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New Morecambe benches pay homage to legends of the town

Monday, 15 May 2023 06:34

By Greg Lambert X @greglam72

Tony Vettese from the Old Pier Bookshop tries out one of the new benches in Morecambe

Ten new wooden benches have been installed in central Morecambe paying homage to some of the town's great people and landmarks.

Each bench is engraved with a different piece of information and images about iconic figures and places in Morecambe including the Winter Gardens, the Midland hotel, the birds of Morecambe Bay and Eric Morecambe.

They have been installed on the planters down the business-side of the promenade and on Victoria Street.

Rick Liles, a long-time tree surgeon, was commissioned by Morecambe Business Improvement District (BID) to design and make the benches out of timber that has been sustainably and locally sourced.

Rick set up Woodies Woodland Crafts, Training and Education at Oxcliffe Hill near Overton after coming to Morecambe 10 years ago.

A tree surgeon for 30 years and a volunteer all his life, Rick faced a family tragedy and then needed a triple heart bypass which stopped his tree climbing activity.

He set up Woodies and started working with the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) who started referring adult males to work with him and learn wood crafting skills.

Each bench is made from sustainably-harvested timber and is left with a waney-edge (live edge) on the outward-facing side.

The wood used for the benches is from trees that had been hit by lightning strikes, storm-damaged or had died naturally. The timbers used are Larch, Cedar, Maple, Sycamore and Cherry and each one has a beautiful character and definition.

The benches all have a unique story engraved into them and are intended as educational and informative pieces.

One of the benches is themed on Birds of the Bay.

This bench is dedicated to the Midland Hotel in Morecambe.

Morecambe's great entertainers including Eric Morecambe, Dame Thora Hird, Albert Modley and Victoria Wood (who lived in Morecambe for a time) are commemorated on this bench.

This bench pays homage to Morecambe's Winter Gardens theatre.

This bench is about The Platform venue in Morecambe.

This bench remembers the town's old West End Pier, which was wrecked in a storm in the late '70s.

Rick said: “We only use dead dying and storm damaged trees where we mill the timber and make anything and everything using traditional tools and methods. The lads take home what they make. It’s great to see the benches out in public where a lot of people can appreciate the beauty of wood.”

Ruth Wilkinson, Chair of Morecambe BID, said: “We are very pleased to see this project come to fruition, thanks to the hard work of John O’Neill (BID manager), not only will residents and visitors now have a place to sit, relax and take in our views, but also having such seating allows visitors time to sit down in comfort whilst they decide which of our independent shops and businesses to visit.

"Morecambe BID remains committed to our plan to bring more footfall to Morecambe, and indeed to do this whilst upholding our green values and credentials.”

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