Patrick Collins (1859 – 1943) was one of five children of Irish parentage who had come to England in the nineteenth century. When he was ten, he and his younger brother John travelled fairs with their father, and he would go on to establish his own fairs in adulthood. By 1882, he ran many of the fairs around Birmingham and the Black Country, where he had settled with his wife, Flora (née) Ross and their children, named in the family tradition, Patrick, and John. He had an interest in cinematography and included bioscopes at his fairs. He later he went on to own 13 cinemas. He was an accomplished and respected showman and served as president of the Showman’s Guild of Great Britain from 1920 until 1929. Later in his life he was involved in politics, firstly as a local councillor for Walsall, before going on to serve as an MP for two years from 1922. He was elected Mayor of Walsall in 1938.
Pat Collins, front left, and his son John, centre in light suit, at the Nottingham Goose Fair of 1936.
Pat was awarded the lease of Pleasure Beach for the 1929 season (take a look at this Blog post for Pleasure Beach History 1909 - 1928 to read how this cam about). His son John went to Great Yarmouth to oversee day-to-day operations, assisted by general manager R. J Minns. John’s first order of business was to obtain a replacement for Iles’ Scenic Railway. In the end, two rides were built at the park; figure-8 roller coaster and a water chute, which both opened in 1929. The figure-8 roller coaster featured single cars which were hauled up a lift-hill to run back down to ground level on track in a figure of eight pattern. It was a side-friction coaster, and the cars had wheels on their sides as well as underneath, and they ran in a trough-shaped wooden track which guided them. These rides were popular at the time, though not in the same league as scenic railways. Only one such ride remains today, and it is the oldest roller coaster in the world – Leap-the-Dips opened in 1902 at Lakemont Park, near Altoona, Pennsylvania, USA. Follow this link for a video of this ride.
The entrance to Pleasure Beach in 1929. This sign was erected at the beginning of the season, and would stand at the entrance for thirty years.
This image, also from 1929, shows a variety of stalls and rides, including The Whip (front centre), Water Chute (background left) and Figure-8 (background right). The general layout of stalls along the left and attractions along the right persists today.
The Figure-8 roller coaster. The shallow drops such rides have are evident in this image. The tall tower to the left is Jack & Jill, which was a slide ride, opened in 1925. This image is from 1930 or 1931.
The Water Chute was rather different to the type which had operated at the park before, for this one featured a large oval track and boats with wheels. The boats were hauled by a chain up an incline, rolled around a bend at the top of the ride, plunged down to ground level through a pool of water to circle back round to the loading area, ready to go again. The concept had been invented by a German showman called Hugo Haase, who premiered it at the International Press Exhibition at Cologne in 1928. In fact, the ride constructed at Pleasure Beach was the same ride that had operated in Cologne, although it would only operate at Pleasure Beach for one season before going to the Collins’ other park at Barry Island for 1930.
View of the park and along the seafront (Winter Gardens and Wellington Pier are in the background at the top of the image) from the top of the Water Chute in 1929.
John installed a miniature railway courtesy of Nigel Parkinson, which opened in 1930. This was a 15” gauge railway, with a rather grand, albeit suitably sized, booking office and two island platforms adjacent to the Jack & Jill ride. The track, just over 500 metres in length, ran south alongside South Beach Parade before looping north near the junction with Main Cross Road, through a short tunnel dug into the sand dunes, and back to the station area. A small steam locomotive called Mighty Atom (later renamed Prince of Wales) was used with coaches based on mainline designs of the era. There was also a diesel-powered train. The railway was short-lived though and it was removed after the 1937 season.
Pleasure Beach during the early 1930s would be recognisable today. A row of stalls along the beach side of the park offered cards, darts and various other games to entice visitors to spend their money. A variety of indoor attractions along the road side of the park provided entertainment, including 'freak shows', which were popular at the time. A Globe of Death, a large spherical cage in which motorcyclists would daringly ride round-and-round, sometimes in pairs, provided a dramatic attraction for visitors, and the development of thrill rides really began to take off during this decade. However, the Collins’ desired something that would really draw crowds. Pat believed the future of amusements lay in, what he called, the big stuff. They looked to the Continent for inspiration and found their answer at the Paris Colonial Exhibition.
Rolling stock on the Miniature Railway.
Crowds gather around one of the 'freak' shows.
A large Scenic Railway had been installed at the Exhibition's amusement park. It was operated by Hugo Haase, who the Collins' had done business with only a few years earlier, when they bought his Water Chute for Pleasure Beach. Pat Collins purchased the ride for Pleasure Beach for £15,000. Whilst the components were being shipped to England, the Figure-8 was dismantled and the site prepared. The park opened for the 1932 season on 14 May, and the Scenic Railway, River Caves, which had come with the Scenic Railway and constructed underneath and around the ride's track, and Water Dodgems, which the Collins had presented at London's Olympia the Christmas before, welcomed their first riders. Unfortunately, the success of the 1932 season was overshadowed by a fire, which destroyed the Noah's Ark ride on 20 September.
