Volunteers from Heysham power stations held giant octopus tentacles weighing 7kg each in Morecambe Baylight parade

The Heysham power stations were thrilled to support the extravagant parade through sponsorship and by providing volunteers to help operate the giant drumming octopus, which featured in the procession.

The giant octopus’ eight tentacles weighed 7kg each, with three volunteers per tentacle needed to control them.

The ocean-themed parade, which was last seen in Liverpool for Eurovision 2023 also showcased shoals of fish, disco jellyfish and local people in sea creature costumes accompanied by samba band, Samba Espirito and the Baybeat Street Band.

The parade started at the Platform and made its way to the RNLI lifeboat station and back, covering a mile-long route and giving onlookers plenty of opportunities to observe the colourful underwater display.

Ian Pilton, Heysham 1 Acting Station Director, said: “We are thrilled to have supported this vibrant community event and it was incredible to see the magical parade brought to life.

“Baylight’s ambition is to illuminate Morecambe so it was great that the Heysham power stations were able to provide not just the power for the lights, but also some of the people to make the event happen too.”

In addition to the parade, attendees had the opportunity to follow the trail of 12 light-up art installations from the Stone Jetty to Morecambe Town Hall, including a light playground, giant dandelions and the ‘Creatures of the Deep’ display.

Baylight is presented by Morecambe Sparkle CIC after successfully securing funding from the Lancashire Economic Regeneration Group (LERG) for a two year-festival, of which 2024 was the second year.

The event organisers hope that following the festival’s multi-year success, the festival will be able to continue after this initial period.