And it was the year when crowd trouble spilled on the terraces in a Blackpool FC match against Birmingham. A tortoise society was formed too. These rarely seen photos rewind to life in the last year of the 1980s, capturing moments during pivotal change in Blackpool, knocking on the door of a brand new decade.
In case you missed them: 19 of Blackpool's oldest businesses still operating today from Roberts Oyster Rooms to Yorkshire Fisheries
31 nostalgic Blackpool tram photos which slice through history including Coronation Street's famous scene
1. Blackpool, 1989
Birminham City fans went on the rampage in Blackpool, starting at the Dutton Arms South Shore where the landlord and staff locked themselves in a room when rioting fans ransacked the bar
2. Blackpool, 1989
1989 was the year when a huge blaze broke our at Funland Amusements. Firefighters had extinguished the flames in this scene and the devastating damage was clear
3. Blackpool, 1989
Actor Tom Lack recreated the part of Harry Howell in an episode of Crimewatch UK which reconstructed Harry's unsolved murder
4. Blackpool, 1989
1989 was the year holiday company Cosmos launched their flights from Blackpool to Majorca
