Mablethorpe is a

seaside town A seaside resort is a city, resort town, town, village, or hotel that serves as a Resort, vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of an official accreditation based on the satisfaction of certain requi ...

in the

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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

Mablethorpe and Sutton Mablethorpe and Sutton is a civil parish in East Lindsey, Lincolnshire, England. It is on the North Sea coast and includes Mablethorpe, Trusthorpe, Sutton-on-Sea and Sandilands (resort), Sandilands along with the inland village of Thorpe, Lincol ...

, in the

East Lindsey East Lindsey is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Lincolnshire, England. Its council is based in Horncastle and the largest town is Skegness. Other towns include Alford, Lincolnshire, Alford, Burgh le Marsh, Coningsby, L ...

district of

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

, England.OS Explorer map 283:Louth and Mablethorpe: (1:25 000): In 1961 the civil parish had a population of 3,611. On 1 April 1974 the parish was changed to form "Mablethorpe and Sutton". The population including nearby

Sutton-on-Sea Sutton-on-Sea (originally Sutton in the Marsh or Sutton le Marsh) is a seaside town in the civil parish of Mablethorpe and Sutton, in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England, beside a long sandy beach along the Lincolnshire Coast a ...

was 12,531 at the 2011 census and estimated at 12,633 in 2019. The town was visited regularly by

Alfred, Lord Tennyson Alfred Tennyson, 1st Baron Tennyson (; 6 August 1809 – 6 October 1892) was an English poet. He was the Poet Laureate during much of Queen Victoria's reign. In 1829, Tennyson was awarded the Chancellor's Gold Medal at Cambridge for one of ...

, a 19th-century

Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom The British poet laureate is an honorary position appointed by the monarch of the United Kingdom on the advice of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, prime minister. The role does not entail any specific duties, but there is an expectation ...

. Some town features have been named after him, such as Tennyson Road and the now closed Tennyson High School.

History

Roman Empire

A hoard of

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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

treasure was found in Mablethorpe in the 1980s, as were a Roman brooch and pottery.

Mablethorpe Hall

Mablethorpe has existed as a town for many centuries, gaining its market town charter in 1253.

Coastal erosion Coastal erosion is the loss or displacement of land, or the long-term removal of sediment and rocks along the coastline due to the action of Wind wave, waves, Ocean current, currents, tides, wind-driven water, waterborne ice, or other impacts ...

means some of it was lost to the sea in the 1540s. Records of the Fitzwilliam family of Mablethorpe Hall date back to the 14th century. In the 19th century, it was a centre for

ship breaking Ship breaking (also known as ship recycling, ship demolition, ship scrapping, ship dismantling, or ship cracking) is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships either as a source of Interchangeable parts, parts, which can be sol ...

in the winter. Mablethorpe Hall is to the west of the town along Alford Road near the Church of St Mary. The Mablethorpe church parish includes

Trusthorpe Trusthorpe is a small coastal village in the civil parish of Mablethorpe and Sutton, in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It is situated south from Mablethorpe and north from Skegness. About to the west is the Hamlet (place ...

Town lifeboats

Mablethorpe's first lifeboatstation was built in 1883. It was closed temporarily in 1917 due to crew shortages in the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

but the closure was made permanent in 1920. It reopened as an inshore lifeboat station in 1965. It operates two lifeboats, an and a smaller D-class.

East Coast floods

In 1953, Mablethorpe was hit by the disastrous East Coast floods. The seawall was breached on 31 January. A granite rock memorial was unveiled on the coast on 31 January 2013 on the 60th anniversary of the disaster, in memory of the town's 42 victims.

In literature

Mablethorpe is the destination for the fictional Morel family's first holiday in the still popular

D. H. Lawrence David Herbert Lawrence (11 September 1885 – 2 March 1930) was an English novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, literary critic, travel writer, essayist, and painter. His modernist works reflect on modernity, social alienation ...

novel, '' Sons and Lovers'', published in 1913: "At last they got an answer from Mablethorpe, a cottage such as they wished for thirty shillings a week. There was immense jubilation. Paul was wild with joy for his mother's sake. She would have a real holiday now. He and she sat at evening picturing what it would be like. Annie came in, and Leonard, and Alice, and Kitty. There was wild rejoicing and anticipation. Paul told Miriam. She seemed to brood with joy over it. But the Morels' house rang with excitement." Mablethorpe is the seaside setting for the Ted Lewis crime novel ''GBH'', published in 1980. The novel was his last and has been described as a "lost masterwork".

Transport

Mablethorpe and much of east Lincolnshire lost its rail service in 1970 to the

Beeching Axe The Beeching cuts, also colloquially referred to as the Beeching Axe, were a major series of route closures and service changes made as part of the restructuring of the nationalised railway system in Great Britain in the 1960s. They are named ...

, despite its long history. The station site is now the town's sports centre.

