WITH its breath-taking views across Morecambe Bay, Fred Edmondson's luxurious home certainly occupies one of Heysham's prime locations.

Perched on Heysham Head, formerly a multi-purpose entertainment venue, Fred says he wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

And it's easy to see why. As well as the stunning views, the place has a tranquil beauty. Fred's house, converted from a former stable block, seems a million miles away from the bustle and noise of central Morecambe.

Now aged 81, Fred, a fun-loving man with a twinkle in his eye, still rides his horse at his son Peter's farm and follows the twists and turns in Morecambe's fortunes with a keen interest.

When Heysham Head fell into decline in the 1970s, Fred and Bill Elliot (who lives in Heysham Head Hall) bought it and eventually obtained permission to build private houses on the land. This private estate has an exclusive feel, but Fred remembers a time when the great British public was crawling all over it.

"When the carting world cup was on 10,000 people came," says Fred. "Heysham Head was very, very popular.

"There were amusements, a fabulous concert party three times a day, marionette shows, dancing, a little cafe and a zoo. They used to stamp your hand and you could go down onto the beach at the front of my house. My mother used to always say, 'If your children are at Heysham Head, they're safe'. The decline of Heysham Head started when they closed Heysham Towers holiday camp. Every week from Easter the camp was packed to the brim. Each day 4,000 to 5,000 people walked through the village."

Fred set up his own hugely successful haulage company in 1953 and ever since then the names 'Edmondson' and 'Morecambe' have been spread across Europe on his trucks.

However, Fred was not the first in his family to run a business. His father, Charles Edmondson, was in the antiques trade and the family had various shops in the local area.

"In 1889 my father came on to the slipway at Heysham Village selling shells and fancy goods," says Fred. "Then we had a shop on Main Street – Charles Edmondson and Sons – selling antiques."

Fred's sister Anne worked in the shop from the age of 15 and went on to have her own shop – Anne Tique – on North Road in Lancaster. The family had another shop on Main Street and one on Barrows Lane. His grandma, Elizabeth Edmondson, also had a fish shop outside the Winter Gardens which sold 5,000 oysters in a day during the summer.

Fred cherishes an old photograph from 1937 which features his sister Anne standing outside the shop (in white coat with black sleeves) on Main Street. It reveals just how many interesting little shops there used to be in Heysham.

All manner of antiques, including a sliver platter, gold and silver rings and antique chairs, were displayed outside the shop with no fear of them being taken by thieves.

"We used to live on Longlands Crescent," he says. "Everybody knew everybody. It was a magnificent family village.

"There were six horse-drawn landaus permanently in Heysham Village and a circus came every summer."

When Fred started his haulage company, he often moved people to Morecambe from Bradford and Leeds. "I did a whole house for £14," he remembers.

"On a good day in March 1953, Geoffrey Thompson, the publicity manager of Morecambe and Heysham Corporation, rang me to see if we would work for the corporation and our first task was to move 10,000 deckchairs to 14 sites on Morecambe Promenade, including the band arena.

"We carried on working for them for 12 years. We charged the corporation in the early days for the hire of a van and one man 10 shillings (50p) and the hire of a van and two men was £1 one shilling (£1.05) per hour."

Fred's firm was also contracted to transport all the animals to Morecambe's Marineland attraction in the late 1960s: "They were flown into Manchester Airport. It was like a flying Noah's Ark.

"All the dolphins and turtles were kept moist in the vans. It was quite an operation."

On a recent walk around Heysham Village, Fred made a note of all the old shops he could recall from 1940s and it's quite a list – 42 in total!

He explains: "I thought, I'll walk from where our first shop was and see how many I could remember. It's amazing how many there were."
He started at the corner of Woborrow Road, making his way around the village and down towards Main Street.

