Blackpool, Lancashire
Simon Hill HonFRPS for The North Revisited
The North
When The Sunday Times Magazine commissioned photojournalist John Bulmer to document life in the industrial centres of the north of England, it was a time when northern society and culture was undergoing a vast transformation. Traditional industries - coal, steel, textiles, engineering - had been the wealth creators of the Industrial Revolution but were now in a rapid and relentless decline. The hard times etched on the faces of Bulmer’s subjects told of a life of struggle framed against an often bleak industrial background. These were people forgotten as the ‘Swinging Sixties’ changed the cultural landscape of Britain.
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On 28 March 1965 the magazine published a Special Issue devoted to ‘The North’ and it was Bulmer’s photographs that appeared on the cover and across 13 pages. Bulmer later reflected on the significance of this Special Issue, “I was very used to working in colour, but also very aware that no serious professional had photographed the industrial North in colour before.”
The Sunday Times Magazine
Special Issue: The North
28 March 1965
The North
by John Bulmer FRPS
Bluecoat Press, 2012
Revisited
Marking the sixtieth anniversary of The Sunday Times Magazine 1965 Special Issue on 'The North', Arts Council England (ACE) has provided the major funding for a year-long project in which editorial and documentary photographer Simon Hill HonFRPS will build on the work of John Bulmer FRPS, whose evocative images of the north of England in the 1960s became a cornerstone of British documentary photography.
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Over the course of the ACE project, Simon Hill will visit the 15 northern towns and cities visited by John Bulmer (shown below in CAPITALS) plus an additional 20 that will provide a more complete photo-documentary coverage of the 'The North', while those shown with an asterisk (*) are additional to the ACE project:
Northumberland Ashington
Tyne & Wear NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE
Durham Durham, HARTLEPOOL, Peterlee / Horden, DAWDON / WALDRIDGE
Cumbria WHITEHAVEN, Barrow in Furness, *Appleby, *Grasmere, *Keswick, *Wasdale
Lancashire Blackpool, Blackburn, Burnley, NELSON, Preston, WARRINGTON
Cheshire *Jodrell Bank
West Yorkshire BRADFORD, LEEDS, HALIFAX, HUDDERSFIELD, Wakefield, *Rothwell, *Gawthorpe, *Hebden Bridge
North Yorkshire *Harrogate, Middlesborough, Scarborough, Whitby, *Appletreewick, *Boulby, *Malham
South Yorkshire BARNSLEY, Doncaster, Rotherham, Sheffield
East Riding of Yorkshire Hull (Kingston upon Hull)
Greater Manchester Bolton, MANCHESTER, OLDHAM, Rochdale, SALFORD, Stockport, Wigan, *Longsight
Merseyside LIVERPOOL
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On completion, The North Revisited will be exhibited in venues across the North of England and the book of the project will be published by Image & Reality as a companion volume to Bulmer's 'The North'.
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Simon Hill working on The North Revisited
Top Preston Middle (upper) Nelson Middle (lower) Barrow-in-Furness Bottom Jodrell Bank
Photographs by R E Hanson ARPS
Photographs
Below are some of the more than 4000 photographs taken during The North Revisited project. As the project evolves, more images will be added while the full portfolio will be published in the book of the project, early in 2026.
Locations shown in CAPITALS were visited by John Bulmer in the 1960s and are now revisited by Simon Hill. Other locations are those included in the Arts Council England (ACE) funded project commission while those shown with an asterisk (*) are additional to the ACE project. Locations are arranged in alphabetical order.
Appleby *
Appleby Horse Fair, one of the oldest and most iconic gatherings of Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller communities in Europe, offers a vivid expression of living tradition and cultural resilience, making it a powerful subject within The North Revisited project. Held annually in the Cumbrian town of Appleby-in-Westmorland, the fair has evolved over the past 60 years from a relatively low-profile, community-focused event into a major public spectacle attracting thousands of visitors, media scrutiny, and at times controversy. Yet at its heart, it remains a celebration of identity, heritage, and continuity amidst social change. Documenting the fair through contemporary photography aligns with the project’s ambition to look beyond surface impressions and engage with the complex, often overlooked realities of northern life, where tradition and transformation exist side by side.