Stagecoach A stagecoach (also: stage coach, stage, road coach, ) is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by ...

operate an hourly service to Skegness, as well as a service to Louth and Lincoln. Grayscroft Coaches operates several services from a base in Victoria Road. Brylaine runs a service between Mablethorpe and Alford and

Spilsby Spilsby is a market town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. The town is adjacent to the main A16 road (England), A16, east of Lincoln, Lincolnshire, Lincoln, north-east of Boston ...

, usually every two hours. Lincolnshire County Council operates a demand-responsive CallConnect service linking remoter areas to connection points at Alford, Chapel St Leonards and Mablethorpe for mainline bus services.

Geography

Mablethorpe, in the East Lindsey council district, is administered with Sutton-on-Sea and Trusthorpe as the

. The original parish of Mablethorpe covers a rectangular area inland along Alford Road towards Maltby le Marsh, as far as Grange Leisure Park, where Earl's Bridge crosses West Bank. The south of the former parish follows the Trusthorpe Drains, which are crossed at Bamber's Bridge on ''Mile Lane''. Out towards Alford lies ''Strubby Airfield'', with the Strubby Aviation Club and Lincs Gliding Club. To the north is the large parish of

Theddlethorpe St Helen Theddlethorpe St Helen or East Theddlethorpe is a village and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of the county of Lincolnshire, England. It lies about north of Mablethorpe on the North Sea coast. Some seashore belongs to Saltfleetby-The ...

, which extends to the River Great Eau at

Saltfleetby __NOTOC__ Saltfleetby is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England on the coast of the North Sea, about east from Louth, Lincolnshire, Louth and north from Mablethorpe. The p ...

. The town is the eastern terminus of the A52. The town is also accessed by the A1104 and A16 through Alford. The A157 heads west towards

Louth Louth may refer to: Australia *Hundred of Louth, a cadastral unit in South Australia * Louth, New South Wales, a town * Louth Bay, a bay in South Australia ** Louth Bay, South Australia, a town and locality Canada * Louth, Ontario Ireland * Cou ...

and is said to be the "sixth bendiest A-road in the UK".

Demographics

At the 2021 census, Mablethorpe and Sutton had a population of 12,668.

Commerce

The town's one retail bank branch,

Barclays Barclays PLC (, occasionally ) is a British multinational universal bank, headquartered in London, England. Barclays operates as two divisions, Barclays UK and Barclays International, supported by a service company, Barclays Execution Services ...

, closed in July 2019. There are four supermarkets – a

Co-op A cooperative (also known as co-operative, coöperative, co-op, or coop) is "an autonomous association of persons united voluntarily to meet their common economic, social and cultural needs and aspirations through a jointly owned and democr ...

(which also includes a branch of Boyes),

Lidl Lidl ( ) is a trademark, used by two Germany, German international discount supermarket, discount retailer chain store, chains that operates over 12,600 stores. The ''LD Stiftung'' operates the stores in Germany and the ''Lidl Stiftung & Co. K ...

and from October 2021 the very first

Tesco Tesco plc () is a British multinational groceries and general merchandise retailer headquartered in the United Kingdom at its head offices in Welwyn Garden City, England. The company was founded by Jack Cohen (businessman), Sir Jack Cohen in ...

opened its doors. 'Lord Bros' an independent supermarket on Victoria Road has been open since the early 1960s. Branches of some high street chains are present, but most shops in Mablethorpe are independently operated. Market days vary through the year: Monday (Summer), Thursday (year round).

Leisure

Family attractions include a small

fairground Fairground most typically refers to a permanent space that hosts fairs. Fairground, Fairgrounds, Fair Ground or Fair Grounds may also refer to: Places Canada * Fairground, Ontario, a community United States * Fairground, St. Louis, a neighbo ...

and an award-winning beach with traditional seaside

amusement arcades An amusement arcade, also known as a video arcade, amusements, arcade, or penny arcade (an older term), is a venue where people play arcade games, including arcade video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchand ...

and one of the largest family entertainment centers in England named The Mirage. One of Mablethorpe's long-standing features, its sand train, takes visitors to and from the northern end of the beach. Mablethorpe Seal Sanctuary and Wildlife Centre is also north of the town. A

Time and Tide Bell ''Time and Tide Bell'' is an art project made up of bells, designed by UK sculptor Marcus Vergette and Australian bell designer Neil McLachlan, installed at coastal locations in the UK. The first one was placed at Appledore, Torridge, Appledor ...

installed on the beach near the Seal Sanctuary in 2019 is one of a series around the UK, rung by high tides. Mablethorpe's cinema, the ''Loewen'' in Quebec Road, was previously known as the ''Bijou''. ''The Dunes'' leisure complex lies on Mablethorpe's seafront. The seafront also gained a

skatepark A skatepark, or skate park, is a purpose-built recreational environment made for skateboarding, BMX, Freestyle scootering, scootering, and aggressive inline skating. A skatepark may contain half-pipes, handrails, funboxes, vert ramps, stairw ...

in 2008, which includes a small funbox, a spine and two quarter pipes. Several small

caravan park Caravan or caravans may refer to: Transport and travel * Campervan, a type of vehicle also known as a motor caravan *Caravan (travellers), a group of travellers journeying together **Caravanserai, a place where a caravan could stop * Caravan (tra ...

s and guest houses provide tourist accommodation.

