southport, Burdell began his career as a rugby union player with his hometown club Southport RFC before switching to rugby league i ...
,
Wigan Warriors The Wigan Warriors are a professional rugby league club in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in the Super League. Formed in 1872 as Wigan Football Club, Wigan was a founding member of the Rugby Football League, Northern Rugby ...
and Lancashire.


Golf

The town is probably best known for golf; the Royal Birkdale Golf Club situated in the dunes to the south of the town is one of the venues on
The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later t ...
rotation and has hosted two
Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named af ...
s. Nearby
Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club Southport and Ainsdale Golf Club is an 18-hole championship golf course in North West England, situated near the Merseyside (formerly Lancashire) towns of Southport and Ainsdale, north of Liverpool. The course is near the coast of the Irish Sea, ...
is also a two time Ryder Cup venue and both Hillside Golf Club and
Hesketh Golf Club Hesketh may refer to: People * Baron Hesketh: the various barons or lords Hesketh, who lived at Easton Neston in Northamptonshire, England ** Lord Hesketh: the Conservative Party politician, formally titled Alexander Fermor-Hesketh, 3rd Baron Hesk ...
host many major events as well as being final open qualifying courses. Many smaller links courses also surround the town.


Kite surfing

Southport's location by the coast also lends itself to some more specialised sporting activities – Ainsdale Beach, south of the town, is popular for kite sports, including kite-surfing.


Speed record

In 1925,
Henry Segrave Sir Henry O'Neal de Hane Segrave (22 September 1896 – 13 June 1930) was an early British pioneer in land speed and water speed records. Segrave, who set three land and one water record, was the first person to hold both titles simultaneous ...
set a world
land speed record The land speed record (or absolute land speed record) is the highest speed achieved by a person using a vehicle on land. There is no single body for validation and regulation; in practice the Category C ("Special Vehicles") flying start regul ...
of on the beach, driving a Sunbeam Tiger. His association is commemorated by the name of a public house on Lord Street.


Water

Marine Lake lies nestled between the town centre and the sea and is used for a variety of water-sports including water-skiing, sailing and rowing. The lake is home to the
West Lancashire Yacht Club The West Lancashire Yacht Club (WLYC) is a yacht club in Merseyside, England, founded in 1894. In 1999 the club was awarded the status of Volvo/RYA Champion Club, recognising the standard of training and performance of its members in sailing comp ...
and Southport Sailing Club, both of which organise
dinghy A dinghy is a type of small boat, often carried or towed by a larger vessel for use as a tender. Utility dinghies are usually rowboats or have an outboard motor. Some are rigged for sailing but they differ from sailing dinghies, whic ...
racing. The annual
Southport 24 Hour Race The West Lancashire Yacht Club 24 Hour Race, has always been more commonly known as the Southport 24 Hour Race. The race is a national endurance race for classic sailing dinghies (Enterprise, GP14, Lark and Firefly) held in Southport, Mersey ...
, organised by the West Lancashire Yacht Club, is an endurance race of national standing, with an average turnout of 60 to 80 boats. In 2006, the event marked its 40th anniversary.


Cycling

The flat and scenic route alongside the beach is very popular with cyclists, and is the start of the Trans Pennine Trail, a
cycle route Cycling infrastructure is all infrastructure cyclists are allowed to use. Bikeways include bike paths, bike lanes, cycle tracks, rail trails and, where permitted, sidewalks. Roads used by motorists are also cycling infrastructure, except w ...
running across the north of the country to
Selby Selby is a market town and civil parish in the Selby District of North Yorkshire, England, south of York on the River Ouse, with a population at the 2011 census of 14,731. The town was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire until ...
in North Yorkshire, through
Hull Hull may refer to: Structures * Chassis, of an armored fighting vehicle * Fuselage, of an aircraft * Hull (botany), the outer covering of seeds * Hull (watercraft), the body or frame of a ship * Submarine hull Mathematics * Affine hull, in affi ...
and on to
Hornsea Hornsea is a seaside town and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The settlement dates to at least the early medieval period. The town was expanded in the Victorian era with the coming of the Hull and Hornsea Railway in 18 ...
on the east coast. In June 2008, Cycling England announced Southport as one of the 11 new cycling towns. These 11 towns shared £47 million from the government to be spent solely on cycling schemes in the towns. Southport's Cycling Towns programme aims to encourage tourism and leisure cycling, create regeneration opportunities and significantly increase cycling to school. There are now many cycle lanes in Southport and more are planned, to encourage cycling in the town.


