Whether it be Butlins, Ladbrookes, Pontins or Hoseasons, the lure of spending a week in a caravan or chalet at an English holiday camp has begin to wain over the last couple of decades. The sound of the rain on a caravan roof, or the crap entertainment put on by the coloured coats (red for Butlins, yellow for Hoseasons etc), are lasting in many people’s memories. As a child I have been to many of these holiday camps and had my photo taken with various people dressed up in some innane costume, and I think I have come out relatively unscathed. Speak to anyone about Great Yarmouth and they will talk about the snails in Joyland (a ride for those who haven’t had the pleasure. What a Great (no pun intended) place it was for a child (apart from Jim ‘I’m a cunt’ Davidson buying most of it). Even when I took my daughter it still had the same air of excitement, especially when we won £150 on the bingo in the club (we had managed to blag club passes even though we weren’t stopping there.
However over the years the popularity has diminished, why spend a week in ‘sunny’ Torquay when for the same price, you can have an english breakfast in Marbella. Holiday camps have had to reinvent themselves with the changing times and many offer themed weekends, whether it be a dance weekender (I don’t dance to Techno anymore), to All Tommorow Parties curated an alternative music festival. This all makes practical sense, and I hope it keeps the institution of the Holiday Camps alive.
In a complete radical move Pontins have offered students of Lancashire University to use the holiday camp as a place of residence whilst studying. This would be fantastic, onsite club with entertainment, swimming pool and supermarket all on site. Why would you want to leave! Studying will become one big holiday.
I end with the thought that if there were no holiday camps left, where would the world get its all round entertainers like Bobby Davro and Paul Shane, and also give opportunity to many X Factor failures.
Jason E Cooper 