Appletreewick *
Appletreewick, a small village nestled in the Yorkshire Dales, hosts the quirky and much-loved events of ferret racing and terrier racing that capture the eccentric charm and deep-rooted communal spirit of rural northern life; qualities central to the ambition of The North Revisited project. These events, organised by The Craven Arms public house, are more than light-hearted entertainment; they reflect traditions passed down through generations, a sense of humour and resilience, and a collective identity shaped by place and pride. By photographing such intimate, grassroots celebrations, the project aims to highlight the rich textures of northern culture that persist outside the spotlight; authentic, characterful, and defiantly local in a fast-changing world.
Blackpool
Blackpool, with its dazzling lights, amusement arcades, and iconic seafront attractions, remains a symbol of traditional British seaside tourism; yet its glitzy façade masks a deeper narrative of economic decline and social hardship. Once a booming holiday destination for working-class northerners, the town now grapples with some of the highest levels of deprivation in the country, a contrast that underscores the layered complexity of life in the North. The North Revisited seeks to capture this tension, revealing how places like Blackpool embody both the enduring appeal of popular culture and the harsh realities of post-industrial change. By documenting this coexistence of spectacle and struggle, the project offers a more honest, empathetic, and multidimensional portrait of the region.
Boulby Mine *
Boulby Mine, perched on the cliffs of the North Yorkshire coast, carries forward the North’s proud tradition of deep mining while pointing firmly toward the future. Still a working polyhalite and rock salt mine, it descends over 1,100 metres below ground and hosts the Boulby Underground Laboratory - an internationally significant research centre exploring dark matter, astrobiology, and planetary science in a uniquely shielded environment. This remarkable convergence of industrial heritage and scientific innovation speaks directly to the ambition of The North Revisited project to reveal a region shaped by its past but redefined by its capacity for cultural renewal, intellectual ambition, and forward-looking transformation.
Burnley
Burnley, once a thriving cotton-mill town, now ranks among the most deprived areas in England, with over half its neighbourhoods in the worst decile of deprivation and over a third of all children living in poverty. Issues including fuel poverty, low wages, drug and alcohol addiction, and mental health struggles are widespread. At the heart of the community response is Pastor Mick Fleming and Church on the Street (COTS), which began with simple street outreach and has grown into a vital support network offering food, clothing, counselling, recovery programmes, and free funerals. Its work - grounded in compassion and direct action - speaks to the ambition of The North Revisited ... to portray the often-unseen realities of northern life, where hardship is met with dignity, resilience, and hope.
Gawthorpe *
Gawthorpe, a former coal-mining village in West Yorkshire, hosts the World Coal Carrying Championships each Easter Monday, where competitors race over 1km carrying heavy coal sacks - 50 kg for men, 20 kg for women. What began as a pub dare in 1963 has become a celebrated annual event, complete with veterans’ and children’s races, and timed with traditional pigeon-racing clocks. Though the local collieries closed decades ago, the race honours the village’s industrial past, turning physical endurance into a living tribute. For The North Revisited, this event captures how northern communities preserve heritage through tradition, keeping memory and identity alive in the post-industrial landscape.
Horden
Horden, in East Durham, reflects the deep scars left by coal-mine closures; once a thriving pit village, it has faced severe decline since the colliery closed in 1987. With nearly 40 % of residents living in poverty, streets lined with boarded-up homes, and high levels of crime, drug and alcohol addiction, and poor health, the village exemplifies the long-term impact of deindustrialisation. Yet amid the hardship, local initiatives like the Coalfields Regeneration Trust’s Hub House offer crucial support through the provision of mental health services, food pantries, and youth programmes. For The North Revisited, Horden offers a stark but vital subject - revealing both the visible dereliction and the quieter resilience of a community still fighting to have a future.
LEEDS
Leeds, a dynamic and rapidly growing city at the heart of West Yorkshire, today stands as a vibrant symbol of diversity, inclusion, and cultural confidence; nowhere more visible than in its annual Pride event. Leeds Pride, the largest in Yorkshire, transforms the city centre into a joyful celebration of LGBTQ+ identity, drawing tens of thousands of participants and spectators in a show of solidarity that would have been unthinkable in the socially conservative North at the time of John Bulmer's photography. The event speaks powerfully to the social and cultural transformation of the region, reflecting changing attitudes and the embrace of difference as part of a shared civic identity. For The North Revisited, Leeds Pride offers a vivid opportunity to portray a modern North that is not only more diverse and open, but also proud of its progress; celebrating how far it has come and challenging outdated stereotypes of northern life.
