
Excitement is building ahead of The Prince of Wales visiting Morecambe tomorrow (Friday).
Prince Charles will meet with community organisations and local businesses, at both the Winter Gardens and Morecambe Fire Station.
His first stop will be at the Winter Gardens, where, as part of 125th anniversary celebrations, His Royal Highness will tour the venue on Marine Road Central, learning about the extensive restoration it has undergone, before meeting with LiNa Energy, the Eden Project, and Morecambe Bay Foodbank.
The Prince of Wales will be greeted on arrival by Professor Vanessa Toulmin, Chair of the Winter Gardens Preservation Trust. Before His Royal Highness tours The Winter Gardens, The Prince of Wales will meet with staff and volunteers from Morecambe Bay Foodbank, a project founded by local churches and community groups, working together to stop hunger in the local area.
With organist Peter Jepson playing a five-minute melody, His Royal Highness will begin a tour of the Grade II listed building. During the tour, The Prince of Wales will see first-hand, the extensive restoration which The Winter Garden’s has undergone, including tiling by Burmantoft of Leeds.
During His Royal Highness’s tour, The Prince of Wales will meet the Restoration and Maintenance Team, each of whom are working on the building to restore it to its former glory. Following a tour of the Winter Gardens, The Prince of Wales will move into the main auditorium, meeting with local organisations. His Royal Highness will first meet with and receive a presentation from LiNa Energy founders and staff. LiNa is a commercial spin-out of Lancaster University and they are pioneering technology in the creation of sodium-nickel-chloride batteries.
The Prince of Wales will be shown a technical demonstration of how the LiNa battery’s are manufactured with the presentation showing the battery’s sustainability and cost benefits. His Royal Highness will then receive a short presentation from Eden Project North, a project which aims to regenerate the area and bring forward economic opportunities to the region. The Prince of Wales will meet with staff, understanding how they are incorporating new technologies in the creation of the attraction.
Concluding the visit, The Prince of Wales will move to the Royal Box in the auditorium, unveiling a plaque to mark the 125th Anniversary of the Winter Gardens.
Before departing to Lancashire Fire and Rescue service, His Royal Highness will make a short walk to the car, past Brucciani’s famous ice cream shop, a family-owned enterprise which has been making ice cream in Morecambe for over 100 years.
The Prince of Wales will then move on Morecambe Fire Station, on Westgate.
The Prince of Wales will be greeted on arrival by Mr Justin Johnson, Chief Fire Officer, Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service.
Moving inside the building, His Royal Highness will meet with LFRS staff and Prince’s Trust representatives. Proceeding inside the fire station, His Royal Highness will sit down with ten young people who are currently taking part in the Team programme, alongside Team alumni. The young people will explain the various elements of Team, as well as how the programme has helped improve their skills and confidence.
Moving outside, The Prince of Wales will watch a short display which will involve the young people from The Prince’s Trust. His Royal Highness will proceed to the front of the fire station, unveiling a plaque marking the 21st Anniversary of Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service and The Prince’s Trust running the Team programme, before marking the occasion with a photo with the young people and the LFRS team.
Beyond Radio will broadcasting a special programme, live from Morecambe Promenade, tomorrow afternoon between midday and 3pm, hosted by Greg Lambert and Nathan Hill.
There will also be extensive coverage of the visit online at both www.beyondradio.co.uk and via our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram channels, throughout the day.