BlogPreston

LIVE: Local elections and referendum

Blog Preston will be live from the Guild Hall from start to finish to bring you the very latest news and results from the local elections and referendum.

We were the first news outlet to report the fact that Mark Hendrick had been re-elected in last year’s general election, and we hope to be first again.

An Egg-cellent day in Avenham Park

The people of Preston flocked to Avenham park yesterday to join in the Easter fun, from live music to home cooked Lancashire food, there was something for everyone. The Guild decided to take on the egg rolling event as a Victorian tradition and utilized it through their Victorian style fairground which had a carousel and teacup rides. Horse and carriage rides were also taking place [...]

Meetup planned for Preston photographers

A chance for photographers to come together in the city is being organised for next weekend. The Preston flickr group – which powers the photo boxes on the frontpage of Blog Preston – will be meeting on Sunday 17th April. The group, which gives the chance for anyone to take photos of Preston, is one anyone interested in photography should be part of. Using the [...]

Struggling pubs at risk as beer sales slide

Pulling the perfect pint may soon be a lost art if beer sales continue to slide. The humble pub is losing out to supermarkets who can sell booze cheaply and according to experts at the British Beer and Pub Association, overall beer sales fell by four per cent in 2010. Beer sales in pubs have dropped by more than seven per cent, yet supermarket sales [...]

Lib Dems call for council to be ‘more open’

Two councillors will go before the entire council to urge it to become ‘open and accountable’. John Potter and John Bruton, both Liberal Democrat councillors in Fulwood, have put forward a motion to be debated on Thursday 3 February. At present, residents are not able to air their views at planning meetings, except in written form. “It’s ridiculous, it’s hampering the people of Preston,” Cllr [...]

Slideshow of Snow Photos in Preston

Last night Danny Lee went out and took some photos for Blog Preston of the newly fallen snow. Below are the photos he took combined with some that our Twitter followers sent us.

Student Protests in Town Centre

Students and local people protested in Preston city centre today to urge Liberal Democrat ministers to vote against a rise in tuition fees. Around 100 students from UCLan, representatives of the UNITE union and members of the public gathered together in the flag market. Speeches were made by Michael Palmer, President of UCLan’s Students’ Union, Ben Whitaker from the National Union of Students, and Cllr [...]

Train users can rejoice with caution

Depending on your feelings for the railways, users of train services from Preston will become winners, and almost certainly losers. Behind the scenes a lot has been happening, especially over the last three weeks. The Department for Transport (DfT) have submitted proposals for a new timetable in 2012 for the new yet-to-be-tendered operator of the West Coast Main Line (WCML). Plans are in place for [...]

Photos: Christmas Lights in Preston

X Factor stars Treyc Cohen and Belle Amie took to the stage for the Preston Christmas light switch on yesterday. Real Radio and BID Preston, in conjunction with Preston City Council, worked tirelessly to wow the crowd. Preston locals filled the streets from Fishergate to Friargate to enjoy a mix of local and national talent performing at the Flag Market. Treyc Cohen and Belle Amie [...]

Anarchy at the NUS march in London – A UCLan student’s view

A local student studying in Preston gives his take on the student protests in London earlier this week. While most students were protesting peacefully in Parliament Square, it was a different story at the other end of the parade at Millbank Tower. As I walked down the parade towards the end of the protest, the cheering vanished, the atmosphere changed and things became genuinely scary. [...]

What Victorian Benefactors Did For Preston

The industrial era is one easy to overlook in a provincial context in the face of what I and people of varying ages learnt in school. We are granted a rough idea about how life changed, but my education in the matter was confined to general developments leading up to the years when Victoria was on the throne. But what of the individuals who sought to change Preston for the better?

Preston Photos Digest

As part of one of our ongoing series here at Blog Preston, in which we showcase the very best photographs taken in Preston, here is this week’s offerings! All of these images have been compiled from Flickr, but if you’ve got a photograph that you think deserves to be showcased, get in touch at contactus@blogpreston.co.uk

Old Pubs of Preston – Black Horse and The Academy

Some months ago a pledge to examine various pubs in Preston was made here. This article follows an introductory post which sums up the rich heritage behind Preston’s drinking establishments. Modernity witnesses the country’s pub numbers drop in the face of plummeting sales. This article examines two widely contrasting pubs in Preston’s town centre.