Black Country group to tour British seaside exhibition

Life’s A Beach will bring a taste of the British seaside in three caravans, which will go on tour next month.

Perilous donkey rides on the beach and rainy days spent shoving pennies in to the bandits at glitzy arcades, fairground dodgems and cheap kiss me quick hats are all memories from the great British seaside holiday.

They may have been relegated to the bottom of the list thanks to cheap overseas flights but for people born in the 1960s, 70s or 80s, the annual summer getaway to the coast was likely to be their first fleeting glimpse of the delightful seaside.

Now the project by Black Country Touring, in partnership with SO Festival supported by Creative Black Country and Magna Vitae, explores memories of these trips in a brand new show.

Life’s a Beach will feature the stories captured from holidaymakers, residents and day-trippers to the seaside produced from interviews with people of the Black Country and Skegness. Each story will be presented in three specially converted caravans to capture those special memories.

Each caravan has a different theme, with the first transporting those entering to a seafront arcade, with pulsing neon and filled with sounds of the slots and bingo. The caller clad in his Elvis outfit, tells stories of moving to this town “so every day can be a holiday”, whilst his assistant dreams of singing and dazzling the audience with her voice.

Alternatively, people can experience the caravan from hell. The tell-tale signs of the previous visitors are all too obvious and what lurks in the cupboards is anyone’s guess – the seagull with a beak like a razor or the creepy wetsuit that won’t lie down.

Finally, amongst all the grot and the glitz, people can meet the lifeboat crew. This caravan gives people the chance to take their place at the sea’s edge and stare into the oily black water, following the light that searches the sea. Their stories, both funny and tragic, fill the space between.

Frances Land, co-director, said: “We've interviewed a broad range of people from very different backgrounds across the Black Country and Skegness and heard some beautiful, funny, sad and heartwarming stories.

“We have used these to create three very different short performances lasting up to twenty minutes each which will transport our audiences to the wonderful and eccentric world of our British seaside towns.

"The Black Country may be the furthest region from the sea but that doesn't stop thousands packing their picnic baskets as soon as the sun comes out."

The event is being run by Black Country Touring and SO Festival. It will start in Skegness, before going to Bantock House Museum and Park, in Wolverhampton, on July 7, 8 and 9.

It will then go to the Lightwood House and Park, in Bearwood, from July 13 to16. For more information visit the website.