The Scenic Railway in 1932, decorated in plaster sculpted to resemble mountainous terrain.
The park opened for the 1939 season on 8 April. The political situation in Europe had been deteriorating for some time, and as the year went on the prospect of war loomed. Visitor numbers declined throughout the summer and in July, Pat asked the Council for permission to open on Sundays during August to boost revenue. The Council declined. Soon after, and until the declaration of war, the town changed to put itself on a war footing. The first evacuees from Thames-side towns arrived from 1 September, on the first leg of their journey into the relative safety of the countryside. Pleasure Beach opened for Easter 1940, but it was soon clear business could not continue. In May, the Council agreed Pat’s offer for 50% takings, and a minimum of £2000 for the duration of the war, in lieu of the usual rent and rates.
Evacuation of the town commenced on 2 June 1940 and the first air raid was just over a month later on 11 July. Great Yarmouth suffered extensive damage at the hands of the Luftwaffe, and between 11 July 1940 and 1 June 1944 nearly a thousand bombs were dropped on the town, and ten times as many incendiary devices. These included four high explosive bombs dropped north of the Pleasure Beach on 7 December 1940 and approximately fifty incendiary devices dropped on South Beach Parade on 21 September 1941. Despite this the Pleasure Beach site, which had been reduced to just the entrance gate, stalls, indoor attractions and Scenic Railway, survived intact.
Sadly, Pat Collins, who had returned home to Bloxwich for the war, died on 9 December 1943. Pat’s death was followed in 1945 by the death of Mr Minns, who had been General Manager at Pleasure Beach for over ten years and had overseen the transition from Iles’ to Collins’ lease and installation of the Scenic Railway.
Many of the showmen who had operated their own rides at the site did not return after the war. John, now head of the Collins family empire, filled the spaces with his own rides and park was reopened for August Bank Holiday in 1945, shortly before the War officially ended. Thrill rides were the order of the day. Their installation at amusement parks during the 1930s was curtailed by the war but by the end of the decade, Pleasure Beach was home to rides such as the Flying Fleas, Moonrocket and Tilt-a-Whirl. Rides such as the Juvenile Big Wheel and Helter Skelter (Slip), provided by the Cole brothers, catered for younger visitors. Kiddies Corner was an area of the park dedicated to more sedate rides for children, with miniature rides and novelty bicycles.
Tilt-a-Whirl in 1948. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
Moonrocket 1948. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
Reohorn's Gallopers in 1948. This may be the first Gallopers to operate at Pleasure Beach. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
Juvenile Big Wheel 1948. This ride stood near the entrance to the park (the tower to the left supports the entrance sign).Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
Cole's Slip is prominent in this view from 1948, which also includes part of Reohorn's Gallopers, the Sky Flyer, and the Water Dodgems (left, background). Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
Aerial view of the park in 1949. Credit: Britainfrom Above.
John sought permission for the park to open on Sundays in 1950, although this was rejected by the Council. He tried again two years later and offered an increase in rent for a new lease of 14 years as well as permission to sell refreshments, sweets and toys. The Council were still not keen on the idea of Sunday opening and when the offer was considered by Council’s Committee, they were so unhappy they recommended Collins be told to remove all attractions from the site when his lease expired on 31 December 1952. Fortunately, relations between John and the Council sweetened, and a revised offer was accepted with only two months left on the lease, although the Council once again declined his request for Sunday opening and for the sale of refreshments. The contentious issue of Sunday opening would rumble on for another year, when finally, in December 1953 permission was granted when the Council bowed to public pressure.
The Strato Globe in 1951. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
This image, also from 1951 shows the Speedway, Flying Fleas, Collins Gallopers and Cole's Slip. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
Collins Gallopers in 1951. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
This is a different set of Collins' Gallopers, at the park in 1953. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
The Rotor in 1953. Image reproduced with permission of the University of Sheffield.
John had recovered the Collins empire following the war, and by this time he also had endeavours at Battersea Fun Fair and Seaburn. His sons John and Patrick had settled in Wales and oversaw the day-to-day operation of their Barry Island amusement park. By the end of 1953 he no longer wanted, or could, commit the time to Pleasure Beach that it needed. He sublet the site to Albert Botton, who was Managing Director of Botton Brothers Ltd, and Albert and his wife Lottie took over day-to-day operation of the park for the 1954 season. This arrangement continued until John's site lease expired at the end of 1958. Botton Brothers was awarded a new lease and John, who had retained ownership of the Scenic Railway, sold it to Botton Brothers and his involvement with Pleasure Beach ended.
Below is brief footage of Pleasure Beach from the early 1950s (it's a compilation of two separate videos) showing various rides and attractions.
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