Blackpool Illuminations is one of the UK’s oldest and largest public light festivals. First switched on in 1879, it grew through the twentieth century into a major seasonal draw, built by specialist crews who designed and engineered large tableaux, animated features and lantern-style structures along the promenade. By the early seventies the Illuminations were a mix of electric engineering, hand-painted scenography and popular entertainment, attracting millions of visitors each autumn.

The 1972 Lambton Visual Aids slides sit within that moment. They show a civic spectacle shaped by post-war leisure culture, municipal showmanship and the ongoing push to extend Blackpool’s holiday season. The images capture the festival’s characteristic blend of humour, fantasy and mass appeal, offering a record of how public illumination was used to animate the seafront, boost off-season tourism and project a bright, accessible holiday identity long before LED displays reshaped the event.