Illuminations RSS feed for the Illuminations tag
found 15 stories.
News
What's on Walsall 18 Oct 10
Unfortunately you have may seen stories in the press about Walsall Illuminations not taking place this year, this is quite correct…
…and we would like to clarify a little…
News
Bloxidge Tallygraph 5 Sep 10
There may be no Illuminations in Walsall for the foreseeable future, but a Bloxwich couple are proving once again that this ancient Staffordshire village can still hold its own against the big boys ‘up in town’ by providing their own mini-illuminations to raise funds for charity.
The glorious Japanese-themed garden of John and Julie Quinn of 6 Fishley Close, Bloxwich, WS3 3QA is being illuminated to give it an intimate, romantic atmosphere, and the Quinns are throwing it open to the public on the evening of Saturday 11 September between 7-10pm…
Comment
The Plastic Hippo 14 May 10
Those good people at Advantage West Midlands have commissioned a poll to find the most popular tourist attractions in the region. As with all polls, there is a built-in margin of error and this error can be the only explanation as to why the West Midland Safari Park in Bewdley was voted the top attraction instead of the Norfolk Place Engineer’s Canteen in Walsall.
Birmingham might have its Thinktank, Sealife Centre and Kraft World – sorry – Cadbury World, Kidderminster and Bridgenorth might have the Severn Valley Railway, Staffordshire can boast Alton Towers and Drayton Manor, Dudley has a zoo and a living museum and Ironbridge has, well, an iron bridge but these are mere sideshows when compared to the magnificent spectacle of the Walsall Illuminations…
News
Express & Star 10 May 10
Dudley could have its own illuminations-style attraction along roads linking the town’s main attractions if council chiefs take up a suggestion by a local entertainer.
Dudley Council officials say they would be willing to look at the possibility of introducing a scheme similar to the Walsall illuminations…
News
Adam Lumley TheYamYam 18 Jan 10
Lights off, lights on, lights off, lights on again
Leader of Walsall Council, Mike Bird, has announced that the popular illuminations will not be axed after all. This latest council u-turn comes just two days after the news broke of the council’s plans to scrap the annual event.
In an e-mail to all council staff, Councillor Bird claimed that media statements reporting the end of the line for the illuminations were “totally untrue” and “irresponsible”. “Let’s be absolutely clear on this – Walsall Illuminations are not being scrapped,” he said.
“While the Arboretum Restoration Project is underway there will not be an event but we have never said the event is not coming back. To suggest otherwise has caused a great deal of upset within Walsall – as well as further afield.
“No-one is saying that any future events will be an exact replica of what has been done previously but our commitment to the illuminations is clear.”
On Saturday, Cabinet member for Leisure and Culture, Councillor Barry Sanders, said: “The council’s budget is under tremendous pressure and there is no likelihood of the old style illuminations making a reappearance. The days have gone when people wanted to go and see a few flashing lights.
“We are in discussions with several parties over the sale of our old illuminations boards.”
Last week, the council announced that it had secured a £4.7million Heritage Lottery Fund grant to restore the bandstand and boathouse in the Arboretum but still needs to find £2.9million in match funding. The future of the only municipal golf course in the borough is still in doubt as the Grange golf course on the Arboretum extension is likely to be another victim of council cuts.
Speculation is rife that following this latest gaffe, a cabinet re-shuffle is imminent, possibly before the next round of local elections in May. Councillor Sanders represents Paddock ward which contains the Arboretum extension but not the Arboretum itself which lies in St Matthews ward.
News
Express & Star 23 Jan 10
Walsall’s famous Iluminations will be in Bridgnorth for the next two years, it has been revealed. The town had its own mini-illuminations for the first time last year in the grounds of Bridgnorth Castle, borrowing some of Walsall’s lights…
Comment
The Plastic Hippo 22 Jan 10
So we are to be “consulted” on the future of Walsall Illuminations. The on-off saga has become almost stroboscopic and all we need now is a car alarm going off and we have the makings of an illegal rave on the bandstand…
News
Ben Lammas Express & Star 16 Jan 10
Lights to be sold off
The annual tradition at the town’s Arboretum was the biggest lights spectacular outside Blackpool, once attracting 250,000 people from across the Midlands. But now Walsall Council is axing the traditional format completely to save cash…
Comment
Stymaster Pig Blog 16 Jan 10
So then, Walsall Illuminations is no more, and it’s permanent. It’s very true that it did make a loss in recent years but it did at least give Walsall something that all the other towns in the conurbation didn’t have and raise awareness of the Arboretum – which really is a rather nice place…
News
Steve Bradley B’ham Mail 11 Jan 10
To the delight of councillors and campaigners, the Heritage Lottery Fund has approved Walsall Council’s £4.7 million submission to help with a major restoration of one of the Black Country’s premier parks. The overall revamp of Walsall Arboretum will cost £7.6 million with match-funding coming from the council and other sources and is due to be completed by 2013…