With living not far from Manchester all my life, I was really surprised that I’d never actually heard about this vast, exciting and eccentric place. Belle Vue opened in 1836 and within its heyday, was one of the North’s most popular entertainment centres. Millions of people would travel from all every year over just to visit this gigantic venue.
I didn’t manage
to visit the Chetham's Library collection on Belle Vue due to illness, however I
did attend the lecture and found it very captivating. The sheer magnitude of
the place was something that interested me most, containing a full size zoo,
rollercoasters and rides for all ages and the annual circus to name a few.
A story that
I found particularly enchanting was the first elephant ever acquired at the zoo, Maharajah. The anecdote goes that Maharajah
was to travel by train, however (in myth- potentially accidently on purpose) he
destroyed the train compartment he was due to travel in and consequently had to
travel on foot with his trainer from Edinburgh to Manchester. This was largely
seen as a publicity stunt to gain promotion for Belle Vue. Unfortunately, the
70s saw the decline of Belle Vue and then the closure within 1982.
I don’t believe
that Belle Vue will influence my fairground project by much capacity, however I
really enjoyed listening about this cosmic, exhilarating place.
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