The Famous Accrington Carnival - A History

Since 1959, The Famous Accrington Carnival, as it is known, has been a regular feature in one guise or another. The whole concept was devised long before St John's Ambulance organized that gloriously sunny, well supported extravaganza, which was then known as Accrington's Gala Day.

Back in 1926, funds were needed to build an extension to include nurses living quarters at Accrington Victoria Hospital and a carnival procession was the brainchild of the towns mayor that year; Alderman Charles Wilkinson.

The Accrington Hospital Fete, as the event was to be called, took place August 14th 1926. The procession took a circuitous route through the town, and included local bands, actors from the local Hippodrome Theatre in fancy dress, and about 90 vehicles with various tableaux representing local industry. It was led by the Chief constable, flanked by eight mounted policemen.

Prizes were given at certain points where the procession came to a halt, and setting off from Avenue Parade at 3pm, before taking in Oswaldtwistle and Church, the procession landed at its destination of Oak Hill Park at 5.30pm. The whole town, that night was alive with "young men and maidens in fancy attire parading the streets, or on their way to the carnival dances."

The result was a resounding success and over £1,000 was raised towards the hospital extension fund.

Accrington's people were to take to the streets in carnival attire three more times before the Second World War rudely interrupted the town's celebrations, and the 1950 gala was only the 4th to take place in post war Accrington.

The 1959 event, on June 20 was hailed as the biggest one yet, with crowds exceeding all previous years, and £700 was collected on the route alone. The Accrington Round Table (founded in 1956) would be responsible for the running of the carnival after 1959.

The Gala Day organized by the Round Table - the first without a procession - was held in the grounds of Paddock House Convent School in Oswaldtwistle in August 1960.

This was followed a year later, in the September of 1961, by another Gala Day in the Convent grounds, and again without procession, where the profit almost doubles, by better attendance.

Since then the carnival has been a biennial event, and in 1963 was restored to its former glory, in the shape of a procession, and sideshows in Oak Hill Park. This time, £350 was collected for charity.The next event, in 1965, saw the inception of the Carnival Queen, a tradition which has been continued to this day.

In 1968, the Round Table discussed charging admission at the carnival grounds, as it was becoming more expensive to run the event. These plans were shelved for the 1969 event, largely because the venue was a public park.

This carnival was known as "The Moonshow Carnival" because it took place in the year the first man landed on that satellite.

The 1971 carnival however was the first where the post procession attractions were held at Accrington and Rossendale College's Sandy Lane fields and an admission fee was charged for the first time. It was also the first in over 10 years to be held in June, and both the venue and the month have been unchanged ever since. The proceeds that year were boosted to £1,150, but the entertainment included the Red Devils parachuting in and this proved a big draw.

In 1975, well over £2,000 profit was raised, and the Round Table was able to provide a piece of equipment, for early cancer detection to Accrington Victoria Hospital as well as a minibus for the in skip League of Friends.

Another carnival with a popular theme, was the 1981, "Cartoon Carnival", where many dressed up as cartoon characters, and Worzel Gummage himself popped up, in the shape of the late Jon Pertwee.

Though the Round Table were still staging the biennial, by 1987, their membership was dwindling, and they turned first to Rotoract and then to Accrington Lions with a view to sharing the organization and costs. Rotoract refused, and the Lions were over-committed, so the 1987 event was cancelled

In 1993, the carnival was renamed The Famous Accrington Carnival, and won for the Lions the International Publicity Contest in Phoenix, Arizona, competing against thousands of Lion Clubs throughout the world. This Success was largely due to the initiative of Public Relations Officer Laurie Denton.

Since the Lions took over the carnival, they have hit new heights, as far as money raising is concerned. At one Carnival around £14,000 was made. Among his publicity stunts, Laurie Denton actually persuaded Harold Hardman, then Lions President, to dress up in full tribal attire and do a sun dance in the town center on the Saturday prior to the 1997 carnival. This attracted great crowds and some media interest.

Nowadays, the carnival is run with great attention to detail. The 2007 Carnival was a great success, again raising many thousands for local charities.

So Accrington Lions get ready for their 11th Carnival. There membership has dwindle over the years and they now have ladies who are members but they still need as much help as they can get so if you are interested in helping out just contact us on 0845 833 7386 or email us at accrington_lion@sky.com