Speedway Racing

An article in the Northern Daily Telegraph for 22 September 1929 reports that a proposed meeting at Kew Speedway had been halted due to the intervention of the Auto Cycle Union. (ACU) The proprietor of the venture was Mr Farrar. It is not known if the track was amended and if any events took place.


Notable people

*
Sophie Abelson Sophie Abelson is an English actress. She is known for portraying the role of Cherry Clay in the BBC soap opera '' Doctors'' from 2009 to 2012. For her role as Cherry, she received a nomination for the British Soap Award for Best Newcomer. Lif ...
, actress *
Harold Ackroyd Harold Ackroyd, (18 July 1877 – 11 August 1917) was a British physician, scientific researcher, army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and ...
VC MC, recipient of the
Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...
in
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
* Jean Alexander, ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...
'' and '' Last of the Summer Wine'' actress *
Marc Almond Peter Mark Sinclair "Marc" Almond, (born 9 July 1957) is an English singer. Almond first began performing and recording in the synthpop/ new wave duo Soft Cell where he became known for his distinctive soulful voice and androgynous image. ...
OBE, lead singer of
Soft Cell Soft Cell are an English synthpop duo who came to prominence in the early 1980s. The duo consists of vocalist Marc Almond and instrumentalist David Ball. The band are primarily known for their 1981 hit version of " Tainted Love" and their pl ...
* Michael Arlen, author and playwright * Robin Askwith, actor *
Matthew Baylis Matthew Baylis (born 1971), also known as Matt Baylis and M. H. Baylis, is a British novelist, screenwriter and journalist. Early life Baylis was born in Nottingham. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' Boys' School, Crosby, and Trinity Colle ...
, novelist, journalist and ex- ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
'' storyliner *
Jake Bidwell Jake Brian Bidwell (born 21 March 1993) is an English professional footballer who plays as a left back for Coventry City. He began his career in the academy at Premier League side Everton and was capped by England at age-group level. Club car ...
, footballer * Brian Birch, footballer * Gavin Blyth, journalist and ex-''
Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, ...
'' producer *
Café Royal Books Café Royal Books is an independent publisher Coco-nut Dancers: An interview with Craig Atkinson of Café Royal Books">ic">Brittania ic/nowiki> Coco-nut Dancers: An interview with Craig Atkinson of Café Royal Books, The Photographers' Gallery. ...
, publishing house founded by Craig Atkinson * Dora Bryan OBE, actress * Jon Burton, founder of Traveller's Tales * Peter Clarke (footballer), Peter Clarke, footballer * Paul Comstive, footballer * Philip Connard, artist, member of the Royal Academy of Arts * [ enneth Cope, ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...
'', '' Randall and Hopkirk (Deceased)'' and '' Brookside'' actor * Richard Corbett, MEP *
Peter Cropper Peter Cropper (19 November 1945 – 29 May 2015) was a British violinist, leader of the Lindsay Quartet, and founding Artistic Director of Music in the Round, a charitable organisation he founded in the 1980s to promote chamber music concerts. B ...
, violinist *
John Culshaw John Royds Culshaw, OBE (28 May 192427 April 1980) was a pioneering English classical record producer for Decca Records. He produced a wide range of music, but is best known for masterminding the first studio recording of Wagner's ''Der Ring ...
, record producer *
Kenny Dalglish Sir Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish (born 4 March 1951) is a Scottish former football player and manager. During his career, he made 338 appearances for Celtic and 515 for Liverpool, playing as a forward, and earned a record 102 full caps for th ...
(Sir Kenneth Mathieson Dalglish MBE) footballer, football manager * Linda Davidson, ex- ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
'' actress *
Josh Earl Josh Earl (born 26 June 1981) is an Australian stand-up comedian, television and radio presenter, musician and formerly worked in a school library. He was the presenter of the comeback version of the ABC's musical quiz show '' Spicks and Spec ...
, footballer * Souad Faress actress * Lord Fearn, politician * Tommy Fleetwood, golfer * Paul Gardner, footballer * Four of the five members of the
Mercury Prize The Mercury Prize, formerly called the Mercury Music Prize, is an annual music prize awarded for the best album released in the United Kingdom by a British or Irish act. It was created by Jon Webster and Robert Chandler in association with the ...
winning band Gomez *