His list of businesses included butchers' shops, sweet shops, bakers, ironmongers, a garage, the district bank, plumbers, hairdressers, a wet fish shop, haberdashers, a cake shop, greengrocers, a palmist, chip shop, shoe shop, tea rooms, ice cream shops, a nettle beer shop, the Royal Hotel, an undertaker's and stalls on the slip-way.

The Edmondson family antiques shop was clearly just one business in a thriving community of shops.

"R H Lee built the district bank (a grand and somewhat out-of-place
looking building) in 1905. I think they thought Heysham Port was going to be another Liverpool," says Fred.

"Hadarth's Tea Garden sold fantastic home-made cakes. People used to queue up, just for tea.

"We'd drink Granny Hutchinson's famous nettle beer. Old granny made it with nettles from around the village.

"In those days there was a character called Polly Blake who had a little market garden and a horse called Joe. She used to go down the main street on the horse and down onto the skeer (mussel bed).

"Her hands were like solid rock. She used to rake up the mussels and collect them in all weathers. If it was foggy, her horse knew the route so well that it would go onto the skeer and emerge out of the fog on the slipway with no problems."

He is keen to point out that Heysham Village is still a wonderful place with an array of successful businesses, tea rooms and such like.

As a boy, Fred went to school with Eric Morecambe and he still has fond memories of going to the Odeon Cinema (now First Stop DIY) with him: "In 1937 we used to go to 'The Mickey Mouse Club' at the Odeon.

The manager used to stand outside in hat and tails. Everything was tick tock. The queue used to go right down Kensington Road.

"Before Eric died he came over to Morecambe and his car broke down.
"He came to see us at our old depot at Birketts Place. My son Peter lent him his own Rolls Royce (Eric had a silver one). I've got a lovely photograph of Eric, Peter, Gary and me standing together like old pals.
"Eric was always very funny when he came to see us at Morecambe. He was full of fun all the time. He was a very happy man.

"He died on the stage not long after he'd been to Morecambe."

Fred was also lucky enough to meet the late, great Tommy Cooper: "I sat next to him at The Midland. I could not eat my dinner, I was so full of laughter.

"He was on at The Bowl (where Gala Bingo is now) later on. What a laugh. He got a standing ovation."

Over the years, Fred has bought and sold many of Morecambe's key buildings including The Winter Gardens, the Empire Arcade, the main ICI works at Heysham, the 45 acres ICI site at Pontypool in Wales, the Odeon Cinema, the Briggs building and Coopers Amusements.

Fred's sons now run the haulage business but he still keeps a close eye on things. His children are Julie, Peter, Gary, Tony and Andrew.

He met and married his wife Patricia in Heysham in 1949.

Over the years he also did a lot of auctioneering for The Rainbow Centre in Morecambe and for various other organisations and charities which he was pleased to help.

"I have enjoyed life in Morecambe," he says. "The town is definitely on its way back.

"If the pleasure beach finally makes a decision on the remainder of the Frontierland site, that will make a difference. They have been very loyal to Morecambe.

"Queen Street wants an uplift, but on the whole Morecambe is improving.
"The city council is doing a great job at the sunny slopes and along the seafront. It should be congratulated for this work. Heysham is still a marvellous place."

Fred says he would love to see The Winter Gardens reopened: "It would be superb if they could have a small-scale theatre and some other uses.

My view is that once the tide begins to turn and we get more quality shops there is a huge catchment area of people who could come to Morecambe."

One of the most exciting developments in the Edmondson family business at the moment is that the company is preparing to transport the new furniture for the refurbished Midland Hotel.

Fred says the furniture is "stunning" and believes the reopening of the hotel will be a major turning point for Morecambe.

"As far as Morecambe is concerned, I still think there are opportunities for businesses. Things are looking up for Morecambe.

"I know we may be heading for a small recession but I believe Morecambe will return as one of the North's top seaside resorts.

"Now that I have finished altogether, I would like to thank the Morecambe people and all those hundreds that we have moved in years gone by and supported us in good and difficult times.

"I would like to say how grateful I am that my family is carrying on the old firm."