My Mum told me years ago that her friend was killed when the figure of eight came off the rails.It was at the Tower Grounds,think that's what it was called!I remember it being a rickety old wooden thing and don't ever remember seeing it running.

It was a Figure eight Roller coaster

http://www.joylandbooks.com/themagiceye/galleries/oldnewbrighton2.htm

Thanks Bert.Do you know anything about the accident?

Can't say i know anything about the accident, maybe paulwirral or Upton may come up with something.

When I was about 8 years old (1967) the lift chain for this ride broke and the roller coaster car run back down the lift slope (there were spring loaded planks on the lift slope that were to slow the car if this happened but these were never designed to hold the weight of the car, just slow it's backward descent). The car passed backwards through the ride load station and through the "Brake Station" (this was a flat beam in the middle of the track designed to slow the car as it entered the ride station when traveling the CORRECT way and could be applied at varying amounts by a "Brake Man" depending on the load in the car). As the car passed through going the wrong way, the guy applied this brake to slow it down and was ejected across his working platform for his troubles! As far as I am aware, he was the only person injured in this incident (not badly) the people in the car suffering only shock (and maybe a few underwear stains)! I am sure this was the rides only incident in it's working life and, as far as I know, it was maintained to a high standard right up until it's final closure due to an arson attack. As a footnote, several people on the ride during this incident were related to the owner of the waxworks in the tower building, one of them was either his Daughter or Granddaughter and another was her cousin (she would be in her early 50s now).

Near the end.

Wow Man I always used to think about that spot when I walked into the Palace in New Brighton, it had the same smell of chips, doughnuts, and hot machine oil ...... this is a great photo for old sad one like myself who fondly remember the old fairground, you haven't got any more have you I'd love to see them.

Can anyone please tell me when the building and all of the rides etc (the actual site, I'm talking about) was cleared? I think I have memories of some of the stuff still being there when I was VERY young but I'm not sure if I've just seen too many pictures. I know the building went up in flames in 1969 when I was less than a year old but there must have been remains for a while after that knowing how slow our council are to sort things out. Ant help will be very gratefully received.

'Any' help I mean of course, my ants are doing just fine!

Good point. I may be totally off beam here but I think the tower building was derelict when it went on fire? Some of the photo's of it being demolished show the boating lake empty and in a sorry state so I doubt that would ever reopen. It is possible that some rides tried to keep going for a while but the end came very quickly after that if they did. The building itself was demolished quite quickly. I watched some of it from New Brighton football ground and was quite fascinated by the crane with the huge wrecking ball bashing it to bits. Took some knocking down though.

Fire was in November 69, this was "Out of Season" for the fairground but the building was in full flow (the Manager and his team locked up as normal that night) As it was out of season, most of the rides were in storage (or in the case of ones privately owned had been returned to the owners winter quarters). The boating lake was emptied every winter (this was detrimental at the time of the fire as the fire brigade could have used the water to help fight the fire when they first arrived).

The Tower Ballroom had the largest "Sprung" Dance floor in Europe. I don't know if it's an Urban Myth or not but I was told that after the fire spread to this (it started in the theater) the fate of the Tower was sealed as the way a dance floor is "Sprung" is to float it in linseed Oil, which, once lit would burn furiously! Can anyone confirm that when they talk about "Sprung" dance floors, this is what they do to make it "Sprung"?

A sprung floor just means it is (usually) a wooden floor that is raised of the solid surface beneath - it doesn't float on a liquid.

Most houses were built this way until fairly recently.

The floor may have been treated with linseed oil but any quantity of this hanging around would overwhelm you, it makes breathing quite heavy.

This is all very interesting (I know that sounds somewhat sarcastic or condecending but I mean it seriously) but can anyone answer my original question? When was the site cleared? Please!

As I understand it, the fire was in the early hours of 5th April 1969, just after the site had opened for Easter. (Easter Sunday was 6th April).


A sprung dance floor is a bit more complicated than this. Traditional sprung floors had steel springs screwed to the ths subfloor at about 18 inch centres. Joists were laid across these springs. A second set of thin joists was laid at on top of and at right angles to the first set. A third set of joists was then laid on top of the second set, parallel to the first set. The dance floor surface was laid on top of this construction. Modern 'basket weave' sprung floors are of similar construction, howevere neoprene pads are used in place of the springs.

Access to the building at the time was extremely easy and believe me it wasn't locked up and secured, especially the doorway to the side by the lake. The lake was emptied some times but not as a matter of course each winter. I worked on it, I know. We sometimes walked on the ice when it was frozen over. If you look at the photographs of the building as they are demolishing it, the lake looks in a very sorry state and I don't think it was going to reopen at all. I am trying to remember but can't say exactly but we made a five aside football pitch in the empty lake knowing full well that it was not going to be used again. I think but am not certain that the tower building was still standing?

I've never heard of any ride in the Tower going into winter quarters. They stayed where they where with possibly the old wall of death going on tour usually to South Africa for the winter but that had long gone by the time of the fire anyway. True some would be covered up or partially dismantled usually for maintenance but I don't ever remember them being taken away and brought back. I will bow to anyones greater knowledge if wrong?

I can not remember anything working once the tower building was demolished but that is not to say that some things might have kept going on the lower level?

As a little aside, when the lake was emptied, poor old Mr Bedson in the tower lodge used to get flooded out.

Mmmm sorry Uptoncx You seem to be right, I got my date from two you tube vids but two others sites say April and (as an independent source) I looked at the fire brigade site and they say:

"On Saturday 5 April, 1969, a call was received at 05.08 am that a fire had erupted at the New Brighton Tower. The night before, the manager and staff had left the building at 8.30 pm after a routine check but the stage area, which is believed to where the fire started, was not included".

That would mean the season was open and as far as I'm aware, the site was still in full use (I know it was the year before and I spent 3 weeks there with my Gran who worked there). So I have no idea why the boating lake wasn't open!

Sorry Croc but I think that the lack of an answer to your question from most people proves that none of us can actually remember when the last of the buildings etc where cleared !!!! So it must have been a while ago but after April 1969!

Finally UptonCx Thanks for the info on the sprung dance floor I always wondered what it meant.

As we all seem to be ignoring Croc's question I've pulled my socks up a bit and had a think about things. The Tower burnt down in 69, most of the buildings (like the stalls, pay booth on the boating lake etc) had well gone when I used to visit New Brighton to watch the stock cars (1974 onwards) (although the old toilet block opposite the boating lake was still there in 1975) The race track and football stadium were still there even after that, with the last stock car meeting being 28th March 1976. A year later I bought a new motorbike, it was on this that I visited the Tower Grounds to watch a huge Ball and Chain machine obliterate the race track and surrounding buildings, as I only had that bike a year I would suggest that the Tower Grounds had been "Landscaped" by 1977/8. Hope that helps?

As a bit of an aside, if you walk along the prom on the inside of the sandstone perimeter wall of the tower grounds, not far from the new building they have built (sewerage related I think)you can see evidence of a fenced area, if you look carefully at this area you can JUST make out a set of steps (they lead up to the skateboard area above). The council smashed these and planted trees in the gaps then fenced the area off to protect the trees) as the cheapest way to clear the last vestiges of the old pleasure gardens. They really were determined that the old fairground would never again raise it's ugly head!