Electric power

Just over a mile north-east of the town, near the Seal Sanctuary, was the now-closed Theddlethorpe Gas Terminal, which supplied 5 per cent of the UK's gas. To the west is the Bambers

wind farm A wind farm, also called a wind park or wind power plant, is a group of wind turbines in the same location used to produce electricity. Wind farms vary in size from a small number of turbines to several hundred wind turbines covering an exten ...

, housing eight

turbines A turbine ( or ) (from the Greek , ''tyrbē'', or Latin ''turbo'', meaning vortex) is a rotary mechanical device that extracts energy from a fluid flow and converts it into useful work. The work produced can be used for generating electrical ...

and producing five MW of power since November 2004. An extension called Bambers II opened in November 2006 and produces an additional five MW of power. The two turbines of Mablethorpe wind farm, which produce 1.2 MW of power, were the first such in Lincolnshire when built in July 2002. All three wind farms are owned by

Ecotricity Ecotricity is a British energy company based in Stroud, Gloucestershire, specialising in selling green energy to consumers that it primarily generates from its 87.2 megawatt wind power portfolio. It is built on the principle of heavily reinvest ...

and stand at the corner of West Bank and the Trusthorpe Drains. Mablethorpe's ''Star of the East'' is on the seafront.

Media

The local weekly

newspapers A newspaper is a Periodical literature, periodical publication containing written News, information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide variety of fields such as poli ...

are the ''Mablethorpe Leader'' and ''The East Lindsey Target''. Local news and television programmes are provided by

BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire BBC Yorkshire and Lincolnshire, sometimes abbreviated to BBC Yorks & Lincs, is the name for the BBC's twelfth English Region, based in Kingston upon Hull and created from the division of the former BBC North region, based in Leeds (now known ...

and

ITV Yorkshire ITV Yorkshire, previously known as Yorkshire Television and commonly referred to as just YTV, is the British television service provided by ITV Broadcasting Limited for the Yorkshire franchise area on the ITV (TV network), ITV network. Until 19 ...

& That’s Tv Humber, Television signals are received from the Belmont TV transmitter. Radio coverage for Mablethorpe is provided by

BBC Radio Lincolnshire BBC Radio Lincolnshire is the Local BBC Radio, BBC's local radio station serving the county of Lincolnshire. It broadcasts on frequency modulation, FM, Digital Audio Broadcasting, DAB, digital TV and via BBC Sounds from studios near Newport Ar ...

and Hits Radio Lincolnshire.

Education

The community's primary school is Mablethorpe Primary Academy School. The Mablethorpe site of Monks' Dyke Tennyson College closed in August 2016.

Events

Mablethorpe hosts a unique beach-hut festival each September. Privately owned beach huts compete in outward design, amidst a backdrop of poetry, music, and drama. Mablethorpe has long hosted motorbike sand racing each winter and spring. This has inspired the Lincolnshire Bike Week, following the Mablethorpe and Sutton-on-Sea Bike Nights.Lincolnshire Bike Week homepage
archived fro
the original
on 4 August 2019. Retrieved 9 April 2022 Each summer Mablethorpe hosts an illuminations event (a "switch on"), for which a celebrity is invited. Those officiating have included

Barbara Windsor Dame Barbara Windsor (born Barbara Ann Deeks; 6 August 193710 December 2020) was an English actress, known for her roles in the Carry On (franchise), ''Carry On'' films and for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC One soap opera ''EastEnders''.

Timmy Mallett Timmy Mallett (born 18 October 1955) is an English television presenter, broadcaster, author and artist. He is known for his striking visual style, colourful glasses and shirts, and a giant pink foam mallet (known as "Mallett's Mallet"), as we ...

and

Wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, includin ...

and Hunter of '' Gladiators''.

References

External links

Mablethorpe and Sutton Town Council

News items

Star of the East in January 2007Bambers Wind Farm opens in November 2004

Video clips

Seal sanctuaryPathe newsreel, 1953, Flood victims evacuated to MablethorpePathe newsreel, 1953, Queen visiting flood victims in Tilbury & MablethorpePathe newsreel, 1955, Duke of Edinburgh visits flood defences
{{authority control Seaside resorts in England Towns in Lincolnshire Populated coastal places in Lincolnshire Former civil parishes in Lincolnshire Beaches of Lincolnshire Wind farms in England East Lindsey District