Longsight *
Longsight, just south of Manchester city centre, faces entrenched poverty and severe social challenges; almost half of all children live in relative poverty and over two-thirds of households suffer deprivation in at least one dimension, well above city averages. The area grapples with housing insecurity, fuel poverty, overcrowding, damp and substandard private rentals, along with rising crime and public neglect. Amid this hardship, the Ardwick and Longsight Food Bank - run by local volunteers and linked to nearby community churches - provides emergency food parcels and tailored support, serving those who would barely have considered food banks in the 1960s when such infrastructure didn’t even exist. Highlighting this support effort speaks directly to the ambition of The North Revisited, documenting how contemporary northern communities navigate poverty not only through struggle but through new forms of care and collective resilience born in more recent decades.
MANCHESTER
Manchester stands as a powerful symbol of a reimagined northern city: bold, creative, and full of potential. Once a heartland of the Industrial Revolution, it has transformed itself into a centre of innovation, culture, and economic regeneration, with a thriving music and arts scene, world-class universities, and ambitious investment in architecture, media, and technology. While inequality and deprivation still persist in parts of the city, its overall trajectory reflects a confident, outward-looking urban identity that challenges outdated notions of northern decline. The North Revisited highlights Manchester not just as a place of historic significance, but as a living example of the North’s capacity to reinvent itself, energised by diversity, driven by ambition, and reshaping what it means to be a northern city in the 21st century.
NELSON
Nelson, a former Lancashire mill town, is now predominantly home to a British‑Pakistani community, making up over 50% of residents (by the 2021 Census), while the white population has declined to slightly more than 40%, transforming its cultural landscape in ways unimaginable in the 1960s. Once powered by textile factories, Nelson now grapples with economic decline, shop closures, linguistic isolation, and weak town identity despite a £25 million regeneration fund as part of a New Town Deal. Through creative initiatives like the This Is Nelson programme - inviting artists and young people to reimagine public spaces and cultural infrastructure - the town is exploring new ways to reclaim community cohesion and pride. The North Revisited aims to provide a snapshot of this pivotal transition; offering a portrait of a post-industrial North where former mill towns like Nelson are redefining their future through diversity, creativity, and a renewed sense of identity.
OLDHAM
Oldham in the mid-2020s presents a vivid example of a northern town on the cusp of transformation, where the heritage of textile mills meets a bold reinvention rooted in arts, investment, and community. Events like Illuminate Oldham, the borough’s annual light‑trail festival, draw thousands with community-made lantern parades, immersive installations and local performances that celebrate its cultural diversity and forge a renewed sense of civic pride. Meanwhile, under the Building a Better Oldham regeneration programme, the Council is delivering over 2,000 new homes, cultural venues like the restored Coliseum Theatre, new markets such as the Egyptian Room food hall, and 1,000 jobs and apprenticeships tied to redevelopments like Spindles and Northern Roots eco‑park. The North Revisited spotlights these changes - not ignoring persistent inequality, but portraying Oldham as a story of reinvention; a town emerging from industrial decline into a culturally vibrant, economically ambitious future.
Peterlee
Peterlee in County Durham, founded in 1948 as a post-war “New Town”, was named after the miners’ leader Peter Lee, making it the only town in the UK named after a trade unionist. Built to provide better housing for local mining families, Peterlee now faces significant social and economic challenges, including persistent deprivation, underinvestment, and tensions around the use of poor-quality housing for vulnerable groups such as asylum seekers. Yet the town retains a strong sense of identity, expressed through its mining heritage, restored lodge banners, and the modernist Apollo Pavilion by Victor Pasmore, an enduring symbol of post-war optimism. The North Revisited project focuses a lens on Peterlee as a community still navigating the legacy of deindustrialisation while holding on to its working-class pride and cultural resilience.
Preston
Preston, Lancashire, is a city rich in cultural diversity and marked by ongoing social and economic challenges. Once a major industrial centre, it has transformed into a vibrant, multicultural community with a significant South Asian population that shapes its cultural identity. The University of Central Lancashire plays a key role in driving economic growth and cultural development, while initiatives like the Preston Model promote local wealth building through community-focused procurement and cooperative business strategies. Despite these positive developments, areas such as Fishwick continue to face issues including antisocial behaviour and drug use, leading to efforts to improve public safety and community wellbeing. The North Revisited highlights Preston as a city that embraces its historic roots while actively working towards a more inclusive, diverse, and resilient future.
