Post by WillowTheWhisp on Nov 1, 2010 0:55:42 GMT
Several weeks ago Coachman and I were in Morecambe for the day and we happened upon the Winter Gardens advertising a live concert for Hallowe'en featuring a Michael Jackson tribute and a Lady Gaga tribute.
Our two girls like Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga and we thought it would be great to attend a concert in the old theatre. When I expressed surprise at the venue the organiser himself informed us that they put on lots of events in the Winter Gardens and they were hoping to make a full day of it and decorate the place appropriately for Hallowe'en.
It sounded great so we booked 4 tickets.
We left details with them of our name and address, phone number, email address and this website. In fact we put a link on here to the organisers' website - that's it "Morecambe Live" up there at the far right. We asked if they would contact us with any future information regarding events at the Winter Gardens as we would like to promote them on here.
Since then we have heard nothing from them but had been looking forward to the concert today.
We decided to make a day of it after church and headed straight up to Lancaster for a lovely meal at the Bamboo Garden - couldn't fault that - and then into Morecambe to check out if anything else was happening at the Winter Gardens before the concert was due to start at 6pm.
We parked on Marine Rd near the Midland and went for a stroll, having a little detour via the market and that new shop which looks very much like Hitchens reincarnated, and on to the Winter Gardens.
Funny we thought, no posters about the concert and it seems awfully quiet for a venue which was supposed to have had something happening there all day. Then we noticed there had been some sort of children's Hallowe'en party this afternoon but the place was all closed up and in darkness with the grill across the front.
We spotted someone just about to leave the shop where we'd booked our tickets and asked her when the concert was due to start (our tickets said 6pm to 10pm). "Oh," she said, "Haven't you been notified? It's not on here. It's been moved to the Trimbell." No we hadn't been notified and we had no idea where the Trimbell was or even what the Trimbell was. She gave us directions.
We got to the Trimbell and discovered it was a sports and social club. We asked about the concert but the person we asked didn't seem to know much about it. It might start at 6pm or it might start at 7pm. They weren't sure.
We decided to come back at 6pm to be on the safe side and went off for a bit more of a wander.
Coming back at 6pm we went into the club, only to have to wait in a shambolic queue for the best part of an hour until someone showed up who was connected with the organising and it did start at 7pm - sort of.
At 7pm we were finaly allowed into the room and could rest our aching feet. Disco music played.................... and played ............................. and played. Then a dance group of local children did a performance, then another dance group of local children did a performance, then another dance group of local children did a performance.
FINALLY the Lady Gaga tribute appeared and did her thing, then we had some more disco music, and some more disco music and at long last the Michael Jackson tribute act at a little after 9pm. He did about an hour which was really all we could have stayed for anyway as we had to get back home in time for youngest daughter to get some sleep as she is up at 5am tomorrow morning.
I just checked the website when we got home at it is STILL advertising the concert as being at the Winter Gardens and starting at 6pm. But for the woman in the shop telling us of the change of venue we would have had absolutely no idea. Not only did they not inform us, they didn't even update their own website with the information or put posters up outside the Winter Gardens telling people of the new location and how to get there.
Mind you, I don't think there would have been anyone much other than us who missed it as everyone else who was there seemed to be there in connection with one or other of the dance groups, or social club regulars.
I suppose the argument for relocating would be that they hadn't sold enough tickets to justify the Winter Gardens - but how do they expect to attract patrons unless they advertise adequately? You have a real job to find specific information and details about concerts on the website and even when you do work out that you need to click on the flipping magazine it gives you incorrect information.
We had been led to believe that the whole point of this concert was to keep the WG active as a concert venue - in that respect it was a miserable failure, as an actual evening's entertainment it wasn't all that brilliant either.
Our two girls like Michael Jackson and Lady Gaga and we thought it would be great to attend a concert in the old theatre. When I expressed surprise at the venue the organiser himself informed us that they put on lots of events in the Winter Gardens and they were hoping to make a full day of it and decorate the place appropriately for Hallowe'en.
It sounded great so we booked 4 tickets.
We left details with them of our name and address, phone number, email address and this website. In fact we put a link on here to the organisers' website - that's it "Morecambe Live" up there at the far right. We asked if they would contact us with any future information regarding events at the Winter Gardens as we would like to promote them on here.
Since then we have heard nothing from them but had been looking forward to the concert today.
We decided to make a day of it after church and headed straight up to Lancaster for a lovely meal at the Bamboo Garden - couldn't fault that - and then into Morecambe to check out if anything else was happening at the Winter Gardens before the concert was due to start at 6pm.
We parked on Marine Rd near the Midland and went for a stroll, having a little detour via the market and that new shop which looks very much like Hitchens reincarnated, and on to the Winter Gardens.
Funny we thought, no posters about the concert and it seems awfully quiet for a venue which was supposed to have had something happening there all day. Then we noticed there had been some sort of children's Hallowe'en party this afternoon but the place was all closed up and in darkness with the grill across the front.
We spotted someone just about to leave the shop where we'd booked our tickets and asked her when the concert was due to start (our tickets said 6pm to 10pm). "Oh," she said, "Haven't you been notified? It's not on here. It's been moved to the Trimbell." No we hadn't been notified and we had no idea where the Trimbell was or even what the Trimbell was. She gave us directions.
We got to the Trimbell and discovered it was a sports and social club. We asked about the concert but the person we asked didn't seem to know much about it. It might start at 6pm or it might start at 7pm. They weren't sure.
We decided to come back at 6pm to be on the safe side and went off for a bit more of a wander.
Coming back at 6pm we went into the club, only to have to wait in a shambolic queue for the best part of an hour until someone showed up who was connected with the organising and it did start at 7pm - sort of.
At 7pm we were finaly allowed into the room and could rest our aching feet. Disco music played.................... and played ............................. and played. Then a dance group of local children did a performance, then another dance group of local children did a performance, then another dance group of local children did a performance.
FINALLY the Lady Gaga tribute appeared and did her thing, then we had some more disco music, and some more disco music and at long last the Michael Jackson tribute act at a little after 9pm. He did about an hour which was really all we could have stayed for anyway as we had to get back home in time for youngest daughter to get some sleep as she is up at 5am tomorrow morning.
I just checked the website when we got home at it is STILL advertising the concert as being at the Winter Gardens and starting at 6pm. But for the woman in the shop telling us of the change of venue we would have had absolutely no idea. Not only did they not inform us, they didn't even update their own website with the information or put posters up outside the Winter Gardens telling people of the new location and how to get there.
Mind you, I don't think there would have been anyone much other than us who missed it as everyone else who was there seemed to be there in connection with one or other of the dance groups, or social club regulars.
I suppose the argument for relocating would be that they hadn't sold enough tickets to justify the Winter Gardens - but how do they expect to attract patrons unless they advertise adequately? You have a real job to find specific information and details about concerts on the website and even when you do work out that you need to click on the flipping magazine it gives you incorrect information.
We had been led to believe that the whole point of this concert was to keep the WG active as a concert venue - in that respect it was a miserable failure, as an actual evening's entertainment it wasn't all that brilliant either.
I had been telling my hubby about the time I was in Morecombe when the Moby Dick and Hotel was hit by lightening and burnt down. My parents, sister and myself had just come off the Moby Dick when lightening stuck