Town in Lincolnshire, England
Skegness
A grinning fisherman in a poster told Britain that Skegness was 'so bracing', and the town has been selling the North Sea breeze with a smile ever since.
Key information
- County
- Lincolnshire
- Nation
- England
- Known for
- Butlin's first holiday camp, the Jolly Fisherman poster, a pier, a long sandy beach
- Famous people
- Billy Butlin, John Hassall, Earl of Scarbrough
About Skegness
The fisherman who skipped across Britain
In 1908 the Great Northern Railway wanted passengers to ride its trains to the Lincolnshire coast. The artist John Hassall gave them a plump, delighted fisherman in a jersey and sea boots, kicking his heels on the sand, with the line 'Skegness is SO bracing'. It became one of the most famous railway posters ever printed. The Jolly Fisherman is still the town's mascot, and his image turns up on everything from souvenirs to the sides of buildings. The word 'bracing' did a lot of work. It is a polite way of saying that the wind off the North Sea will go straight through your cardigan, and Skegness turned it into a selling point.
An earl, a railway and a brand-new resort
The name is Viking, usually read as 'Skeggi's headland'. For centuries it was a small place, but the railway arrived in 1873 and everything changed. The Earl of Scarbrough owned the land and saw his chance. He planned a tidy new seaside town with broad streets, gardens and a promenade, and Skegness grew quickly as day-trippers poured in from the Midlands. The pier opened in 1881, and the Clock Tower followed in the late 1890s. Both are still landmarks. The railway still runs too: the Poacher Line carries holidaymakers in from Nottingham and Grantham to the end of the track.
Where Butlin's holiday camps began
In 1936 Billy Butlin opened his first holiday camp at Skegness. He popularised an all-inclusive model: one price covered your chalet, your meals and your entertainment, rain or shine. Butlin was born in Cape Town in 1899 and had made his money from fairground rides. His Skegness camp was a hit, and it helped set the pattern for the British holiday camp. When the Second World War began, the camp was taken over by the Royal Navy and renamed HMS Royal Arthur, a training base. Butlin's reopened for holidaymakers after the war, and it is still a big part of the town's summer.
Donkeys, dodgems and 'Skegvegas'
Locals call their town 'Skegvegas', and the affectionate joke makes sense when the amusement arcades light up along the seafront. There are donkey rides on the sand, a pier, and a fairground feel in the high season. The beach is the main draw: a long, wide stretch of sand that goes a long way out when the tide drops. Natureland Seal Sanctuary, which opened in the 1960s, looks after rescued seal pups. The seafront gardens, the Embassy Theatre and the big amusement park up the coast at Ingoldmells all add to the funfair atmosphere.
Seals, sandpipers and a quieter side
A short way south of the amusement arcades, the noise fades. Gibraltar Point is a national nature reserve of dunes, saltmarsh and mudflats, where migrating birds stop to rest and grey seals haul out on the shore. It is a very different side of the same coastline, and many visitors to Skegness never see it. Bring a pair of binoculars, not a bucket and spade. Back in town, Skegness Town Football Club carries the local flag in non-league football.