Alan Groves Alan Groves (24 October 1948 – 15 June 1978) was an English professional footballer. He played as a midfielder. Groves joined hometown club Southport from Blowick in December 1968 and went on to play for Chester, transferring for a £3,000 f ...
, footballer *
Fran Halsall Francesca Jean Halsall (born 12 April 1990) is a retired English competitive swimmer who has represented Great Britain at the Olympics, FINA world championships, and European championships, and England at the Commonwealth Games. She competed p ...
, swimmer * Ollie Halsall, guitarist *
Frank Hampson Frank Hampson (21 December 1918 – 8 July 1985) was a British illustrator. He is best known as the creator and artist of Dan Dare and other characters in the boys' comic, the '' Eagle'', to which he contributed from 1950 to 1961. Biog ...
, artist, creator of
Dan Dare Dan Dare is a British science fiction comic hero, created by illustrator Frank Hampson who also wrote the first stories. Dare appeared in the ''Eagle'' comic story ''Dan Dare, Pilot of the Future'' from 1950 to 1967 (and subsequently in repr ...
*
Alan Hansen Alan David Hansen (born 13 June 1955) is a Scottish former footballer and BBC television football pundit. He played as a central defender for Partick Thistle, for the successful Liverpool team of the late 1970s and 1980s, and for the Scotla ...
, footballer, television pundit *
Margaret Harker Margaret Florence Harker (17 January 1920 – 16 February 2013), was a British photographer and historian of photography. She was the UK's first woman professor of photography, founded the country's first photography degree course, and was the f ...
, photographer, historian of photography and the UK's first woman professor of photography * Tim Hetherington, British photojournalist and film-maker killed in Libya during the
2011 Libyan Civil War The First Libyan Civil War was an armed conflict in 2011 in the North African country of Libya that was fought between forces loyal to Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and rebel groups that were seeking to oust Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, his government. It ...
*
Martin Hodge Martin Hodge (born 4 February 1959 in Southport, Lancashire) is an English former professional footballer. He played as a goalkeeper for Plymouth Argyle, Everton, Sheffield Wednesday, Leicester City, Hartlepool United and Rochdale. His career ...
, footballer *
Anthony Holden Anthony Holden (born 22 May 1947) is an English writer, broadcaster and critic, particularly known as a biographer of artists including Shakespeare, Tchaikovsky, the essayist Leigh Hunt, the opera librettist Lorenzo Da Ponte and the actor Lau ...
, writer *
Jan Holden Valerie Jeanne Wilkinson (9 May 1931 – 11 October 2005) was an English actress known as Jan Holden, using her mother's maiden name as a stage name. In theatre she was known for her performances in light comedy and appeared in several telev ...
, actress * Tony Jordan, ex- ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
'' writer *
Michael Weston King Michael Weston King (born 11 November 1961) is an English singer and songwriter who formed the British country music duo My Darling Clementine and was formerly the leader of Alt country band The Good Sons. Life and career Early career (1970s ...
, musician *
Låpsley Holly Lapsley Fletcher (born 7 August 1996), known by the stage name Låpsley, is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer. Her debut album '' Long Way Home'' was released on 4 March 2016. Early life Låpsley was born in York. Her m ...
, musician *
Renny Lister Renny Lister (born 24 May 1934) is a British retired film and television actress. Personal life Lister was born on 24 May 1934 in Manchester. She married Eric Lister in 1953, the marriage later ended in divorce although she retained her first h ...
, actress * David Lonsdale, actor * Lee Mack, comedian * Ginger McCain, racehorse trainer * Neil McDermott, ex- ''
EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...
'' actor * David Mitchell, author * Eddie Mosscrop, footballer * Anna Passey, ''
Hollyoaks ''Hollyoaks'' is a British soap opera which began airing on Channel 4 on 23 October 1995. It was created by Phil Redmond, who had previously conceived the soap opera '' Brookside''. Since 2005, episodes have been aired on sister channel E4 a ...
'' actress * Wilfred Pickles, actor and broadcaster * Albert Pierrepoint, executioner (hangman) * Ryan Prescott, ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...
'' and ex- ''
Emmerdale ''Emmerdale'' (known as ''Emmerdale Farm'' until 1989) is a British soap opera that is broadcast on ITV1. The show is set in Emmerdale (known as Beckindale until 1994), a fictional village in the Yorkshire Dales. Created by Kevin Laffan, ...
'' and '' Doctors'' actor *
