REV RON GREENALL: Getting ready for Easter

My first picture today is not a trick leading up to April Fool's day on April 1.
Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projectorRev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector
Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector
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It is one from you following on the picture I gave you three weeks ago of elephants exercising on Blackpool sands.

This comes from a reader in Whalley and shows them crossing the tramlines in front of the Tower.

Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projectorRev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector
Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector
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The tramlines must be of good steel for I remind you this is not a spoof picture.

My second seasonal picture is of Rivington Pike.

From my days as curate in Adlington, I remember hoards of people coming to the station on Good Friday to hike to the Pike

There were many food stall and even a small fairground set up there.

Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projectorRev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector
Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector

People then returned by droves to Horwich Station for their rail journey back home

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You will recognise my third seasonal picture as that of Scorton Station.

As cubs from Preston, we used Good Friday to get the train here for our hike to Nicky Nook.

Our own supplies of butties and bottles of pop sustained us in those days.

Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projectorRev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector
Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector

We got a child’s single ticket and then walked back to Garstang to catch a bus back to Preston.

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Another thing we did sometimes was to get on the canal towpath on Fylde Road and walk up to get off for Haslam Park.

In those days, the Preston to Kendal Canal started at the basin shown in my fourth shot.

My uncle lived just round the corner from here and I remember it was a real hive of activity – and it is still a hive of activity as UCLan built on that land.

Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projectorRev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector
Rev Ron March 26 elephants crossing the tram lines in Blackpool, Rivington Pike, Scorton Station, Kendal and Preston Canal, toy projector

We did need good shoes for all these walks and activities. I did not realise until recently that it was on March 27, this week in 1790, that the first shoe laces were developed, in fact invented, here in England.

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They provided an alternative to buckles as a means for fastening footwear.

If you are up to date with modern cinema and have seen the film or even the trailer for The Greatest Showman, you will realise that it was in this week in 1881 that the showman P T Barnum joined with his rival James A Bailey to found the famous Barnum and Bailey Circus, purported to be “The Greatest Show on Earth” .

So where you may ask does my last picture today come into this theme?

I had such a projector as a youngster. I got it as an Easter gift when chocolate eggs were still on ration and like gold dust to get. My bedroom had just one small window.

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The old blackout curtain from wartime came in handy when I took on the role of “Slide Showman” for our gang.

Three toffees was the admission fee my mates had to pay me... now it would be four Creme Eggs at least!