Blackburn Market continues its festive programme of family activities this weekend with a taste of pastimes past. This Saturday, shoppers are invited to ‘roll up, roll up’ to the Palace of Curiosities, a Dickensian attraction offering all the fun of a travelling fairground sideshow.
Actors in Victorian costume will seek to dazzle and amaze with a collection of artefacts each with a story to tell including the mummified hand of Queen Victoria and the Marcus Island Mermaid.
As well as performances throughout the day there will be free face painting and Christmas crafts for children and a walkabout by the cast of King George’s Hall, ‘Cinderella’. Blackburn Music Society will also be performing between 11am and 1pm in aid of Child Action Northwest. The events are part of a drive to put Blackburn Market at the heart of the community and have already proved popular with shoppers and traders alike. Commercial Manager David Smith said, ‘We’ve been working hard to raise the profile of Blackburn Market since September and already traders have reported an increase in custom from the same time last year.’