Keith Pring Keith David Pring (11 March 1943 – 25 January 2018) was a Welsh professional footballer and Wales international. As a winger, he began his career as an apprentice at Newport County and made his debut in 1961. He made 61 English Football Leagu ...
, footballer * Anthony Quayle, actor * Arthur Richardson, VC *
Miranda Richardson Miranda Jane Richardson (born 3 March 1958) is an English actress. She made her film debut playing Ruth Ellis in '' Dance with a Stranger'' (1985) and went on to receive Academy Award nominations for '' Damage'' (1992) and ''Tom & Viv'' (1994). ...
, actress *
Jackie Rimmer John Woolfall Rimmer (15 March 1910 – 1989) was an English professional footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, ...
, footballer * Jimmy Rimmer, footballer * Michael Rimmer, 800m athlete * Stuart Rimmer, footballer * William Rimmer, composer and conductor * Adele Roberts, DJ and reality star *
Jack Rodwell Jack Christian Rodwell (born 11 March 1991) is an English professional footballer who plays for Sydney FC as a centre-back or defensive midfielder. Rodwell joined Everton's academy at the age of seven, and made his debut in 2007. He spent five ...
, footballer *
Tony Rodwell Anthony Rodwell (born 26 August 1962) is an English former professional footballer. His preferred position was on the right wing. Prior to turning professional, Southport-born Rodwell played for his hometown club, Buxton, Runcorn, and Colne ...
, footballer *
Graham Rowe Graham Edward Rowe (born 28 August 1945 in Southport, Lancashire) is an English former professional footballer. He played as a defender. Rowe began his career just up the Lancashire coast at Ron Suart's Blackpool in 1963. He made his debut on ...
, footballer *
G. B. Samuelson George Berthold Samuelson (6 July 1889 – 17 April 1947) was a director and film producer. Born in Southport, Lancashire, Samuelson was the youngest son of Henschel and Bertha Samuelson, tobacconists originally from Prussia. By 1891, his mother ...
, pioneer of British cinema *
Alexei Sayle Alexei David Sayle (born 7 August 1952) is an English actor, author, stand-up comedian, television presenter and former recording artist. He was a leading figure in the British alternative comedy movement in the 1980s. He was voted the 18th gre ...
, stand-up comedian, actor, author and former recording artist *
Kenneth Siviter Kenneth Siviter (born 10 December 1953) is an English former cricketer. Siviter was born at Southport in December 1953. He was educated at Liverpool College, before going up to Keble College, Oxford. While studying at Oxford, he made his debut ...
, cricketer *
Lee Slattery Lee Andrew Slattery (born 3 August 1978) is an English professional golfer who plays on the European Tour. He has won twice on the tour, the 2011 Bankia Madrid Masters and the 2015 M2M Russian Open. Professional career Slattery turned professi ...
, golfer * Doris Speed MBE, ''
Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Orig ...
'' actress * Hope Squire, composer *
Adrian Scott Stokes Charles Adrian Scott Stokes (23 December 1854 – 30 November 1935) was an English landscape painter. Born in Southport, Lancashire, he became a cotton broker in Liverpool, where his artistic talent was noticed by John Herbert RA, who advised ...
, painter * Leonard Stokes, architect * A. J. P. Taylor, historian *
Shaun Teale Shaun Teale (born 10 March 1964 in Southport) is an English football manager and former professional footballer. He played as a defender from 1983 until 2004 and was notably part of the League Cup winning team of Aston Villa in 1994.He also ...
, footballer *
Brian Viner Brian Viner (born 25 October 1961, London) is an English journalist and author. Viner was born to an unmarried mother at the now demolished Royal Northern Hospital, London, and was adopted by a couple in Southport, Merseyside when a few weeks ol ...
, journalist and author *
Tony Waiters Anthony Keith Waiters (1 February 1937 – 5 November 2020) was an English footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He is better known for his coaching career in Canada. He managed the Vancouver Whitecaps to an NASL championship, and was in char ...
, footballer and coach of Canada's national team at the 1986 World Cup *
Marcus Wareing Marcus Wareing (born 29 June 1970) is an English celebrity chef who is currently Chef-Owner of the one-Michelin-starred restaurant Marcus (formerly Marcus Wareing at the Berkeley) in Knightsbridge. Since 2014, Wareing has been a judge on '' Mast ...
, chef *
Edmund Whittaker Sir Edmund Taylor Whittaker (24 October 1873 – 24 March 1956) was a British mathematician, physicist, and historian of science. Whittaker was a leading mathematical scholar of the early 20th-century who contributed widely to applied mathema ...
, mathematician