Rothwell
Rothwell, a historic town near Leeds, sits at the heart of the famed West Yorkshire “Rhubarb Triangle” a unique agricultural area renowned for its production of forced rhubarb, a practice dating back to the 19th century. Central to this heritage is the company of E. Oldroyd & Sons Ltd, a family-run business established in 1930, which remains one of the few commercial growers still using traditional methods - cultivating rhubarb in dark, heated forcing sheds and harvesting by candlelight to preserve the plant’s delicate flavour and colour. Once a booming industry that supplied markets across Europe, forced rhubarb production has declined, but in Rothwell it continues to thrive as both a cultural and economic symbol of local pride. The North Revisited project highlights this enduring tradition not only as a story of heritage, but as a remarkable example of rural economic success and regional identity, where time-honoured practices adapt and persist in the face of wider industrial change.
Salford
Salford - within Greater Manchester - is a city of striking contrasts, steeped in working-class heritage yet undergoing significant transformation. Iconic landmarks like the Salford Lads Club, immortalised by The Smiths in the 1980s, speak to its deep cultural roots and enduring identity. Today, major infrastructure investment by Transport for Greater Manchester, including new tram routes and improved connectivity, has helped stimulate economic growth, particularly around MediaCityUK and Salford Quays. Yet many areas of Salford continue to face serious socio-economic challenges, including child poverty, housing insecurity, and limited access to services. The North Revisited project turns its lens on Salford to explore this layered reality - capturing a city where cultural legacy, regeneration, and persistent hardship exist side by side, offering a compelling portrait of the North in flux.
Scarborough
Scarborough, on the North Yorkshire coast, is a town shaped by both its maritime heritage and the shifting fortunes of tourism. Once sustained by a thriving fishing industry, Scarborough has seen that sector drastically reduced, leaving the town increasingly reliant on a seasonal tourist economy that brings bursts of activity but little long-term stability. With high levels of unemployment, underinvestment, and social deprivation in some neighbourhoods, Scarborough faces serious socio-economic challenges. Yet its strong sense of community endures, symbolised by the annual New Year’s Day Swim, where hundreds brave the icy North Sea to raise money for local charities—a moment of generosity and shared spirit amid adversity. The North Revisited project highlights Scarborough as a place of contrasts: a town of beauty and hardship, tradition and resilience, where the realities of coastal life in the modern North are made strikingly visible.
Whitby
Whitby, a striking coastal town in North Yorkshire, is renowned not only for its dramatic cliffs, historic abbey, and maritime heritage, but also for its unexpected status as a hub of Gothic subculture. Inspired in part by Bram Stoker’s Dracula, which was partly set in the town, Whitby now hosts biannual Goth Weekends that draw thousands of visitors dressed in elaborate Victorian and Gothic attire. These events have transformed Whitby into a celebrated destination for alternative culture, blending literary legacy with visual spectacle and community expression. The North Revisited project highlights Whitby as a place where tradition and reinvention coexist; where a post-industrial northern town has embraced a unique cultural identity that both supports the local economy and challenges conventional narratives of northern life.
Photographic Notes
As a homage to Bulmer’s pioneering colour work, The North Revisited is photographed mainly using Phoenix 200, a new colour film designed and manufactured entirely in the north of England by Harman Technology. This 'quirky' and unpredictable colour film - available as a limited edition - provides an analogue aesthetic that simultaneously harmonises with Bulmer's 1960 colour photographs while affording a unique character to this modern interpretation of what has become an iconic photographic legacy.
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The photographs are taken mainly with Contax G2 cameras (using Carl Zeiss 21mm, 28mm, 35mm, 45mm and 90mm lenses) or occasionally with Nikon F6 cameras (using 14mm f2.8, 35mm f1.4, 85mm f/1.4, 16-35mm and 80-200mm lenses). All films are processed by Harman Laboratory and the negatives are converted to digital files using a Fujifilm SP-3000 scanner.
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This Arts Council England project is managed by Harriet Kendal-Greene.
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