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Events Newquay - A History
Before 1800 the only events and entertainment in Newquay were organised for its tiny population of fisherman, traders and miners. By the end of that century all was about to change.
By 1800 the population had grown to some 1300 people and the simple wooden quay was replaced by the current stone harbour - a hub for tin, fish and agriculture transport. The town grew rapidly and occasional visitors could experience various festivals and live performances that celebrated Newquay's growing wealth and importance. It was the arrival of a passenger rail link in 1876 that was to add a whole new industry - tourism. Below is an early image of Newquay's steam rail link.
With the Victorian era, beach holidays for the wealthy had begun and by the turn of the 19th century several large hotels around the town had been built. Shows, exhibitions and the very staid entertainment wealthy Victorians expected started to take hold. Parades, Punch & Judy shows, live theatre, circuses, animal acts, mimes, 'comic'entertainers, street music and even that new fangled moving pictures thing we now call cinema all entertained these new visitors. A popular activity for the Victorians and Edwardians was Golf. Arguably one of the first spectator 'sports'. Reserved enough to not be too overt or uncooth for the era, it was still competive enough to entertain. Quite the spectator sport for the era and Newquay Golf course, just a few hundred yards from a premier hotel was quite the draw (see below)
Steadily, more of the countries population won the right to holidays and the family beach holiday was born which prompted the building of dozens of hotels of all sizes. By the 1930’s the smaller and less formal Guest House (B&B’s) had now become popular and as so many were visiting Newquay the first Tourist Information Centre was created. The adhoc street entertainment and improvised venues of the Victorian era gave way to theatres, cinemas, showgrounds, hotel entertainment complexes and halls. The era of organised and repeated yearly events had begun. The Victoria, one of several Newquay cinemas that originally showed short films, old silent films and even locally originated home movies started to play play major cinema releases - here is the long gone Victoria Cinema not too far from the location of our modern digital cinema, the Lighthouse.
Post war, Newquay grew and grew adding more hotels & guest houses, self-catering accommodation, holiday parks and every type of the holiday accommodation we all know today. In the 1960’s a new leisure sport from the US came to the UK, surfing, and soon found a home at Newquay. With its ideal surfing beaches and relaxed holiday atmosphere Newquay established itself on the world surfing circuit with the famous Fistral and Watergate beaches. With surfing came music festivals, surf festivals and in turn other sports festivals and music. Live music thrived the 1960's as the cultural revolution soon found a home in the town The modern era of a thriving holiday destination was established and Newquay carved out a more contemporary image than some of the more traditional Cornish towns. Multiple cinemas, theatres and music venues were established and were to serve Newquay for decades to come.
Surfing really caught on in the 1960's with new methods of producing surfboards commercially but was far from the origin of the sport. Many reported seeing people riding the waves in Newquay on flat sheets of wood as early as the 1910's with witnesses to the activity way before then. Whilst stories of wardrobe doors and the like being used these were neither particularly buoyant or stable to stand on. They were likely just improvised bodyboards where the daring brief stood up before falling off. However, his image below from 1929 purports to show an early adopter of what would become the template for the wave cruising longboard. Carved from balsa wood the board would float and carry the weight of the surfer stood up. The modern era of the sport was born.
Surf & Music
Newquay is famous for its sun, sea and sand but also for many - surfing. Throughout the year the town normally hosts many international surfing competitions on both Fistral Beach and Watergate Bay; iconic surfing beaches known the world over for some of the best surf in the UK.
Our surfing competitions are big events but our Music & Surf festivals are even bigger; and none more so than Newquay’s Boardmasters Festival. The prestigious surf competition and a music festival features some of the biggest names in music and is on a scale to rival any festival in the UK.
Just about the Music
Music and festivals have always been a part of Newquay entertainment. The BBC Radio One Roadshows of the 1970’s and 1980’s and ‘Run to the Sun’ (part music festival, part custom carry rally) ran well into the 2000’s. But Newquay is always evolving and when one event fades from favour other events like Tunes in the Dunes, Newquay’s Cornwall Pride and, of course, Boardmasters take their place.
Newquay has always been a destination for all tastes and live music of many types and ageless styles can be sought out. In recent years Newquay Sessions has presented live music of many flavours on the Killacourt in the town centre. Young soloists at the beginning of their careers, established performers and the more traditional sounds like live Silver Bands or country folk singers make a welcome appearance.
