Refurbished Blackpool disco ball could be back by June
and live on Freeview channel 276
Students at Blackpool and the Fylde College along with the council's illuminations team have started to remove and replace the ball's 47,000 mirror tiles.
It is estimated that the ball could be refurbished by June this year and it could take 1,000 tubes of tile adhesive to restore it.
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Hide AdBlackpool School of Arts curriculum manager Andy Walker said: “We’re talking more than 45,000 shiny tiles.
“This isn’t a quick update; it’s going to take weeks to restore our famous mirror ball to its former glory.”
The ball was last refurbished by Blackpool students eleven years ago but the salty sea air has taken its toll since then.
The refurbishment is set to cost £60,000 with the money coming from Blackpool Council's maintenance budget.
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Hide AdCouncillor Gillian Campbell, Blackpool Council’s cabinet member for tourism and culture, said: ”Our natural environment is beautiful but inevitably the sea salt air takes its toll on the mirror tiles over a long period of time."
Inspired by the movie poster for 1969 film 'They Shoot Horses, Don't They?' the ball was created by artist Michael Trainor.