Sir Ken Dodd charity to help resort's young people 'reclaim heritage'

Sir Ken Dodd's charity has made a "generous" donation to help young people in a town he held dear "reclaim their rich entertainment heritage", it has been revealed.

The charity set up in the late comic's name will help to fund the Sir Ken Dodd Learning Space at Blackpool's Showtown, which is due to open in 2024.

Sir Ken played many shows in the resort throughout his six decades at the top.

Lady Anne Dodd said Blackpool's people had been very dear to her husband.

The Blackpool Heritage and Museum Trust (BHMT), the charity that will operate the site, said it had received a "huge boost following a generous donation to support the museum's learning facilities".

A representative said Lady Anne recently visited the learning space, which it is hoped will help children "understand the town's founding role in the entertainment industry".

BHMT chief executive Liz Moss said Sir Ken, who died in 2018, was "a huge part of Blackpool's history, so we're delighted to be able to honour his memory in this way".

Lady Anne said she had "very fond memories" of her husband's Blackpool shows and added that he loved performing in the resort.

"From 1962, Ken topped the bill and held the record for six seasons at the Blackpool Opera House with sell-out shows, twice nightly," she said.

A statue of the comic was unveiled at Blackpool's Grand Theatre in 2022.

Sir Ken had supported the campaign to save the venue when it was threatened with closure in the 1970s, performing a string of benefit shows and co-founding the Friends of the Grand Theatre group.

In 2011, he also opened the resort's Comedy Carpet, a section of the promenade where his jokes were laid out alongside those of hundreds of other writers and comedians connected to the town.

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