A Festival of Fish
Fishing is still a mainstay of our harbour; from the freshest catches for our local restaurants to the fun fishing trips visitors enjoy to land their own suppers. It is no surprise then that Newquay’s Fish Festival is such a key part of the event calendar. Taking over the Harbour in early September it is a mix of stalls featuring locally caught fish and shellfish, local produce, delicious cuisine and many other retailers. The highlights are the ‘how to’ shows by some our most famous regional chefs with the three day event finished by the ‘Last night of the Proms’ featuring the live sounds of a featured silver band. 2021 is unconfirmed as of 29th Jan 2021
Race those boats
Fishing is not the only use of a harbour. In its commercial heyday Newquay was visited by large sailing ships full of cargo. Those ships have long gone but there is one homage to that age that is very much alive – Gig racing. These solid wood, 32 feet (9.8 m) long row boats hark back to the era of those sailing ships visiting Newquay that needed to be expertly piloted into the harbour. It was a competitive business and the skilled Pilot was raced out to the waiting ship on a Gig boat. The first Gig there got their Pilot a job. Jump forward centuries and now teams from all over the county compete in races.
Power!
Power sports in and around Newquay have had some of the most exciting events anywhere. Watch the Zapcats – hugely powerful little twin hulled power boats battle the sea and the waves in an exhilarating battle of horsepower. Competitions like the FWA World Freeride Championships have the best in the world take several 100kg’s of Jetski and give us a show of flips, turns and spirals using the waves like the rises and falls on dirt track BMX course – it’s astounding to watch. In August we have the yearly Harbour Sports day where everything comes together in a one day extravaganza of the sea followed the next day by the RNLI Lifeboat day. Here, one of the most powerful of boats - Newquay Lifeboat - will demonstrate its seagoing prowess and is usually joined by Cornwall’s new rescue helicopter. One of the most impressive of its type on the planet.
It’s not all about the sea. On land another type of powerful engine is inside the cars determined to beat the times at the Watergate Bay Hill climb. Many vehicle types can join in so watching a converted 1970’s Ford Escort, or hot hatch from the 1980’s compete against a bespoke hill climb special or a modern supercar is a delight. There are also a number of car and motorbike shows & rallies throughout the year and at St Mawgan the Steam Rally shows off the heaviest vehicles to ever drive on a road in their classic Traction Engine event.
Colourful Parades
Full of history is Carnival Week ending in the Newquay Grand Carnival parade. Throughout the week activities and events from music to markets are dotted around the town. The final day ends in a Carnival parade. This has had many different incarnations throughout the years, for a while it was part of Newquay 1900 week - when shop staff and business owners dressed as if it were the turn of the 20th Century. Eventually the desire for different themes took hold and the Newquay Carnival week was the new yearly outcome. Usually held in late June, early July it’s a huge feature of the year. Fairly new to Newquay is Cornwall Pride, with stalls and music on the Killacourt and a colourful parade through the town this has quickly become a popular new favourite. Other popular parades through the town include the Zombie Crawl at Halloween and the ever popular Christmas lantern Parade ending in the official light switch on as part of the multi day event of Newquay at Christmas.
Lighting up the Sky
Newquay has no lack of the spectacular throughout the year and its firework display have an extra special feel as they have the back drop of the Harbour and the Atlantic ocean. New Year’s Eve has always been a special time in the town with a long history of visitors in fancy dress seeing in the New Year with our buzzing nightlife all ending in a spectacular midnight firework display over the Harbour. Sadly in 2020 it could not run; however much many of us wanted to celebrate the end of a tough year. Whether we can offer such a celebration at the end of 2021 remains to be seen but keep up to date with all the latest on www.visitnewquay.org or call 01637 854516. November the 5th has recently also become a spectacular firework town event from the Newquay Town Council. There will be every effort made to ensure these spectacles run again in 2021 but being responsible and safe is at the core of the organisers decisions so www.visitnewquay.org will confirm when it can what is happening for 2021.
Drink and be Merry
Cornwall is well known for its small breweries and has always had a long history in the production of Cider and Beers. A warm climate and the resulting sweet fruits make Cornwall an ideal brewing location for some very special ‘Scrumpy’ Ciders and this reflects in September’s Little Orchard Cyder Festival near Newquay at Penhallow. If you also like your ales and beers then Newquay normally has the three day Newquay Bear Festival. A mix of tasting, drinking and music this event has grown and grown over the years. Now featuring over 100 beers and ciders feature with a range of performers it is the perfect mix. Plans are afoot for 2021, and it may take a different form but watch this space. The Smugglers Inn Pie & Ale Festival in May draws the crowds www.visitnewquay.org or 01637 854516