On this day, the British seaside resort of Blackpool on the Fylde Coast in Lancashire, held its first annual lights festival, known locally as “The Lights” or “The Illuminations“. Originally running for 66 days from late August until early November, in 2020 the period was extended to 100 days in order to cover Christmas and the New Year. While the first display, which preceded the invention of the electric light bulb, consisted of just 8 carbon arc lamps, today the 8 kilometre illuminations which stretch along the Promenade from Starr Gate at the south end of the town to Bispham in the north, use over one million bulbs with LED technology, micro controllers, lasers and video. To comply with modern criteria, only green electricity from renewable resources, comprising wind power, small-scale hydropower and biogas is now used to power the display.
