IT ALL began almost 150 years ago when Victorian engineer Sir James Brunlees masterminded its construction to complement the elegance of the resort.
One of Southport’s most striking landmarks, the Grade II building achieved listed status in 1976, survived storm damage and fires and has been at the centre of a major campaign.
Southport Pier was opened to the public in 1860 and is one of the oldest surviving examples in Britain, featuring regularly in the top five most visited attractions on Merseyside.
Southport journalist Harold Brough, who has compiled the pier’s history in his publication, What the Butler Saw and All That, said: “Southport’s Pier has a special place in Britain’s seaside history.
“It was the product of the great pier boom of the mid 19th Century, there was a great rivalry between coastal towns and the prosperity and confidence of a town was measured on its pier, fuelled by the railways which would bring people in from industrial towns.”

The former Liverpool Daily Post chief features writer, who has three children and three grandchildren, Charlotte, 10 months, Benjamin, two and Rebecca, five, said: “The superstructure for the country’s first iron pier at Southport was to be supported on cast-iron columns, which were secured in the sand. A hose, connected to the town’s water mains, was connected to gas tubing passing down the columns and the workmen twisted the columns forcing the sand away and the column sank under its own weight.”

After years of hard work, the “greatest and most exciting event ever celebrated in Southport’s history” took place on August 2, 1860.
The 72-year-old said: “Civic pride boomed, of ceremony and celebration. Every shop came to a halt, bands were playing and people gathered to wave flags and sing the national anthem.”
And then came the days of the great stars. The Pier Pavilion opened on New Year’s Day, 1902, – the music hall attracted names such as George Formby and Gracie Fields.
Harold said: “The real star for me was pier diver Professor Bert Powsey, he came top of any outdoor show.”
Beyond the Pier Pavilion, the pier provided a world of kiss-me-quick hats, Punch and Judy shows and slot machines.
Harold’s book covers almost every other aspect of pier history, from the divers to the pleasure steamers and fishing fleets that would tie up at the landmark.
The book also charts the demise of the pier and subsequent resurrection, its current incarnation just scraping through a council debate by one vote.

Harold added: “I think it’s to Southport’s great credit, in an age when budgets are tight with pressing matters, that it found the will and determination to save the pier.”
What the Butler Saw and All That by Harold Brough is priced £9.99 and will be available atWaterstones in Southport, Broadhursts, Christian Book Centre, Wesley Street, Pritchards in Formby, Botanic Gardens Museum and Lord Street’s Tourist Information Centre.

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