IT'S the Year of the Family as the holiday show package for Blackpool's major entertainment venues was unveiled this week.

After the resort reeled last year from bad publicity over drunken stag and hen parties, Leisure Parcs, new owner of the Tower, Opera House and three piers, is aiming to bring back more family-oriented entertainment.

The company announced its summer season shows on Monday (March 22) with the Opera House showcasing a UK premiere pitched firmly at child-power - a £6m production of Goosebumps, a musical adaptation of a top children's TV show about ghosts and spooks, itself based on the bestselling Goosebumps books.

Though no major star has yet been cast, Leisure Parcs says the show is so spectacular it does not need one.

Top billing at North Pier goes to a Stars in their Eyes-type tribute show, Legends, while Central Pier belongs to the Comedy Zone and the Tower Ballroom brings back the big band era.

Leisure Parcs entertainment executive Bob Summers said: "We're basically aiming for the family market - if the children are happy, the mums and dads are happy and hopefully it will attract families to keep coming back, not only from the region but across the country."

It was a first step, he said, in co-ordination with Blackpool Council and other major leisure providers, towards reversing Blackpool's downward slide and restoring its family image.

Blackpool Mayor Henry Mitchell commented: "This is long overdue. I feel Blackpool has to change direction and start looking to the family market. I welcome Leisure Parcs' new policy because for a while I think the mums and dads had been forgotten."

Blackpool tourism chairman Coun Roy Lewis agreed: "This type of entertainment package gives the whole family something to do and it's in line with what the council is trying to promote in attractions like the Kidz Megafest and the Puppet Festival."

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