New film on Blackpool’s gay history to be screened in resort cinema

Monday, 19 May 2025 16:13

By Richard Hunt

A former Blackpool woman has co-produced a documentary film which charts the rise of the resort’s drag and LGBTQ+ scene and it is to be screened in the town next month.

The film Queering Blackpool has taken university lecturer Helen Eadon-Sinkinson years to research and more than a year to film.

Helen, 47, conducted candid interviews with larger than life characters who helped create the scene in Blackpool, and the film also contains rare footage and show-stopping performances.

The 90-minute film, co-produced with Alexander Blackburn at the University of Chester, is being shown at Blackpool’s Backlot Cinema on Friday June 6, at 5pm, and coincides with the start of the town’s Pride Festival weekend.

Helen interviewed characters such as businessman Basil Newby, the man who established the original Funny Girls and other venues, drag star DJ Zoe, Indiana Aphrodite Isherwood and Shirley Knot, among others.

She said: “It’s a celebration of the scene, the people who were bold enough and dared to start things, and how the torch had been passed to the new generation.

“The film is also a celebration of Blackpool’s history and its working class culture – all the things that have made Blackpool a totally unique place, as well as a queer sanctuary.

“It is such a vibrant scene, and their stories are incredible – funny and at times very moving.”

Helen is not from the LGBTQ+ community herself but is a big supporter of it.

She recalls going out to the old Flamingo Club and the Flying Handbag when she was younger.

She said: “Those clubs felt like safe spaces for young women, they had a totally different atmosphere.”

The film has its genesis in a short film she made for her university course when she was a student, and she was so fascinated by the subject she decided to carry out further research and make a more in-depth documentary.

She wants to praise the Backlot Cinema for the team’s support.

The cinema, built as part of Blackpool’s huge multi-million pound regeneration of Blackpool, is already building on its close links with the community, not only supporting film projects like Helen’s but staging events such as bingo sessions.

There are just a few tickets left for the film, after which there will be a celebration party at Sherlock’s Bar on Queen Street.