Famous animals and entities

*
Red Rum Red Rum (3 May 1965 – 18 October 1995) was a champion Thoroughbred steeplechaser. He achieved an unmatched historic treble when he won the Grand National in 1973, 1974 and 1977, and also came second in the two intervening years, 1975 ...
, record-breaking racehorse and three-time winner of the
Aintree Aintree is a village and civil parish in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton, Merseyside, England. Historically in Lancashire, it lies between Walton and Maghull on the A59 road, north-east of Liverpool city centre, in North West England. I ...
Grand National * ''
Eagle Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, j ...
'', a comic for boys, started in Southport *
Ron Asheton Ronald Franklin Asheton (July 17, 1948 – c. January 6, 2009) was an American musician , who was best known as the guitarist, bassist, and co-songwriter for the rock band the Stooges. He formed the Stooges along with Iggy Pop and his brother, ...
, founder member of
The Stooges The Stooges, originally billed as the Psychedelic Stooges, also known as Iggy and the Stooges, was an American rock band formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1967 by singer Iggy Pop, guitarist Ron Asheton, drummer Scott Asheton, and bassist Da ...
. Decided on a music career after visting The Cavern Club during a stay in Southport.


See also

*
Corgi Motorcycle Co Ltd. The Corgi Motorcycle Co Ltd. was a British motorcycle manufacturer based in Southport that produced 98 cc scooters developed by managing director John Dolphin from the military Welbike motorcycle. Production of the Corgi scooter for the U ...
*
Southport (UK Parliament constituency) Southport is a constituency in Merseyside which has been represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2017 by Damien Moore of the Conservative Party. Boundaries 1885–1918: The Borough of Southport, the Sessional Divisio ...
*
Southport Corporation Tramways Southport Corporation Tramways operated a tramway service in Southport between 1900 and 1934. History In 1896, Southport Corporation purchased the Birkdale and Southport Tramways Company which had operated horse-drawn tramways since 1873. The ...
*
Southport power station Southport power station supplied electricity to the town of Southport and the surrounding area from 1894 to the late 1960s. The power station was built by the Southport Corporation which operated it up to the nationalisation of the British electr ...


References


Further reading

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ''Local Newspapers'', holds newspaper title names from 1750 to 1920.


External links


Official Southport Tourism site

Southport Offshore Rescue Trust
{{authority control Towns in Merseyside Seaside resorts in England Towns and villages in the Metropolitan Borough of Sefton Populated coastal places in Merseyside Beaches of Merseyside Unparished areas in Merseyside