Nostalgia on Tuesday: A spa is born

The new Spa and Gardens, on the south side of Bridlington, were opened on Monday July 27, 1896. Six months earlier the chief feature of the site was the dilapidated remains of a sea wall through which, at high tides, the water found its way on to the waste ground behind.

Whitaker Brothers, of Horsforth, acquired 75 acres of the town’s Hildthorpe estate and eventually decided to convert five acres into the projected Spa promenade and pleasure grounds.

In less than six months the five acres of practically waste land were snatched from the sea and protected by a substantial wall between 500 and 600 yards long. Created to the rear was a fine asphalted promenade extending the whole length with seating for a large number of people. On the shore side of the promenade the grounds, extending a considerable distance inland, were laid out in grassy slopes, ornamental flower beds and winding walks. There was also a lake surrounded by terrace walks and flower beds. At the northern end of the lake was a large and well-furnished concert theatre measuring 105ft by 60ft. At one end was the stage and a gallery ran round three sides. A little distance away was the bandstand surrounded by seating for about 1,200 people. Additional facilities on the Spa included a refreshment room, Oriental cafe, a row of shops, and rustic summer houses.

Amidst indifferent weather on the opening day, the Spa complex was bright and festive, decorated with flags and banners. But, no formal opening took place. Before noon, Herr Meyer W. Lutz’s band played the National anthem and afterwards a selection of music was heard.

In the afternoon the band of the 17th (D.C.O.) Lancers played and in the evening both the Lutz and Lancers’ bands performed. At dusk the grounds were illuminated with upwards of 3,000 fairy lamps, and a magnificent display of fireworks was given by C.T. Brock & Co. of London.

Day tickets for the Spa Gardens and Promenade were 6d each and around 80,000 people visited the area during the opening month.

The number of visitors to Bridlington and the Spa was noted as very large with railway traffic to the town being congested and delayed.

Sadly, on Saturday night October 20, 1906, the concert theatre on the Spa was destroyed by fire. The Bridlington Corporation fire brigade, under Captain G. Rennard was summoned in good time, but nothing could save the theatre. The brigade’s efforts were therefore concentrated on on saving other structures. The damage was estimated at between £4,000 and £5,000.

Rebuilding took place the following year and a new structure, the Opera House and Theatre, was erected. It was opened on July 29 by actress Mrs Beerbohm Tree, the wife of Herbert Beerbohm Tree, the actor and famous impresario. The building was designed by W.S. Walker of Hull and could accommodate 1,400. The building cost between £7,000 and £8,000 and the construction work was carried out by Thomas Spink, of Bridlington.

On Wednesday May 28 1919, Bridlington Town Council passed a resolution to make an application to the Local Government Board for ‘sanction to purchase the Spa complex at a cost of £16,000’.

An ambitious Council project completed on the Spa during July 1926 was the clearance of some of the older features and the construction of a palatial new concert and dance hall, (to be known as the Spa Royal Hall). It was built adjacent to the theatre at a cost of £50,000.

All the speeches that say were full of enthusiasm for the welfare of the Spa complex. In attendance was the Mayor of Scarborough, who emphasised that the impression of rivalry between the two watering places was all wrong: Bridlington’s success was Scarborough’s success. Holliday and Barker Ltd of Hull were the architects for the scheme and Blackmore, Sykes & Co the builders.

At the outset, the sandy soil of the Hall site was insufficiently sound to support the new edifice and three weeks were occupied in driving 150 piles. When completed the new Spa Royal Hall provided a dancing area of nearly 8,000 square feet and could dance 750 couples comfortably. Mr Herman Darewski was the first conductor and his band the first to entertain in the new Hall. During the first week of operation, the building attracted nearly 5,000 dancers, but notices forbid the Charleston.

Bad luck dogged the Spa site once more during the early hours of January 29 1932 when the Spa Royal Hall was destroyed by fire.

Every unit of the Bridlington Fire Brigade turned out – a new motor engine and an old horse steam pump. To attempt to fight the fire with such apparatus was hopeless from the start. Ceres Harper’s Band lost all their instruments in the blaze.

Miraculously, after a relatively short period, the venue reopened on July 29 1932. The Leeds Mercury reported that ‘only by unremitting toil and the most willing co-operation between the different contractors had it been possible in a few weeks to fashion the new building from 250,000 bricks, 5,000 sheets of plate glass and 400 tons of steel’. The building had risen from the ashes at a cost of £45,000’.

In the post war years, the Spa has long been part of the British rock circuit with many act, from the Rolling Stones to Oasis, appearing.

Between 2005 and 2008, the Spa complex closed for extensive renovation, emerging fresh once more.